Annick Goutal: 24 posts

Star rating: 5 stars–outstanding/potential classic, 4 stars–very good, 3 stars–adequate, 2 stars–disappointing, 1 star–poor.

Green like unripe mirabelle plums, tart like lemon meringue and sheer like a silk scarf, Annick Goutal Le Chèvrefeuille is one of those fragrances that makes me smile contentedly. It is the essence of everything serene and lighthearted, a fragrance that satisfies yearnings for those first mild days of spring. On the other hand, its lightness and the lack of sharpness associated with citrus makes it ideal for the warm days of summer. Among Annick Goutal single flower compositions (Néroli, Des Lys, Le Jasmin, Le Muguet and La Violette), which were created by perfumer Isabelle Doyen and Camille Goutal in 2002, Le Chèvrefeuille is undoubtedly my favorite, both for its effervescent personality and impressionistic rendition of honeysuckle. …

Continue reading →

Star rating: 5 stars–outstanding/potential classic, 4 stars–very good, 3 stars–adequate, 2 stars–disappointing, 1 star–poor.

Immortelle, an everlasting dune flower with a distinctive savory maple syrup aroma, is not an easy note. It tends to dominate with its rich spicy warmth and dark sweetness. Annick Goutal Sables (1985) is brilliant, because it manages to build on immortelle without either twisting it beyond recognition or allowing it to assume a rustic demeanor. Even after experiencing the great immortelle compositions like Christian Dior Eau Noire and the playful ones like L de Lolita Lempicka, Sables still holds the crown for being the perfect example of a perfume based on immortelle. …

Continue reading →

Star rating: 5 stars–outstanding/potential classic, 4 stars–very good, 3 stars–adequate, 2 stars–disappointing, 1 star–poor.

What is the scent of love? Is it radiant and smiling like Jean Patou Amour Amour, smoldering and seductive like Calvin Klein Obsession, or intoxicating and ravishing like Guerlain Chamade? For Annick Goutal, the answer is clearly the latter, and Grand Amour serves as a beautiful example. From the tender kiss of hyacinth and honeysuckle to the warm embrace of vanilla and amber, Grand Amour maintains the breathless, exhilarating sensation of surrendering oneself to an emotion that can no longer be contained. …

Continue reading →

Star rating: 5 stars–outstanding/potential classic, 4 stars–very good, 3 stars–adequate, 2 stars–disappointing, 1 star–poor.

My initial reaction to Annick Goutal Mandragore was puzzlement over a strange disconnect between the name evoking dark, twisted roots and love potions and the ethereal fragrance more appropriate for elves than witches. Created by Isabelle Doyen in 2005, this composition is beautiful vignette of lightness, showcasing the ability of spices to be woven into a sheer and weightless composition. Mandragore has the same luminous, slightly nostalgic quality that pervades the paintings by Isaac Levitan, a Russian 19th century impressionist. If I close my eyes, I imagine walking through the lush forest groves he portrayed in his tender, wistful manner. …

Continue reading →

Star rating: 5 stars–outstanding/potential classic, 4 stars–very good, 3 stars–adequate, 2 stars–disappointing, 1 star–poor.

Although Annick Goutal fragrances are sometimes considered either frilly and pretty like Petite Cherie or subtle and wispy like Duel, Sables and Eau du Fier present another side of the house—scorched earth and leather in the midst of chiffon and silk. Sables displays an orchestration of the bittersweet immortelle flowers, which smell of hot rocks, curry spices and salty ocean breeze—a note that does not often take a center stage, especially not in its full glory.

Eau du Fier (2000) is a story of tar and smoke, accented by the delicate fruity sweetness. The watercolor quality of Annick Goutal fragrances sometimes renders them almost ethereal, however Eau du Fier proves that the light hand of Isabelle Doyen, the Annick Goutal in-house perfumer, can work magic. What might have been a base heavy and opaque composition instead has the quality of Persian calligraphy—an exquisite pairing of precision and grace. …

Continue reading →