Chanel Chance was my very first perfume, but the original Prada fragrance was the first perfume I ever really loved. That Prada is an absolute patchouli boooomb, as described by the following horrified MakeupAlley review: “It smells like a chain-smoker and an alcoholic, who hasn’t showered in days, eats spicy food every day, and decided to mask it with a perfume.” (All credit to poetic user “happygirl1”.) I mention this to prove my patchouli cred. I am a hardened patchouli veteran, and I was ready for whatever version of patchouli Mistral Patchouli had to offer me. You can imagine how disappointed I was when I realized that out of all of the possible patchouli fragrances that Atelier Cologne could have made, they went with a “where’s the patchouli?” patchouli.
Mistral Patchouli’s most prominent notes are grapefruit and “fraction of patchouli”. As far as I know, this is a novel combination, and in theory I like it very much. In execution, however, Mistral Patchouli is just too damn clean. The grapefruit note lacks the vibrance of past fruity Atelier Colognes, such as Orange Sanguine. The patchouli is much too sheer and is so far removed from the natural earthiness of patchouli that the relation is barely visible. Robin at Now Smell This correctly labels Mistral Patchouli as “a patchouli for patchouli haters” in her review, and mentions that this is now her favorite fragrance of the line. I have to say that it’s my least favorite. There’s nothing wrong with Mistral Patchouli. It smells very nice. But it just doesn’t have as much character as past Atelier Colognes like Orange Sanguine, Vanille Insensee, or Rose Anonyme. I think I’ll stick with my alcoholic/chain-smoker patchoulis.
SCENTS OF SELF 
Ah, too bad. I have a sample of this wafting its way to me. I need to re-test Rose. I didn’t love it on first try.
What I REALLY want to try is Sous le Toit de Paris, but last I checked they weren’t offering samples of that online. 😛
Oh, I neeeed to try that one too! The Unseen Censer’s review made it sound out of this world.
Confession: the husband is getting Vetiver Fatale for Valentine’s Day. I was sorely tempted to get the 200mL, because if you order through the website, they’ll send you a free 30mL with a 200mL order. And I could have gotten Sous le Toit. But I restrained myself and got the 100mL for him, which is more realistic anyway. I’ll get a sample of Sous le Toit somehow.
I was looking for soap on the Atelier Cologne website, and noticed that samples of Sous le Toit are now available!!
I must say the Atelier Cologne range does not really do it for me, and Mistral Patchouli is no exception. And I, like you, prefer my patchouli present, and very much so ^_^
Also, Mistral Patchouli would bear, to my nose at least, an uncanny resemblance to Navegar by Olivia Giacobetti for L’Artisan Parfumeur, if it were not for smelling more like a base than like a finished fragrance…a flaw it shares with its Atelier Cologne counterparts, in my view.
My wallet rejoices to hear your assessment of Navegar- it’s so rare that I can actually say no to a Giacobetti! I think that I’ve only tried L’Eau d’Navegar.
Hmm, “a chain-smoker and an alcoholic, who hasn’t showered in days, eats spicy food every day, and decided to mask it with a perfume”? She says that like it’s a BAD thing! It could describe my favorite category of perfumes.
But I kid (only partly). I am known to love some heavy-hitting ‘fumes, and I like my patchouli undiluted. Happygirl1 probably wears Pink Sugar – not that there’s anything wrong with that.
LOL! You know, I went through happygirl’s reviews expecting just that, and instead found that she frequents Scent Bar and likes Chergui! Never judge a woman by her Prada review! 😀
I really liked Mistral Patchouli which is obvious after reading my review http://wp.me/p2x0R7-pV
It didn’t become my favourite, Rose Anonyme stands much higher than other Atelier Colognes for me.
I understand you were disappointed by the way patchouli is made here but that’s the way it was meant to be, fractionated distillation makes it smell that way.
Thank you for the link! Oh, I wish I could have gotten more anise like you did. One of my favorite notes. This fractionated patchouli seems really popular these days, and since both you and Robin enjoyed it, I bet that Mistral Patchouli will have a lot of fans!
I foresee it will become a hit of spring 2013.
You know, this new method just makes patchouli light, not condensed, dark and dirty. I got quite a lot of anise from it.
How very interesting. Some Patchoulis I love and others are way to hippie for me.
Which ones do you find too hippie, laniersmith? I think I’ve written about my socialist-Zionist summer camp here before on the blog- it gave me a very high tolerance for hippie smells 🙂
I like my patchouli dark and unwashed hippy from the 60’s. So I’m gonna guess this one won’t do it for me. Hehe. I’ve tired of my Vanille Insensee and will probably sell it. These Atelier’s don’t seem to last as long as I would like on my skin.
ARE YOU THE ONE I’M BUYING MY VANILLE INSENSEE FROM, TATIANA?? I keep forgetting! If you still have it, I’m still super interested!
If you’re interested, I’ll pack it up and send it to you. My DH will be thrilled that there is one less perfume bottle in my closet. I’ll email you.
Ooh, I think I’d rather like this. Robin is usually a good barometer when I am trying to gauge if something is likely to be “me”.
I definitely put you two in the same mental perfume category! You like ’em subtle, and subtle this is!
I like dirty patchoulis. My favorite is CDG Luxe Patchouli – a birthday gift from my patchouli-loving husband after we both loved my sample.
Grapefruit and patchouli?? How does this work??
Must try Prada now!
I know, it’s such an interesting combination! But I assure you, it works really well. How wonderful to have a husband who shares (and funds!) your perfume tastes!
Oh! It sounds really promising since I prefer patchouli in homeopathic doses.
Then I think you could certainly like it, Undina! 😀
I completely agree with your review!!
I actually own Orange Sanguine, Vanille Insensee, and Rose Anonyme and the one I’m considering now is Ambre Nue.