Unspoken was part of the triology of scents Roja Dove launched in 2007. A floral (Scandal), an oriental (Enslaved) and a chypre (Unspoken). There are more perfumes in the line by now (Aoud, Diaghilev, Danger, Innuendo, Reckless, Dazed and Confused. Okay those last two are not real. But they would fit right in, wouldn’t they?).
There is an Eau de Parfum available as well as an extrait. Roja Dove himself told me he is called Parfumeur, not Eau de Parfumeur or Eau de Toilettier, so the only way to go is with the extrait. Who am I to contest that (for now), and so I went with the extrait. (Having smelled the EdP in the meantime, I’m glad I did, there is a big difference and the EdP just cannot compete with the power and glory of the extrait).
Unspoken was created by Roja Dove and features notes of bergamot, neroli, rose, ylang-ylang, jasmine de Grasse, ginger, oakmoss, sandalwood, vetiver, patchouli, vanilla, balsams and labdanum.
To take that issue out of the way right now – Roja Dove perfumes are expensive. For a (very generous, but still) 50ml bottle of extrait you pay 295£ in the UK. Shipping costs on the website are beyond ridiculous, since you pay 40£ to Europe and a whopping 70£ to the rest of the world. This bottle is apparently getting a seat on a commercial flight.
So horrific pricing aside, if you get a decant from a friendly fellow fumehead like I did, it is not so bad, and 10ml take you very far indeed.
Unspoken is stunning. Simple as that. It is a perfume uniting old and new, the long-forgotten and the modern, the classic and the adventurous, the stern and the pretty. Unspoken has a backbone of steel and the ethereal beauty of a delicate white flower.
That raw materials matter, is incredibly apparent in Unspoken, because this is surely the best jasmine I have ever smelled. It blows you away.*
I could harp on about its beauty and intelligence, its grandeur and scope, its down-to-earth, but-reaching-to-heaven duality, but Dee of Beauty on the Outside has already written an amazingly evocative piece and I’ll leave you with that and the advice to try Unspoken if you can.
It is worth it.
(It might be worth a lot, but 70£ for shipping – that is simply stupid.)
*I smelled a similarly good jasmine before – in the now discontinued Plus Que Jamais by Guerlain. That is a great thing in my opinion. PQJ lovers take note!
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“Dazed and Confused” – priceless! 🙂
A very nice review, Birgit! One day I’ll try them all.
Thank you! You’ll try them when you come to London? (Wouldn’t it be nice to meet there?)
I laughed at that too– I had to read it twice before I realized those weren’t perfume names, lol! 🙂
They would fit perfectly… 🙂
And another stunnung review :D. I’m a big fan of jasmin, and i shouldn’t pass “Unspoken”.
Roja Dove has very good succession, his perfumes are so…”guerlaineous”. I had luck to test “Diaghilev” and ‘Enslaved’. The first time I smelt ‘Diaghilev’ I was so excited, because it reminded me vintage “Mitsouko” (~1970s formulas): green lemons, rosebuds, unripe peaches and deep dank moss. Very Beautiful! “Enslave” is very odd oriental, and it also reminded me Guerlain’s creations, such as “Vol de Nuit” and “Habit Rouge”.
Hi Lucy!
If you love jasmine, Unspoken is really something you should check out.
Diaghilev is so mossy (and skanky), I can easily believe it reminds you of vintage Mitsouko.
You fooled me … (with Dazed & Confused) – I shouldn’t always take you for granted 😉
I’m already looking forward to having a Roja Dove extrait sitting next to me on the plane, but I warn them : won’t arrive at its destination…
Just testing your vigilance! 😉
So did you see a few Roja Dove bottles flying around yet, or are they all in First Class?
Not yet, blimey 😦
Birgit, BTW, is it a real-heady-white-flower-scary scent ? You know what I mean…
No, not at all, which is why I like it. You can still chase me around a room with a real-heady-white-flower-scary-scent. 😉
I’d never chase you around a room ! (I’d rather succumb to a r-h-w-f-s scent…)
I would not expect you to! 😀
You fooled me too! How mean of you 😛
£40 for shipping? SERIOUSLY?! That’s beyond ridiculous!
I’m a relatively big fan of Scandal so I should give this one a go, especially after reading this line; “Unspoken has a backbone of steel and the ethereal beauty of a delicate white flower.” Wonderful!
Hehehe. 😀
I would pay the 40 pounds if Roja personally brought it around on his way to Paris and stayed for a chat about my upcoming custom perfume. 😉 Dazed and Confused would be a perfect name for that, when I think about it…
The bespoke perfume that you will have managed to convince him to commission absolutely free of charge?
Dazed and Confused is a great name, but I think the magazine of the same name might have something to say about it, UNLESS they did it conduction with Comme des Garçons a la Monocle.
