Dior Homme: thoughts & fragrance review on a milestone

 It doesn't matter that Dior Homme is everywhere, either in one of its -many- versions, or in some copy of it from another brand. It remains one of the most interesting men's releases of the last twenty years, because the formula brings a more unusual note of iris root, halfway between dry retro face powder or old lipstick along with dusty dried flowers, to an otherwise standard formula for a mainstream men's fragrance, making it revolutionary. It doesn't surprise me that many women love it and love wearing it themselves. It is the most affordable of the lot of Dior men's fragrances. 

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 Attention: the original, "authentic" Dior Homme is the one from 2005, by Olivier Polge, which was removed only to be removed by Demachy later in the completely unrecognizable 2020 version of the same name, when the Polge son was now permanent at Chanel . Yes, yes, I know, typing Dior Homme gives you 883045 versions on Google, how the hell do you know which is which, you go to the first one in the drop down menu. Well, let's pay attention to it a little since you are involved in the aficion.

 

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The 2011 version is still very good, despite the credit to Demachy, as it does not alter Polge's original recipe and retains its special characteristics. The iris in Dior Homme alternately takes aspects of soft aftershave powder like that used in trendy hipster haircuts, cocoa powder and amber starch. It's a smooth, glossy, no edge scent, feminine, but retains a hint of freshness, which I find a very alluring and essential ingredient in fragrance in general. You don't want to be completely smothered in a cotton cocoon after all, when you're on a social or romantic date, you want to be able to breathe and appreciate the (hopefully beautiful) view. :)

 

NB. The 2020 version is a completely different fragrance making for a LOT of confusion since it bears the same name, Dior Homme.  The prior to 2020 editions from a few years ago bear the bee emblem, the older formulations have no bee but the box has minor differences and the original 2005 formula has a silver tube sprayer in the jus instead of black, as after the Demachy transition.

Dior Poison Girl (2016): fragrance review

One can blame LVMH for many things, but not for not knowing how to milk a thing on their hands. The Poison fragrance brand is a huge success for Parfums Christian Dior and not without good reason. Distinctive, aggressively noticeable, innovative at their time, the Poison perfume series has provided us with memorable fragrances. The new Poison Girl, out in February 2016 in my country, may fall short on the memorability stakes, but there's a clever twist inside to reflect one of the cleverest (and most enduringly popular) in the canon, the almond-powder feel of Hypnotic Poison inside a "youthful" sweet fruits and caramel medley.

collage made by Le Coeur Gothique (on parfumo.net)

It has been said that pop songs consist of recycling the same handful of chords, as one smart reader reminded me the other day, and the universe is well aware of my belief in fragrances' intertextuality (there's no parthenogenesis in art), so it comes as little surprise that I don't deem that bad in itself if the resulting collage is eye-grabbing. On the contrary it's a smart move by perfumer Francois Demachy, who oversees the creation process at Dior (no stranger to artistic influence themselves). Hypnotic Poison has created its own history and legend, and like Mugler's Angel basic chord before it, serves as a pop reference that pops up everywhere. Why not in the mother of all Poisons, aka Dior?

Poison Girl starts with a sweet, toffee like fruitiness of orange hard candy which vaguely recalls half the current market (La vie est Belle, Tresor La Nuit, Black Opium, Loverdose, Flowerbomb...), with a cherry cough syrup hint, that predisposes an avid Poison lover for toothache, but thankfully cedes to a powdery almond within the hour where it stays for the duration. Seeing as Hypnotic Poison Eau Sensuelle got to the good part straight away, I can only surmise that the intent is to grab a specific demographic interested in the rather tacky gourmand top note and who might come to love the development regardless.

LVMH needed something to spar with L'Oreal and they got it. Not bad.

A footnote on the ad campaign:
Rather lost on the advertising and naming of Dior's Poison Girl, personally speaking.
"Girl" sounds demeaning (would they have called a masculine fragrance "boy" if it would appeal to young men? Edit to add: Apparently they would, but there's a reason). The night club pictures with model and actress Camille Rowen holding a cigarette in her nubile hands under the No Smoking signs and her defiant (try stoned) look under her $200-posing-for-bed-head haircut looks as rebellious as a straight A's pupil going for an Anthropology major instead of the prescribed Law School.  Is "no bras" the fighting field of young girls today? I very much doubt it.
At least the previous Poison editions had bold, imaginative, suggestive advertising. This is lame.

