patricia de nicolai: 11 posts

The first time I tried Parfums de Nicolaï’s Eau Soleil I was surprised. I expected a walk in a Sicilian orange grove perfumed with the zesty freshness of orange flowers and crushed green leaves, but instead of a gauzy, sunlit vision, the fragrance opened on my skin with a peppery, bitter tang. My orange blossom garden fantasy was nowhere to be found.

The mark of a good perfume is its ability to hold your attention. However different Eau Soleil was from my expectations, it followed me throughout the day. I would catch myself stealing little sniffs from my wrist or else enjoying the herbal and green scent that hovered around me. The next morning, I reached for the same scarf I wore the day before and for a few minutes I stood with my face buried in the silk scented with white flowers and soft musk. Eau Soleil courted me successfully.

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Parfums de Nicolaï’s Eaux Fraîches Collection (L’Eau à la Folie, L’Eau d’Ete, L’Eau Mixte, and L’Eau Chic) will include a new fragrance this summer, Eau Soleil. The new Eau de Toilette is based on orange blossom. Perfumer Patricia de Nicolaï was moved by a particularly beautiful grade of neroli (steam-distilled orange blossom essence) to create Eau Soleil. Eau Soleil includes notes of bergamot, mandarin, lemon, petitgrain, thyme, artemisia, neroli, ylang-ylang, jasmine from Egypt, patchouli, and musk.

Parfums de Nicolaï Eau Soleil Eau de Toilette is available in 30ml and 100ml spray bottles and can be found at Parfums de Nicolaï boutiques, counters, and at their online store. Via press release

Victoria’s Note: Today we have a special report from the Osmothèque perfume conservatory and museum in Versailles. It’s written by Jola, whom you might recognize as behemot from the comment section here (Behemot is a character from one of her favorite novels, Bulgakov’s Master and Margarita). Jola is a graduate of the film studies department at Jagiellonian University in Krakow, and she works as a film script editor. She recently visited the Osmothèque in Versailles, France, and her experience was  so memorable that she wanted to share it with other Bois de Jasmin readers.

When I first became interested in perfume about two years ago, I noticed many perfume writers were critical of the modern versions of such classics as Guerlain L’Heure Bleue or Miss Dior. Everyone praised the older versions of these perfumes, noting the use of high quality ingredients in the past and degradation of quality in modern formulas due to environmental, medical, and cost-related reasons. While reading that Jicky and Diorissimo are “thin” nowadays or that Caron Poivre doesn’t have its spicy bite, I longed to experience these perfumes in their full splendor. If only I had a time machine!

It turns out that I need not travel back in time to smell vanished gems like Jacques Fath Iris Gris or Coty Chypre. I only have to visit France. Since 1988, the Osmothèque perfume museum and conservatory located in Versailles has specialized in preserving and restoring old fragrance formulas, allowing anyone–professional perfumers and passionate perfume lovers–to study an impressive collection of fragrances. Only at the Osmothèque can you smell the exhilarating verdancy of the original Balmain Vent Vert or sigh over the gourmand decadence of Parfums de Rosine Le Fruit Défendu, a perfume created by Coco Chanel’s rival, fashion designer Paul Poiret.

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Parfums de Nicolaï has just released a new fragrance inspired by the rich musks used in the classical fragrances. Created by perfumer Patricia de Nicolaï, Musc Intense is a deep and rich blend with notes of rose, jasmine, violet, carnation, clove, and musks.

“The fragrance I imagined is a flowery, soft, extremely sensual caress. Musc Intense is a union of rose and white musk. I like the liqueur top note, the elegant essence of Turkish Rose. Carnation and violet take over from there, sustained by jasmine and rose absolutes. Musc Intense is an explosive cocktail of musk notes… A sensuous and particularly sophisticated fragrance. So Nicolaï!”

Musc Intense is available from Parfums de Nicolaï boutiques and soon to be available online. 30ml Eau de Parfum/49 euros. Via pnicolai.com

Rose Intense, a 2008 release from Parfums de Nicolaï, is a puzzle. On the one hand, it features a lovely fresh-cut rose note that has been blended with dry and grassy chamomile. The combination of rose and chamomile—one of my favorites—makes Rose Intense a casual, outdoorsy scent  along the lines of Parfums de Rosine Rose d’Été, but less overtly effusive. On the other, there is nothing intense about Rose Intense.  It’s a good “starter” rose fragrance, one that is accessible and that smells good.

Smelling good might sound facile but it is not; plenty of non-mainstream fragrances go to lengths to smell what we might consider bad. Rose Intense is a mild, non-complex, and lightly powered fragrance that opens with a sudden smell of rosewater that segues immediately into a berried rose nestled in leaves of chamomile and geranium. The red fruit accord is as glossy as berry-glazed cake and indeed Rose Intense momentarily wanders into the sweet zone without becoming a gourmand.  As a soliflore, the rose note is featured without additional floral influences; in this way it is similar to Jo Malone Red Roses.

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