Perfume reviews are something I’ve never touched on before, because, at their very core, they are exceedingly boring to me. Perfume is so subjective and so personal, that talking about them just don’t make a whole lot of sense to me. Having said that, I recently fell madly in love with a perfume and absolutely had to discuss it.

I’m talking about Molecule 01, which was created by the brand Escentric Molecules. I’m only somewhat familiar with the brand as I vaguely remember Estee Lalonde (aka EssieButton) mentioning them in a favourites video many, MANY years ago. I had some idea that they were an English brand and that the scent was unique, but that’s about it.

When I went on vacation to England last month, I ended up having lunch with one of my subscribers (and now friend!), and when I went I got up close to give her a hug the scent of her perfume absolutely intoxicated me. We sat down to chat over lunch, and I kept getting wafts of it. I was smitten – I demanded to know exactly what it was because it was unlike anything I had ever smelled before and it was WONDERFUL. She told me it was Molecule 01, and I went out and bought it immediately at Liberty London. I bought the largest bottle I could get my hands on – the scent was that intoxicating to me!

So what is Molecule 01, and why was I basically drunk off this perfume? Well, the basis of the formula is that it’s actually completely synthetic. It’s an aroma-molecule that doesn’t exist in nature called Iso E Super. It was created in a laboratory in 1973 and used in low doses in some perfumes. Geza Schoen (the creator of Escentric Molecules) decided to use Iso E Super in isolation – wearing it alone as their perfume of the day. The basis for the perfume that I’m obsessed with is basically that it’s a singular molecule – it’s Iso E Super in its purest form at 100% strength (there is also the Escentric 01 Fragrance – which is different. That version contains Iso E Super at 65%).

To me, the scent is  wildly intoxicating. That’s the best way I can think to describe how it makes me feel. I am very drawn to aquatic scents and I feel like this is one, although the scent profile for it makes no mention of water notes whatsoever. People tend to refer to this scent as being quite woodsy – and I do get that scent off it, but not quite as much as I still get a watery, aquatic, oceany scent. It’s fresh and clean, but somehow deep and enticing.

However… I need to point out that this perfume comes and goes on me. There’s some witchcraft voodoo going on with it because it’ll often disappear off my skin (to my nose), only to come back later on. On application to my inside wrists, the scent is absolutely gone within an hour. It’s the weirdest thing ever. If I spray it in areas where I’m more likely to get more heated skin (like the insides of my elbows) the scent lasts longer and wafts up to my nose in waves throughout the day. I found I also had good luck with it when I sprayed it on my clothing, but it was a bit all over the place – some days the scent lingered for hours on end, and other days it disappeared. It’s the weirdest thing – I’ve never encountered a perfume that’s behaved this way before. Apparently some people can’t even smell the Iso E Super molecule (which is a dang shame), I can – I just wish it had somewhat more consistent properties so I could sniff myself all day. (And this isn’t a matter of me getting used to the perfume – the scent really does come and go on me throughout the day!)

In short – Molecule 01 is my new favourite perfume to wear. I love everything about it – the fact that it’s manufactured synthetically (it just FEELS cool!), the oceany, woodsy scent, and even the binary design of the bottle. The whole thing is just absolutely, deliriously wonderful.

Molecule 01 perfume can be purchased at Liberty London for £72.00 or amazon.ca for ~$150 CAD.

Post contains affiliate links.