Burt Lancaster and Anna Magnani in "The Rose Tattoo"

Whenever Swiss perfumer Vero Kern of vero.profumo releases a new perfume, it causes a ripple of anticipation and pleasure throughout the perfume community. Her line is so carefully curated that you know that when she lets a new fragrance out into the world, it’s going to be worth the wait. She started with three fragrance, .onda., .rubj., and .kiki., in 2007, then added a fourth, .mito., in 2012, the EDP versions of Rubj, Kiki and Onda in 2010 and added the Voiles d'Extraits in 2013. This year, she has created a rose-centric fragrance, which she has wanted to do for some time. The new perfume is .rozy., and is a tribute to the late Anna Magnani, who won a Best Actress Oscar for her performance in the 1955 film adaptation of Tennessee Williams’s “The Rose Tattoo”. When I was in Milan, I stopped by the Campomarzio70 offices, which is the Italian distributor for vero.profumo, and had a chance to experience this new release in both Eau de Parfum and Voile D’Extrait.

Rose Tattoo flash, artist not known

.rozy. EDP was the first version that I smelled, and it made me instantly happy. There is something about the opening, full of bright roses and fruits, that makes me think of the sincere laughter of children, when it is throaty and full, from the belly.  Ms. Kern uses passionfruit in all of her Eaus de Parfum to convey a slightly animalic feel, and although it is fruity in combination with the juicy peach note here, it does have that slight underbelly smell that tropical fruits can have. Perhaps those children were laughing at a cruel joke. Front and center is the rose, rich and velvety, bolstered by a golden drop of honey. The peach starts to smell more like its skin, fuzzy and sun-warmed, and the rose, too, starts to gather itself for the last puff of fragrance before its petals shatter. It takes a long time for this perfume to fully manifest. The day I wore it, hours later it was still a lightly shimmering honeyed rose.

Notes: Rose d’Orient, Lilac, Peaches, Passionfruit, Honey, and Sandal

Anna Magnani and Dog, news photo Mondadori Portfolio

The Voile D’Extrait didn’t make me happy in the conventional sense when I first smelled it on paper. It made me roll my eyes back into my head. On skin, the opening is almost brutal, with the headstrong rose, the slightly medicinal tuberose, and unexpected cassis. I can see the Anna Magnani in this – sensationally gorgeous, with an aura of anger and pain to add sharpness to the face. Don’t get me wrong, I reveled in this fragrance, couldn’t stop smelling it, like I was searching for something lost to me. Ms. Kern has done something truly different with rose; she has refrained from using the time-tested oud or patchouli as its companion, instead opting for honey and labdanum. I wore this to an event, and had people smell me. It had dried down by then, and the reaction was mostly one of a lovely comfort scent, which it does become once the rose is stripped of its thorns.

Notes (also applies to Extrait): Rose d’Orient, Tuberose, Cassis, Honey, Spices, Sandal and Labdanum

French poster for "The Rose Tattoo"

Both of these versions of .rozy. are exquisite, each with a distinct personality and way of playing out on skin. They are definitely sisters from the same mother, but one is the golden child and the other is the wild child. I would be hard-pressed to choose which one to own, because some days I want to be easy to get along with, and other days (or nights) I want to growl before I settle down. Ms. Kern has done it again.

I received my samples from Campomarzio70.

Tama Blough, Managing Editor

Thanks to Campomarzio70 we have a sample oset of both .rozy. EDP and Voile D’Extrait to give to one reader living in the US. Let us know what appeals to you about this perfume, your favorite Anna Magnani movie, or your favorite vero.profumo perfume. Draw ends April 4, 2014.

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.