Maison Crivelli — Ingredients 07-2012
Essence
Ingredients 07/2012 is a 2022 extrait by Gael Montero, made for the Prague boutique whose opening date gives the fragrance its name. It was intentionally launched without a note list and later returned as Safran Secret. Its distinctive idea is a hot, metallic saffron over warm woods and smooth leather.
Scent Profile
Saffron arrives first: bright, spicy, medicinal and sometimes metallic, with a hot-steam or steel-like effect. For some wearers the same material reads as plastic or burning rubber, which is central to the fragrance’s divided response. Warm spices and a suede-like leather shadow develop in the heart. The drydown becomes smoky, polished and woody, with saffron still present over blond woods and a restrained powdery sweetness. The effect is dense and abstract rather than a literal oud composition.
Performance
This 32 percent extrait is powerful. It projects strongly in its early hours and remains noticeable for a long time, so one to three sprays are sufficient. Cold weather gives the warm, smoky leather structure the best setting.
Wearing Context
Ingredients 07/2012 works for fall and winter, day or night, when a conversation-starting niche scent is welcome. Its metallic saffron can feel aggressive in tight professional spaces, making it better for a wearer seeking distinctiveness than an easy crowd-pleaser.
Comparisons & DNA
Tom Ford Oud Wood is the most useful comparison, although Ingredients 07/2012 is more metallic and saffron-led. Matiere Premiere Crystal Saffron offers another saffron reference, while Baruti Hot Cotton captures the unusual hot-steam association. The fragrance is best understood as a saffron-leather woody extrait rather than a clone of any one perfume.
Reception
Its blending, originality and forceful performance win strong support. The same metallic opening produces the objections: some find it fascinatingly abstract, while others read plastic, rubber or an overly aggressive synthetic wood. Sampling is important because this is not a safe blind buy.
Versions & Reformulation
The original 2022 boutique edition was reissued globally in 2025 as Safran Secret. The formula remained the same; the name and story changed rather than the juice.
Acquisition Notes
It belongs to luxury niche pricing. The newer Safran Secret release makes sampling and wider retail access easier than during the original boutique-exclusive period.
Notable Facts & Lore
- The name encodes the July 2012 opening of Ingredients in Prague.
- The original launch withheld a public note list.
- Gael Montero composed the extrait.
- Safran Secret is the later worldwide name for the same formula.