Boccanera by Orto Parisi

Strong and unusual opening, but it only lasts for 5 little minutes. Afterwards, it becomes a rich and ELEGANT perfume for the evening or a very formal occasion. I detect a lot of pepper, chilli, and leather with a hint of animal scent (though very little), especially in the opening. Projection is moderate but constant for 3 hours. It lasts about 5 hours until it is just detectable by pressing your nose against the skin. In subsequent applications, it lasted up to 7 hours (always with short projection).

Well, here I must disagree regarding the duration compared to the other reviews. Undeniably, it is a perfume of high quality, with much personality, very dark and gourmand within the perfumer’s nose spectrum. As it is not a beast like some of its siblings, whether Terroni or Bergamask, this is an aroma that once settled becomes more intimate. It projects in a decent way, but in my experience, after 5-6 hours, only a very small trace of what it once was remains. And it is perfect! Because it is not a daily perfume; it is an aroma to stand out at a social event in cold weather, preferably at night, preferably very gothic and dark; that is why you must dress it appropriately. In my opinion, it is completely unisex. If you are a man, you will smell refined and mysterious; if you are a woman, you will smell like a determined femme fatale (very similar to what Baraonda achieves, only this is much sexier and more intoxicating). It would be beautiful if the chocolate note lasted a little longer, as in the end, what lasts the most (as in other Guerlain musk perfumes) is that clean, slightly floral animal note, very neat and striking. Quality, as much as you want, every note is a total delight to the olfactory senses. Duration, a bit more to be desired because, who doesn’t want more of something so good? But, if you know how to use it, it is perfect. Be careful not to overapply; while I put on more than 4 sprays for personal enjoyment and a greater trail during the first hours. As always, ALWAYS TEST FIRST ON THE SKIN WITH ONE OR A FEW SPRAYS, as some people find it lasts much longer. To close, if you have heard of Black Afgano, this is its sweet and coquettish cousin.

A different chocolate, don’t expect the sweet milk chocolate of typical fragrances. Here there is pure cocoa powder, earthy, with a spicy touch like pepper. A very masculine and mysterious bet. The dry-down is leather, musk (Alessandro’s signature) and remnants of that chocolate in the background.

Boccanera was the fifth addition to my collection, passing through Bergamask, Brutus, Terroni, and Megamare. After reading many reviews and more, I acquired it blind. It is true that it retains the Gualtieri DNA in its creations, well marked in the dry down. I think of the five, this is the worst or the one I like the least. I fail to detect chocolate of any colour or the sugary part, only the raspiness of the patchouli but with other herbs in a very green state, cannabis perhaps. Fortunately, I do not see it as beastly; I just lose it, unlike Terroni, Megamare, or Bergamask (Brutus also presents a bearable and harmless character). The green and animalic part of Boccanera leaves me with a strange tint, like a smell of perspiration that is not pleasant to me. I must turn the screw many times to detect the cocoa-chocolate that must be somewhere. For now, I do not like it enough; I do not find it original as it highlights the base of several fragrances I already have from the line, nor does it give me versatility, and it is difficult to find a moment to wear it. We will wait a bit longer and continue testing; for now, it is not what I expected.

Upon unboxing, even without opening the box, I could smell it. I was with my partner, who has a fine nose but is used to more mundane scents, and she said ‘I can’t smell anything’. I was already smiling, imagining it was the prelude to what was coming. I took off the cap and said ‘there it is, that’s it’, and she still said ‘no, it smells like nothing’. Of course, how could I imagine that that smell of old metal, like the iron in old chandeliers, or the cap itself (which is like that), was the head of Boccanera peeking out. And all without touching the spray! I put it on a shelf and every time I pass by, I smell Boccanera. Incredible potency. Is it gourmand? It’s Gualtieri’s gourmand. I love it. Pure chocolate, unrefined, with spicy bursts and in the background that smoky, iron-rich DNA with animal leather. The usual with Orto Parisi: 1 spray to go out at night, 2 for the day. Never cross that line or you go from attraction to repulsion in a second. Singular aroma, brutal longevity and sillage. Low versatility and presentation. Meets quality/price. Ideal atomisation. Male age range. Unisex. Night formality. Nightly use. In short words: ‘The Aztec cacao grinding stone scraped with a bundle’. Ideal occasion: semi-formal date with a leather jacket. Blind buy? No.