Balade Sauvage for New Dior Sauvage Fragrance: Selling America to Americans

It is no secret that the newest Dior fragrance for men is called Sauvage and is fronted by Johnny Depp. Taking its cue from the famous (and revered) classic Eau Sauvage, but going of course to a whole different direction, I found the following commercial clip mighty interesting for the following reasons, brought to my attention thanks to my dear reader Cacio.

First of all, we've seen perfumers talk before in press clips, but never before, if memory serves me right, in such a scale. This is a mega production that uses a whole panoply of cues: the materials of the fragrance, the link between scent and memory, director shots of parts of the commercial we might never see in the cinema and online, and a...voice over.

Francois Demachy, the Dior perfumer behind this creation, is given the veneer of an American movie-goer's memory of a memory: of the voice overs of movies to follow, of trailers. In constant anticipation of what will follow, not what is in front of you. Trailers have this paradox into them, you see. Watching a trailer, especially nowadays, is like having seen the movie, or at the very least the very best parts of the movie. It aims to catch your attention, to make you exclaim "wow, that looks like an excellent movie" and make you seek it out and pay the ticket to watch it in full, but at the same time it also leaves you with the partial satiation of having actually experienced the movie (at least they do to me). Possibly this commercial clip is doing the same for the fragrance. In constant anticipation for the smell to come it sort of gives away the clues into what it smells like. It delivers before it actually hits the nostrils. Maybe I'm too critical, that could be. Maybe I prefer a little bit of mystery.

The other thing is that this clip, and the official commercial as well, tries to sell very American things to -I suppose predominantly- Americans. Which is funny, if you think about it, since Christian Dior is one of the Frenchiest brands and the official commercial is directed by that most French of French directors, Jean Baptiste Mondino, responsible for some of the most iconic images in advertising ever.

The semiotics reads like a lexicon of symbols: The desert, the wide open space, the open road, the deserted fairgrounds, the light that glimmers at the end of the road, both an effect of heat and distance and the cinematic familiarity of the camera lens showing you the experience instead of you actually experiencing it. Laundromats and wild horses, and most of all heavy Mustangs or similar cars traveling outside the urban landscape. Francois Demachy the perfumer stands atop the skyscraper of offices and dreams of the anticipation of open space, or the memory of it, it is not clear. Johnny Depp on the other hand buries his past in the dirt of the desert to divest himself of memory.

In the end, Sauvage stands as an invitation to fondly recall what we already know (the images and the ingredients of the perfumes, even those openly admitted to be synthesized, which is a nice touch) or to explore something that lies ahead and we don't? It all depends on the audience that views it, their experiences, their associations, their familiarity with what is being shown.

What do you think?

Dior Cuir Cannage (La Collection Privee): new fragrance

Dior's La Collection Privée (formerly La Collection Couturier Parfumeur) is supplemented for 2014 with a new addition called Cuir Cannage. The "leather fragrance" in question is inspired by the scent of the insides of a leather handbag and reflects that beautiful combination of flowers and leather "notes" which is the mettle of many gorgeous classics in perfumery.

May I remind how the legendary, late perfumer Guy Robert described a long lost Lanvin perfume, Scandal, "like a beautiful flower snapped inside a leather handbag".
In the case of Cuir Cannage, the flowers in question are orange blossom, rose, ylang ylang and jasmine, buttressed by the leather accord (from birch wood and cade oil notes) and given the downy treatment thanks to the inclusion of orris. The perfumer is Dior's steady Francois Demachy.

The name is inspired by the beautiful "woven" treatment of the Dior "cannage" handbags, which reprise a popular technique of weaving calamus and daemonorops for furniture use and basketry (producing a beautiful effect that reminds of lacework). By reference the name then predisposes for a dry, rasping fragrance.

