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Post by Portia
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Hi there Frag Heads,
When the niche bomb exploded one of the houses that became an instant line in loads of high end scent stores was perfumes de Marly. Pegasus in 2011, 5 more in 2012, 7 in 2013, 4 in 2014, 3 in 2015 and 3 more in 2016. That’s 23 fragrances in 5 years, almost Montale-ish. Strangely we haven’t yet written about any of their scents here on APJ, I have had some samples but they got ignored so I moved them on. I have just found the amusingly titled Shagya in a carded manufacturers sample and the green caught my eye. Come and have a first impression ride with me.
Shagya by Parfums de Marly 2013
Shagya by Sidonie Lancesseur
Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, Lime, Pink pepper
Heart: Geranium, Oud, Cedarwood
Base: Gaiac wood, Musk, Papyrus, Vetiver
Lime and pepper fizz merrily on open and I can already smell the woods/oud giving a dry, dusty, summer in a country woodmill feeling. Hot and muddy like after a summer storm. Having a cold lemonade in the sunshine after the storm. A grown up cologne for wealthy business people with just enough gravitas to feel like old farm money comes to town.
This is not a whole new scent, it’s an old trope that seems smooth and debonairly executed up top with a very nice, crisp woodsy dry down. The scent becomes less and less juicy as the heart progresses and finishes as brittle dried grasses and well polished woods.
I bet this is one of Marly’s best sellers. While not rocking my socks off it is different enough to add that extra edge to the business of making people smell good. In the modern tradition of mens fragrance but I think a woman would smell divine in it, that would be so unexpected.
From Parfums de Marly: The Shagya Arabian horse was developed in Austro Hungaria and is known for its inborn friendliness towards humans. Named after the majestic Arabian breed of horses, Shagya is the most exclusive of the Royal Essence collection. The top notes of the fragrance tingle with the Citric freshness of Limette, Bergamot and Pink Berries and gently give way to a heart of Geranium, Cedar wood and Oud. The fragrance settles with woody scents of Vetyver, wood of Guaiac, Papyrus and musk.
First in Fragrance has €150/125ml (Spend €300 FREE World Shipping!)
(Even FragranceNet is more expensive at €229.60)
Have you tried any of the Parfums de Marly?
Portia xx
Australian Perfume Junkies 
Hi Portia! Lovely review. Sounds like it might be quite dry and grassy, is it anything like Bois Blonds by Parfumerie Generale? I have tried only one from Parfums de Marly, which was Oajan. It is a very sweet, cinnamon-doused amber that is quite like Ambre Narguile. I was excited about this for one hot second until I realized that it is not that much cheaper per ml 🙂
xxx Claire
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Hey Claire,
Yeah, it does do the dry grassy thing. I don’t know if you ever put the grass clippings on the garden in a clump? In summer if you lift the clump when the outside has gone brown but the inside is a steaming green hothouse then this is kind of the smell. But not.
I’ve got a sample of Bois Blonds here somewhere but I can’t find it to compare, sorry.
Portia xxx
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I tried three of them when I was in Chicago. I liked them, but the store wasn’t giving samples. First in Fragrance is much less than what I was quoted, but now, I don’t remember what I liked. Damn!
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What a total bummer Ellen M,
Those people don’t know the value of samples.
This one is nice and I would probably wear it quite a bit in the warmer months if it was in the collection.
Portia xx
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Oh, so it is named after a horse. I was almost impressed by their ingenuity for coming up with this name 😀
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HA!
Portia xx
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I haven’t realized this line existed until a couple of months ago. I got several samples when I was in Seattle. I need to do more testing (and maybe learn their names while I’m at it 😉 ), and I already have one favorite (Darley), about which I will probably write something on my blog.
I haven’t tried Shagya but it sounds like something I might like – either on me, or on my vSO. Good review!
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Hey there Undina,
Thank you. You’ve put a BIG smile on my face.
I love the bottles for this brand, they look and feel really nice. Not tried Darley yet but thanks for the heads up.
I have worn Shagya again a couple of times and have enjoyed it. My sample is almost done. Let’s see how much I miss it when it’s empty.
Portia xx
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Thanks for the wonderful review.
I enjoy wearing Lippizan more than Shagya as Oakmoss is my top favorite note in perfumes. Herod, Hamdani, Pegasus and Godolphin are the others that I am looking for.
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Hey Hikmat Sher Afridi,
I’ll look out for Lippizan next. Thanks.
Portia xx
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