I have had it for two days and can give a first impression, although this marvel probably deserves its proper posthumous edition. As for gourmand, well, it does not have much; I do not know what gourmand the gentlemen who wrote before me know, but this dessert has little; clearly, someone whose references for gourmands are Chocolate Greedy, Ristretto Intense Cafe, Kamrah, or Devotion, of course this Boccanera does not enter their league. Although this plays with a couple of notes that could be found in the gourmand, here they do not bat for the same side. Here it is combined with a leather and a sandalwood that turn this chocolate, rather, into a bitter, dry chocolate, like in powder. We are talking about a fragrance, of course, dry, but which does not dry out the olfactory senses. It is addictive, SEXY, seductive. It is dry due to the cocoa, but bright and intoxicating due to the leather, and something I smell somewhat molecular like calone, but it does not overwhelm the fragrance. This is undoubtedly an amazing perfume, well balanced, difficult to break down into its notes, but simple to smell. It is dark but sparkling at the same time, due to the itchiness, but do not think this smells like jalapeño or peppers. No. It is that dry chilli that is smelled in the raw materials, but I could not even say it is a present note; rather, it is just a memory that accompanies the cocoa to temper any vanillic or milky sweetness. Of course, I would like to add that to the gentleman below who mentions that this smells like wilted flower water, I do not know what fragrance they put in his bottle, but of course it was not Boccanera, and as for his taxi driver, surely it was because he is not very good-looking. Do not pay attention to those reviews; this is not a challenging fragrance at all. It is easy to wear, dark, elegant, sophisticated, and yet informal, but if you use it for something special, you will stand out and be liked WITHOUT DOUBT. Although it is not a fragrance for children (I showed it to my 13-year-old brother and he said it smelled like an old man), nor is it a fragrance of necessity for an old person (I showed it to my 17-year-old brother and he was delighted, almost like me, and he is not familiar with challenging fragrances, so assume that this is not challenging at all; on the contrary, very palatable). I am 21, and I will wear it without any problem with casual or more formal clothing without any issue. Overwhelming in duration, projection, and fixation; more than 12 hours of duration and without any problem, more than 3 hours projecting WELL. This speaking of just ONE single spray on the wrist. We will have to continue testing and let it macerate, as it reached me from afar and by courier, but with this you will have no problems with performance. Even the poor tablecloth to which DROPS fell was still releasing it at times within a metre’s proximity.

It’s more like bitter chocolate with an earthy base that sweetens only slightly; one of the most original and refined gourmands I’ve tried, even though I’m not usually into that genre. It’s masculine, almost elegant, serious, and for people who demand perfumes that make you stop and think, beyond the ‘nice’ scents everyone likes. It’s not easy, but special, making it interesting and exclusive, worth smelling even if you don’t add it to your collection. Performance and projection are decent. It works for whatever you want, except hot daytime wear. It has a nocturnal quality without being a typical sweet gourmand. Gualtieri always has something to offer and to surprise.

Imagine standing in a forest of dark woods with fallen trees and wet earth while eating an ounce of Lindt dark chocolate with chilli; this perfume smells exactly like that. The performance is just as good as other perfumes from the brand. Personally, I don’t think it’s very similar to Black Afgano or Terroni, although if you like one, you’ll probably like the other. Once dry on the skin, it’s much more wearable than it seems at first, and having bought it just the day before, I’ve already received several compliments.