The new Dior exclusive perfume, Dior Cuir Cannage, will be available in the usual 125ml and 250ml sizes of La Collection Privée as well as the giga 450ml size at the specialized Dior boutiques catering to the exclusive collection buyers. Available in June 2014.

Dior Addict Eau Fraiche, Dior Addict Eau Sensuelle, Dior Addict Eau de Parfum: new fragrances

Three new fragrances in the Dior Addict stable arrive in June 2012.  "Fashion label Christian Dior is introducing its Dior Addict fragrance line through a comprehensive social media push that includes a Facebook application, four social videos and a Twitter hashtag campaign to push the upcoming “Addict to Love” film." reports Luxury Daily. You can find the teasers below.

 Composed by in-house perfumer Francois Demachy, they promise to present lighter (or more intense, if possible!) interpretations of the original Dior Addict.

Dior Addict Eau Fraiche (freesia woody)
"Luminous, glittery fragrance full of freshness and desire..."

 Notes: bergamot, grapefruit freesia, white lotus, pomegranate woody notes, white musk

 Dior Addict Eau Sensuelle (rose floral)
"Soft, floral composition for a natural and sensual woman. A very personal fragrance..."

 Notes: rose oil, rose absolute rose essential oil, jasmine, white musk, cedar

 Dior Addict Eau de Parfum (modern oriental)
"Dior Addict is a promise..."

 Notes: silk blossom, mandarin wood queen of the night vanilla

 The new collection has the added bonus of being available in small size bottles of 20ml (perfect for carrying in one's purse) starting from 45 euros for Eau Fraiche and Eau Sensuelle and from 47 euros for Eau de Parfum.

Dior La Collection Privee Oud Ispahan: new fragrance

Dior took siege of the oud bandwagon it seems: Besides their established Leather Oud, they're issuing a second "oud" fragrance in their Collection Privee line-up, this time combinging two exotic references in one in its name: Oud Ispahan.

The oud craze has taken almost every single perfume house on the planet vying for a perfume with the exotic-sounding prized Eastern material in the name to the point of boring perfume fanatics to tears. Largely this is just a trend that will eventually pass, relying on brain manipulation: mention a posh, exotic sounding material (oud/aoudh/agarwood) and let the audience dream about something different than what actually goes into the bottles. But we can't blame companies for wanting to produce what has proven successful commercially last time...can we?

Not only oud, not only Damascus Rose, but also amber, all rolled into one this time. Mysterious, grown-up hippy for women (and men, the fragrance is presented as a unisex offering) who want to smell sophisticated and orientalised, exotic and fascinating, Oud Ispahan is a fragrance release that will create some talk.
Of course the more seasoned perfumephiles among us will find that oud and rose is a classic combination that has been already explored, but Dior rather aims at consolidating a seeming Arabian authenticity than presenting a novel accord.

According to the official blurb, the notes are varied: “Oud Ispahan recreates Mr. Dior’s dreams of the Orient* through a striking Rose-Oud-Amber accord. Created by Dior Perfumer-Creator Francois Demachy, this universal scent features top notes of Labdanum Absolute, middle notes of Patchouli Essence from Indonesia and bottom notes of Oud Essence from Laos, Rose Essence from Turkey and Sandalwood Essence from New-Caledonia for a warm, spicy reinterpretation of Eastern locales.” According to perfumer Demachy it's "an immediate impression, an instant local snapshot of the Orient"

There's a bit of discrepancy here which I'd love to point out for our readers, just for history's sake: Christian Dior has been known to say, "As for the bazaars of Trebizond, on entering I felt as though I was heading into Ali Baba's magical cave." Trebizond, to be factual, is actually on the border of the Caucasus region and the Black Sea and bears the heritage of the Byzantine empire and its Greek populaces, and has nothing to do with what is commonly referenced as "Arabia", but let's allow this lumping of the Middle East into one exotic amalgam continue for Western tastes... The fragrance might prove to be spectacular regardless, so historical consideration might end up meaning nothing.

Oud Ispahan is going to be released in summer 2012 through Dior boutiques worldwide and will be available from 28th May in Selfridges Maison des Parfums on Oxford Street, London.
125ml of Dior's Oud Ispahan will set you back 125GBP, 250ml of juice go for 185GBP and 450ml cost 285GBP.

