Reviews of Figuier Ardent by Atelier Cologne

This is one of the most "green" scents I have experienced. In the early British summer I was struggling to tell if the lovely, natural green vegetal smell was coming from me or my surroundings. Very briefly green, piquant, peppery the scent rapidly mellows. Many green scents are sappy or sharp acidic - this is mellow and almost milky alkali. There is always a moist element preventing a dry herby facet. A slight oiliness recalling the olive flower in Armani Code. I get the fig, mossy fir balsm possibly cedar or cypress also some soothing aloe-vera.

The scent is very evocative - bringing strong images of a well manicured green garden in an exclusive spa resort, Mediterranean or South France, outdoor pool side recliner, fluffy robes with the scent of the days fading sun soaking into soft skin. The garden - close to olive groves, planted with fig, artichokes and cacti.

A perfectly relaxed, mellow zen scent. Would be high on my list if looking for a relaxed green scent. Not one I'd reach for too often, but can imagine craving it from time to time. Due to its evocative nature it may compare to Hermes garden series. Overall 76 out of 100 with a quiet persistence.

An opening blast that is bright and light, with bergamot and hints of anise mixing with cardamom and a green undertone. Pleasant.

In the drydown the greenness is turning a bit salty, and a fig aroma develops gradually. It is the aroma of unripe and fresh green figs. At times a cold and metallic undertone is added to the heart notes.

In the drydown a gentle spiciness is present, with a somewhat blunt vanilla aroma supplying a sweetness is the background. This all is intertwined with a nonspecific woodsiness.

I get moderate sillage, good projection and six hours of longevity on my skin.

This scent for cooler summer days is not a bad fig-based creation, but it is a bit bloodless and not very intense on me. Not very ardent indeed. As far as fig fragrances go, Diptyque's Philosykos is more convincing. 2.75/5.

Figuier Ardent is the sportiest, most jock fig scent I can imagine. Super zesty citrus with a sweet but slightly metallic fruit heart, powdery and dry iris carrying it through. It's completely pleasant, make no mistake, but when compared to the fig-wood masterpiece that is Philosykos? Or even D.S. & Durga's bergamot and fig composition, Debaser? Then Figuier Ardent looks like nothing more than another designer Blue.

Its DNA is so utterly basic, and the fig so masqueraded behind its varsity letters, that Figuier Ardent is a challenge for me to truly love. I wouldn't object to smell it on someone else (a handsome, young, muscular sportsman, perhaps?), but on me it rings a little false.

This is a really wonderful green slightly citric fig fragrance. It's very green and very fresh. The fig note is there but it's hidden by notes of fig leaf and other green notes. Projection is moderate (on the softer side actually) while longevity is moderate. It's nice but I can't help noticing that Old Navy's Sea Salt & Fig smells similar (but without all the green notes) and has similar projection/longevity but for far less price.

4/5

Very nice, smooth woody/leafy, minty green, cooling scent. Very natural and refreshing. The smell remains pretty much the same from opening to drydown.

I really like smelling this but feels more feminine. It reminds me of expensive women's hand/body lotion.

Projection is average but longevity is good.

This is the best fig leaf fragrance I've ever smelled. It goes warmly towards the fruit and spices (and I smell some lavender) instead of the usual colder, aqueous fragrances. I usually describe fig fragrances as blue or green. This one is dark purple, almost brown. Unisex. I only wish projection was better. Well worth a full bottle.

Decent fig based fragrance with average longevity and projection. I prefer Philosykos EDP. 6.5/10

I didn't know I liked fig until I got this. The saleswoman told me "this one is more of a feminine perfume", but I fell in love with it immediately.
True, there isn't anything avant-garde about it, but it has a gorgeous green, leafy, botanical-gardens-tropical-room feel to it that I find addictive. My only complaint is its lack of staying power. But I'm okay with subtle.

I kept waiting for the fig note to appear. It must be so attenuated that it escapes my notice.
This is an acceptable, dry, citrus-green scent. Those notes are good and natural-smelling.
However, given that the fig appears to be missing in action or not particularly distinctive, I can't give this more than a neutral rating.

Top notes : bergamot from Calabria, anise from Turkey, cardamom from Guatemala
Heart notes : fig leaf from Provence, salty fig, black pepper from Madagascar
Base notes : cedarwood from Virginia, iris from Tuscany, tonka bean from Brazil
(from ateliercologne.com)

I tried to like fig fragrances, I really did. When the now popular fig accord came out several years ago, I was at first excited by the novelty. Then I found out that this accord is extremely linear. Its constant emission of artificial fig fruit with a side of coconut becomes banal, almost to the point of torture.

I'm sorry to say that Atelier Cologne Figuier Ardent has no surprises in how I expected a fig-based fragrance to behave. On the spectrum of sweet/fruity to green/woody, Figuier Ardent tends to the green/woody side, but definitely doesn't reach the heights of Heely Eau de Figuier, which is my favorite in this category. Figuier Ardent's drydown is musky, with blended woods and a distinct soapy quality.

One thing that is attractive about the best fig fragrances is that they evoke mediterranean gardens warmed by the sun so as to release the fragrant oils of leaf, stem, wood and fruit. The downer of FA is that it does nothing of the sort--it is basically a non-descript woody cologne with fig in it. The fig lovers can keep this one.

