Aperture
Ulrich Lang (2013)

First of all, I am growing so weary of the summer and this unrelenting heat wave we are having here in Massachusetts that I am pining for cooler days and fragrances to wear on such days. Therefore, I am reaching for fragrances this week that I am far too impatient to wait until autumn to enjoy, starting with the unsung animalic, musky, woody, peppery masterpiece that is Aperture.

The opening may prove to be a challenge to any niminy-piminy, priggish type who must have clean and sweet, extra sugar (or Splenda), or two-dimensional woody ambers. No, we have no coumarin here, either. This is pungent, feral, and raw, particularly in its opening, without being overly loud or vertiginous. Black pepper and a mildly (I stress only mildly, not to fear) urinous undertone is accompanied with aldehydes at the top. No you won't smell like pee-pee when you wear this, but it's a facet that comes from the dense cedar, musks, and what could perhaps be Animalis or Shangralide in the composition.

Then the tobacco fades in, blooms, if you will, lending its unctuous voice to the chorus in the heart, buttressed with a jasmine and muguet. Then an ambergris (not ambroxan but a really great replacer of ambergris here) is this cool, almost salty bloom into its dry down. Seldom do I find a fragrance so poetic yet lascivious all at once, it truly is impressive. I agree with Andy the Frenchy that it is reminiscent of Muscs Koublai Khan and Dzing! but I would also add L'Air de Rien for its lived-in quality.

Aperture is for the hardcore fragheads who live for animalic, musky scents and are hungry for a titillating new experience.

Pee. Pungent pee. Pungent pee in filthy public toilet.

That's just what the opening feel like. The rest of it, is not that anti-human, but honestly, with that opening...I don't have the courage to enjoy the rest of it.

A really nice, soft-spoken leather-hued scent. Reminiscent of "S-ex" by Shaping Room in terms of light and bright airiness, but this is a bit "saltier" and simply more wearable for the guys. Nice longevity for such a breezy scent. Beautiful for summer; one of the very best lighter scents in recent memory.

Aperture is a new Ulrich Lang scent that takes some study and listening to its subtle combinations to ascertain what is going on in here. Lots of softness, like baby powder with a light animalic musk note. The combination of these factors: soft powder, amber warmth, indole decay gives an impression of a type of soft leather. An other world eerie feeling comes from aldehydes which are noticeable but are a mismatch with the animalic indolic warm character. After a while I get a sense of green watery sustaining note that is probably a vetiver base layer.

This fragrance surprised me because at first I didn't like it much but it begs a return sniff, over and over again. As it wears down it becomes more enjoyable. It is soft and persistent with a dark side which folds neatly into its powdery nature. I think of other fragrances that have this softness and musk combination, which is hard to pull off successfully; thinking Jicky edp, Mouchoir de Monsieur, Tom of Finland that attempt this kind of contrast of softness and animalics but with more success than Aperture. This is a quirky and oddball combination of notes that if you stay with it becomes compelling and even enjoyable.

I would rate Aperture 3 stars out of 5, downgrading only for its forlorn hard to understand combination of aromas. This fragrance is definitely an outsider in approach but is oddly comfortable to wear once its unique parts are pulled into focus.