So Iris Intense
Montale (2017)

I was a big fan of another Montale soliflore (Jasmin Full). The basic premise of Jasmin Full is that you can build a full-figured fragrance using only Jasmine and Jasmine adjacent notes (honeysuckle and orange blossom). The honeysuckle adds a cool minty quality, the orange blossom gives fullness, and the indolic notes are surgically removed, leaving a huge, oddly refreshing jasmine note without any 'perfume' notes. The lack of 'perfume' bases (sandalwood, leather, rose, ambergris, whatever) and lack of indoles makes it surprisingly unisex.

So Iris Intense (my sample says Intense Iris) tries to do something similar, but the approach is tailored to the flower in question. Jasmine is big, effusive, perfumy in nature. Iris is quieter, more powdery, and so it requires a bit more help. In this case, there is a bit of sandalwood and musk, but the big star of the show is the waxy, powdery Iris blended and intensified with a sweet citrus note, maybe lemon. The dominant accord is half-way between lipstick and fancy hard fruit candies covered in powdered sugar, so it leans femme.

The citrus note gives a sharp edge to the Iris which it normally lacks, and is a way of 'filling out' the Iris in the same way the honeysuckle is used to 'fill out' the jasmine - to give it a bit more dimension than we normally find. The base of sandalwood is very quiet, lending a bit of depth and creaminess, but without interrupting the soliflore effect too much.

Overall, this is a very pleasant, colorful Iris scent with a touch of sweetness from the citrus. The iris I am most familiar with is Dior Homme Intense, which combines the waxy iris with more masculine notes, but if that's a masculine fragrance, then this one could probably be worn by a man as well. Of course, the magic of a soliflore is that they don't really smell like 'perfume', ideally, having a spareness which suits anyone who happens to like the flower being represented.

Performance is on the subtle side for a Montale, but I think this is just the nature of the Iris. Jasmine smells big and the perfume is big, Iris smells quiet so the perfume is quiet, so if you're looking to really hammer everyone with Iris this may not be the tool for the job.

Very pleasant and unexpected, so if you like Iris, try a sample, but I prefer Jasmin Full.

Dry iris. Long-lasting iris throughout. Simple. Becomes more powdery later, with the other notes. A tad earthy. A little musk later. Linear. Uncomplicated, for a Montale.