Angelos Creations Olfactives Yassemi Review (Aggelos Balamis) + Wild Mediterranean Garden Draw

January 10, 2021January 18, 2021

Pitti 2019 Photo by Ermano©

One of the best discoveries I made at Pitti Fragranze last year was not even part of the show. Sitting in a lovely Florentine hotel garden at dusk with Neela Vermeire, Antonio Gardoni, and our own Sebastian Jara, was Aggelos Balamis of Angelos Creations Olfactives, a young Greek perfume writer turned perfumer, whom I’d met before at Esxence in Milan. After a few drinks and much conversation, Aggelos treated us to a selection of works in progress for the launch of his new line. Michelyn calls me the Mikey of CaFleureBon – remember that old Life cereal commercial with the kid who doesn’t like anything? – and it is true, I am not the easiest to please. So, when I tell you I was knocked sideways by Aggelos’ fragrances, even the uncompleted ones, you might want to stop reading this, head to your computer, and *order a sample set.

Aggelos Balamis courtesy of Aggelos©

Now that I’ve had a chance to visit the final versions at leisure, my favourite of the line (and this was not an easy choice) Angelos Creations Olfactives Yassemi, a luminous, graceful, green jasmine smells like a risqué garden party. It was one of my Top Ten Perfumes of 2020. Aggelos explains Yassemi’s provenance: “Yassemi was my 5th chronologically finished product and composition but I have been working on it in my mind for a long time because it was meant to be my signature scent. It is basically the incarnation of a combination of two scents: blooming night jasmine flowers and Japanese mock trees, which create a totally narcotic essence lingering in the air outside of my building and my neighborhood … during late spring and summer warm nights. The initial concept was to capture those two particular scents and pair them with patchouli dark oil (15% in the total concentrate) while giving it also some luminance with sweet blood orange and sparkling nuances from aldehydes.”

Rene Gruau©

Angelos Creations Olfactives Yassemi begins like popped champagne; a glittering spray of indolic jasmine, sweet orange, and aldehydes bursting from the bottle. A boozy note cuts in quickly and balances the richness of the white flowers in an unexpected, clever way. I never would have thought that rum and indoles could work so brilliantly together, but here they do. Mixed with the Dom Perignon fizz of the aldehydes, Yassemi starts off like a tipsy, giggly bride clutching her bouquet with one hand, a mimosa in the other: giddy, glowing, and just a bit naughty. In its earliest moments, Yassemi reminds me a bit of Frederic Malle Superstitious. But where Superstitious delves into darker smells of full-bodied incense and velvety rose, Yassemi dances into a wild Greek garden profuse with flowers and smooth, balmy woods, satin hair ribbons streaming behind her in joyful abandon.

Rene Gruau©

About half an hour into Yassemi’s trajectory, the perfume turns creamier as sandalwood and ylang-ylang saunter in, adding a denser backdrop for the coming cascade of pointillist floral dots to stand out against. First, there’s the heady, coloratura trill of lily-of-the-valley; then, just detectable, the powdery-almond blossom smell of heliotrope and the sweet-herbal aroma of angelica. From time to time, I get a tiny hit of fruity pepper and sharp greenery that bounce off the headier notes like electric sparks that illuminate the fragrance. After a time, the perfume turns earthier, drier, which I take to be the influence of patchouli.

Rene Gruau©

Like many yesteryear classics, Angelos Creations Olfactives Yassemi Yassemi has a long, complicated list of flowers, fruit, woods and resins. But Balamis’ control and balance is remarkable. There is indeed a vintage quality about Yassemi in the dominance of indolic jasmine, galbanum and aldehyde, especially in the top, and in the tapestry-like weaving of all those notes into a shimmering whole. But equally, Yassemi has a freshness and bounce that make it seem like it was mixed this morning, thanks to well-chosen splashes of bright fruit and some light, soapy musk. I wouldn’t exactly say Yassemi has a dry-down, which is a good thing. I don’t know how he does it, but Balamis manages to keep the myriad floral and woods notes pinging off the aldehydes, pink pepper and green leaf smells indefinitely, all under the graceful sweep of that delicious, animalic jasmine. There’s a good reason Michelyn selected Aggelos Balamis as 2020’s rising star in perfumery: he’s bloody talented. And Angelos Creations Olfactives Yassemi – one of the loveliest jasmine-centric fragrances around – is proof.

Since Aggelos doesn’t’ have a website at this time please see his Facebook Page or email him at angelos.olfactives@gmail.com or DM him at Angel_bal on Instagram

Notes: Rum, galbanum, blackcurrant, blood orange, sweet orange, Aldehydes, jasmine absolute Egypt, ylang-ylang complete, geranium, heliotrope, muguet, mango leaf absolute, pink pepper CO2, angelica root, blue chamomile, rosewood, sandalwood, gurjun balsam, patchouli Indonesia, cashmeran, musk, ambergris, labdanum, ambrette seed.

Disclaimer: sample of Angelos Creations Olfactives Yassemi kindly provided by Aggelos Balamis. My opinions are my own.

Lauryn Beer, Senior Editor

Thanks to the generosity of Aggelos Balamis, we have a 30 ml bottle of Angelos Creations Olfactives Yassemi for one registered reader in Europe, the UK or the USA. To be eligible, please leave a comment saying what strikes you about Yassemi and where you live. Draw closes 1/14/2021.

Please note that Yassemi is macerating, so it will be several weeks before the perfume can be sent,

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We announce the winner on our site and on our Facebook page, so like CaFleureBon and use our blog feed … otherwise, your dream prize will be just spilled perfume.