The Different Company Divine Bergamote fragrance bottleI am still waiting anxiously for a sample of The Different Company's Jasmin de Nuit (please comment if you've tried it!) so as consolation today I am wearing Divine Bergamote. This is yet another of my favorites from Jean Claude Ellena, who created the first 4 releases from this line before moving on to become house nose at Hèrmes. The notes are: bergamot, hesperidium, precious woods, ginger, orange flower, green leaf, rhubarb wood, musk.

This is a sheer, transparent scent. When I first tried it from a sample vial I thought there wasn’t much to it, but since obtaining a spray bottle I am very pleased with its depth. The top notes are tart, but not nearly as sharp as your typical bergamot opening. There is just a little buzz of ginger — I’m not sure I would have noticed it if it wasn’t listed in the notes, but it does have that little "nose tickle" that ginger provides. The green notes are likewise subdued but help to soften the sharpness of the citrus and the orange blossom.

It dries down to a really lovely citrus-y wood scent with a nice musky base. It has very good lasting power, although like everything else from The Different Company it is only available as an eau de toilette.

Fans of citrus & woods should definitely give this a try. The Different Company line is not cheap, but the packaging is nicely done, and I like the fact that the bottles are all refillable. The estagnon (a 250 ml aluminum bottle for $130) is an excellent value per ounce, especially if you find some nice friends to split it with.

I am also very fond of their Bois d'Iris, a sheer earthy-woody scent that is a must-try for iris lovers. The Osmanthus was something of a changeling on me: once or twice I really loved it — a sheer, bright floral with touches of green and hay — but at least twice I put it on and thought it smelled just plain odd. I still have a sample but have given up on it for now. Rose Poivrée is an unusual fragrance with a bit too much vetiver and civette for my taste, but very much worth a try.

For buying information, see the listing for The Different Company under Perfume Houses.