Dior Escale a Parati: fragrance review & bottle giveaway

Dior doesn't get high points for originality or cultural authenticity, bearing in mind this new "port of call" in their summery Cruise collection is inspired by Brazil as announced a while ago on these pages. Escale à Parati  vividly recalls in the top notes the effervescent composition of classically French L'eau Impériale by Guerlain extended on the petals of (lots of) soapy & tartly clean orange blossom. 

The effect is pleasant, exhillarating, more specifically it's what the French call "pétillant", recalling the use of orange blossom in its "cleansed up", non indolic form in another summery, uplifting cologne Lancome's Ô de l'Orangerie (for a review and comparison of all the O de Lancome fragrance editions please refer to the link) but not as soapy as the limited edition from 2009 Prada Infusion de Fleurs d'Oranger .

The progression in Escale à Parati goes into predictably classic "cologne" notes in the mould of 4711 by Muehlens, uniting herbal and aromatic essences with a lightly sweet note (in the Dior it's tonka bean with its cut hay and lightly vanillic touch). Francois Demachy highlights the verdant tartness of the essence itself with the leafy scent of mint, arguably another trick in which Guerlain has paved the path in via their Guerlain Homme.

There are no discernible fruits to speak of in the mix nor the overt sensualism & sexiness associated with Brazilians (a most carnal people), which makes the whole Brazilian experiment sound more of a marketing positioning on the part of LVMH than an authentic pilgrimage to the vast culutral tapestry of South America. This in itself makes the launch (especially after 2 years since the last, as opposed to the annual churning out at the beginning of the series) rather incomphrehensible; one would think there are enough summery colognes in the Dior range already, why the need for one more? Undoubtedly because Brazil is an untapped market with the potential of exponential growth...

This particular Escale fragrance is fit for sharing between the sexes and the shade of the juice is really inviting, but the lasting power is comparable to the other Escales, i.e. not much. Nevertheless, when it's hot, one doesn't mind respritzing to feel the coolness of the citrusy breeze.

ior's Escale à Parati is meant to be shared between the sexes, providing a light air inspired by the Costa Verde and its atmosphere of fun, dance and music. The fragrance includes citrusy and woody notes of bitter orange (bigaradier), lemon, petit-grain, rosewood, mint, cinnamon, red berries and tonka bean.
Available as 75 and 125 ml Eau de Toilette from June 2012 at major department stores.  

One new bottle (from which 5ml have been decanted for reviewing purposes )for a lucky reader. Draw is open internationally till Monday 7th midnight. (draw is now closed, thank you)
Share in the comments to enter the draw, which is your favourite summery cologne and why? 

In the interests of disclosure, got the promo bottle through a distributor.  Collage by Eric White

Dior Patchouli Imperial: fragrance review & a Story on Perfume Sleuthing

Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.
(The more things change the more they remain the same.)
French proverb


~by AlbertCAN

For the majority of the summer Perfume Shrine has been investigating a grand perfumery mystery. The million dollar question: Finding the name of the next fragrance to be launched by Christian Dior. For two months, though living in separate continents (Elena in Europe, me in North America), we have been busy searching and researching high and low, busy forming hypothesis on what will happen within the up-coming months.

Now the keen readers might have deduced that we were only interested in the name and not anything else—for yours truly have sampled it way back on the second week of July and lived with it for a whole day, silently and carefully observing its sillage and diffusion. In fact when the Russian Elle made the announcement two weeks ago it was merely a confirmation of what we have secretly known for months.

The intrigue started on an unassuming Saturday, July 9 to be exact. Elena received a short message from me (for privacy reasons details of day have been modified):

"I just came back home feeling very intrigued because a very chic young lady I know was wearing a fragrance I simply couldn't identify. For hours it was driving me insane: It smelled fantastic on her, but I just couldn't name it! My first guess was 31 rue Cambon, but I know the Chanel has more ‘gras’ and a bit more pronounced black pepper. After 2 hours I finally had the courage to ask her what she was wearing. Turned out she was wearing the latest Christian Dior, yet to be on the market—she got it as a gift. Now, she was too elegant to name drop..."

