Tom Ford has a knack for scintillating fragrance monikers. (Hello ‘Fucking Fabulous‘, ‘Rose Prick‘ and ‘Lost Cherry‘.) One that has an overused-emoji already in place for its glory is ‘Bitter Peach’. While it came out a while ago, this one is a recent addition to my cologne cabinet thanks to a Christmas present from Andy. I’ve loved peach as a fragrance for years, but never experienced it in a perfume or cologne.
At first I was skeptical, as Ford’s fruity excursions (like ‘Lost Cherry’) have veered too close to the sugary mainstream stuff that celebrities like Britney Spears or Jennifer Lopez put forth. Upon an initial quick spritz at a nearby Sephora store, I remained unconvinced – however, when I tried it out again a year later, the bit of bitterness was enough to keep me intrigued, and the bright peach that opens it so gorgeously made it worth the ask.
There’s also a perfect backing soundtrack to this scent, provided by Prince in a B-Side cut from his collection of ‘The Hits’ – this is ‘Peach’:
It’s certainly a ripe song for a Tom Ford Private Blend fragrance – it gives sass and sex and just a touch of raunch – though the fragrance itself is more subdued and graceful. ‘Bitter Peach’ is a brief puff of summer sweetness, immediately tempered by a spicy gourmand vibe from some cardamom, blood orange, rum and cognac. An element of promised bitterness comes in at the end of the opening. While the base notes are a little voluminous (the literature lists Indonesian Patchouli Leaf, Vanilla, Tonka Bean, Sandalwood, Benzoin, Cashmeran, Styrax, Labdanum and Vetiver) they marry well and end up settling into something elegantly restrained – the bright and sexy peach fuzz transforming into the softest cashmere.
At that point, the one drawback of such beauty occurs: it goes away too quickly. Topping out at about an hour or two, that initial voluptuousness fades to a whisper that stays quietly close to the skin, demanding repeated application throughout the day – not necessarily a bad thing, but something to consider with its hefty price tag.
This is one of those rare Ford Private Blends that can, and probably should, be used year-round. Many of his creations work well only in certain seasons (‘Mandarino di Amalfi‘, ‘Costa Azzurra‘, and ‘Venetian Bergamot‘ for spring and summer; ‘Amber Absolute‘, ‘Vert D’Encens‘, ‘Ébène Fumé‘ for fall and winter) ‘Bitter Peach’ would work well in summer, fall, and even winter, thanks to its spicy accents of bitterness and the warm softness of its dry down.
Such multi-faceted use mirrors the double and triple entendres for a scent called ‘Bitter Peach’ – the likes of which could be explored for days. You’ll have to settle for this cheeky blog post and all its innuendo and butt-baring outuendo.
Summertime, feelin’ fine, getting wildAll that’s on my mindHere she come, dressed in redGet her done, is all that’s in my headHer hot pants can’t hide her cheeks
She’s a peach…
