Emerald Orchard

Emerald Orchard chases Vilhelm Parfumerie's Purple Fig, the 2016 niche aromatic that fans describe as a strikingly beautiful mélange of fig, jasmine and galbanum - green, herby and elegantly figgy all at once. The dupe opens fresh and slightly zingy: angelica and a tart cassis over lemon, bright and a little herbaceous. The heart is the heart of the matter - a green fig, leafy rather than sweet, wrapped in the bitter-green snap of galbanum and a soft cyclamen, giving that distinctive crushed-leaves character the original is loved for. Where Purple Fig let jasmine bloom alongside the fig for a more floral, sultry effect, Emerald Orchard - as PP wearers note - keeps the florals quieter and lets the woods come forward sooner, so it reads greener, drier and a touch more straightforward. The base of cypress and Virginia cedar is faithful and pleasingly dry, grounding the green fruit in clean wood. It loses a little of the niche version's chic, dinner-party sophistication but keeps its unusual, refreshing green-fig signature, which is genuinely hard to find at this price. A versatile, fresh-green scent for spring through early autumn, equally at home at the office or out casually. Longevity is moderate, in line with the original's own mixed performance.