Poivre Piquant always reminds me of a famous quote from Steve Jobs: “A lot of times, people don’t know what they want until you show it to them.” I could never have predicted that I would enjoy Poivre Piquant as much as I do. Why would I want to smell like pepper? Pepper makes me eczema-y. But just as Jobs predicted, once L’Artisan showed me this challenging, beautiful pepper fragrance, I knew that it was exactly what I wanted.
Poivre Piquant roars to life with a burst of freshly-ground pepper. This part is pretty intense, but within two minutes, the pepper softens enough to allow you to catch a glimpse of the creamy honey note underneath. The combination is totally ingenious; the heat and kick of the pepper note keep the honey from ever becoming too sweet, and the honey note prevents the pepper from ever becoming too harsh. The two notes continue their tense dance throughout the life of the fragrance, with neither ever fully gaining the upper hand. The only other peppery perfume I’ve tried is Lolita Lempicka Si Lolita, which is somewhat heavy and dense. Poivre Piquant, however, is very delicate, even translucent. I find it totally addictive.
SCENTS OF SELF 
This one was totally surprising to me. I love the peppery/creamy juxtaposition. I must say my L’Artisan pepper fix comes from Piment Brulant, as it reminds me of Cajun restaurants and cooking from back home. Just MUCH MUCH more chic.
I hope your new semester is going well!
The semester has started off okay, Kathleen, thank you so much for asking! Piment Brulant is the last of the epices trio that I haven’t had the chance to try yet. You make it sound wonderful!
L’Artisans tend to disappear in two breaths on me (exception Seville a l’Aube), so I haven’t explored the line as well as I might have. This is one of the few that appeal, though. Honey and pepper, wow.
I highly recommend it, Mals! Would you like me to send you a sample? I got myself a decant for mah birfday!
I have Both PP and PB and love them both Arielle. 2 totally different takes on pepper. One wet and the other fiery. They both are easy wear faves of mine if I only need to be properly fragrant for 4 hours.
I am so glad someone else loves the L’Artisan line. I feel like everyone else has been there, done that and moved on.
Portia xx
I think that many people have been in the perfume game for a lot longer than me, so L’Artisan is no longer new and exciting to them. Totally understandable! I am just discovering this line, so L’Artisan and I are still in the honeymoon phase! 😉
With you all the way.
Portia xx
Never tried it, but I don’t like pepper fragrances at all, I find the note disturbing and interrupting.
Ooh, interesting, Lucas! What are some pepper fragrances you’ve tried? It seems like a fairly uncommon note to me (fortunately for you!)
I tried DKNY Men (2009) or Burberry the Beat and didn’t like them.
Also tried Penhaligon’s Opus 1870 and this one was nice and I didn’t find pepper disturbing in it.
Aaaaah! I love it! As we speak, PP is in my current lineup of reviews-in-progress (along with Navegar, which I happened to wear yesterday, and which is pepper out the wazoo)…. I adore peppercorns in any color or form– whole or ground, but especially the essential oil. Beautiful, yet blistering!
a translucent ying and yang …lovely review
I haven’t tried it yet, but you made me very curious. It’s amazing how you described it!
Thank you so much, Anami! If you do get to try Poivre Piquant, please come back and let us know what you think of it!
Yay. A review of one of my favorites. Poivre Piquant was my first FB purchase of a niche perfume. It is totally addictive.
What an excellent first niche perfume, rosiegreen! Mine was far less sophisticated (Bond No. 9 New Haarlem).
This sounds like a good reason to get me to the nearest L’Artisan counter to take sniff. Spicy and creamy sound like my kind of heaven.
Will you be going to Sniffapalooza this fall, Sujaan? If you are, I would love to hit up the L’Artisan corner of Bendel’s with you!
I’m glad you like this Ari, I’m also a fan. I got a bottle in their sale and it’s very nice to wear on lazy days. I really love the pepper contrast against the milk & honey.
Love peppery perfumes!
Aaaargh, I’m so jealous, Tara. Poivre Piquant was only available in the British L’Artisan sale, not the American one!!
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