The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Santal Galore arrived in 2020 from the house of Areej Le Doré, the atelier that released it as part of the brand's 6th Collection. The name itself is a wink: this is sandalwood on parade, unapologetic about it, dressed in florals and animal warmth to keep the woody core company. Indonesian sandalwood absolute opens the composition before the fragrance deepens into layered territory, with Mysore sandalwood absolute waiting in the base to anchor the drydown. Released alongside a catalogue already stocked with rare distillates and oud-forward compositions, Santal Galore offered something softer without sacrificing the raw-material intensity the line had built its name on.
What makes Santal Galore unusual is the sandalwood layering. Indonesian sandalwood absolute opens the composition, then reappears in the heart, then yields to Mysore sandalwood absolute in the base. Three grades of the same material, stacked. Add durian fruit absolute at the top, a notoriously divisive tropical note, alongside Turkish rose water and osmanthus, and the composition pulls in a floral direction that balances the woody backbone without smothering it. Deer musk and oakmoss in the base ground it, lending the chypre edge that keeps the sweetness from drifting off.
The evolution
The first hour is durian doing durian things: creamy, pungent, somewhere between custard and something you cannot quite name. Most people either love it or flinch. If you stay, the Indonesian sandalwood slides in underneath and smooths the edges. The heart is where this fragrance finds its groove: rose, osmanthus, jasmine, and Turkish rose water settle into a soft, almost humid floral haze that smells like walking into a temple courtyard at dusk. The sandalwood never leaves. It just gets quieter. By hour three the deer musk arrives, warm and close, pulling oakmoss and tonka bean into a creamy chypre drydown. The Mysore sandalwood absolute surfaces in the base and stays for the long haul. Longevity is reported as above average, with the composition holding close to the skin well into the evening before gradually loosening its grip.
Cultural impact
Santal Galore is the kind of fragrance that announces itself and then waits to see who stays in the room. The durian opening and deer musk base make it an acquired taste, and the composition wears that reputation openly. It does not soften its edges to court a wider audience, and the materials speak for themselves in a register that rewards patience. The layering of Indonesian and Mysore sandalwood, the osmanthus apricot sweetness, the rose water's humid lift, and the chypre grounding of oakmoss all contribute to a scent that feels deliberately composed rather than thrown together.
