Best Quirky, Spicy, Anisic or Floral Vanilla Perfumes (Vanilla Series) & a Tauer Perfumes Free Perfume Giveaway

First things first and if you think you have a lucky bone in your body, do drop a comment regarding the Advent Calendar that Tauer Perfumes is organizing for the festive season. Today PerfumeShrine is proud to host a giveaway for a free Explorer Set by Tauer Perfumes (seen here) which will be sent directly by Andy from Switzerland anywhere in the world. To enter the draw do comment below with a comment on the post, stating you want to be part of it. Draw is open till Wednesday 8am (my time) and winner will be announced tomorrow.

And now on to vanillas....

The wild card vanillas are among the most unexpected perfumes of all, because they take the most universally recognized note (vanilla) and spin it in ways that you tend to lose sight of it being vanilla that is lurking beneath all the adornments. If you have exhausted the gourmand, creamy, pure vanilla fragrances and shy away from the boozy/smoky vanilla perfumes or if you find that woody vanillas are too nondescript for your liking, then you have a pleiad of suggestions to satisfy your eccentric desire below.

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Atelier Cologne Vanille Insensee: a light take on vanilla with an incense ambience, a "crazy vanilla".
Des Filles à la Vanille Garçon Manqué: very peachy and though sweet & flirty its milky and cedar background almost makes the vanilla take a back seat, a "tomboy", as its name would suggest, perfect for vanilla phobics.
Diptyque Eau Duelle: for something so dry, it's surprisingly lightweight and green, good for all weather conditions.
Guerlain Aqua Allegoria Ylang & Vanille: the vanilla brings forth the nectarous and powdery aspects of the ylang ylang flower, replete with an unripe green banana note in the background.
Guerlain Cuir Beluga: the softest suede oriental with a discernible vanilla note.
Hermes (Hermessence) Vanille Galante: with a delectable lily impression, airy, fluffy, incredibly refined and totally charming, for those who typically look down on vanilla scents as vulgar and cheap, this is enough to make them change their mind.
Hei Poa Vanillier eau de toilette: a tropical take on vanilla, with beach references.
Jo Malone Vanilla Anise: the note of anise with its bittersweet melancholy and savory touch contrasts with the vanilla perfectly.
Korres Vanilla Cinnamon Body Water (and body wash): discontinued as the whole Body Water line (for no good reason!!) this used to be a spicy vanilla that actually managed to not smell foody or Christmas-y, what a loss.
L'Erbolario Vanilla & Ginger: another imaginative pairing for vanilla, the citrusy aspect of ginger lightens the proceedings.
La Maison de la Vanille Fleurie de Tahiti: quite sweet and tropical smelling.
Molinard Vanilla Marine: sounds perverse and therefore demands experiencing it.
Serge Lutens Douce Amere: bittersweet, contemplative, magnificent, a personal favorite ever since it launched.

Do you like quirky vanillas? Do you have some to add?

For a comprehensive view on Vanilla Fragrances in All Their Variations, please consult our Vanilla Series.

The new 68 Champs Elysees: the Guerlain Abode Gets Re-invented & Limited Editions for Guerlain Perfume Fans

In time for the holidays the Parisian flagship of Guerlain is re-opening its gilded doors to the dedicated beauty and fragrance lover to enjoy their renovated interiors at 68 Champs-Elysées.

The Maison Guerlain has reopened 68, Champs-Elysees, its mythical place. Located on the most beautiful avenue in the world since 1913, the historical store now offers doubled surface in a masterly decor. The architect and designer Peter Marino has set his eyes on this prestigious heritage, in order to offer the most luxurious Guerlain expression of its brand. Then as now, creativity, boldness and modernity are at the rendezvous.

To awaken the nose and tantalise the taste buds, Guerlain has created a unique place, the restaurant 
"Le 68 Guy Martin ", born of the encounter between two talents, excelling in both arts of perfumery and gastronomy: Thierry Wasser, Guerlain Perfumer since 2008, and Guy Martin, Michelin-starred at Grand Véfour. Reservations: + 33 1 45 62 54 10 or contact@le68guymartin.com
An indispensable addition at anyone's Parisian must-see addresses guide when visiting the city of Lights.
On the first floor, the Guerlain Institute immerses us in a world of well-being and beauty, with an entirely new personalized program. Reservations: +33 1 45 62 11 21

In addition there is the La Cour des Senteurs, commemorated in a special fragrance edition developed by Guerlain. With the opening of a boutique in the Cour des Senteurs in Versailles, Guerlain is uniting its destiny with that of the former Royal City. Located right at the heart of the oldest district of Versailles just a stone's throw from the Château, this unique site looks to contribute to the renown and profile of the time-honoured art of perfumery, both in France and abroad.
The heir of the perfumers who supplied the Royal Court, Guerlain is reviving this prestigious past and majestically offering a new expression of the brand. This new Guerlain boutique looks to pay a contemporary homage to the expertise of French artistic craftsmanship, a real living heritage. The 17th century saw the dazzling rise of luxury under the influence of Louis XIV in Versailles, the official residence of the King from 1682 onwards. Manufactures were created, and Louis XIV surrounded himself with the best artists and craftsmen of his time. Today, true to the Sun King's spirit, the Château de Versailles provides a stage for contemporary art during temporary exhibitions.
Like a bridge between the past and the future, this boutique aims to offer a place for all perfume lovers to meet and share.

Last but not least the classic Eau Imperiale is celebrating 160 years. For the occasion, Guerlain has issued a special edition in a specially decorated bottle and box. Feast your eyes upon it.

