smells like fig spirit

diptyque philosykos


i love the idea of fig scents, figs being slightly fruity and slightly veggie. so when my my well-dressed school buddy tipped me off to diptyque philosykos i had to grab a sample for myself.

now that i've tried it for a few days i'll share some comments:

top note - i smell a lot of wet greenery - imagine a rainy morning walk at the golden gate park botanical garden. fresh leaves and twigs mixed with all kinds of flowers. the perfume's initial moisture quickly gives way to a floral accord with subtle sweet fig. i also pick up a touch of lilac.

middle note - i don't know if the perfumer intended this, but i smell coconut. a lot of it. know what malibu rum smells like? yeah it smells like that. a strong flowery accord remains, along with fruit notes.

base note - i don't detect any new flavors in the dry down - a disappointment. i am accustomed to scents with a little more depth.

all in all philosykos is a fine simple perfume, but a little too sweet and feminine for my taste. the fig seems like an afterthought hidden behind floral and coconut notes. i like the green freshness, but i think my quest for the perfect fig scent is far from over.

i have also tried l'artisan premier figuier, which i think has a "truer" fig smell. however, the fragrance is reverse constructed, the fruit notes appear as the base note. that was the one feature that i didn't love - too sweet and heavy late as the perfume fades.