M. Micallef La Seducteur: Perfume Review

"The ship at sea will not resemble merely a ship, but the sea itself, even to its hull and sails being composed of waves" - this is how Foucault describes one of Magritte's most puzzling paintings, La Seducteur. And I might be carrying the analogy too far, but...the greatest seducer would not resemble merely himself, but our dreams, he will be composed of our desires. We dream up into being those whom we cannot resists, and the best of them allow us not to wake from our dreams for a long time...never, if we are lucky. And when I babble so, you know that the review is going to be positive. No, Micallef's La Seducteur is not a surrealist perfume. It resembles its object, it smells obviously seductive...or what I believe IS universally seductive, a suave, sweetly-spicy, husky aroma interspersed with nerve-tingling sparkles of freshness. A surrealist seductive perfume would have to smell...I suppose, of nothing! Of nothingness full of possibilities. It would magically acquire the scent you want it to acquire the moment it hits your nose...For each person, it will be unique. To me, the ultimate seductive scent would be like Gucci Pour Homme and Comme des Garcons Man 2 infused with the cold, sly edible quality of Caron 3eme Homme, the brooding rose of Amouage Lyric Man and quite a lot of oud...and magically, the formidable mixture will be harmonious and not in the least overwhelming... In the absence of such a miraculous fit of chemistry, La Seducteur joins the ranks of the fragrances listed above as one of the most handsome and, yes, seductive masculine perfumes. The initial chilly feel of the composition, which does not completely go away, reminds me of The Third Man. The presence of galbanum, pine, leather and moss, makes the blend appear quite classic. It could have been created in the 1960s, it might be from the beginning of last century, and it is perfectly contemporary now. That is classic. But the most attractive and seductive, to me, is the surprising sweet piquancy of La Seducteur. I was looking in vain in the list of notes for ginger or cardamom, both of which have that honeyed spiciness, and only found nutmeg. Perhaps that's what it is. This is a superbly elegant, polished, impeccably structured creation that I did not expect to find in Micallef's rather uneven line. So what would be the most seductive scent like in YOUR opinion? Do share! M. Micallef La Seducteur is available at Luckyscent, $230.00 for 100ml. The image, La Seducteur by Rene Magritte, is from art.com.