Black Afgano and Alessandro Gualtieri go hand in hand like Bruno Díaz and Batman. You can’t think of a composition by the Italian genius without bringing to mind that hashish scent. This point can be off-putting to many, as there is a possibility that this olfactory signature bores you and you see everything as a series of Bi-brand flankers (Nasomatto and Orto Parisi) of Black Afgano. Terroni, Cuoium, Stercus and of course this Boccanera have, in different proportions, their ‘Black Afgano’ part. Let’s talk about this flanker: what does Boccanera have that the other mentioned perfumes don’t? The famous dark chocolate note (not cacao) caused by a well-worked patchouli that gives an earthy and slightly smoky sensation. That smokiness doesn’t reach the volcanic level of Terroni nor the embers of Oud Rosewood by MCD; it’s more enveloping. The earthy chocolatey part, which is also not sweet, lasts the first hour and then leaves that hashish scent with hints of ginger and chilli that make it spicy. For that point, the projection that starts at 1.5 metres drops to half a metre, staying there for another five hours, finishing with a skin-scent for another five hours. Giving a total performance of eleven hours with projection from more to less. Is this a disappointment? Oh no, my dear friend! And I’ll explain why… If you want a perfume that projects two metres for more than four hours, there’s Black Afgano; if you want a perfume that projects two metres for three hours and is much more niche and smoky, there’s Terroni. If you want a pale green hashish with tints of dry, arid coffee grass, there’s Stercus. With Boccanera, we have a perfect perfume for the office, dates, or meetings in enclosed spaces that will give you a niche perfume vibe without being invasive or annoying to your companions. I’ve used it in heat (25 degrees without humidity) and it works very well, projecting much longer but never losing that mysterious touch. In short, it’s an all-rounder that won’t raise eyebrows but will generate compliments. Where do I place it within the Nasomatto house? Well, just below Cuoium and Terroni, liking Boccanera much more than the latter. Is it redundant to have Terroni, Black Afgano, Stercus and Boccanera? If you’re a collector, NO; if you’re continuously downsizing, YES… Of those four, I’d go for Boccanera for its charm, versatility and elegance (due to not projecting abysmally). Although it will be a matter of taste what you want from this archetype of perfume, hence I understand the criticism for those expecting performance and darkness similar to the mentioned flankers. For that reason, try it on skin and experiment for a few days. Grazie Gualtieri!!!

Excellent fragrance, only for noses that like heavy aromas. It is nocturnal, winter, woody, chocolate and a bit of used pipe hashish. All of this results in a heavy but charming scent. My wife likes it a lot, especially in the dry-down. Very sexy aroma on female skin too. Recommended to try if you like heavy scents or want to start using them. It requires personality to wear it, or she can wear you.

I was also expecting something different. Thanks to the 1 ml sample, I could try it without fear. I’ve used it twice, with just two sprays each time. The opening is chocolatey, pleasant but that’s all. As it dries, the chocolate mixes with a strange smell reminiscent of plastic, and slowly changes to something woody, like a pencil you’ve sharpened. Up to that point, it’s good, but nothing extraordinary. The problem arose at half an hour. As Jerry Drake said, then a disagreeable component appears, like decomposing organic matter, like wilted flowers in a vase. I don’t know if it’s the oud from the previous warning or just my subconscious alert, but I felt it clearly in the air. In my case, that dissonant sound lasted an hour. After that, it disappeared, leaving pencil wood, chocolate and a spiced note I can’t identify. Much more bearable. As mentioned, the fragrance persists even if you wash. Fortunately, it was only two sprays; otherwise, I would have suffocated. I repeated the test the next day to see if it improved, but there was no difference. I agree to try before buying blindly. There are much better options.

Something strange happens to me with Boccanera. It smells exquisite but leaves me indifferent; I love it and at the same time I’m a bit disappointed. What do I mean? That I can’t deny it has personality, opens with dark chocolate and as it dries down seems mixed with the classic CH for men and tickling with designer sweets. It doesn’t impress me enough no matter how delicious it is… Something is missing. Well, the luck of finding decants, as you know they are in fashion for niche brands to charge almost 200 dollars for a meagre 50 millilitres. Or in worse cases 30 or 17.5 ml like Roja Dove, haha. Fragrance: 8. Longevity: 8. Value/price: 6. Trail: 8. Would I buy it? For 100 euros yes, no more.

I bought it and that was that. Nothing more, just very, very soft and expensive for what it offers. My advice: don’t buy blindly; test it first to see how it goes. It didn’t work for me at all. Greetings and respect to the perfumer.

It smells like its older sister, Black Afgano. It seems many Orto Parisi perfumes revolve around Nasomatto’s big hits. What more can be said? It differs with a spicy, chocolatey opening. That blend is strange, yet it manages to be less herbal/resinous than the BA and becomes slightly gourmand. Brutal performance and good price per ml. I imagine wearing it only on formal occasions, at least with a shirt and jacket. And believe me, you won’t go unnoticed with Boccanera (black mouth).