by: Juliett Ptoyan
The Swedes from Agonist, continuing to exploit the topic of their native land, presented a new fragrance inspired by the beauty of the northern winter at the last Pitti Fragranze event.
According to the brand's representatives, Blue North tells a story about a trip into the endless blue sky and about the earth touched by nature with the first frost, when everybody opens their windows, even if it is cold, and sleeps under a thin duvet. The fragrance is meant to evoke the feeling of awakening in the dark early morning when your body still sleeps but your mind is already fresh. Unlike most perfume stories, this one is really nice and doesn’t seem to be contrived: all in all, a winter night's dream isn’t a far-away tale, but an experience many of us have had.
In the beginning, it is like an explosion of aerosol shaving foam: a bit harsh, extremely fresh, definitely masculine, and what's more – airy and creamy. It even has a similar texture: it feels like it would subside if you touch it. Then, some green rosemary thorns, almost completely cleared of dry wood material, start to appear through the foam, tickling your nose – they fall into pieces, forming a rough layer on your skin.
That’s the end of the the “winter” part, after which rosemary takes up an amazing confectionary accord – light and rough because of a dried ginger note, but more solid, resembling an exotic pudding, decorated with an oily vanilla pod. This contrast conveys the whole meaning of the fragrance: it is cold and warm, dark and light at the same time. And if the mint-rosemary part is a dream with an open window (unfit and uncomfortable for some people), the second, airy-vanillic one, is a comfort zone, a thin duvet which you might find in any Ikea store using the code word HÖNSBÄR.
As for me, Blue North is a good idea for autumn and winter mornings: if you put it on after a shower, you can "switch yourself on" a lot faster and somehow smooth out the wrinkles of the early hours. All in all, a cold car, a traffic jam and the necessity of putting on tons of outerwear would bother you less.
Blue North will hit the stores in November and will be available in bottles of 50 ml as Eau de Parfum. .
