Notes: cognac, juniper berry, lavender, myrrh, olibanum, patchouli, cashmere wood, musk, vetiver, ciste labdanum, timber woodThe newest fragrance (September 1, 2010) by New York perfumer Bond No. 9 is Cooper Square, named after the sliver of park in front of New York's Cooper Union. The scent is cool and masculine with a bright juniper berry start that thankfully does not remind me of the dreaded gin (nor does it remind me of cognac, however) followed by tons of soapy lavender.
The scent remains in this lavender soap phase for quite a while. It's delightfully clean without any of that now-ubiquitous squeaky "clean" detergent essence that has been so popular for the last decade or so. It's merely a very pleasant, manly, "oh you smell nice!" kind of quality.
In the background lurks a bit of olibanum and patchouli, the combination of which reminds me more of leather than of incense.This leathery quality gets a bit stronger as the lavender fades a bit. But, the lavender never fades entirely, making Cooper Square a completely masculine scent in my playbook.
Nothing wrong with masculine scents, of course. Especially when they are this pleasant.
