Resina by Oliver & Co. (2012)

I am starting to quite dig Oliver & Co. creations. Resina is perhaps Oliver's best scent so far among the ones I tested, as it brilliantly manages to present resins - which are surely not that uncommon in perfumery - in a different way, totally new and creative. It starts with a bold, dry, herbal accord which reminded me of some works by O'Driù, together with a warm, sticky and kind of "urinous-animalic" note (probably benzoin, but at first it smelled almost like castoreum to me), all surrounded by a fog of different resins offering an impressive harmony of nuances, from balsamic to rooty, from greenish to sweet, from sticky to balmy, to mossy, to earthy, even to "candied" and slightly floral-silky (labdanum) - a real chorus, basically, which transports you among woods, soil, earth, pine needles, small animals, branches, whiffs of fog.... Among all this, a "contemporary" breeze which to me smells like Iso E plus some synthetic amber, as it basically creates a sort of artificial dusty grey feel of "unscented incense" with a subtle salty note, which however perfectly fits the composition, reminding me of those contemporary architecture installments in natural environments.  So, basically for the first couple of hours Resina stays a grey-green-brownish scent with woods and resins, but also a sort of darker animalic note which comes and goes, and also a distinctive velvety and dusty feel, slightly sweet, which will eventually emerge better as the anisic note. Another note which emerges better as time passes is the coffee note, which blends with the anise note together providing a sort of earthy, sweet, dusty, warm and really aromatic feel all over, "warming up" and softening the scent as hours pass – which is a clever idea to make balsamic resins smell less boring (as they tend to do quite soon, in my opinion). The coffee note is probably the best I've ever found in perfumes so far: finally a genuine, raw, sour, earthy and dry roasted coffee beans note, and not some idiotic, creamy, sweet Starbucks coffee gourmand note. It's not the main note here, but after some 2-3 hours I could detect it quite clearly and sharply. The last phase of the evolution of the scent comprises a balsamic feel arising with increasing prominence, melting with the smells of woods, pines, coffee and resins - a balsamic feel halfway natural and resinous, and synthetic (the Iso E incense note, and also later on, a slight pungent feel of eugenol). The only reference I could think of is: a sort of intergalactic pro-nephew of Filles en Aiguilles with a hint of CdG Kyoto, a sweeter-silkier side (coffee and anise), more nuances, more colours, more exotism, and a genius subtle feel of pure futurism. An amazing scent which truly impressed me: it's solid, well-built, really dynamic, full of creativity and clever ideas, plus it's elegant and refined in its own peculiar way, not challenging at all. Yet i's a bit costly and I am not sure if it's worth the cost (up to you, in the end), all I can add is that it lasts for long, with a solid projection and a remarkably enjoyable evolution. Bravo Oliver!

8,5/10