Friday, June 27, 2014

Guerlain Shalimar Souffle de Parfum: New Fragrance

Souffle de Parfum, the breath of a fragrance, is the new declination of Shalimar, developed by the house of Guerlain. More than a new concentration (as the poetic name might let you think) it is a flanker fragrance, coat-tailing on a best-selling perfume and offering a new interpretation that smells different; in this case a light floriental.


The latest addition to the classic Shalimar perfume stable is composed by in house perfumer Thierry Wasser and features the following fragrance notes:

Guerlain Shalimar Souffle de Parfum
Top notes: bergamot, lemon, mandarin
Heart: jasmine, orange blossom
Base: vanilla, white musk

The fragrance is available as 30, 50 and 100 ml of Eau de Parfum concentration.

The rumour of Shalimar Souffle de Parfum replacing Shalimar Parfum Initial (eau de parfum) and Shalimar Parfum Initial L'Eau (eau de toilette) are persistent, while Guerlain hasn't confirmed officially as of time of writing.

For a comprehensive summary of the previous versions and limited editions of Guerlain Shalimar, see below and please consult the links for reviews.

Flankers/derivative versions of Shalimar by Guerlain (with linked reviews & comparison with original):
Shalimar Eau Legere/Shalimar Light
Eau de Shalimar
Shalimar Ode a la Vanille
Shalimar Ode a la Vanille sur la Route de Madagascar
Shalimar Ode a la Vanille sur la Route de Mexique
Shalimar Parfum Initial
Shalimar Parfum Initial L'Eau
Shalimar Parfum Initial L'Eau Si Sensuelle
Limited editions of Shalimar (without change in the perfume formula itself):
Eau de Shalimar Flower
Shalimar Charms edition & Eau de Shalimar Charms edition
Shalimar Fourreau du Soir
Shalimar extrait de parfum in Bacarrat quadrilobe flacon 2011 edition



23 comments:

  1. Definitly a must try. I like the regular Shalimar as well as its flankers (Initial, Ode a la Vanille and the Eau)very much and I suspect I'll not be disappointed with this one either.

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  2. May they never do this to Mitsouko!

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  3. Anonymous08:06

    I am not so fond of the "Mother" but this sounds very appealing.

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  4. was this really necessary? with so many flankers already, including several "lighter" versions, i just don't see the reason for it. i love the original, in all its concentrations, and i'm fond enough of several of the flankers, though for me, they don't approach the original in overall beauty. i wouldn't rule out trying it, though...curiosity will always win out.

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  5. I am very curious and really looking forward to trying this one!

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  6. I love original Shalimar, and am rather curious about the new one, but doubt that I will like it as much. The body cream of Shalimar, while it is not easy to find, is one of its best products.

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  7. Thanks for the list at the end of your article! It's hard to keep track of all the flankers that have come out over the years.
    I'm not a huge fan of orange blossom, so I might pass on this flanker.

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  8. Interesting. I wonder why they're discontinuing parfum initiale for this one.

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  9. Is it Parfum Initial they are dc'ing or Parfum Initial L'Eau?

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  10. Miss Heliotrope02:24

    Nope, can't be bothered rising for this one...

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  11. P,

    I believe they're doing a good job with the flankers. The real question, however, is why? They seem like too many. Then again they're axing things right and left, then re-issuing under new names, then…it's exhausting. But I like quite a few, so… :-D

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  12. M,

    I doubt they will, though they did bring out that Lotus edition which was -surprisingly!!- quite good!!
    But Mitsouko and L'Heure Bleue were never as big sellers as Shalimar (though they are quite big sellers compared to more esoteric scents in the canon).

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  13. Reg,

    it does sound a bit thinned out to me (white musk? orange blossom?) for "too modern" sensibilities, perhaps (I could be very off with this) nevertheless they are doing a nice job lately with Wasser on the helm and I'm psyched. I will try it and see!!

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  14. NFS,

    I think you just put the reason down there in black and white. Curiosity will win.
    I don't see the point of so many editions either! *confused, shrugging shoulders emoticon*
    But I have liked a couple of them, too much to be snobby and snooty and claim I am not curious to try them out. :D

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  15. Shu,

    I guess we try anything labeled Guerlain. They know us!!! Hahahaha!! Hope you find a winner. Thanks for coming on board.

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  16. Anita,

    there is something about those old body products by Guerlain, right? The Deodorants in the green bottles were also as good as real fragrance.
    Shalimar is a perfume with endless possibilities, I guess….Thanks for commenting!

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  17. Jaime,

    you're welcome, I thought it was necessary to cut down on confusion!! (It's hard to keep up indeed, you can say that again)

    Orange blossom can be wonderful, but it can also be too soapy sometimes and "clean". Coupled with white musk (nickname for clean) they need to inject something to make it interesting. ;)

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  18. UC,

    it's unclear whether it's its replacement. I have heard the rumor, but officially it's not confirmed yet. I think they're delaying to drive a frenzy for the bottles, which is….hmmmm…anyway…..

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  19. Shuva,

    supposedly the PI rather than the Eau. With so many editions, it's both confusing and serves no purpose to have several flankers out. However it seems to have many fans, which is counter-intuitive.

    Thanks for chiming in!

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  20. C,

    absolutely valid point.
    I will try it out, but then again I have a responsibility to my readers. :-D ;)

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  21. Shuva,

    more info streaming in suggests that both Initials (edp and L'Eau) are going to be replaced. The L'Eau was really pointless if you ask me anyway.

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  22. Anonymous01:29

    Tried it at the perfume counter today. Husband and sons all said What's that smell, and not in a good way. Husband hated it, said it was too strong, which he never says about my Shalimar edp. I agree with him and found it much too flowery for my taste.

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  23. How very interesting, thank you for the reportage, Anon!

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