RETRO - Robert Piguet Fracas Parfum

RETRO - Robert Piguet Fracas Parfum was created by Germain Cellier in 1948.   This is Fashion Fragrances and Cosmetics (FF&C) version that was re-introduced in 1995 or 1996. They wanted to release a version of Fracas that was close to the original as possible, and  most people agreed it was close - maybe a little less animalic and aggressive (Bois de Jasmin).  Luca Turin said it is t he “Ferrari” of fragrances and it was inducted into the FiFi (Fragrance Foundation Hall of Fame in 2006.  This is the retro (1995 FF&C version) pure parfum of this classic fragrance.

The ultimate in big white florals, this is a tuberose bomb. We mean that in a good way, of course!  It's not for everyone, but it is a classic referenced in almost all historical perfume books. Fracas has notes of bergamot, orange blossom, greens, peach, tuberose, jasmine, violet, iris, lily of the valley, carnation, sandalwood, musk, oakmoss and cedar.

From Kafkaesque on this particular version - 

On me, it is predominantly tuberose and gardenia, with a touch of green, a base of creamy earthiness and, yes, a strong feeling of a hot body after sex. (Though never the gardenia and “bad-idea sex” that one person amusingly called the scent of Fracas.) The rest — the numerous, subtle nuances and undulating waves of notes — I refuse to break down. I won’t dissect Fracas. I suppose I don’t want to dig into why it creates the magic that it does for me. To me, Fracas is the Ode to Joy in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. There are a lot of cadences involved, but some things are just meant to be appreciated as a majestic whole and to try for yourself. [Ideally, in vintage form.]

For all its glory, I would be the very first to say that you should never buy Fracas blind unless you are sure from ahead of time that you love powerful, heady white floral or tuberose scents. Never. One reason is the powerful projection and longevity of Fracas, which really cannot be emphasized enough. Read the comments on Fragrantica; they are uniform. When someone wrote that Fracas lasted through two showers, I believed it fully. When others write that it can induce searing migraines in even small doses to anyone sensitive to perfumes, I believe them too."