A Fragrance Anecdote with IFF Evaluator & Author Karen Gilbert

I conducted a really direct, honest interview with Karen Gilbert, whose recent perfume book "Perfume: the Art & Craft of Fragrances" I reviewed on Perfume Shrine the other day. [The full interview is found on Fragrantica on this link.]

During our back & forth Gibert intimated the following interesting anecdote, which if nothing else proves that fragrance development is in reality far from what the average perfumista think it is. Let's give it to Karen.

Pic provided by Karen Gilbert for use on PerfumeShrine

"My role at the UK [IFF] office was to service projects which often had a very short turn around time. Sometimes we would only get a week or 2 (or less) to submit fragrances for a brief and we were juggling many different projects at a time. Unless it was for a huge launch like Lynx or Unilever or for a product that had technical challenges like a new type of antiperspirant base a perfumer wouldn’t even get the project – we would submit from what we call “shelf” fragrances which are collections developed for particular trends and already tested in product bases. I remember one particular brief for a mass market eau de toilette fragrance that we had no time on and the only suitable submission I had was a showergel fragrance that was less than half of the budget price we were given. I knew it would work but the client wouldn’t pick it if it was too cheap so I just altered the price to be in line with the other submissions. It won the brief and as far as I know it’s still in the fragrance market today, which goes to show that cost doesn’t always give an indication of quality."

Now, this is what I call honesty! Thanks, Karen!

Best Woody Vanilla Perfumes (Vanilla Series)

I've said it before and I'll say it again. For vanilla lovers (I mean the fragrant kind and they're legion) every little twist has the potential to make them want to sample and exhaust their repertoire. It's not enough to have dessert-like baking type vanilla fragrances while dark, smoky vanilla perfumes can be too serious and demanding sometimes. For men this presents an even greater problem: in the kakistocracy of cheap, syrupy vanillas addressed to air-headed teenagers popping bubblegums, i-Pods super-glued to the ear and slouchy PVC bags dragged above butt-crack revealing jeans, finding something that excels and is gentlemanly at the same time becomes an exercise in futility.

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So, yes, a more sophisticated category playing on the register of B flat minor is apropos: appearing calm, composed, unruffled, though there is something more volatile hiding under the lid.
(If you'd like to see some E-flat minor vanillas -I feel weird just typing that, can vanillas ever be eccentric?- you have to wait for the next installment in the Vanilla Series.)

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Annick Goutal Vanille Exquise: angelica and guaiacwood make this vanilla very unusual with a melancholy backdrop
Ava Luxe Vanilla Musk: though purported to be musky, this isn't funky, but rather woody, milky and with a nice coziness that is not foodie
Bvlgari Black: brawny, with rubber notes that become gentle very soon
Dior Homme Intense: a masculine vanilla, with a nice elegant background that keeps it from becoming nauseating sweet
Kiehl's Vanilla and Cedarwood: austerity meets vanilla, there you go little miss!
Korres Vanilla Freesia Lychee: don't mind the "components" on the label, this smells of chypre-woody with a slice of Coco Mademoiselle
L'Artisan Parfumeur Dzing: this is the smell of antique, used book stores, soft and animalic and very very intelligent indeed. A cult favorite composed by Olivia Giacobetti.
Le Labo Vanille 44: this Paris city exclusive is poised between a delicate French madeleine and smoky black tea
Montale Boise Vanille: many of the Montale fragrances are orientalized, but this is maybe the most approachable.
Parfumerie Generale Cadjmere: the Mediterranean woods of myrtle and cypress join Brazilian rosewood to put a decidedly sombre feel to vanilla (one of the beloved ingredients for Pierre Guillaume).
Rochas Man: a unisex take on woody vanilla with a hint of coffee, marketed to men but enjoyed by women as well, and composed by calorific "dishes" master chef Maurice Roucel
Serge Lutens Un Bois Vanille: the reference woody vanilla, it infuses the woody spicy blend of Feminite du Bois with a silky veil of vanilla fondant.

Do you like woody vanillas? Which are your favorites?

Optical Scentsibilities: Genie Blue with Stopper Red, Hooved it Twice and Then it Bled

Sometimes a genius idea is the result of a coup de foudre; a lighting crashes and you get that little bulb light over your head, like Benjamin Franklin. Sometimes a genius idea is the result of knowing where to "steal" from; all creative people are magpies, amassing an inordinate amount of data, processing it in the brain, sometimes even losing track of the reference as the idea matures and gains wings. The bottle of Cacharel Loulou, a potent 1980s fragrance, quite the success in its day, is a magnificent case in point.

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The extrait de parfum bottle was designed by artist designer Annegret Beier. According to lore "she wanted it to look like Aladdin's magic lamp and chose 2 totally unexpected colors for bottle and cap", to make it more eye-catching. (Yes, it is.)

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Behold nevertheless the original inspiration behind that magical elixir Loulou bottle from our younger days (both memorable and a little kitschy fabulous), Le Debut Bleu by Richard Hudnut, a perfume from the 1920s, discontinued and very rare today, but which managed to surface on Australian Ebay all the same a while ago. The similarities are more than apparent, maybe a case of tacenda.

via ebay.com.au

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I suppose this post is reprising the Optical Scentsibilities articles, a PerfumeShrine.com feature exploring art history and the images of perfumes as well as that of perfume design, that I had started back in November 2007 (wow! I just now realize how long this was an obsession with me) and which can be viewed in the link linked (If you're having trouble going back to the second page with older posts, after scrolling the first, visit this link and the third page of even older results can be found here)