Le Labo Patchouli 24 is an unusual patchouli fragrance as it is more birch tar than patchouli. A woody chypre created by Annick Menardo, this scent is very smoky and leathery yet tempered with a creamy vanilla and patchouli. It is an eau de parfum, edp. This is one of the original perfumes launched when Le Labo was formed.
My nephew used to wear this back when he was single, and every time he would go out, he would be assaulted with women wanting to smell him. This is one of my favorite fragrances to layer with something else. If you find something too blah, throw some Patchouli 24 on top of it. My very favorite combination was/is Guerlain Spiritueuse Double Vanille with this on top or Le Labo Vanille 44 with this on top. Well, I'm happy to put this on top of about anything. I know Santal 33 gets all the love in this line, and it's okay. But this is one of the standouts from this line, and it is the one that everyone stops me to know what I am wearing.
Notes of patchouli, birch, styrax, and vanilla.
From Scentertainer - "Patchouli 24, or rather Annick Menardo, succeeded in a magical way to resist the laws of physics and high perfumery and made a perfume, a microcosm with specific, self-contained laws. It’s a known fact that light, citrus notes are the first to be felt in the perfume, they last about fifteen minutes, then give way to the heart notes that serve as a clutch of the upper and lower notes and last for about an hour (most often floral notes), followed by base notes, heavy, dense, which can last for days on the skin. In the case of Patchouli 24, the thing is entirely inverted. Heavy notes are those that are dominant at the beginning, and as the time moves, the perfume becomes lighter, warmer, smoother, and more transparent. A note of leather, patchouli, and birch give way to the sensual vanilla, which comes as a reward for the effort made. I do not know how this worked, but Annick Menardo showed once again that she deserves to be at the very top of the perfume world. Incomprehensible and magical!"
From Now Smell This - "I would say that the Patchouli 24 is deeper and more intently focused on the wood and earthy notes, and the vanilla dry down, when it arrives, is not quite so cushiony and soft. If you ever wished for a Bvlgari Black Extreme, your wish has come true. I had not thought to wish for it myself, but now that it is here it is most welcome."
From Grain de Musc - "Whatever the 24 materials used in Patchouli 24 may be, they run the whole chain from the sweet balsamic (vanilla, styrax) to smoky (vanillin, guaiacol), on to medicinal (patchouli) and leathery (birch tar) to downright animalic (castoreum). Patchouli 24 hovers between the edible quality of a slightly burnt caramel and the ballsiness of an aromatic chemistry demonstration. But then, Annick Menardo, the closest thing we’ve got to Germaine Cellier nowadays, is nothing if not one of the ballsiest perfume composers around."
