Poème Noir by Sylhouette Parfums: the chypre that starts at midnight

If your chypre demands a polite bergamot handshake, look elsewhere. Poème Noir by Sylhouette Parfums opens like the second act of an opera, the curtain already rising on velvet florals and a mossy stage. On my skin the first breath is dusky and plush, a bloom in low light rather than sparkle at high noon. It is oddly thrilling to have the top notes sit down and let the heart speak first.

The floral core reads dark and tactile. Think rose petals steeped in tea, violet ink, maybe a flicker of indolic jasmine that never turns heady. The base tightens the silhouette with the classic chypre frame, a bracing seam of oakmoss, resin, and a gently bitter patchouli that keeps sweetness in check. There is a subtle leathered purr as it dries, not a biker jacket, more a well-worn glove. Projection starts intimate, then grows with body heat, which makes it dangerously easy to overspray. Longevity is steady on me, a late afternoon into last train home kind of wear.

If you live for canonical chypres, you will hear the conversation. Guerlain Mitsouko glows sunrise gold, Poème Noir leans twilight aubergine. Where Estée Lauder Aromatics Elixir can thrum with herbal bite, this chooses hush over hum. If Paloma Picasso Mon Parfum and Robert Piguet Bandit are your power suits, Poème Noir is your silk slip under a tailored coat. It is not retro cosplay. It is a smart edit of the form, trimming the citrus prologue so the heart and base carry the plot.

Wear it for evenings when you want your perfume to do the talking before you do. It reads grown, seductive without syrup, provocative without the performance. Gender tags feel pointless here, though the floral shadow will thrill anyone who collects dark chypres and niche florals with backbone.

I tested from a sample and kept catching phantom trails long after I thought it was gone, which tells me two things. One, the musky-mossy drydown is stitched close to skin. Two, Poème Noir knows how to linger in memory, exactly where a good poem belongs.