Perfume Review: Hampton Sun Privet Bloom

S&G Hampton Sun is a company specializing in luxury sun and skin care products. It was founded by Salvatore Piazzolla and Grant Wilfley, who reside in Manhattan and the Hamptons. Their first fragrance was meant to capture “the essence of the Hamptons” and to speak about the brand’s “core inspiration— the beautiful beaches of Eastern Long Island”. Developed by Ungerer & Company, for whom the partnership with Hampton Sun is the first fragrance venture, Privet Bloom was named after the privet hedges apparently synonymous with the Hamptons, and has notes of lemon verbena, bergamot, white hyacinth, jasmine, linden blossom, gardenia, orangeflower, dune rose, sea grass, cucumber, driftwood and musk. I must say that I am impressed with the fact that a sun-care company opted for a) choosing as their inspiration a destination different from the ubiquitous “topical” one, b) creating a perfume, the smell of which is in no way associated with suntan lotions or anything else stereotypically “beachy”, like exotic cocktails (in other words, for not using a coconut, pineapple, or any other exotically-fruity note), and c) not making it aquatic. It is an unusual and commendable choice for a brand these days to have a green floral as a signature perfume, and, keeping in mind Bill Blass’ recent release, it makes me tentatively hopeful of perhaps a new trend emerging, and the end of the era of fruity-florals. Forever a dreamer, me. Sadly, I have never summered in Hamptons, so I cannot comment on how true the scent is to the spirit of the area, but it certainly possesses an air of “casual elegance” that would make it entirely appropriate for being worn during a luxurious weekend getaway in a posh mansion. On the other hand, there is a certain untamed, natural, wind-swept feel to the fragrance, which I like, and which makes my mind wonder to the area I actually know - the pale dunes by the cold Baltic sea, somewhere in Jurmala… Privet Bloom is a green floral composition that isn’t fresh as much as it is bracing. Those who don’t love hyacinth, might find the scent to be a little on the harsh side. This is a cold fragrance, with silvery-green, high-pitched notes of lily of the valley and hyacinth, aided by the bright citrusy notes, being much more prominent than the warmer and sweeter notes of linden, rose and orange blossom. Privet Bloom is not a particularly complex scent and does not go through many stages of development; in the beginning the citrus is more apparent, and in the base the appealing green freshness of cucumber surfaces, without watering the scent down or adding the dreaded marine undertone…but mainly the composition is a bouquet of wild flowers gathered during a the romantic walk in the dunes. As I am now in throws of mad love for green/white-floral perfumes, I thoroughly enjoyed Privet Bloom, and would love to have a bottle for summer…I would wear this Hamptons-inspired scent and dream of Jurmala. Privet Bloom is available at Hamptonsuncare.com, $65.00 for 1.7oz of Eau de Parfum (this review was of the EDP) and $49.50 for 1.7oz of Eau de Toilette. The image of the bottle is from Hamptonsuncare.com, the photo of the beach in Jurmala, Latvia, is from Apartment.lv.