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TRNP The Way Eau de Parfum corresponded to its description; It was indeed cool, dark and earthy with lots of green at the beginning, some smokiness and depth from the vetiver and then lots of wood. It was never quite as animalistic or sharp, despite the inclusion of oud, so those who may be suspicious of oud should have no fear. I find that vetiver and fir/spruce are most visible initially, then cedarwood, labdanum and sandalwood as it dries.
The path notes
It is described as “a countermovement adventure tale set in a cool green land of ancient forests and earthly might”. The notes are listed as follows: “Needle of Pine, Black Spruce, Elemi, Texas Cedarwood, Styrax Absolute, Labdanum, Mysore Sandalwood, Haitian Vetiver and Vietnamese Oud.”
How does the path smell?
It opened with lush, dark greens wrapped in vetiver with slightly lemony tones. A dark, smoky and earthy quality was present from the very first moments of wearing the fragrance. Despite the darker quality of the notes, it was cooler, not entirely clear, but in the evening on a chilly day with very little wind, just a stillness that was chilly and gloomy. It was woody and almost menthol-like at times, with the fir and spruce facets becoming stronger and more prominent after 20 minutes of development on my skin.
In the first two hours, the vetiver became more subdued and less assertive, making the perfume slightly sweet and spicy, woodier and softer with cooler greenish notes that were more blurred but still distinct. The drydown came in at six hours and was a smooth, woody blend of cedar and sandalwood with some smokiness and juicy sweetness.
longevity
It took four hours before it was a skin odor and about 12 hours before it was quite difficult to detect on my skin. Sillage and projection were moderate, with sillage falling off faster than projection within the first hour of wear.
personal notes
I am particular about using vetiver in fragrances as it seems to feel a bit amplified on my skin so the vetiver was a bit too strong for my preference!
These are more subjective feelings based on what I like (or dislike) about a perfume and weighing the scent up against other perfumes I own and love.
test methodology
For testing, I used 1/3 of a 0.7ml sample vial dabbed on the bottom and top of my wrist area. I used an unscented moisturizer before applying the scent as I found the scent didn’t linger well otherwise.
I bought my sample in January 2022; Fragrances are known to be reformulated throughout their lifetime. So remember when a review was created, e.g. B. a review from 2010 may not reflect how the perfume of the same name smells in 2022.
Availability
The way is available for $230/30ml.
If possible I highly recommend trying a scent before buying a full bottle as the scent can feel different just based on skin chemistry. Skin chemistry can affect not only a fragrance’s longevity, but also which notes emerge and which are hidden.
The path examples
We recommend the following retailers for purchasing decanted samples (typically 0.7mL to 2mL in size). This is a more complete list, so individual availability may depend on inventory.