vetiver insolent miller harris
A spicy and unisex scent from British luxurious perfumers, Miller Harris, which is available in stores from April 2016. Vetiver Insolent has top notes of Italian bergamot, black pepper, Indian cardamom and elemi resin; middle notes of iris, lavender and amber; and base notes of Haitian vetiver, tonka bean and oakmoss. If you’re not into unisex perfumes or prefer something fruitier or more floral, then this is not for you :). But if you’re willing to try out something different, then head down to one of their stores, spritz it on and see what you think.
Vetiver Insolent from Miller Harris with black pepper and vetiver
Mathieu Nardin is the creator of this perfume, who has been involved in creating others for the Editions collection from Miller Harris. I don’t know much about perfumes, and that’s just because I haven’t taken an active interest in learning about them. I didn’t really understand what was meant by top notes, or middle notes, or base notes, but now I have a better understanding thanks to the lovely people at Miller Harris, plus a lovely engraved bottle of Vetiver Insolent.
They talked about something called the perfume pyramid, which I’m not even going to bother to explain because I don’t quite understand it myself, but what I did learn was what top, middle (heart) and base notes are all about…top notes are what you smell first in a perfume, followed by the middle or heart notes which come in the next wave as the perfume settles, and the base notes are what is left behind, you know, the lingering scent that you can still smell the next day.
For me the spicy black pepper and Indian cardamom are what I can smell in the top notes, then I can smell iris, and right at the end, once the perfume has settled, I can smell the Haitian vetiver. I thought vetiver was citrusy but it is in fact a grass so more earthy in smell. It’s definitely a unisex scent, and I like the spiciness of it with undertones of woodiness (is that even a word?!). It smells different on everyone, so you can’t really tell until you spray it on yourself. It has grown on me, as I prefer the base notes to the top notes.
I know Miller Harris for their candles and love them, their scents lasting ages. I hadn’t really considered their perfumes, but will be giving some of their others a try especially from the perfumer’s library, a collection of of five scents to suit different seasons, occasions and moods. I have worn the same perfume for over 15 years so am open to trying something new now, I think.
Have you tried out Miller Harris’ perfumes before?
My name on this bottle of vetiver insolent from Miller Harris