Señor Dias

Señor Dias is the founder's tribute to his grandfather, and the subtitle on the bottle, La Colonia de Carbonnel, is the clue to what it is: a reconstruction of a mid-century Spanish cologne with the volume turned up. The opening is bracingly aromatic, with mint and spearmint sitting alongside rosemary and a bright bergamot, lemon and orange citrus accord. That combination is the hallmark of the old eau de cologne genre and it smells immediately familiar, like a barber's chair. What follows is less traditional. The heart brings ginger, pepper, nutmeg and cumin, a genuinely spicy set that adds body and a faintly skin-like warmth that classic colognes never had. Cumin is the risky note here and it is used with restraint, reading as warmth rather than as anything sharper. The base then supplies the modern engine: patchouli, sandalwood, cedar, vetiver and ambergris give it a dry woody depth and, at extrait concentration, hours of life that the cologne it is honouring could never have managed. The brand's own copy promises unparalleled projection, and it is certainly the loudest opening in the range. Wear it in spring and summer, in daylight, and expect it to still be there in the evening. Anyone who likes the classical aromatic fougere and cologne lane but wants performance will find this a very direct answer.