Chanel Cristalle: fragrance review, history & comparison of concentrations

To consider Cristalle by Chanel a predominantly "fresh" scent begs the question: which version of it? Contrary to some of the previous fresh scents that dominated the 1970s like Eau de Patou, Eau Libre (YSL) or Eau de Rochas, Cristalle has circulated in two distinct variations that differ considerably.

Although only one of them is set in the 1970s, namely the eau de toilette original version, the 1990s eau de parfum edition is also popular and perhaps blurs the lines most between simple freshness and ripe enigma; if the citrus burst of the eau de toilette is a sunny but still crisp morning, then the more floral chypre leaning of the eau de parfum is late afternoon when the warmth of the sun has made everything ripen and smell moist and earthy.

The structure of Chanel Cristalle Eau de Toilette is citrusy green, almost cologne-y, with only a hint of chypre perfume  structure; more jovial, more unisex and altogether happier. The structure of the Cristalle Eau de Parfum version is more feminine, with the floral offset of jasmine and ylang ylang bringing to the fore the more romantic elements. If the former is a brainy librarian, the latter is a brainy librarian with one button undone on her blouse. As you would surmise from my description, I like and respect both, but would personally find more cause for celebration in the latter.

Cristalle is a case in point where the genius of Henri Robert is fittingly corralled to that of Jacques Polge, the two perfumers responsible for the creation of the former and the latter editions respectively.

The 1970s were all about freshness, vivacity, a new energy with the youth movement and the female emancipation. A lively citrusy green scent like Cristalle Eau de Toilette sounds totally logical and expected of the historical context. Cristalle Eau de Toilette has endured and has gained new fans over the decades exactly because it is a triumph of mind over matter. It feels tinglingly fresh, yes; it feels brainy and perfect for sharing whether you are a man or a woman. It also fits its architectural packaging to a T, perhaps more than any other perfume in the Chanel stable. It feels sleek and sparse and 100% proud of it. It also means that when you opt for it you know you're picking the freshest thing in the shop; there is nary a fresher scent on the Chanel counter now or ever. Only the galbanum throat-slicing-blade of the original Chanel No.19 could be compared for sheer chill!

But what about the Eau de Parfum version of Chanel's Cristalle?

The 1990s have gained an odd reputation in perfume lovers' minds because they mostly contributed the mega trend of the "ozonic" and "marine" fragrances, scents cutting loose with the denser and richer French and American tradition and ushering a sense of Japanese zen into personal fragrance. At the time they produced a huge chasm with everything that preceded them; and fittingly one of the first to do so was Kenzo pour Homme in 1991. Suddenly one wearing such a quiet scent seemed like someone walking in velvet slippers contrasted with a Louboutin stiletto wearer, emitting Dior Poison, marking some poor 18th century parquet floor; you instantly knew who was going to get more sympathetic smiles and friendly nods of the head and who was to be greeted with wrinkled noses. Such were the mores then; we have become loud with our scent choices again of course. But the overindulgence in quiet can become deafening in the end and this is what happened by the end of that grunge-dominated decade. Still Chanel Cristalle Eau de Parfum managed to straddle the ground between quiet and loud, producing a composition between soft flannel wool and luxurious yet rough soie sauvage which was advertised with the immortal line: "Exuberance comes of age!"

Perfume Primers: On Classifying Chanel No.19 & fragrance review

Chanel in-house perfumer Jacques Polge recounts a story surrounding the creation of No.19 and its appeal. In 1970, the 87-year-old Coco Chanel (who would die the next year) was wearing Chanel No.19 when she was stopped in the street by a young man.

“Coming out of the Ritz, I suddenly felt a hand on my shoulder and I turned around to see an unknown face. I was just about to tell him off in no uncertain terms, when he said to me, with an American accent: ‘Excuse me, I am with two friends who want to know the name of your perfume.’ To be stopped in the street by a man at my age, that’s not bad, is it?”

via ebay.com

I'm lucky my significant other loves Chanel No.19 on me too!

