JAR's so-called Bolt of Lightning* begins with a shower of contemporary fruit: that clean burst of freshness you get when you shampoo your hair with some kind or another of trendy fruit – Pomegranate? Papaya? Osmanthus? And there is also a green aspect, making the beginning smell like a more sophisticated rendition of the trendsetter (and mother of them all fruity-floral shampoos) - Calyx.


Underlining this is a murmur of tuberose, coy by comparison to the grand dames such as Carnal Flower or Fracas; but very true to form if you’ve ever smelled the true absolute: It’s got that green, mushroomy undercurrent that is a little powdery and understated yet so creamy and addictive. In addition to that - narcissus absolute, which seems to be the theme for me this year.

From there, the third stanza is that of dry woods and musks with a hint of moss.

Like the other JAR perfume I’ve experienced (Ferme tes Yeaux) it’s very dense, richly composed, and the overall direction is a bit unclear which makes it mysterious and difficult to decipher. Its apparent there is a high percentage of naturals in there. Which makes me think I should charge a lot more for, say, Treazon, which is 34% tuberose absolute… But then, I'm not an ornate jewelry designer from Paris, and my bottles are not etched with the pattern of lightning flash.

* My understanding is that this is not the name of the perfume, but rather the eponymous fragrance of the brand. In my opinion there is nothing lightning-like about it, and the only reason I used an image of lightning for this review is because I could not find photos of the bottle that were not copyrighted.