The French brand Essential Parfums has been releasing its extremely popular eau de parfums as extraits for some time now. The label is gradually launching a new intensive version. It all began with Bois Impérial Extrait, which I introduced to you a year ago in my article Bois Impérial, Bois Impérial Extrait and Néroli Botanica by Essential Parfums. Today, we are now turning our attention to The Musc Extrait and Nice Bergamote Extrait, both of which I also liked very much in the eau-de-parfum version.
The Musc Extrait – Cuddle alert
Things are getting cozy, clean and bright with the first fragrance of the day: The Musc Extrait by Essential Parfums is the intensified version of the eau de parfum The Musc. Both creations were penned by Calice Becker, who has given the musk theme a particularly intimate, close-to-the-body note here. She writes about the extrait:
“In this extremely concentrated version of The Musc, I envisioned a deeply sensual embrace. Musc ignites on contact with fiery spices. Its scent becomes more animalic, enhanced by an overdose of Ambrofix. Its caress becomes bolder, shaped in the shadowy swirls of sandalwood and vetiver. A quintessence of desire.” – Calice Becker
The eau de parfum contains the ingredients ginger, lavender, beeswax, musk and sandalwood. Cinnamon, rose, woods, patchouli and ambergris are added to the extrait. They add spicy, floral and balsamic facets to the original composition.
The scent of The Musc Extrait
Lavender, ginger and cinnamon open The Musc Extrait with refreshingly herbaceous and spicy-hot nuances, closely followed by crystalline, cozy musk, soft woods and the smooth, honey-like notes of beeswax. These lend the fragrance a gentle warmth and an almost skin-like texture. Patchouli introduces a creamy, light earthiness – very subtly dosed – while sandalwood provides a lucid, calm woodiness that rounds off the fragrance with velvety accents and gives it depth without weighing it down.
The Musc Extrait is reminiscent of warm skin, closeness and intimacy. It is cozy, comforting and calm, almost like an olfactory retreat. The more intense version is noticeably deeper and denser than the eau de parfum, and in a quiet way also more opulent, without losing the clear, minimalist line of the original. Despite the higher concentration, the fragrance remains clean, transparent and enveloping overall. Perfect for anyone who appreciates soft musky fragrances with skunky accents that fit effortlessly into everyday life and can be worn at any time of year.
Nice Bergamote Extrait – Citrusy cheerfulness
Perfumer Antoine Maisondieu combined the ingredients bergamot, jasmine, ylang-ylang, cedarwood and tonka bean for Nice Bergamote Eau de Parfum, which was launched in 2018. In my review of the fragrance in November 2024, I wrote: “Nice Bergamote is a soft, pleasant and airy hesperide fragrance with subtly tart and tart nuances, but also a delicate sweetness.” Nice Bergamote Extrait also combines the aforementioned ingredients. Bitter orange, pink pepper, black pepper, rose, floral notes, ambergris, musk, sugar and patchouli are also added. Antoine Maisondieu has therefore gone all out, which is quite understandable when you read his inspiration: “For this intensely concentrated version of Nice Bergamote, I wanted to capture the essence of a summer night in the Mediterranean.”
Citrus fruits, wherever the nose sniffs
Nice Bergamote Extrait starts with a lush load of the finest citrus fruits – tart, tangy, sparkling, wonderfully summery. From the outset, these are accompanied by lucid florals and creamy, woody facets, resulting in a gentle, minimalist and very relaxed hesperide fragrance that is optimistic, sunny and full of joie de vivre, yet at the same time so pleasant, casual and carefree. Like a walk through a Mediterranean garden full of blossoming citrus trees, the air impregnated with the scent of flowers and warmed by the sun. The pepper sets fresh, subtly spicy accents, accompanied by nectar-sweet rose and velvety ambergris, which lends the creation a certain warmth. The composition gradually fades out with citrusy-fruity and clean-woody nuances that are close to the skin.
Like the eau de parfum, Nice Bergamote Extrait is a sunny, summery and calm Hesperides creation that puts you in a good mood as soon as you spray it on. The warmth and comfort that the extrait de parfum radiates makes it a seasonal all-rounder for me, even if I tend to see the fragrance more in spring and summer. I would classify the presence as medium, the longevity is very good – especially for a hesperide composition. Perfect for anyone who likes calm and relaxed citrus fragrances with a clean, bright and soft base.
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