By Marina
OMG WTH, was my reaction. Well to be honest there was an F there instead of an H. I actually wanted to leave it at that as a "review" of the new Caron. But I guess one is not 13 and should act a little more mature than that.
I have no recollection of what the official list of notes is for this rose fragrance and am not motivated enough to google. What I smell is a very sharp, nose-tingling grapefruit on top, what I imagine to be a generically pretty, pink-colored rose in the middle and an unexpected bread-like accord throughout the development. (Is bread the new oud? It seems to be in quite a few new launches.)
I am the biggest fan of bready, doughy accords in perfume, but this one is not attractive. It reminds me of whole wheat bread one can find in any supermarket, mushy and tasting like cardboard. Maybe in another arrangement it could have been more palatable, but, combined with "grapefruit" and a vaguely watery accord which haunts the heart of Delire de Roses, it is unpleasant.
Overall, the composition seems incongruous to me, as if the creators were torn between the "fresh rose" and "gourmand rose" concepts and decided to go for both, in one scent.
And this is what is supposed to replace the Caron rose fragrances that are said to be discontinued? OMG WTH.
Already available in Caron boutique in NYC, Saks also seems to have it.
It's criminal! Why Caron? Why?
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think Caron should exit the building with their fragrances. The concensus seems to be that they've been butchered beyond all recognition of their former beauty. I was never fortunate enough to try their earlier formulations, but Parfum Sacre was a scrubber for me and don't even get me goin' on Tabac Blond (and I got that one in extrait)otherwise known as "Where's the leather? Total yawn. It's a pity what one man can do in the wrong place. Thankfully Hermes hired Jean Claude Elena instead of that Fraysse guy who should probably be designing scents for floor polishes.
ReplyDeleteNo need to go looking for this one...
ReplyDeleteI love Parfum Sacre and Aimez-Moi, own both, but a rose jam and grapefruit sandwich on whole wheat? I'll pass....
ReplyDelete-Marla
Sounds like the death knell for a once-great house. Sad.
ReplyDeleteYou made me laugh out loud!!
ReplyDeleteGo ahead and replace the H with an F. Seems even more honest that way :)
Go on ahead and use the F, child. In fact, don't bother stopping with the F!
ReplyDeleteI doubt I'll ever buy another Caron, other than whatever vintage things I can find on the auction sites.
Nuit de Noel in the black bottle still seems to be safe to buy, but those are probably older stock and I have no doubt the day will come when those bottles are filled with crap, too.
Caron have completely destroyed their classic scents, and if this is the indication of what they're going to be offering in the future, I see no point in wasting my money.
WOW. I think I'll skip this one. And maybe bread is the new oud after all.
ReplyDeleteha. i think wtF is definitely in order... given your reaction. sounds hideous. i'm not a fan of bread notes in perfume, but do love a beautiful rose and enjoy the "BO" facet of grapefruit. but this sounds like its fails on every note.
ReplyDeleteglad i snagged several vintage carons when i had the chance. they seem to be destroying the house and its reputation.
tant pis.
cheers,
minette
There are little cyclindrical bottles of Caron perfumes with special nubbly leather wraps, I saw them in Munich and purchased one online. Nuit de Noel and Parfum Sacre are among them, they were all much higher quality than the basic Carons, maybe a special series? They're not vintage. Anyway, if you spot one, try it, I was impressed.
ReplyDelete-Marla
Dee
ReplyDeleteExactly!
Anonymous
ReplyDeleteDesigning scents for floor polishes is actually quite interesting :) But I know what you mean. My favorite Farnesiana seems to be ok so far, fingers crossed it stays that way.
Marla
ReplyDeletegrapefruit sandwich, oh what an unappealing idea
Amy
ReplyDeleteWell they did a lovely lavender fairly recently, hopefully this is not the end, not even the beginning of the end.
Abigail,
ReplyDeleteLOL K then thx :)
Tammy
ReplyDeleteI always wanted that black bottle, maybe it's time.
March
ReplyDeleteI am all for bread in perfume. Bread and circuses :)
Minette
ReplyDeletegrapefruit is such an interesting oil there is certainly something... human about it
Marla
ReplyDeletesomething like a bottle on the right?
http://shop.lessenteurs.com/category/1076/Parfums_Caron
Birgit
ReplyDeleteBut I'd love reading your review of it!
ROTFL LMAO. xoxo A.
ReplyDeleteAlyssa
ReplyDeleteTY TTYL! :)
The bottle is indeed that shape, but it's covered in a nubbly leather.
ReplyDelete-Marla
Oh no - what has happened to my beloved Caron?! I guess it's vintage only from now on! Even the Parfum Sacre Intense can't hold a candle to the older version of the EDT, never mind the stronger concentrations. Delire des Roses just sounds...sad.
ReplyDeleteSo go both of my former favorite houses, Caron and Jean Patou. Rochas has gone the same route, another victim of Proctor & Gamble's avarice and ignorance. Now what?
I have a good amount of this new one and have been puzzling over it for a few weeks now.
ReplyDeleteIt seems to me that in creating this, Caron looked back to Baby Doll (a huge seller) and attempted to graft YSL's monster success onto a gourmand-sweet-yeast base so that it wasn't completely derivative. It feels like a huge gesture (actually a HELP! signal) on Caron's part to try to appeal to a teen market, when the house has no basis of appeal to that age group and no clever way to reach them. Therefore, when Madame goes to purchase her Or et Noir extrait, the SA can say, And we also have something for your granddaughter...