Bespoke Perfumery

Givaudan Perfumery

Fragrance articles are always an exciting find, especially when they cover in depth topics. The most current edition of the French weekly Le Point (English version) arrived last weekend and to my surprise there were several pages devoted to the topic of bespoke perfumery. For those of you French readers unfamiliar with the publication, I have enclosed a link to Le Point below.

A bespoke fragrance, much like any bespoke creation, is developed with the individual tastes of the intended wearer in mind. While the concept of bespoke perfumery has been around for hundreds of years, executed perhaps most successfully by Guerlain, newer houses and individual perfumers are offering this ultimate luxury to those lucky few who can afford it (prices range anywhere from $12,000 to $45,000, though I have heard of people paying more).

The article focuses on Francis Kurdjian, Mathilde Laurent and Thierry Wasser, each of whom dedicate time to this extreme niche creation. The process in itself sounds memorable and luxurious, offering the opportunity to meet with the perfumer personally in order to create an olfactory profile. Personal scent preferences and olfactory memories are discussed and of course the process involves lots and lots of sampling to narrow down genres and individual notes.

While I will not likely be commissioning a bespoke fragrance for myself any time soon, I love the idea of having a perfume created solely for one individual, reflecting the many complexities and passions of scent. While it will certainly be profitable for the fragrance companies, it does bring back some of the allure of traditional perfumery, exploring the art rather than the commercialism.

http://www.lepoint.fr/

Estée Lauder – Aliage

Mention high perfumery and everyone immediately thinks of the long history of French fragrances as the height of sophistication. But did you know that stateside we have several fragrances executed in the French style which hold their own when compared to their sisters across the pond?

I have been having a love affair with American perfumery recently, specifically those which are a nod to the French classics. Unfortunately, these suffer the same fate as their French sisters and many have been stripped of their former glory, though some are still readily available in acceptable forms.

Aliage is one such of these gems. Launched in 1972 and hailed by Estée Lauder as the first “sports fragrance”, it was marketed via photos depicting the sumptuous Estée Lauder lifestyle. Tennis at the club, light hikes through rolling hills and a few laps in the pool – the smell of sporty sophistication and leisure, the sense of occupied idleness that only money can provide. Aliage is a bold green fragrance, with references to many of the great French classics. As a chypre rounded by a peach note, it is like a bridge between the beauties of Chanel No 19 and Mitsouko, marrying elements of each into a gorgeous new creation.

The opening is dry, bitter and sharp but the strong herbal tones mellow over time and are softened by the roundness of peach. The fragrance has a dry, Champagne-like quality, which keeps the peach element dry as silk, rather different than the fullness of Champagne’s peach chypre.

This dry quality is due in part to an abundance of galbanum, which gives the fragrance its strong green impression. In fact, the quality of the galbanum in my vintage bottle is excellent, a definite reference to the sharpness of Chanel 19 and Vent Vert. The galbanum’s green force is supported in the drydown by subtle notes of earthy pine, vetiver and thyme, which carry on the outdoors theme.

The base is a gorgeous deep blend of oakmoss and musk with a hint of myrrh, lending the fragrance a delicious depth often found only in the French classics, though Aliage is drawn in bolder, broader strokes than many of its French sisters.

Aliage can still be found today in a relatively similar form, though it has been toned down a bit due to regulations on materials, and the vintage version makes an appearance every now and then. For those of us who have explored French perfumery to its fullness but still want more, Aliage (sometimes found under the name Alliage) hits the spot.

Notes: Peach, Green Notes, Jasmin, Rosewood, Pine, Thyme, Galbanum, Vetiver, Myrrh, Musk, Oakmoss

Marni – Marni Eau de Parfum

It’s been a long time since I fell in love. In fact, as most of you know, most of my loves are old flames who have been around for a while. So imagine my surprise when I fell in love with a young upstart – the first fragrance release from the Italian fashion label Marni.

The fragrance was composed by the supremely talented Daniela Andrier, who created another love of mine, Infusion d’Iris. While Marni’s character is miles away from Prada’s Iris, they share a similar transparent quality which allows for fragrant complexity to be rendered with a light touch.

Marni starts out with a gorgeous bergamot that smells of high quality without being overpowering. As the fragrance unfolds, it reveals itself as a peppery rose which melds into an elegant woodsy scent with smoky incense undertones. I love how Marni remains dry as silk and never veers into the sweet floral territory, a factor which makes it stand out in the crowd of a thousand fruity florals.

