Gardenia Grand Soir by Parfumerie Generale

By Marina White floral perfumes blossom in heat. There is nothing more summery than berries. Combine the too, and…the result is either, well, yes, a ubiquitous Sephora variety fruity-floral or, if the blending is masterful and materials top notch, a wonderful summer scent. Pierre Guillaume’s recent limited edition offering, Gardenia Grand Soir, is the latter. On me, it smells of gardenias and blackcurrants. At times, more of blackcurrants than of gardenias. Blackcurrant leaves rubbed in your hands, twigs and not too ripe berries- they are all there, creating a beautifully nostalgic atmosphere of carefree childhood summers. As far as I can see, blackcurrants are not listed among the “official notes”. If you smell them in Gardenia Grand Soir too, let me know. The juiciness and the greenness of the fruity accord lends the florals a bright, somewhat airy quality, which is why I don’t perceive it as a “soir” scent. Because of the very realistic, “just off the branch” quality of the berry smell, I also don’t perceive it as partciularly “grand”. Without a doubt, the scent would dazzle if worn for a dressed up night out, but there is something relaxingly casual and out-doorish about it all the same. A pretty, easy-going gardenia that gardenia-phobic mighty love. Available at Luckyscent and Perfumerie Generale, $95.00 for 50ml. Image source, Flair.

Aftelier Cassis: Perfume Review

In Russian, when something has started to ferment and turn into an alcoholic beverage, we say that it забродило (zabrodilo), literally -wandered off. The blackcurrant in Mandy Aftel's Cassis has definitely wandered off from the innocent dacha of my childhood and into places where my mama entreated me never to go. Corrupted with rum, smoke and spice, this is not your granny's blackcurrant jam. Drunken, dissolute, debauched, this is currant gone bad, really, really bad. As always, when a note in perfume "goes bad", in a sense that it acquires this boozy, very ripe, husky quality, I go right after it. Aftelier's Cassis makes me think of an unknown liquor...which I would very much like to know...if rum was distilled from berries and not molasses, this is what it would smell like...add to that thick, piquant, sweet fragrance the aroma of old oak barrels...stored in a dark cellar...in a house of someone your mama wouldn't want you to know...and you have an idea of Aftelier Cassis. To smell it for yourself, luckily (?) you don't have to visit mechant loup in his lair. Cassis is available at Aftelier.com, Henri Bendel, Blunda and Suendhaft, $150.00 for 1/4oz. Image, by Carter Smith, is from art+commerce.

Perfume Review: Lalique Amethyst

I adored two out of the last three Lalique's releases, the chic almost-gourmand comfort scent, Le Parfum, and the sublime "mineral" vetiver, Encre Noir, and liked Perles de Lalique, which, although not especially original, was undeniably beautiful. And so I came to expect great things from Lalique and was excitedly looking forward to their latest offering, Amethyst. A road to disappointment is paved with great expectations. Amethyst starts with a truly enjoyable burst of blackcurrant juice, an explosion of sweet tangy-ness from a berry freshly squeezed between fingers. The smell of blackcurrants is forever associated for me with my childhood, summers at the dacha, my great grandma...I have been looking for a true blackcurrant fragrance which would be this radiant and only subtly sweet and, for a lack of better word, natural, for a long time. Unfortunately, a couple of minutes into the scent's development, the freshly picked real berries suddenly turned into plastic effigies, and the just as synthetic raspberry appeared, completely unwelcome, and added a syrupy and what I can only call "generic department store scent" feel to the blend. Worst of all, however, was the musk. I want to appeal to those in whose power it is to cease the production of fruity-musky scent to please do so. The combination of sparkling berries/fruits and the soft white musk might seem like a great mix, but it is apparently very hard to pull off in any sort of original manner. If you smelled one of those blends, you've smelled them all, and good ones are very few and very far between. I suppose, as fruity fragrances go, Amethyst, is not the worst. In fact, it is better than most. It smells like Mûre et Musc Extrême Light, if that makes any sense. If this is Lalique's nod to younger clientèle, I suppose, it might actually do quite well with the target audience. Me, I am sticking with Le Parfum and Encre Noir and am still expecting great new scents from Lalique in not too distant a future. Image source, cosmoty.de.

