Fame Winter Crush Eau de Parfum 80ml

Three materials, and all three of them doing something unexpected: Rabanne Fame Winter Crush Eau de Parfum 80ml is a short composition and it works because of that rather than in spite of it.

Mango leads. It is the ripe, slightly resinous side of the fruit rather than a sweet shop version, thick and golden smelling, and it is the first thing anybody notices. Jasmine follows it and complicates things, since jasmine at any strength carries a heady, faintly animal richness that pulls the fruit away from innocence. Then incense arrives underneath, dry and smoky and a little cold, the smell of a church in January, and that is the material that makes the whole thing seasonal rather than tropical.

There is no slow development to wait for here. What you have after twenty minutes is more or less what you get for the rest of the evening, with the mango receding gradually and the smoke taking a larger share. Anyone expecting a long unfolding composition should know that in advance, because a three material fragrance is a statement, not a story.

As an eau de parfum it has real staying power, several hours of clear presence and a trail that holds in cold air better than it does in heat. It is aimed at women and reads as such, though the incense gives it enough shadow to be worn by anybody who likes the combination.

Rabanne is a French house. Its name comes from the designer Paco Rabanne, who showed his first collection in 1966, and its perfumes were developed by the Spanish group Puig, which created the fragrance division in 1968 and acquired the brand entirely in 1987. The house has since dropped the first name and trades under the surname on its own.