Fruity Notes: 56 posts

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

This review is for the Eau de Toilette version. Please also see my Eau de Parfum review (a superior interpretation, in my opinion.)

Guerlain Insolence is a curious study of contrasts. Upon the first inhale, the fragrance bursts into shades of Barbie doll pink, which would no doubt surprise a die-hard Guerlain lover. However, after a wild strawberry tinged 15 minutes, the composition pirouettes into an elegant heart dominated by violet, which rests on a creamy base of musk and woods. Initially, the nail polish remover sharpness of the top notes proved to be quite distracting, preventing me from making up my mind on Insolence. And yet, just when I thought that I had figured it out, Insolence managed to present an interesting facet. It revealed its Guerlain heart when given a fair trial. …

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

Red Delicious for Women, the newest limited edition fragrance from Donna Karan, is a counterpart to Be Delicious (2004), a composition that forges an apple out of violet leaves. The perfumer Maurice Roucel’s choice of accords for Be Delicious is very interesting, since despite the availability of aroma materials that offer a remarkably photorealistic representation of an apple, he selected a green floral, with a rich cucumber undertone. The dewy juiciness of green leaves lends itself to the construction of a green apple that leaves the wearer wondering whether it is a fruit, a flower or a leaf. Despite my minimal interest in the fruity-floral genre, I found myself revisiting Be Delicious on a number of occasions after having been intrigued by its clever composition.

Red Delicious preserves the green crispness of Roucel’s original creation; however, the composition evolves as a more conventional fruity-floral, with the sweet berry notes taming the green cucumbery abstraction into a vision of a ripe red apple. …

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

Aside from the siren call of novelty, Sira des Indes was to be eagerly anticipated, if only for the Jean Patou tradition. Jean Patou fragrances, from the breathtakingly perfect marriage of jasmine and rose de mai in Joy to the osmanthus bejeweled animalic richness of 1000, exhibit a kind of statuesque and confident beauty that is rarely encountered. Even En Joy, despite its compromises with the dominant fruity-floral trends and unfortunate powdery sweetness, delights with the delicate balance of its floral heart.

High expectations or not, I certainly could not have foreseen that Sira des Indes would be dominated by transparent and sweet pear notes before melting into the gourmand drydown of slightly balsamic vanilla, musk and amber. …

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

I often forget that L’Artisan Mûre et Musc is going to celebrate its 30th anniversary in just two years. Created in 1978 by Jean Laporte, the original L’Artisan Parfumeur founder, it became one of the first fragrances exploring the softness of musk with minimal ornamentation. The cologne version (now discontinued) was created by perfumer Akiko Kamei.

What differentiates Mûre et Musc from earlier perfumes exploring the same theme, such Jovan Musk (1971), is its ingenious fusing of a blackberry note into the musk accord. While the synthetics nitromusks favored in the first half of the century are marked by soapiness and floral warmth, many musks that became popular in the second half possess distinct fruity facets (please see my earlier article on the topic of musks.) …

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

The perfume branch of the famous jewelry house Cartier has produced a number of unusual fragrances, from the animalic elegance of Must de Cartier to the ambery sensuality of Panthère. With Délices de Cartier, Cartier has entered the fruity-floral, gourmand domain previously underexplored by the house. As can be expected, the presentation is stunning, especially for the parfum. Inspired by one of Cartier’s Art Deco brooches from the 1920s, the dark red flacon glistens like a precious jewel in its white satin lined box.

Created by perfumer Christine Nagel (who is also responsible for the crisp refinement of Eau de Cartier), the perfume is well- made; its gently ambered base balancing the fruity-floral accord, never allowing the syrupy sweetness of cherry to obscure the rest of the arrangement. Délices exists in two concentrations, the eau de toilette and the parfum. …

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