Fragrance Notes
Unum Lavs
Filippo Sorcinelli Unum Lavs Extrait de Parfum 100ml is a church in a bottle, and that is not a figure of speech: the man who made it spent years sewing vestments before he ever blended a fragrance.
There is no conventional opening and closing here, just one dense accord that arrives whole. Incense resinoid is the centre of it, cold, dry and resinous, and cardinal incense deepens that with a sweeter, smokier swell. Copal, another resin, adds a bright, almost zesty crackle to the smoke, while opoponax lends a soft balsamic sweetness underneath.
Around them sit the stranger choices. Caraway is sharp, seedy and slightly aniseed, white pepper gives a fine dry prickle, and wool is exactly what it sounds like, a faintly greasy, warm, animal smell that reads like cloth rather than skin. It is the wool that makes this unmistakable. Guaiac wood and oakwood supply the smoke and the dust, guaiac tarry and sweetish, oakwood dry and hollow, and palo santo adds a resinous, slightly sweet haze over the top of them.
Ten materials, all in one tier, and the effect is static rather than evolving, which suits the subject. As an extrait it is enormously long lasting and sits close, so expect it to be on a scarf two days later. It is unisex, it wants cold weather and candlelight, and it is for people who want a fragrance to be atmospheric rather than attractive.
Its maker works from Mondolfo in the Marche as a designer, organist and photographer. He set up the LAVS atelier in 2001 to make liturgical vestments by hand, worked with the Vatican's office for liturgical celebrations, and turned to perfume in 2014 with the first Unum scent as a tribute to that workshop. Church interiors, organ music and Gothic architecture run through everything he has released since.
Please note: images are a guide only. Packaging and bottle design may occasionally differ from those shown due to manufacturer updates or promotions.
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