Sous Le Pont Mirabeau
Etat Libre d'Orange (2023)

Aquatic, woody, green, fig, fresh, a little metallic and soapy. Like a mix of Santal 33, Kenzo Homme, and YSL Y EdP. I'd say it most resembles YSL Y EdP (but better) and I'm surprised I don't see more of that comparison online, but the creamy, woody fig notes must give others that strong resemblance to Santal 33.

Projection is low, which could be good when you do not need a big scent cloud to choke others. Longevity is very good, 8-9 hours.

Sous Le Pont Mirabeau surprised me. It blew me away from the sample kit—I wasn’t expecting ELDO to have their own take on an oceanic fragrance. What makes this more intriguing is how they blend fig leaf with marine notes. I haven’t come across that combination before, but it’s creative and brilliantly executed. I love the blast of sea notes and fig in the opening, with the fig serving more as a supporting note. As it dries down, I pick up more musk and sandalwood. I wish the marine notes lasted longer, as they’re the selling point of this fragrance, but they fade too quickly for me. What you’re left with is a peppery cedarwood, somewhat reminiscent of Santal 33 in the drydown. As someone else pointed out, this feels like a watery or aquatic version of Santal 33, and I think it’s even better—more unique and interesting. It’s great for summer and spring and is completely unisex. I’d recommend giving this a try if you like aquatic scents or are looking for an alternative to Santal 33.

A pick of pink pepper. Trying to figure out how this 2023 Etat Libre d'Orange perfume aligns with Apollinaire's famously melancholic poem, set on the Pont de Mirabeau over the Seine at the western end of Paris, in which a narrator watches the water, like love, flowing by under the bridge. The narrator drones hypnotically, "Days pass, only I remain." Although there is a reference in the poem to arms interwoven like the armature of the bridge, hands clasped, lovers "face à face," the overwhelming impression is of lassitude and solitude, cleaved by the "the violence of Hope" like water splitting its course around a stone and green metal trunk of the bridge. Possibly, with this dominant pepper top note (without patchouli), piquancy is the theme... I don't know what a "water accord" means in perfumery, but I can attest that this perfume quickly became faint on my skin, and the pepper faded to a nearly invisible slight, rich, spicy sweetness; the residue of a top note of fig, a violet afterthought, and the green goodness of cedarwood. Compared to the heft of most ELDO scents, this one seems to be a play on disappearance. L'amour s'en va, je demeure.