10 Comments
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Bill Troop's avatar

Totally fascinating! I wish I had a few drops of it!

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Ame's avatar

If you like Ma Griffe... you will adore Vivre by Molyneux!

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Jamal's avatar

Yes, I like it. It's warmer, with a comparable aldehydic bouquet with a chypre character, though without the top note unique to Ma Griffe.

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Ame's avatar

Agree about the terrific top of Ma Griffe!

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Simone Samba's avatar

Such a coincidence I pulled out my intact vintage Ma Griffe just a couple days ago. It is exactly as you describe it here. It’s biting and sharp but not just in a Galbanum way (which I love) or petigrain way (which I love) but something much more. It is just allllmost astringent in its bite. But that green is so enticing?! And yes, the dry down has a pesticide note for sure. I can’t even explain why I wear it. But I do sparingly as it’s the only bottle of Ma Griffe I have that still knocks my socks off.

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Jamal's avatar

No, the pesticide association is in the top from citronella. If you don't smell citronella immediately, it is not an authentic formula.

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Simone Samba's avatar

I do smell it immediately but for me it doesn’t leave in the dry down. It stays like a strong aftertaste would. If you would like I can send you a sample of mine.

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Bill Troop's avatar

Just a question regarding your mention of asafoetida -- I use a lot of brown hing in my cooking. In perfumery would it be added without heating it first? As heat burns off a lot of the foetid components? I didn't know before reading this that it was used in perfumery.

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Jamal's avatar

Asafoetida refers to an extraction of the resin exuded by the roots of the plant. You can have a resinoid, absolute or oil. I have only smelt the oil. I am not sure which one would be in Ma Griffe. With the oil for example, since it is by steam distillation, heat would be involved.

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Bill Troop's avatar

Most interesting, thanks.

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