Blu Mediterraneo : Fico di Amalfi
Acqua di Parma (2006)

A case study for how green sulfurous notes can be successfully handled to provide a refreshing and tantalizing effect. Generally speaking, this doesn’t happen. Grapefruit and the bitter green acrid facet of figs usually feel like the equivalent of inhaling chemically sour sandpaper. In Fico the grapefruit top is very well rounded by the juices and zest of other hesperidics, providing a smoothing dimension to its sour and sulfuric qualities. The contrast gives the grapefruit an underripe and green quality. Bracing and refreshing. The same trick of contrasts is presented in the heart with the fig accord. Obviously fig has a fruity aroma, usually sweet, a touch watery, creamy and honeyed, and sometimes a touch earthy. Then there is the other side of the fig accord which is a piquant torn-green-leaf type note, i.e. green and sulfurous. The contrasts here are a waxy fruity peppercorn and the citrusy green white floral note of jasmine. Still bracing and refreshing, now well rounded and less sharp than the opening, and if you were to give a very quick sniff of the top and the heart without taking note of the transition you would get the impression that the top is still going; these layers have remarkable continuity and cohesion. The base layer keeps to the brief as well by using the fruity side of fig to accent a very peppery cedar and floral soap musk combo. This isn't as perfectly impressionistic as the top or the heart but it serves the brief very well.

Simple. Stupidly simple actually. But it works so well that you find yourself asking “why isn’t this done more often?” - or at least I ask myself that. But then Acqua di Parma have been masters of the “cologne” family of the perfume kingdom for more than a century, so perhaps I should give them credit and acknowledge - fully and without question, by the way - that they know what they’re doing. Fico di Amalfi is a summer staple for me. It’s simple but very good from start to finish, I can spray it on me and forget about it or choose to spend some time on it for study and be very happy either way. Excellent.

Restrained almost astringent fragrance. Works well when temperature soars then it reminds me of summer walks in Italy in mid afternoon. A million miles from the popular generic fragrances on sale on the High street

This is much more a "fig leaf" scent than a "fig" scent. Like you snapped a leaf in half and sniffed the juice inside. But just like a leaf, the aroma does not stick around forever, and it doesn't evolve any further, just fades away. In that sense, if you're looking for photorealism, even with the negatives, this is the fig leaf you're looking for.

I got this on a weekend spent in multiple garden departments of big box stores, stressed out of my mind, snapping and smelling leaves to keep me sane. FdA made me feel like I never left, for better or for worse.

Purchased from discounters, Fico di Amalfi can be defended as a good bargain, but only up to a point. This creamy, clean, citrus-musk with a hint of lactonic fig isn't unpleasant, but there's not much to it.

The "fig fragrance" genre has been done with more creativity and depth in the designer realm (Salvatore Ferragamo, Marc Jacobs) and in the niche realm (L'Artisan, Diptyque).

Alchymia. Perfumare. Magnum Opus.

Attempt at honest fig deteriorates into soapy aggression

Jumping in on this perfume in a little unusual and impromptu manner for me, but here we go.

My last contact with “Fico di Amalfi” was some 5-6 years ago, when I didn’t like it. Being constantly hunting for new aromas, it felt very convenient to give Acqua di Parma another go, given they are now offered in a nearby mainstream perfumery store (Acqua di Parma doesn’t seem to be claiming the niche anymore, it seems). And what better option than one of their most celebrated scents, especially since I love the fig note and, at the same time, am not completely pleased with it in the fig perfumes I have tried (with “Philosykos” being closest to my happiness with fig).

It took me four times to finally arrive at a conclusion about this perfume which, after some drama, ends up as a strained neutral. I am so on edge with fig formulas that deconstruct into the juicy-sweety sticky-cocoa milky synthetic, that I expected the same here. And since I couldn’t find this problem with “Fico di Amalfi”, I think it blinded me and put me under spell for quite some time, before I woke up to the overall reality of this scent.

I am not saying that there is no sweetness in this perfume. There is, but it is not bonded to the fig, but to the nasty chemical skeleton, which I was expecting to emerge from the base. This was my second biggest concern apart from the quality of the fig. And this is where I got it wrong the first two times, since I remained fixated on that dry and semi-stringent, leaning even towards smoky and bitter, note of the fig tree (not the heavier milky and sweet one), which is undoubtedly the best part of “Fico di Amalfi”. But come the third time and I came to my senses and the heavy chemical sweet soapiness did fiercely pierce through the façade. The fourth time I just wanted to confirm if I got it right the third one – which I did.

Another controversy surrounding “Fico di Amalfi” that has to be addressed is the hesperidic notes in the opening. I would be more than eager to smell a Mediterranean Garden type of fig in a bouquet of citruses and spices. So, this gets my appreciation. The execution, however, is poor and those notes don’t blend well with the rest of the composition.

As a whole, the fragrance is gentle and stays close to the skin for a good 2+ hours. It comes at an affordable price; and is honest in not pretending to be a masterpiece or using some exquisite/fancy materials.

So, let’s sum up. The positives of “Fico di Amalfi”:
- Dry fig.
- Attempt to incorporate hesperidic notes.
- Not pretentious.
The negatives:
- The fig is quickly overtaken by an uncompromising synthetic sweet soapiness.
- The hesperidic notes are poorly blended and distort the formula instead of enriching it.

That sweet soapiness is so aggressive and fast to appear that giving “Fico di Amalfi” a neutral feels a bit too lenient to be honest. But a negative also feels too harsh and insincere in relation to my initial excitement about this fragrance.

I am glad I finally discarded this scent and spared the torture on my budget, which is so abused by my perfumery escapades anyway. And when the best a house has to offer is this, I don’t think I am inclined to revisit it again (considering I did that some years ago with few of Acqua di Parma’s creations), especially since there so many enticing and exciting perfumes waiting to be explored and communicated with.

Acqua di Parma, Blu Mediterraneo: Fico di Amalfi:
Composition: 7/10
Complexity: 6.5/10
Development: 6/10
Naturality: 6.5/10

Don't like it at all, horrible outdated metallic lemon bomb. Main notes to me: hedione and a lemon synthetic I can't quite put my finger on but I've smelled it before in other classic style fragrances or colognes.