Neroro

What's unusual here is the tension between the icy aldehydes and the warmth underneath. Aldehydes typically signal vintage sparkle or soapy lift. Used with coffee and almond, they create a frosted-glass effect: the gourmand notes are present, but separated from you by a thin cool barrier. The licorice adds another layer of strangeness. It's a note that lives in both confectionery and apothecary, and Marcoccia leans into the ambiguity rather than resolving it.

The evolution

The first ten minutes are all crackle. Aldehydes flash cold, almond goes slightly metallic, and the coffee hasn't fully woken up yet. There's a soapy, mineral brightness that could almost pass for cologne. Then the iris arrives and the temperature drops further, like stepping into a marble lobby. Violet folds in alongside it, bringing grey-blue powder. Around the thirty-minute mark, the coffee comes forward properly: dark, slightly bitter, and unsweetened. Licorice weaves through everything, adding a herbal edge that keeps the sweetness from cloying. The drydown shifts toward tonka bean and sandalwood, with the cashmere wood providing a soft, brushed-fabric finish. The licorice note is the one that outlives everything else, lingering on skin like a faint anise whisper that refuses to fully fade.