Description
The French house of Parfumerie Générale is launching a new perfume, named PG22 DjHenné on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the house. Creation of this lush perfume was taken over by famous perfumer Pierre Guillaume, who has had a long and fruitful collaboration with the house.
Inspiration for PG22 DjHenné was a place called Djenné in Mali, surrounded with greenery and river flow bathing in the scorching African sun. The fragrance itself provides a peaceful rest in the shade. The scent is poured in a classic, rectangular flacon characteristic of the brand, and it is ideal for men and women.
This woody-aromatic fragrance is based on woody and light leather notes. In the opening it incorporates such aromas as mint leaves, syringa flowers and grey lavender. A heart continues with blue cedar and cacao beans, while a base closes with wheat absolute and myrrh. The perfume is full of contrasts, blending into a unique, warm composition.
Parfumerie Generale’s latest fragrance, PG22 DjHenné is available starting from September 2012, as 50 ml and 100 ml Eau de Toilette.
polfiniks – :
Oh, it’s a strange one. Well, PG made quite a few of those…
At first I have an impression of very nice suntan oil, there is something tropical in the air. No, no, cocoa butter or good dark chocolate. No, no, it’s too creamy for that. Let’s settle on cocoa butter then. Well, it is creamy and delicious, but not in the edible kind of way.
Or just a little.
Then it is also aromatic on the outskirts, lavender and mint.
Definitely fresh. And warm. Comforting.
And English.
Like After Eight-eating and lavender-smelling on the tropical holiday english.
And neurotic.
Sillage and longevity are not good. And I do not care.
The stuff is adorable.
Meele399elipseskism – :
Another unique or even odd scent from PG, and another one that’s impossible to wrap my head around based on just my little sample: I’ve been wearing Djhenné for a couple of days, and I’m still not even sure whether I like it or not. One thing that’s for sure is that the opening isn’t really for me: it’s a pure blast of lavender, very natural and very cold – nice, but clasically masculine, which means it’s not what I personally look for in a perfume for myself. Luckily it settles down soon enough, softening as the hay/wheat accord comes in, and in fact it keeps evolving all through the day; focusing now more on the balsamic aspects of the note pyramid, then on the sweet or woody ones, and I even get whiffs of a lovely white floral accord from time to time, which I guess must be the syringa. This shapeshifting makes it interesting for sure, but also hard to pin down – and combined with the soft sillage, even a little vague. So this actually is more of a non-review: I haven’t really been able to form an opinion, not even to decide whether I want to explore this one any further: am I intrigued by Djhenné, or just puzzled by it? Time will have to tell…
KOBRA 52 – :
I get a very sweet lavender and cocoa mix, I think this scent would suit a teenager discovering new smells , it would also keep their friends amused wondering what the hell they have washed themselves in . As a perfume to take seriously though, not my cup of tea.
romashka2706 – :
It’s nothing out of this world – somehow incoherent, like a smell equivalent of garbled speech. Some OK notes in there (the cacao is nice and rich and not at all sickly/like a chocolate bar, the myrrh is clear and present) but it just doesn’t hang together properly. Longevity and projection also both weak. Never guessed there was mint in this (and, by the way – WHY?) and perhaps that’s the culprit for making this one less memorable than it could or should be.
The myrrh drydown has some really lovely moments, but overall this somehow doesn’t get all the way to being warm or seductive. It’s wearable, sure, but to me it doesn’t create a convincing picture overall – it just doesn’t know what it really is, and so can’t convince me either.
vovan8501 – :
First Impressions:
Raw chocolate cookie dough & mint cake sprayed with Lynx (Axe). Very peculiar and disjointed. As it dries down the raw dough morphs into light creamy vanilla and there’s a note of 80’s masculine aftershave with it. I look forward to wearing it a few times to see if I can get my head around it. For reference, PG10 is my favourite scent at the moment.
nordforward – :
I cannot find a Parfumerie Generale fragrance that I like! Theyre all high quality but the notes just do not work for me. The mix of lavender, myrrh, and spearmint with powdery chocolate cake mix makes me queasy. The opening is strange. Minty chocolate rendered entirely inedible by slightly bitter, balsamic myrrh, lavender, and something bright and fruity that curdles the cocoa.. I have a complicated relationship with lavender, for some reason it can either smell like heavenly purple blossoms, or like dried urine on me. And not a pleasant, civety urine, just a weird pissy floral twang. So on me this basically opens like a half baked grasshopper girl scout cookie coated in old ash, powdered soap, and urinated on. Not pleasant in the least. The dry down is much friendlier but Its nothing to write home about, just a soft cocoa myrrh thing thats unobtrusive enough. This is not as bad as I’m making it out to be. I’m sure it will work great for all sorts of people. The longevity and sillage are great so it’s obviously well made. But scent wise, this is a big big pass.
samalex22 – :
DjHenne starts out smelling like a citrusy men’s cologne mixed with chocolate. Very unusual and not what I would describe as harmonious. The heart phase was even more unexpected as it smelled literally like spiked eggnog with an astringent woody note. While I enjoyed this part, it reminded me of Fou d’Absinthe by L’Artisan, my favorite eggnog to wear. The drydown smells again like woods combined with Swiss Miss hot chocolate or maybe these fake chocolates called Sixlets that I liked when I was a child, made of partially-hydrogenated stuff and corn syrup. What a wild ride with distinct top/middle/base notes. I never smell mint or lavender at any point. Doesn’t project much on my chemistry. I like it after the top notes settle.
Update: It has been a couple of years, and now all I smell when I wear this is tons of IsoESuper, which I don’t enjoy whatsoever. I no longer get chocolate, but more of a synthetic vanilla. I am not a fan of this one.
lynncci – :
Starts with a burst of bright soapy splash with a distinct mint note in it.
