Cola Noir

Those who follow my work know that I allow my blends to age and iterate over extended periods, until they are truly ready. This slow evolution is precisely why a blend’s idea continues to take shape over time, often growing more refined and sophisticated as it matures.

I felt this composition reached a state of equilibrium—announcing its completeness—once three distinct profiles aligned clearly: tobacco, cola, and musk. Yes, musk.

The fragrance opens with a cola note: vanillic, citrusy, lightly spicy, and fizzy. Unlike the lighter Civet Cola note, this cola was built with a darker profile—red caramel nuances leaning toward a sweeter, denser expression.

Then comes the tobacco. I worked with multiple tobacco types and extraction methods, specifically from both Nicotiana tabacum and Nicotiana rustica, and sourced high-quality Cavendish pipe tobacco leaves to produce a custom tincture. Here, the tobacco gives the impression of caramelized, moist leaves.

As the fragrance moves toward the dry down, Himalayan musk begins to surface. This material was acquired from a master perfumer who prepares his materials using traditional, closely guarded techniques. He rarely—if ever—shares his work, and I am both humbled and deeply grateful for his trust. While this musk will play a more central role in an upcoming musk-focused release, it felt necessary here. I amplified the musk profile with Siberian and Mongolian musk, and refined the base with restrained touches of Vietnamese oud.

I initially considered featuring oud as a main player—particularly Burmese or Nha Trang—but doing so would have pushed the blend into a higher price range than I intended. Instead, I chose to offer these materials as optional additions, should you wish to introduce a more pronounced oudy facet to your bottle.

(Note to self, added during the final stages: I now realize my instinct was quietly guiding me toward introducing an animalic facet into the cola note—much like the impulse that surfaced while working on Civet Cola.)