Surely we all have moments which a story is at the tip of the tongue, knowing how frustrating it is to name that fragrance, the music we’ve just heard or that book we have just enjoyed. But to name a fragrance that is not out on the market? I now know why the antagonists in Russian folklores often ask their subjects to find the thing I do not know as one of their cruel tasks!

The fragrance itself was not hard to figure out on the other hand. As I communicated to Elena within the same message:

"I can tell you that the new Dior fragrance, if the news can be verified, is a modern chypre and a kissing cousin (and I do mean kissing cousin) of Chanel 31 rue Cambon with pronounced patchouli, orris, incense (my money is on frankincense), musks (I sensed ambrette and modern musk effects), and spices (definitely black pepper, but more complex as well) with a stable and sustained development and a very work-appropriate sillage. Not a lot of citrus, but neither is Rue Cambon. The only thing that I consider an improvement is the patchouli and the black pepper facets are slightly more nuanced than 31, which is sharper. The orris used in this Dior is not as obvious. I observed the fragrance for hours and the smell is an engineered marvel, as it did not waiver a bit throughout the duration".

Even until now, months after sampling it, the scent of Patchouli Impérial still floats comfortably on my mind, steady as a diver’s back, delicately forceful as the gaze of a Nubian woman. Its structure concise, its proportions disciplined. Looking at the official notes I now can recognize how the Sicilian mandarin modifies the Calabrian bergamot, almost hidden with the piquant smoothness of Russian coriander seeds—all could have easily gone unnoticed but they are there, interesting second glances. Now of course the patchouli is decidedly present—the Indonesian variety, mind you, having a slight pungent, crisp green characteristic—but hardly a solifolia at all. Rather the patchouli used here is a context, straddled between the bergamot and the musk, creating a modern chypre effect, and, when paired with the sharp cedarwood (Atlas, not the Virginia variety, would be my vote) and sandalwood (most definitely a convincing replica for costs and conservation purposes)...the effect isn’t too far from, again, Chanel 31 rue Cambon in my humble opinion.

I am in no means to suggest or to imply that the juice of the venerable, contemporary Chanel classic somehow accidently slipped into the analytical lab of Parfums Dior, nor I am in any position to suggest François Demachy, who authored Patchouli Impérial, of imitating the work of Jacques Polge and Christopher Sheldrake. Yet Monsieur Demachy’s tenure at Chanel is fairly evident with the latest Dior composition, injecting an abstract richness into the realm of Dior fragrances while carefully editing the existing Dior archive. All this cannot be coincidental.

Still, here's another million dollar question: What’s with the lateral lineage when Dior and Chanel are originally supposed to stand for almost opposite views on luxury?

Many avid readers of Perfume Shrine will no doubt have read Elena’s less than optimistic review of the latest Dior commercial, how stars of the bygone era like Grace Kelly, Marlene Dietrich and Marilyn Monroe—the last being forever linked to Chanel No. 5, no less—have been used to advertise J’Adore. Interesting to note that Dior did not hire anyone to play dress up: All of the bygone stars are brought back using CGI technology. Dior, in short, is re-editing its history much like what Coco Chanel did throughout her life.

Let’s consider that facts here: In order to raise its competitive advantage LVMH, the mother ship of Dior, needs to grow by making commercial acquisitions. (LVMH's latest acquisition of Bulgari is yet another stern reminder.) Yet in the current economic environment the few remaining worthy brands are, in the case of Hermès, rarely available aside from a minority stake. And in the case of Chanel the shares are 100% unavailable, having owned by only the Wertheimers. All of which in private equity.

So what would you do if you were Bernard Arnault, the chairman and CEO of the French conglomerate LVMH if owning a stake in Chanel is not very possible within the immediate future? Given the choices I would have done exactly what he did: hiring the former Chanel deputy perfumer, imitating its legacy. It’s nothing personal, just business.

(On the flip side why is Chanel being content on being commercially competent when Dior is nipping at its heels, especially given the recent releases such as N°19 Poudré? That’s honestly not for me to answer at this space—but certainly begs the question, no?)