Then changes to balsamic lavender scent with a hint of vanilla and cacao, later – balsamic wheat.
Overall: lovely, quiet, pleasant, interesting fragrance. It’s very dynamic, as it changes a lot. I didn’t like the opening at all, but the dry down is beautiful.
I would say this one is almost therapeutic, peaceful offering.
smash405 – :
To me, it has the same milky woody damp smell of l’artisans Dzongkha which I find rather repulsive. On the strip this facet was not nearly so prevalent, though the longer I wear it the more the leathery aspect comes forth but it isn’t a manly leather, it’s too creamy, like steamed frothed milk. I think this would smell much nicer on a girl than on me or another male. This isn’t the most horrible thing I’ve ever smelled but that does not a positive review make. The picture it paints for me is of ancient chocolates in a wooden box on a dressing table in an elderly couple’s modest apartment somewhere in the caucuses offered to you with a flaccid cup of milky tea at some point in the afternoon when it’s too early to think about bed but you’re bored out of your mind. Horse-brasses in rough brown leather decorate the hearth, a large flock of small birds fly languidly accross the grey sky and the seconds tick by in half time, the mechanism of the clock makes everyone painfully aware of the awkward silence.
bigboyl – :
when i first smelled it, it was a dead ringer for chergui but that quickly morphed into a minted light suede/leather, hay (wheat?), very dry lavender and a faint boozy wood. it goes through three distinct phases, the second getting deeper – myrrhe? – ending with a honeyed resinous denouement that lasts a long time. finally met a PG i was willing to buy & wear rather than simply admire from a distance. excellent frag!
sleemm – :
This surprised me as I expected less than it delivered.
It opened with a lovely note of wheat, almost mouthwatering, very natural smelling and enjoyable for me. Also a very shy undertone of cacao and syringa leaves a trace on my skin.
At the heart part lavender joins in making this more masculine than feminine. I usually don’t like lavender as it reminds me of some laundry products and it tends to get too sharp and “in your face”, but here it is very calm, comforting and gentle.
Unfortunately it sits extremely close to skin on me, so I do not justify getting a full bottle, but I must say – this is lovely and much more than one could expect from the notes. “Djhenn” is indeed very unique and worth the price tag for those who enjoy shy scents.
ZewArerve – :
I gave my sample plenty of time on my skin (a number of hours) and although I usually like hay, woody types of fragrances, this smells like mouthwash and some kind of floor cleaner poured over some nice fresh hay. Kind of ruins the party. I think it is the combo of woody notes and mint. The cacao adds a rather sickening sweetness to what should not be sweet in my opinion. I am not liking this and I normally like woody notes. I would never wear this.
chipa7r – :
I think Djhennè is good. Really good. However, I believe that as with most PGs it is going to get a mixed reception and create a little controversy.
The presentation image is very true to the description and the scent itself: it is about the desert. More so, an oasis in the desert. There is a juxtaposition of hot and cool, sweet and salty, dry and fresh effects through the interplay of notes. There is a feeling of both sand and nearby water.
Lavender is very brief and mild in the opening, so those who love it may be left craving more, and those who don’t will not be offended. It doesn’t seem like lavender meant to be a big character here, more of a behind-the-scenes player. Spearmint is listed but my nose does not register any. There is, however, a very fresh and zingy fig note in the opening.
After a short while the scent becomes smoother and softer and rounds up nicely with cedar and cocoa. It is not exactly chocolate or chocolate-sweet, and the leather accord keeps it from becoming too pretty. And here things start getting a little dirtier, which to me is a good thing, as I love cumin and most spices. There is definitely a nice doze of cumin in Djhennè. At times it seems like you have just been through a very nice roll in the desert. The musky aspect is very prevalent, as with a lot of recent offerings from niche perfumery.
The drydown is about vanilla and spices but vanilla and cocoa keep them from being too prominent. I saw ‘wheat’ listed in the notes but what my nose registers is warmth, as in warm bread and warm skin.
Sillage is soft and mild, lasting power 6 to 8 hours.
Djhennè will definitely appeal to lovers of Musc Ravageur, Muscs Koublai Khan, Femme, Kingdom and most Lutens.
rjs627Unlogrere – :
Opens like Chergui – hay meadow on a dry, late-summer day – but richer, with just a touch of lavender. In this phase it’s very gentle and comforting. In the drydown, the myrrh comes to the fore and it becomes much more intense, reminiscent of Goutal Myrrhe Ardente, but drier and more masculine, with a hint of incense smoke.
Brucer81 – :
I received a sample from luckyscent and wow, what an experience! It is a deminsional fragrance – both spicy and clean, leather and powdery floral. It’s a warm, enveloping scent…like slipping into a beloved leather jacket. I do wish the lavender notes had been more present. If I purchase a full bottle I would like to see how it performs layered with L`Occitane Lavender. Either way, I keep finding myself turning my head to catch another whiff.
привет_всем_я_Женек – :
Got a free sample of this from luckyscent. For me, it is soapy on the opening and through most of the ride. I do not care for soapy notes. So, this is a no-go for me. I can barely detect leather, and assume the soapy is coming from whatever those opening notes are… even if this dried down to the most wonderful base… I would not buy it due to the soapy. My scent journey needs to be 100% awesome for me to spring for a full bottle. Oh well. Can swap this with someone who is interested. PM me.
thoummodozy – :
@ lisa O – it’s not that you just thought, it’s true. it’s his own company. the discription has to be edited.
shakalcs – :
why is pierre guillaume “collaborating” and “has taken over”- I thought “parfumerie generale” was his own company… strange description…