Although the feeling exuded by Chanel No.19 aesthetically approximates the one given off chypres (i.e. inedible, perfume-y, aloof, sophisticated, the antithesis of the "blonde bombshell airhead" cliche), the famous Chanel fragrance stands as exhibit A why perfumery appreciation can't be merely a subjective, aesthetic viewpoint but in many ways forms a technical matter demanding a deeper knowledge of the nuts & bolts of its craft. No.19's building blocks are not tabula rasa; in fact they belong to pillars already covered on these pages, but they merge in such a novel way that the result is something altogether unprecedented. This composition by perfumer Henri Robert, with its hint of fresh green stems cut with scissors to fit a vase, its powdery radiance and its cypress impression with lots of woody vetiver, embodies sophistication at its best.

via australianperfumejunkies.com

At the time of creation (1970, the perfume was launched in 1971), the formula contained a superior grade of Iranian galbanum with natural bergamot, lemon and ylang ylang. The heart of No.19 is built on lots of rose (15% of the formula in the vintage edition, a significant amount of which is comprised of natural rose absolute of Rose de Mai, i.e. Rosa centifolia), even more lily of the valley (20%) together with a jasmine "footnote". Up to this point nothing unheard of. The lily of the valley segment with the rest of the florals harkens back to the structure of Madame Rochas, the green feeling is analogous to Vent Vert a "green" floral perfume with its fingerprint dose of galbanum. The small inclusion of a carnation and sweet spice (pimento) "chord" recalls the great spicy florals of which L'Air du Temps is a prototype.

Three factors however make Chanel No.19 unique and unparalleled:
1) the predominance of orris however (the essence rendered from the dried rhizome of iris flower), here elevated from the supporting player status it enjoys in most perfumes
2) the overdosage of Hedione (around 25%) which diffuses the rest of the notes and gives that odd freshness and
3) the backing up with around 12% of a woody vetiver accord.
The floral elements (really, the rose) are supported and balanced by the woody notes, guiacwood, sandalwood, cedar (in the form of cedryl acetate) and the above mentioned vetiver. The bridge between the woody materials and the orris is methyl ionone, at a significant percentage. Methyl ionone itself is a molecule used to render violet-orris notes in hundreds of perfumes.

The wonderful richness of the vintage versions (in either parfum or eau de toilette) suggest that trace materials could have been used, as well as (probably) tinctures of musk, civet and ambergris, all but eradicated in the onslaught of perfumer regulations answering to animal rights concerns and allergens restrictions. Today's eau de toilette is boosting its vetiver and cedar notes over a fresher floral core, making a woody floral echoed in the denser version of the extrait de parfum, while the eau de parfum remains the rosiest of the three concentrations available. The predominance of orris means that it is an expensive formula to maintain, as natural orris price skyrocketed in the decades following No.19's creation. The main constituent of orris, the molecule irone, exists in isolation, and recent production of iris in China cut down the maturation process that orris demanded from 3-6 years to only 3 months (resulting in the Year of the Iris, a few seasons ago, when every perfume house, niche and mainstream, was issuing their own "iris perfume"). Nevertheless, the performance of the traditional natural orris is hard to emulate.

Up till this point, a clear case of a "woody floral". It is the inclusion of oakmoss and a leathery impression (rendered via isobutyl quinoline, with its sharp green fangly aspect) which complicate things and give a mossy character, recalling chypre perfumes to many perfume fans. However Chanel No.19 does NOT contain that third pillar of the true chypre, labdanum! (And certainly that would be applicable for a perfume that came out decades before the recent "nouveau chypres" which changed the territory due to technical exigencies). In fact No.19 is notable for what it does not contain as much as what it does, thanks to analytical gas chromatography work performed on it: little to no aldehydes, no synthetic musks (in the vintage version), no patchouli, no vanillin and no salicylates (more on which you can read on the link).

via ecrater.com

Its advertising image has always relied on its green character: witty, confident, a bit "sporty" even, in tweeds. "The unexpected Chanel". "The outspoken Chanel". Fronted by Christie Brinkley, Princess Mara Ruspoli, Rene Russo and other models of the time.

The comparatively small commercial appeal of Chanel No.19 -and other similarly bracing "green" fragrances- does not mean it has lost its importance in perfume lineage. A dedicated cult following has maintained its status and kept it in production. In Greece for instance, surely a very small market, Chanel No.19 has never known any shortage of availability and it enjoys pride of place on the counter at all times, contrary to many other classics, exiled on the bottom shelves of department stores. Its continuous presence (also in the sillage off women on the street) has aided a recalibration of what we consider "classy" regardless of fashions and it has influenced directly at least two perfumes: the intensely green Silences (1979) by Jacomo (which is Chanel No.19's offspring to be sure) and Beautiful by Lauder (1986). In the former the same powdery green, liquid emeralds presence is felt, with perhaps a fruity accent via cassis, while in the latter the abscence of mossy and green notes kicks it more surely into the woody floral mold.

Related reading on Perfume Shrine: Chanel No.19 and Heure Exquise by Goutal: A Tale of Two Sisters, Perfume Primers, Silences by Jacomo review, Iris: perfumery raw material