Sarah McCartney at Fortnum & Mason launching four 4160 Tuesdays perfumes

As ever with the magical Sarah McCartney the perfumer for 4160 Tuesdays, keeping up with her various fragrant adventures can be a little bewildering. Following 4160 Tuesdays on Facebook will help to keep those interested in her perfumes feeling a little more 'in the loop". I'll admit that even as perfume blogger I am often met with another new creation, yet have no idea where it has emerged from.  Recently, 4160 Tuesdays has taken four fragrances from the extensive collection and tweaked them to be sold exclusively at Fortnum & Mason in London. Three of the scents may be familiar; Tart's Knicker drawer, Sexiest Scent on the Planet (IMHO) and London 1969 are already hugely popular. The fourth fragrance, Centrepiece, is brand new and inspired by a visit to the Fortnum & Mason ice cream parlour and perfume salon.

Eartha Kitt drinking honey straight from the jar 1959

With notes of frangipani, green tea and honey, Centrepiece evokes a voluptuous  1950s vintage perfume.  It is indeed a smoothly rounded, seductive fragrance, but I found it a little on the dark side…  I was destined to love this perfume as soon as it touched my skin. I cannot resist beeswax and honey notes and Centrepiece drizzles it's languid, pollen-rich nectar out of the bottle and onto my wrist like liquid amber. It reminds me of natural heather honey beeswax my neighbour gave me to polish the furniture.

I have always wished I could spread it all over myself instead of the table. Its scent is deep and slightly bodily, as honey can sometimes be.

Multi media Painting by Sarah Atkinson ( beeswax and tar) grand image

In Centrepiece the impression is of skin smeared with fragrant wax. There is a fascinating bitterness from the tea notes that contrasts beautifully with the sweet honey. As the scent develops the tea gets smoky and dark, tinting the amber with streaks of black. Frangipani is a beautiful floral note to pair with all that ambrosial headiness, a gardenia-like, humid white bloom that floats atop the oozing honey heart notes. If one was to catch a drift of this perfume on someone else, frangipani would be the dominant impression. It's not until you bury your nose close to your skin that the bitter/sweet nuances really reveal themselves.

1940s actress Dorothy Lamour the Queen of White Flowers

Sniffed from a distance, Centrepiece is a honeyed floral with old school glamour. Up close it is much more complex and intriguing. A bitter, dark stain of tea seeps slowly to mingle with intensely soporific beeswax. The floral note becomes indolic and heavy with dripping honey, whisking you from a sunny beachside afternoon into a steamy evening, the promise of seduction hanging laden in the air.

Sarah Atkinson white floral via  grand image

This will be love at first sniff for anyone who adores a honey heavy fragrance and I would encourage those who usually go for rich, decadent scents to also give Centrepiece a try. However, applied with a very light touch, this could also greatly appeal to white floral lovers with a penchant for a little astringency in their scents. Sarah McCartney may be a mad whirlwind to keep up with, but there is absolute genius in the perfume she produces.

Disclaimer- my sample was gratefully received from 4160 Tuesdays. Opinions my own.

Susie Baird- Editor and editor of Epiphany.

 Editor’s Note: Olfactif.com has Centrepiece exclusively in the USA. 4160 Tuesdays Sexiest Scent on the Planet (IMHO) was our best name for a perfume in 2014. Art direction by moi.-Michelyn

Thanks to Sarah McCartney we have a draw for a reader in the EU or USA  a  30 ml or 50 ml of Centrepiece (depending on availabilty). To be eligible you must be a registered CaFleureBon reader. Please leave a comment with what appeal to you about Centrepiece and if you have a favorite 4160 Tuesdays Perfume. If you would like your comment to count twice follow Sarah on instagram @4160TUESDAYSPERFUME. Draw closes 5/15/2015

We announce the winners only on site and on our Facebook page, so Like Cafleurebon and use our RSS option…or your dream prize will be just spilled perfume