What strikes me as interesting with the latest l’offre is the dialogue between Polge and Demachy, almost a perfumery development process ~Jacques creates an essai olfactif while Demanchy suggests the possibilities of the theme. To comment, to reflect. I think if one approaches from this perspective this fragrance will be interesting.

But all that aside the bottom line to me, of course, is that now I cannot smell this fragrance without thinking of the lovely young girl who introduced me to this scent. She was wearing a navy print flouncing chiffon mini-skirt on that day, cut to perfection just right above the knees. Fantastic legs and just a great pair of strappy leather sandals. A beautifully cut solid black top, with impeccable silken shoulder-length hair and almost perfect manicure. Funny how I remember people when they have a way with fragrance.

Christian Dior Patchouli Impérial is created by perfumer François Demachy and contains notes of: Sicilian mandarin, Calabrian bergamot, Russian coriander, Indonesian patchouli, cedarwood and sandalwood essence. It’s the latest addition to the upscale La Collection Couturier Parfumeur Christian Dior line and is available for order at Dior boutiques worldwide and the official website. Patchouli Impérial is marketed for women, although as a patchouli fragrance it can be used as unisex under the appropriate context.

Availability & official info on the Dior site.


Ofra Haza singing Elo Hi (Canto Nero) by Goran Bregovic (who mixed for the occasion Serbian band Bijelo Dugme's original song "Te Noci Kad Umrem Kad Odem Kad Me Ne Bude")
Arabian Eyes 2 by GayfruitBonB on deviantART

Chewing the Cud on Givenchy's upcoming fragrance Dahlia Noir

Givenchy' upcoming feminine fragrance, Dahlia Noir (i.e. black dahlia), is the first house scent overseen by couture creator Riccardo Tisci in collaboration with perfumer François Demachy, but it already presents something of a challenge for reasons we elaborate on below. Fabien Baron is the creator of the bottle and the ad campaign, featuring Maria Carla Boscono, which is set to hit glossies and screens later this year, in an image of almost fetishy gothic-inspired clothing of black lace and chiffon.

The fragrance notes for Givenchy Dahlia Noir comprise such vague terms as "rose vapour, peach milk, iris powder and precious/sacred woods" and since dahlia has no smell, we are left guessing with only Tisci's feedback on what to expect. The childhood memories & associations of Tisci, on which he drew inspiration from for Dahlia Noir, include the iris-scented scent of his sisters' cosmetics (including lipstick and a shared bottle of Rive Gauche) as well as a classic scent from Italian brand Santa Maria Novella.
According to him, the concept was an abstract, geometrical floral, which leads me to believe we're dealing with a floral that will not be obviously floral (in the mould of many modern floral fragrances aimed at young people who sneer at being presented with "traditionally feminine" pretty flowers in their scents) . Tisci goes on to elaborate that the concept alluded to by the name has to do with romanticism, sex and darkness: a well-played theme by now in many a "noir" fragrance, but also supposedly standing for what Givenchy stands for as well. I think Hubert might have other ideas in his mind than "sex and darkness" back in the day when he was dressing Audrey Hepburn and Jackie Kennedy, but even though he is very much alive, his own patrician image has subtly, discreetly exited the picture on what concerns his brand.


It remains to be seen whether the darkness of Eau Demoiselle (a previous release by Givenchy played on the allure of a black mantle-dress) will now transpire into more than the innocuous woody floral musk the former fragrance equated into.

The new Givenchy fragrance reportedly "has nothing to do" with the James Ellroy novel Black Dhalia, which takes upon itself to explore and partly fictionalise the facts of an infamous real murder case, or with previous Givenchy releases; but the association with the unsolved murder case of brutally  butchered Elizabeth Sort (nicknamed "The Black Dahlia" in the call-girl circuit of late 1940s LA she was part of, due to her predeliction for wearing black) is too close to home to escape criticism of milking an infamous catch-phrase for money. LVMH, to which Givenchy belongs, is no mom & pop establishment that would fail to research a trademark adequately, at any rate, and the French posters for Brian De Palma's film a few years ago have it emblazoned all over the Internet. Let's not forget, MAC Cosmetics, another big player, who issued a comparably similarly named makeup collection. What's up with that?

