Mousse Illuminée is a delightful anachronism. It smells manly in the best possible way – soapy, bright, and almost cleansing in its bitterness, a cornucopia of camphoraceous green notes such as cypress, laurel, and artemisia stuffed into a cedar chest, aromatizing it from the inside out. The deeply green atmosphere created by Mousse Illuminée revolves around a beautiful treemoss absolute from Robertet, but it is by no means the sole player. In particular, the minty laurel and camphoraceous aspects of the cypress and artemisia stand out, framed by an aquiline frankincense note that smells lightly smoky, but not burnt or severe. Best of all, there’s no softening or fussiness towards the middle – a muscular musk simply carries the greenery on its broad shoulders to its natural conclusion.