Nuit d’Issey is what I’d call a safe scent, but it’s done so well that it’s worth trying on that basis alone. It has all the hallmarks of a classical masculine fragrance (or the Western masculine, since the other half of the world doesn’t find the gender division in perfumery so compelling). Its dry woody accord is folded into soft leather and sweetened enough with cooked apple notes to make the fragrance approachable and easy-going. If the idea is to find a new daytime fragrance, Nuit d’Issey will fit the bill. It’s thoroughly boardroom acceptable, but it’s far from dull.

That being said, the Nuit part of the name is a stretch. So is the marketing story of dark woods and leather. Nuit d’Issey is fairly bright, with a juicy grapefruit and black pepper opening. Musk and dry amber run throughout the composition, rising up from the bottom like the blobs in a lava lamp. The finish is suave, with an earthy accent of patchouli.