Tobacco 01
Tobacco sits right at the bottom of Swiss Arabian Tobacco 01 Eau de Parfum 50ml, which means the fragrance takes its time getting to the thing it is named after.
The opening is fruit and spice together. Plum is dark and slightly stewed, apple crisper and greener, and pink pepper gives both a dry prickle. Then two unusual choices: cumin, which is earthy and faintly sweaty and which some people cannot tolerate at all, and licorice, which is sweet and cool and a little medicinal. It is a bold start and not a safe one. The middle turns resinous and floral. Labdanum is sticky and dark with something leathery in it, amber adds a warm sweet resin, ylang ylang brings a creamy, heady floral weight, and patchouli supplies the damp earth that runs underneath.
The base is generous. Tobacco is the dried leaf rather than smoke, sweet and hay like with a faint sourness to it. Honey thickens it, vanilla rounds it off, sandalwood adds cream and dryness, cashmere gives that soft, slightly powdery woollen texture that modern bases often use, and musk holds it all down. Fifteen materials and a proper arc from bright fruit through resin to a warm, dry finish. At eau de parfum strength it lasts nine or ten hours, projecting firmly in the first two. The 50ml bottle is smaller than the house usually offers, which suits a fragrance this concentrated.
It is aimed at men, reads as unisex in practice, and belongs to cold weather and evenings. Anyone curious about cumin in perfumery should try it before buying. The house itself was founded in 1974 by Hussein Adam Ali, a Yemeni perfumer, and is now run by his sons, who have kept the attar and bakhoor side of the business going alongside the sprays.
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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