Shooting Stars : La Capitale
Xerjoff (2019)

I love many Xerjoff Fragrances, having sampled and/or owned several. I love Italica & Lira. I like Dama Bianca, Bouquet Ideale, Starlight. I read about La Capitale and purchased a 75ml bottle on a whim.

All-in-all, I like La Capitale a lot. However, I am a bit disappointed in the fragrance's PERFORMANCE. I'm hoping with time and with regular wear, the fragrance will grow on me. It's currently a strong like but not a love. Yet, I am glad I purchased a 75ml bottle.

Very feminine, peachy, fruity, girly and bright!! So, La Capitale DEFINITELY opens with strong fruity notes...definitely strawberry and peach. Some spiciness, a touch of leather, some labdanum and amber are evident in the middle. And there's vanilla and lots of fruit in the base. After the intense fruity opening, La Capitale quiets down and becomes a slightly creamy, soft and fruity, slightly amber-ish, barely detectible skin scent.

I have to add I like the DRY-DOWN much more than I like the OPENING. And as I experience the fragrance on my skin, the fragrance blooms when (for whatever reasons) my body temperature rises. As my skin heats up, the applied fragrance is more delectable and much more enjoyable.

There's limited silage (which is fine) and longevity (on my skin) is quite poor (under one hour). I guess I expect more from Xerjoff and definitely better performance given La Capitale's price point.

I'll see how things go in the upcoming days. I'm happy I purchased the fragrance. I'll definitely use it 'til the bottle is empty. It's nice!

(In the spirit of helping Basenotes survive and thrive by adding more reviews, this is adapted from my initial reactions in the "what did you try today" thread.)

A couple of recent orders from ZGO came with freebie carded samples, and I've wound up with a few niche offerings outside my usual zone. Things from Matiere Premiere, Ormaie, Floraiku, Vilhelm, and now a couple from Xerjoff. In the spirit of expanding my horizons, today I'm sampling Xerjoff - La Capitale. This being my first tango with Xerjoff, I wasn't sure what I was in for. Listed notes:

Top: Strawberry, Caramel, Peach and Labdanum
Heart: Leather, Saffron, Amber, Ginger and Rose
Base: Bourbon Vanilla and Benzoin

Pretty much on point. One of the reviews below describes this as a "beastmode gourmand", and I'm inclined to agree. The opening was lovely - smells like a gourmet bake shop with a swirl of fruit, sugar, and something indescribable but somehow fresh. At one point, the peach note shone through like a laser, and I swore I was smelling something like green cardamom pods, but it might have been my imagination. As the opening fruit settles, the whole scent seems to get louder. It moves towards a bombastic caramel, amber, saffron thing that smells decent in the air but a bit overpowering up close. Nothing clearly reads as leather to my nose, but I suspect it's the saffron doing the lifting; this phase feels a bit synthetic, a blob of scent somewhere between gourmet dessert and the world's fanciest laundry detergent - it's well blended and distinctive, but really not my thing at this stage. It does get better, though. Further down, sniffing the back of my hand gives up a pleasant enough vanilla, benzoin, and caramel-and-saffron tinged amber. If I sniff under my shirt, it's completely different: smells like elevated strawberry chapstick. It reminds me a bit of the "big strawberry" note from Imaginary Authors' Cape Heartache, but less plastic and better blended.

Perhaps the most surprising thing is that I don't hate this. It's sweet, but not in the way so many modern designer gourmands are (which I usually find cloying and unbearable). I still find the marketing from this house to be hopelessly gaudy -- in their own words, the goal is "blending the most luxurious materials to complement the most affluent global lifestyles" -- but I will begrudgingly admit this succeeds at smelling very expensive and is quite good for what it is. Not something I feel compelled to buy, but I think it succeeds on its own terms.

My wife came home and said, “you smell like candy.” I would counter that, thanks to the ginger, saffron, and rose, I smell like very fine candy rather than the checkout counter stuff; but still, point taken.

La Capitale is an elevated gourmand: if Xerjoff had listed “money” as a note, I’d have believed it. It’s just not going to be my money. However, if you're not as gourmand-averse as I, you should take my neutral rating with a grain of sugar.

Beast mode gourmand

It ultra sweet, candy gummy strawberry, with some coffee and caramel. Actually smells pretry good. Good quality, high price though. Just radiates out. Smells very strong and persistant. I didnt get much evolution really, dry down faded this or that, but the scent kept its profile and charector. Too sweet for me, but.of obvious quality. Neutral.

For a Xerjoff on me at-least shocked I need an extra spritz of this one. But nevertheless a beautiful great fragrance.Starts of with sweet fruits Apple,Apricot,prunes the goes Leaning gourmand to my nose very pleasant but not overly sweet as some other fragrances. The Sweet Cream I get in this Benzoin,Vanilla and caramel are just perfect. Slight spicy ness with some Oud playing a role reminiscent of Xerjoffs Alexandria II & III both vibes, Glad I bought this blind. A great fragrance. Can't say to much more but worth every penny just wish it had Xerjoff powerfulness. It's lasts long enough, just used to being careful applying most Xerjoff frags. Lasts a good deal but not as long as others from this house, silage is decent enough. The wife loves this one. Give this a try at-least. I know I am a huge Xerjoff fanboy but this is my honest thought(s) on this great fragrance. All the ingredients are done with care. They are not loud. Just perfect. And I am perfectly OK with that. Try this! Glad I did! :•}
Also there is a slight Diptyque • Eau Lente vibe mid drydown that I am very fond of also with a touch of Japanese Sandalwood,wet sandalwood. Like in Minorien Fu-In Sandalwood sticks. 3rd time coming across this Minorien Fu-In Sandalwood smell of burning incense. But that's fine with me I love that smell. Also it's been 2 Xerjoffs that I found to be having this note just a nice fragrance. Incense and Eau Lente vibes both! Well... lucky and happy blind buy. Nicely done yet again... Just my 2¢ Opinions of frags,can be subjective. But love this one.