Frederic Malle perfumes

[Frieda12]

I absolutely adore Portrait of a Lady on other people but on me the fruit notes come out really strong and sweet. I’ve been on the website but got a bit overwhelmed with the descriptions so can anyone recommend others from FM that have a similar dark patchouli base but maybe more woody top notes? Thanks!

Does it have to be a FM perfume? If not then perhaps Eau Capitale from Diptyque which is similar to POAL but lighter. Or if you want that deep heaviness then I would recommend Rose Fatale from Edeniste or Rosamunda from Laboratorio Olfattivo.

I find POAL v strong & a bit overwhelming. But I have Eau Capital & adore it & it geys lots of compliments
I also love the Tom Ford Rose scents

Can’t really help as the FM perfumes I like best aren’t particularly woody.

Have you tried the Find Your Perfume Quiz on their website? It seems silly but I’ve found it surprisingly accurate.

https://m.fredericmalle.co.uk/findyourperfume

Thanks all for your suggestions! @Wordless no I haven’t- I didn’t even see that, I just started looking at each perfume. I’ll go and do that now!

Well, I had to scrub off Portrait of a Lady as it was overwhelming. So take what I say with a grain of salt, as our tastes might be completely different.
A Frederic Malle I love is L'eau d'hiver, no patchouli at all.

You could try Amouage Guidance - it's another 'big' hitting perfume but more woody than rose.

(My fave from Frederic Malle is En Passant which is just the prettiest floral...)

I have Portrait of a Lady, and agree it is very potent, but I just use one squirt so figure the bottle will last forever! Admittedly I had to stop using it for a few months post-covid because it was a sensory overload ( I didn't lose my sense of smell but it changed) Unlike PP I don't see the similarity to Eau Capitale - I really don't get on with it at all as I find it much sweeter/ more cloying. If you want to look at other brands Le Labo have Patchouli 24 and I've found most of their scents to have quite woody notes and not be sweet. If you are near to London a trip to the fragrance hall in Liberty might be in order, they have some lovely brands, including Le Labo and Diptyque so you could see if Eau Capitale is to your liking.

Some great advice here, thanks all! I’m going to London in a few weeks so I’ll put aside some time to go to Liberty.