Parfums De Marly Pegasus Exclusif EDP

Description

The oud-and-sandalwood reworking of Parfums de Marly's best-known almond fragrance, the same bitter-almond signature, with considerably more weight underneath it. Composed by Hamid Merati-Kashani and released in 2020, Pegasus Exclusif keeps the heliotrope-and-almond heart that made the 2011 original a house staple, then adds cardamom and pink pepper on top and a base of natural oud, guaiac wood and sandalwood beneath the vanilla. Reviewers describe the oud as clean rather than barnyard, and note that it downplays the almond just enough to stop the composition turning cloying. The common verdict is that the Exclusif feels more complete, and more masculine, than the original.

How It Differs From Pegasus

• Pegasus (2011): bergamot, heliotrope and cumin over bitter almond, lavender and jasmine, finishing on amber, vanilla and sandalwood. Softer, sweeter, more straightforwardly almond-vanilla.
• Pegasus Exclusif (2020): adds cardamom, pink pepper and geranium up top and, critically, natural oud and guaiac wood in the base. Drier, darker and distinctly woodier through the drydown.
• Choose the Exclusif if the original reads too sweet or too simple on you, or if you want almond with a woody-resinous spine. Choose the original if the creamy almond-vanilla is exactly the point.

Scent Character

• Floral: 31%
• Sweet: 23%
• Spicy: 15%
• Woody: 15%
• Fresh: 8%
• Oud: 8%

Translation: the floral figure sits high because of the aromatic heart (lavender, geranium, jasmine and heliotrope all register as floral) but that is not how this smells in a room. Worn, it is a creamy bitter-almond and vanilla scent laid over dry woods and a light, clean oud. Read it as almond-woody with a powdery-floral heart, not as a floral.

Fragrance Pyramid

Top: Cardamom, Heliotrope, Pink Pepper, Bergamot

Heart: Bitter Almond, Lavender, Geranium, Jasmine

Base: Guaiac Wood, Sandalwood, Vanilla, Amber, Oud

Performance

• Longevity: 8–10 hours on skin, with a good number of wearers reporting longer.
• Sillage: moderate: noticeable at conversational distance rather than across a room.
• Projection: two to three feet in the first hour, then close to the skin.

Note: of the two axes, longevity is clearly the stronger. This wears well for a long time without announcing itself the way the heavier Parfums de Marly releases do, worth knowing if you are expecting a beast-mode performer.

Best Occasions & Season

• Season: Fall and Winter. The oud-guaiac base needs cool air to sit properly.
• Occasions: Leisure, Evening and Night Out; it is refined enough for dinners and dressed-up evenings.
• Gender: Marketed for men, though the almond-vanilla core is not aggressively masculine and it wears comfortably unisex.
• Skip for: peak summer heat, where the vanilla and amber turn heavy.

Concentration & Provenance

Concentration: Eau de Parfum
Perfumer: Hamid Merati-Kashani
House: Parfums de Marly, Paris, France
Released: 2020, as the Exclusif reinterpretation of the 2011 Pegasus

Try Before You Commit

A full bottle of Pegasus Exclusif is a serious outlay, and the almond-and-oud pairing is not something you can predict from a note list. The oud is what decides it for most people, one way or the other. Start with a 1 mL sample at $5.99 for a couple of full wears, or step up to a 5 mL decant at $22.99 or a 10 mL decant at $39.99 to live with it through a whole season before committing to a bottle.

100% Authentic

Every bottle is verified for authenticity and every decant is hand-poured from a sealed retail bottle, never a batch-code mystery. Over 200,000 orders shipped, rated 4.9★ on Trustpilot, free US shipping on orders over $100, and hassle-free returns.

FAQ

Is Pegasus Exclusif for men or women? Parfums de Marly markets it for men, but the bitter-almond and vanilla core reads comfortably unisex. The oud and guaiac base is what pushes it in a masculine direction.

How long does it last? Around 8–10 hours for most wearers, with moderate projection. Longevity is the stronger half of its performance.

Is the oud strong? No. It is a clean, light agarwood that sits in the base to dry out the almond and add a woody spine. It distinguishes the Exclusif from the original without making this an oud fragrance.

Should I get Pegasus or Pegasus Exclusif? If you want the creamy, sweeter almond-vanilla, the 2011 original is the one. If you find that too simple or too sweet, the Exclusif adds cardamom and pink pepper on top and oud, guaiac and sandalwood underneath for a drier, darker wear.