Perfume Review: Antonia's Flowers Sogni del Mare (Dreams of the Sea)

Sogni del Mare (Dreams of the Sea), the new perfume from Antonia’s Flowers, is said to have been inspired by Antonia Bellanca’s home in Cape Cod. It is a delicate, wistful scent that manages to evoke the sea without being aquatic. It makes me think of romantic lighthouses, old white mansions, with which sad ghost stories are associated, and gardens with blossoming trees…of a place by a cold blue sea, in spring or in early summer. The top notes of Sogni combine the green, mouthwatering tanginess of wild rhubarb and the sweet tartness of black currant buds. The subtle fruitiness in the beginning of the scent’s development is very enjoyable for this hater of fruity fragrances. I love the piquant undertone that rhubarb brings to the composition, and the black currant buds and leaves smell as fresh as if I was rubbing them in my hands. The lotus that begins to blossom in the heart of Dreams of the Sea smells sweet, watery and earthy at the same time. I usually have troubles with wearing scents with a prominent lotus notes. Like lily, lotus tends to be metallic and headachingly heady on me. Here it is gentle, a vision of an ethereal flower bud, only starting to open its dazzling petals. As the scent progresses, it grows a little sweeter, the fruitiness becomes more pronounced. I smell juicy, ripe blackberries and black currants. The impression that Sogni del Mare leaves is that of lightness, freshness and nostalgia. There is something strangely old-worldy about it. It makes me want to wear a long white dress, white gloves and a hat a la the end of the 19th century. To stroll by the sea holding a white umbrella, day-dreaming naïve, romantic dreams. Sogni del Mare costs $60.00 for 1.7oz. It does not seem to be available yet at antoniasflowers.com, but probably will be in the near future. Image source, allposters.com.

Perfume Review: Diptyque L’Ombre dans L’Eau and Virgilio

Dacha (Russian: дача) is a name for summer home or vacation house in Russia and CIS countries where people spend their summer holidays and grow fruits and vegetables for their own use. Dachas began to appear after WWII owing to the desire of city people, all living in blocks of flats, to spend some time close to nature, and to grow their own produce. Dachas are usually situated on the city outskirts, or near villages located close to a city. The common term for a dacha owner is 'dachnik' (Russian: дачник). From Wikipedia and my own memories. Continuing with the scents that remind me of my childhood, L’Ombre dans L’Eau and Virgilio bring back the memories of my great grandparents and their dacha. Diptyque’s Virgilio, with notes of cedar, basil, thyme, and vetiver, was created by Diptyque to evoke the clear morning of a classical Latin landscape. The landscape it brings to my mind is Russian, not Latin, but it is fresh, green and idyllic nevertheless. Smelling Virgilio is akin to standing in the farthest and the darkest corner of my great-grandparents garden, by the wormwood overgrowth. Virgilio to me is that dark green, earthy and bitter scent of wormwood. This isn’t an easy fragrance for me to wear, as I am not really a fan of herbal and green scents, but I am holding on to my bottle if only for the incredible, heartbreaking evocativeness of this scent. Another “scent of Dacha” is L’Ombre dans L’Eau, described by Diptyque as the scent of a green riverside garden. L’Ombre dans L’Eau (definitely one of the most beautiful perfume names out there) starts as an amazingly real scent of blackcurrant leaves, slowly a rose note develops, and it is a “young” rose, practically a bud, it smells almost “green” to my nose. Both notes are incredibly true to life, smelling just like the real berries, leaves and buds warmed by the sun. L’Ombre dans L’Eau brings back the memories of hot summers, of picking blackcurrants from the bush, of dear people long gone, of the place that doesn't exist anymore, and of absolute happiness. I will leave you with the wonderful poem by my beloved Pablo Neruda, called Lost in the Forest. Lost in the forest, I broke off a dark twig and lifted its whisper to my thirsty lips: maybe it was the voice of the rain crying, a cracked bell, or a torn heart. Something from far off it seemed deep and secret to me, hidden by the earth, a shout muffled by huge autumns, by the moist half-open darkness of the leaves. Wakening from the dreaming forest there, the hazel-sprig sang under my tongue, its drifting fragrance climbed up through my conscious mind as if suddenly the roots I had left behind cried out to me, the land I had lost with my childhood--- and I stopped, wounded by the wandering scent. Pablo Neruda *The picture of blackcurrants is from the wonderful site http://www.dnagardens.com/ , the picture of wormwood is from http://bob.bob.bofh.org/ .