Acqua di Parma: Blu Mediterraneo Chinotto di Liguria

Acqua di Parma is always a surprise in a bottle - one of the few niche brands that manages to extend perfume families with subtleties worthy of new releases. The Blu Mediterraneo is a case in point: every new issue is an exploration of the fragrances found in the Italian Mediterranean, from those we expect to find, such as ‘warm’ scents (bergamot, fig and cedar wood) to those that aren’t neccessarilty endemic to the Italian coast - ylang-ylang, Tolu balsam (a South American tree), and shea butter - ingredients used to evoke the layers and complexities of the Italian peninsula, from its bold and beautiful architecture to its classical roots, reaching far back into the Roman empire which stretched to the Middle East and North Africa.

Suffice to say, Acqua di Parma promises an academic backstory to each of its releases - if you want romance and reason, this is the brand for you. This spring sees the release of the Blu Mediterraneo Chinotto di Liguria which is based on the scent of a rare citrus fruit - a small relative to the orange that is bitter sweet in flavour with darker juice. The dry down is where all the magic happens with this perfume: a slow release of mandarin, jasmine, cardamom held in place thanks to hints of patchouli and musk. The Chinotto is the overriding king of this concoction: peppery, fruity and enigmatically exotic. Acqua di Parma has many more surprises in store for the summer too, including body products and cosmetics.

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