Masque MilanoWhite WhaleEau de Parfum

Masque Milano – White Whale

IV – IV WHITE WHALE: “Call me Ishmael. Some years ago […] I thought I would sail about a little and see the watery part of the world.” H. Melville.

It belongs to the collection Act.IV – “Act of Dreams.” The fragrances of this house are organized in groups of 4, each one representing an “ACT” in the opera of MASQUE.

“The creation of the fragrance was a journey in itself. See the process described by Christian:

The starting point, and the Centerpiece of the fragrance is Amber Gris. I had worked on an ambergris accord, using some natural ambergris as a target reference while working in the Paris IFF office. I pulled the accord out from my library and was ready/eager to use it in abundance!

The Pequod Ship

During our brainstorming, we clearly envisioned rustic and rough woods. Contrary to smooth and polished, this ship was made to take on hardship. The harshest conditions that weather and the ocean can offer. We used Cedarwood Virginia, Cistus Labdanum, Patchouli LMR, Vetiver LMR, Cypress LMR and Oakmoss.

The Vast Dark Ocean and Salty Sea Ropes

We were careful dosing in the salty seawater nuances. Here’s where we probably went through the largest number of reworks and modifications, in order to reach the right balance with the other elements. Black Pepper LMR to give a cold, fresh airy feeling, combined and amalgamated so well with the salty water notes.

A Candlelight of Contrast

Up until here, the fragrance was telling a story of dark and rugged life at sea. We decided to bring some light and warmth into the picture, countering with softness using Osmanthus LMR and Violet Flower.

The Pages of an Old Book

We wanted to bring that nostalgic and familiar smell using Orris Concrete LMR and Olibanum LMR.

We finalized the pursuit of the mythical white whale with a touch of boozy absinthe for the fellow crewmen before meeting their fate. We used Armoise Heart LMR, which contains a higher concentration of thujone than most armoise extracts.”