I will forgive Marni its singular flaw and that is its lack of lasting power. It quickly settles to a comfortable hover just above the skin like a warm embrace. It makes a wonderful daytime scent with its elegant treatment of woods and subtle smoky florals. Marni feels grown-up without being characterless. In a word, Marni is delicious. Marni is easily found at major retailers and would make an excellent last minute gift for a special Valentine.

Notes: Bergamot, Cinnamon, Clove, Nutmeg, Ginger, Cardamom, Pink Pepper, Rose, Incense, Vetiver, Cedar, Patchouli

February, as we all know, signals the coming of St. Valentine’s – a day dedicated to romance which is celebrated in many parts of the world. In addition to chocolates and the exchange of love-notes, flowers are a popular romantic gift choice.

Roses, ancient symbols of love, beauty and friendship, are perhaps the flower most commonly associated with Valentine’s Day. With their myriad petals and lush, complex aroma, roses are not unlike a woman: her many faces deepen and unfurl, achieving uncomparable beauty through the fullness of time.

Rose is one of my favorite notes in perfumery – in part for its elegance, but largely for its adaptability. Rose can be green and youthful, like newly sprouted buds; spicy and sharp like a tightly bound rose, or lush and provocative as a rose in full bloom. Over the next weeks, I shall explore various rose fragrances which highlight the beauty of this note in different manifestations.

Diptyque – L’Eau

There are many fragrances, beloved though they may be, which are clearly the product of the olfactory fashions of their time. Whether it be an over-abundance of aldehydes, oakmoss or civet, like tiny wrinkles gathering at the corners of a woman’s face, they serve as tell-tale signs of age. I am repeatedly amazed then by the timelessness of certain fragrances and of certain houses, which continue to enchant as the years go by.

While Diptyque came on to the fragrance scene in the 1960s, one would be hard-pressed to tie them to a specific era. Their simple flacons with spare black and white lettering are at once indisputably modern, and yet suggest a bit of Roman antiquity in their designs. No single fragrance in the Diptyque line-up better exemplifies this quality more so than L’Eau, the house’s first personal fragrance which was launched in 1968.

Somewhat ironically named, L’Eau is a somewhat polarizing rendition of pot-pourri, with its rich notes of clove and cinnamon. If you are not a fan of these notes, stop right here, for while they temper over the life of the fragrance, they never dissipate completely. Indeed, the opening is reminiscent of the spice and sizzle of red hots, the tiny heart-shaped candies so popular on Valentine’s Day as an emblem of romantic love. As the fragrance unfurls and warms like branches over a fire, the initial spicy burst mellows into a clove-tinged rose, warmed by the richness of woods. A hint of soapiness gives the fragrance a retro appeal.

L’Eau is without a doubt a cold-weather scent, in part for the associations which the rich notes bring to mind, but also because it can be somewhat cloying in warmer weather. In some respects L’Eau clearly seems like a child of the Sixties, where social boundaries were being broken and wearing pot-pourri would seem très anti-establishment. Every time I catch its lovely spicy scent rising up however I have strong visions of a distant past; of winter hoods trapping the scent of mulled wine and homemade holiday gifts, as the bearer traveled through the cold to personally deliver holiday cheer.

If one can call what feels like a 500-year old fragrance recipe “retro”, then it is this timeless quality that makes L’Eau so appealing. And similar to other fragrances which contain notes with strong seasonal associations such as this and this, once these notes are seen in a new context, the result is unforgettable. Wearing it today feels supremely modern, much in the way that the pop-art of the mid-1950s still retains a modern edge.

Notes: Cinnamon, Clove, Geranium, Sandalwood, Rose

Image courtesy of Bragmayer and Guerlain

For the past 160 years, Guerlain’s Bee Bottle has epitomized luxury and distinction in the world of perfumery. The Bee has served as a long-standing symbol of royalty, but since the day its image was emblazoned upon a bottle of Eau de Cologne Impériale offered to Empress Eugénie, then-wife of Napoleon, it has become nearly synonymous with the venerable House of Guerlain.

It is fitting then that in commemoration of its 160-year anniversary, it is the Bee Bottle itself which will be receiving the royal treatment. Following are links to a short video produced by Guerlain here, as well as a post describing the many new faces of the Bee here. The designs are so special, it is impossible to pick a favorite.

Readers will note that new Bee Bottle collection was not included in my list of favorite holiday gifts posted here earlier this week. While they are certain to be high on anyone’s list after a glimpse, they come with a price tag which is truly fit for royalty!