Yep, that’s the one!
Roja will handle the magazine, I’m sure that will not be a problem. 😉
Nope, I will hate this one for sure, not ever looking for it and not ever, I repeat EVER trying it for it is a sure thing that I will fall for it and want it, La Femme was a one off humongos purchase that made me feel sick for days, per ml this is even more expensive (thats without the ridiculous shipping charges) (a sign of a decanter if the first thing you do is work out the price per ml) 🙂
It is an extrait after all, so the ml price is not so bad…
But I get your drift and shall forever hold my peace (or for a little while at least. 😉 )
I have a bottle of the EdP, and love it. It is a bit more “steely backbone”, a bit more austere than the extrait, if I remember. I tried both in the boutique, but we all agreed at the time that the lighter EdP suited me better. I always get compliments when I wear it! It’s unique.
You have no idea how happy it makes me that we have found another beloved perfume we have in common, Marla!
I imagine this suits you perfectly. The extrait is softer, warmer and rounder, a little more feminine than the EdP I would say, but both are extraordinary.
This review really made me chuckle! I was definitely confused after trying all of these with Vanessa but I’m glad I can narrow it down to Unspoken for the next time I go. Those names really don’t help. Oh, and it could definitely have its own seat on a budget airline to Europe for £40!
Anyway, a good jasmine chypre really is something I need (yus, need!).
Thanks also for sign-posting dee’s wonderful review. I missed it while I was holiday last September.
Yes, need! 🙂 I like that. You have to try it next time you go to Harrod’s, maybe it is “the one”.
Tara and I were indeed a bit overfaced with all the new Rojas that had come onstream since we were there last. I first tried Unspoken (in EDP only) in 2008 and was much more taken with it this time round, even though I don’t believe we smelt the extrait this time either. I loved Onda if you recall, and came round to Antonia in the end, which all tells me that I can do the more austere scents better than at the start of my hobby. Though this Lentheric Mystique I have on today (think EL Spellbound) is not my thing at all, and nor was Diaghilev, not that I am making a direct comparison, but I also see Diaghilev as hardcore…. : – )
Now I have musician friends who think nothing of buying a plane seat for their precious instrument for fear of it getting bashed in the hold, but a small bottle of scent strapped in in a seat of its own, that I’d like to see. I’d bagsy its in-flight bag of peanuts, if they still gave them out…
To tell you the truth – I totally think of Diaghilev as hardcore too and I can’t wear it. So, no fear, Unspoken is an entirely different animal. (Or rather not an animal at all in comparison. 😉 )
Peanuts for perfume – now that is a thought! 😉
This sounds glorious!! But I think I will enjoy it vicariously through yours and Dee’s reviews. That way I’ll still be on good speaking terms with my wallet. 😉
I understand completely. 🙂
I’ll sit over here beside Suzanne and we’ll cheer for you, and cheer for decanting friends. This sounds divine, so enjoy! 🙂
Thank you, dear Dionne!
I am really not a white flowers girl, but the smell of jasmine on a summer’s evening is just breathtakingly magical and comes with so many happy memories. Your description of this makes me think it might be time to revisit my pre-conceived ideas.
I did briefly pop into Harrods last night, but I was distracted by the Vero Profumo trio.
Okay, that is an acceptable excuse! 😉 Which Vero perfume caught your attention the most? (Although I daresay they are not ideally suited for a quick sniff, those three need and deserve time.)
I definitely need more time with them, they do not fit into any of my pre-conceived categories! I loved the opening of Rubj, Kiki confused me and then confused me some more when I recognised Lavendar; but Onda… Onda I want to spend more time with, but I have no idea why!
P.s. I am about to start a serious By Kilian trial, the SA kindly gave me samples of the entire line when I bought Amber Oud!
Onda is insidious, you can’t shake her once she got to you. 😉
Yay, for the Kilian samples, what a great SA! Have fun!
I really want to try these – particularly Scandal – but the pricepoint is just sort of discouraging… I don’t want to be tempted. I’ll just live vicariously through others’ reviews!
That is sad, when the price is discouraging real perfume lovers from even trying… I understand that Dove uses really good quality materials (and I can smell that too), but it is still a lot of money.
Oh, I truly love this scent! Although I did slightly prefer it in the EDP concentration, and should I find myself in the position of making a full-bottle purchase, that’s the one I’d go for. Someday.
It is terribly expensive, and shipping it absurd… And yet. One drop is so powerful, so evocative— putting a price on that experience is no small task!
Thank you so much for the link to my little review! xoxo
You are very welcome! 🙂
So true, aside from shipping, I would be prepared to shell out for it. But for now I’m fine with my decant courtesy of Suze R.
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