L'Amant EDP

L'artisan Parfumeur is one of the earliest modern niche houses, the Paris maison founded in 1976 by Jean Laporte and widely credited with helping shape the modern niche perfumery category. Across 76 L'artisan Parfumeur perfumes, the price spread is about $46 to $435. Mentions are highest for L'artisan Parfumeur Premier Figuier, followed by L'artisan Parfumeur Passage d'Enfer and L'artisan Parfumeur Timbuktu.

Inside the three picks

L'artisan Parfumeur Premier Figuier (1994) opens with fig leaf and galbanum and ends on coconut milk, pine needle and sandalwood; overall it reads as fig leaves and peach with creamy almond milk. For L'artisan Parfumeur Passage d'Enfer (1999), expect smoky rose incense over woody resin: ginger and rose up top, benzoin, cedar and sandalwood underneath. L'artisan Parfumeur Timbuktu (Eau de Toilette, 2004) comes across as smoky, resinous incense over green vetiver grass, with green mango and cardamom at the start and vetiver, myrrh and benzoin at the base.

The Scendira brands page has every house, and woody perfumes and fresh perfumes are the nearest families to the picks above.