Afnan Perfumes — Supremacy Noir
Essence
Supremacy Noir is Afnan’s green woody-leather homage to Bottega Veneta Pour Homme and its Extreme flanker. Launched in 2015, it pairs spruce, pine, bergamot, violet, leather, lavender, labdanum, and patchouli in a mature, classically masculine profile. It is the quiet dark horse of the Supremacy line: less loud, less sweet, and more useful to people hunting for a discontinued pine-leather signature.
Scent Profile
The opening is sharp, green, and resinous. Spruce and pine dominate, lifted by thin bergamot citrus and a barely perceptible violet softness. The pine is sticky, slightly medicinal, and sometimes cola-fizzy rather than sweet air freshener. Around the first hour, dry suede-like leather and lavender move forward, forming a green aromatic leather core. The drydown is labdanum and patchouli over a faint mossy leather trace, increasingly skin-close after the first few hours.
Performance
Performance is moderate and one of the most criticized parts of the fragrance. Skin wear is commonly described around 5 to 8 hours, with clothing lasting longer. Projection is moderate for the first hour, then drops sharply toward skin scent within 2 to 3 hours. Clothing application helps, and some wearers report smoother performance after a few weeks of rest.
Wearing Context
A cool-weather, daytime-to-early-evening fragrance. It is best for smart-casual offices, autumn weekends, dinners with friends, and mature professional settings. It falls short for clubs, hot outdoor wear, black-tie formality, or anyone expecting a dark sweet “noir” fragrance. The social read is polished, classical, and masculine-leaning.
Comparisons & DNA
The main references are Bottega Veneta Pour Homme and Bottega Veneta Pour Homme Extreme. Supremacy Noir keeps the sparkling pine, dry suede, lavender, labdanum, and patchouli skeleton while reading louder and rougher than the Bottega. Loewe 7 Anonimo is a nearby masculine comparison, Memo Paris Russian Leather is a richer green-leather alternative, and Ferrari Leather Essence sits in the leather-spruce neighborhood.
Reception
Reception is positive but understated. Praise centers on its Bottega-like profile, classical masculine character, unusual budget green-leather style, and usefulness as a discontinued-scent replacement. Criticism centers on weaker performance than other Supremacy entries, a synthetic or piercing fresh-bottle opening, rougher blending than the reference, and a name that suggests a darker sweeter scent than it actually is.
Versions & Reformulation
Single EDP composition, usually sold in 100 ml. No confirmed reformulation is documented. Some sources classify it differently, but that appears to reflect taxonomy ambiguity rather than a separate version.
Acquisition Notes
Pricing is budget-designer, commonly discounted around the mid-20s to high-30s USD for 100 ml. Full bottles are easy to find through Afnan and major discounters; decants exist but are less common than for louder Supremacy entries. Counterfeit risk is low to moderate, but buyers should still use trusted sellers and check Afnan security and batch-code details.
Notable Facts & Lore
- No named perfumer statement is documented.
- Sergey Borisov’s January 2022 article is the main critical lore source for Supremacy Noir, treating it as a meaningful composition rather than a throwaway clone.
- Its second life came after the Bottega Veneta Pour Homme line disappeared, making Supremacy Noir one of the few accessible routes to that sparkling pine-and-leather profile.
- The product name is misleading: the scent is green, aromatic, and leathery, not dark, sweet, or syrupy.