Washington Tremlett Clove Absolute: Perfume Review

By Tom For those in the know, Washington Tremlett is the bespoke shirtmaker of choice on Savile Row (wrote the man who still orders his shirts from L. L. Bean). They are also the outfit that invented the modern necktie. Clove Absolute is their newest scent and is as crisply tailored and luxuriously soft as a hand-finished Egyptian cotton shirt. Listed notes are (via Luckyscent) Lemon, Heliotrope, Rose, Incense, Clove Absolute, Patchouli, Vanilla Absolute, Cistus Absolute, and Musk. What isn't listed is immortelle, but if it's not in there then the clove, patch and vanilla serve to do a damned fine imitation. For the phobic this doesn't translate to Sables, who some find life-threateningly cloying- the imitation immortelle along with the thoroughgoing clove just makes one want to lean in and sniff. The clove's aspects go through several stages from sparklingly bright onto doughy followed by sweet to barbershop through to a drydown that's everything you ever wanted a man to smell like. Not that a woman couldn't get away with it or wouldn't want to. I just think it's better given to him as a gift, then filched. $175 for 100ML, at LuckyScent