For Atelier Cologne, Figuier Ardent is another interesting direction, a fresh fig fragrance with a lot of complexity. It opens, as many do, with some citrus and spicy cardamom, and the spice settles down in the heart of pepper and fig itself, though I did get a hint of fig at the outset. The base is mainly cedar to my nose, and this cedar base is becoming ubiquitous in the Atelier line, but I do get some of the iris as well, and it makes for a slightly sharp, powdery dry down.

I've only tried another "fresh fig" type of fragrance in the past year or so---D.S. & Durga's Debaser--and Figuier Ardent has relatively high freshness and less sweetness. I wouldn't say Figuier Ardent is wholly unique but it strikes me as a unique blend. Somehow out of iris and pepper and fig emerges a fragrance that is refreshing and enjoyable for warm weather wear.

Performance is decent, about what most Ateliers provide, moderate on projection and longevity.

This is definitely the fragrance I like the most from the Azur line so far, as Cedre Atlas and Mandarine Glaciale didn't do much for me (Sud Magnolia seems to be regarded as feminine by many, moreover).

Pricing is in line with most of the line at $125 for 100ml, as well. I somehow doubt I'll buy this one due to my preference of several other fresh fragrances in the line over it, but I'm pleasantly surprised by it, in a good way.

7 out of 10

If I smelled this blind, would I know what it was? Would I find it pleasant? What would be the point?

Seriously, I can't understand the preponderance of half-backsided fig scents in the semi-mainstream niche world these days. I guess the obvious answer is that they sell, or that customers ask for them--and that the presence of fig in the lineup might keep your customer from wandering off to the Diptique counter.

Whatever--this one is drier than the others I've smelled. The black pepper note at its heart could easily be mistaken for alcohol burn/imbalance. I'm not sure if the drydown smells like powder and is therefore claimed to be Iris, or the other way around.

I liked the opening, and I keep getting little wafts of something that suggests fig, but this never quite comes together for me. It's also short-lived. Neutral rating for that great opening--AC seems to always have those in spades. And extra points for encouraging more men to wear fruit other than citrus--here's how.

Never a big fan of fig-inspired scents to begin with, I nevertheless enjoyed fig offerings from the likes of Dyptique, L'Artisan Parfumeurs and Acqua di Parma Blu Mediterraneo. With Atelier Figuier Ardent I was expecting an equally pleasant experience. Unfortunately the blend did not appeal to me. The pepper note grates on me, the green fig note feels a little too dry and desiccated. Nice bergamot opening notwithstanding, the overall fragrance just smells synthetic and somewhat 'medicinal'. Clearly it's not meant for me.

I give Figuier Ardent a thumbs up and a rating 6 of 10. In rating this fragrance I am comparing it to all the other outstanding green and fig based fragrances that compete with a similar profile (similar but different too). Diptyque Phyllosykos, Goutal Ninfeo Mio, DS&Durga Debaser, Jovoy L'Arbe de la Connaissance, Heely Verveine, Oriza Legrand Deja le Printeps all are figgy green spring scents that probably surpass this one in my personal hierarchy of "fig" sub genre fragrances. But, Figuier Ardent is a fine fragrance and it is hard to find much wrong with it. But it is equally difficult to find things to celebrate. The tonka gives it a powdery base which differentiates it from the wood base of other fig scents. The opening of fig mixed with anise supported by cedar is brilliant blending to give a cool very dry aspect to the fig. Cardamom adds sharp dryness along with pepper. The overall attitude is green, clean, dry, but minty and powdery at the end. I don't like the powdery part as it takes the fragrance a little too feminine for my taste. But no question this is a nice green fig scent worthy of Atelier Cologne brand since it is very pleasant to smell. I do wish that the fragrance had not tried to be all things - pick a path and follow it, I say. Also the natal coconut softness of fig isn't complimented by a powder base, imo.

The opening and middle of this is stunning. Similar to the fig standard PF by L'Artisan and Philosykos by Diptyque, but with a little bit fresher and natural oomph to it. If you're familiar with Atelier, you know they do an outstanding job with clean and natural scents. You can feel Schweiger's delicate touch with this and it would be no different than some of his other compositions such as ELd'O's Philipino Houseboy and Atelier's Orange Sanguine where you get a nice playful dance of almost tropical proportions tethered by a soft and natural powdery base. After about an hour and a half, the Iris really exposes itself and there is a pleasant baby powder feel. I tend to like the first two hours the most and at this point reapply as it's a pretty light scent to begin with. However, I feel like this projects pretty well sillage wise and longevity is above average for Atelier. All in all a very beautiful fig from a very beautiful perfumer. I would definitely recommend this one for a more powdery interpretation of fig.

This whole series is comparable to Acqua di Parma's Blu Mediterraneo series. I like this version of fig better. It sticks better to me, less juicy, more fig leaf. At times it smelled powdery to me, but it was pleasant and pretty. Unisex scents shouldn't be described as pretty, but oh well.
Ha- I just saw there is Iris. I don't like Iris bc of that powder scent to me, but it's not terrible. Everything is mild and inoffensive.