Givenchy Dahlia Noir is released on 22 August in France for 57 euros for 30ml of Eau de Parfum.

Francois Demachy: Perfumer at Parfums Dior & elsewhere (and footnotes on La Collection Couturier Parfumeur)

I was flatteringly asked by an industry magazine to comment on the work of François Demachy, perfumer and artistic director of Parfums Dior, in view of the 2010 re-issue of Diorama for US distribution and the introduction of "La Collection Couturier Parfumeur" this past autumn. The information was conductive to an interview with the perfumer himself, which appeared in this winter's edition of fashion magazine Industrie. In the interest of our readers who do not have access, I'm sharing some of the points discussed in relation to how Demachy's work has evolved at Dior and LVMH over the years, as well as my views on his personal aesthetics, supplemented by short reviews on some of the newer exclusive scents in "La Collection Couturier Parfumeur".
I welcome your own comments and views on the subject!


The first question involved the possibility or not of a clear-cut "signature" in the work of Demachy. Some perfumers who have attained almost a guru status among perfume enthusiasts (I'm thinking Jean Claude Ellena, Christopher Sheldrake et al) have a very specific style which they express through their every project.

Elena Vosnaki: It would be very difficult to ascribe a clear-cut "signature style" to any artist when they're bound by commissions or commercial briefs. The artist has to follow the patron's demands to some degree; also their specifications and range of options in regards to the media available (the budget for ingredients, growers' and labs' options as availability allows, specific range of concept or focus groups etc.). Perfumers who act as art directors naturally have a greater artistic control over the projects they oversee, but it's not 100% free either. While Jean-Claude Ellena enjoys a sort of what seems like unprecedented artistic freedom at Hermès, probably due to his already documented manifesto and Hermès’s lesser financial dependency on the turnover of their perfumes, Dior and Demachy present a different case: Dior Parfums cater for a huge chunk of the LVMH portfolio and therefore there are several considerations when launching a new fragrance.
Having said that, the latest Escale series for Dior as well as a few flankers for Dior’s best-sellers (Miss Dior Chérie L’Eau, J’Adore Eau de Cologne Florale, Dior Homme Cologne, Farhenheit 32) bring on a new clarity to the range which cannot be attributed to anyone else but Demachy. It’s hindsight in a way, as both perfumers see Edmond Roudnitska as their mentor and have been influenced by his restrained style; an observation worth keeping in mind when reviewing all the latest Eaux in the Dior range. So I think that Demachy will crystallize his vision in the coming years, especially if his desire for a more “hand-crafted” feel is (hopefully) sanctioned by LVMH. The increased quality ~amped with more precious naturals~ in J’Adore L’Absolu, as well as the re-issue of ultra-classic Diorama seem to be positive steps in the right direction, which is further honed with his output in La Collection Couturier Parfumeur; especially in New Look 1947, a gorgeous floral with silky aldehydic sprinkling; and Mitzah, a sexy amber focused on the Ambre83 base that flanks resins with labdanum and castoreum, feeling like provocative underpinnings under a structured dress.

Next the discussion touched on Diorama, the re-issue for the American market as contrasted to the former versions.

EV: Diorama is of course one of the “parfums-phares” of Dior and stands among Roudnitska’s work as the summation of his course from the “patisserie” style of Rochas Femme to the more vibrant offerings that followed (Diorella, Dior-Dior etc). It’s absolutely stunning in its vintage form, the fruitiness taking on a burnished, tawny quality half-way between garbage and mouth-watering delicacy, which makes it compelling. The till recently circulating edition in the Paris boutique was very good, but a bit attenuated compared with my vintage specimens. I would be thrilled to have it reconstituted it in its original form, although I’m fearful that first the hawks at Brussels are watching with a stern eye (IFRA restrictions are something that Demachy himself bemoans and admits as being a major obstacle for the old guard) and secondly, it’s not going to be tremendously popular with the general public; but that’s all right, it’s a connoisseur’s fragrance anyway.
[I have reviewed the former exclusive edition on this link and my thoughts on the 2010 Diorama re-release are posted here].


In what has to do with his work at LVMH, Demachy applies some interesting aspects and ingredients to bring on fragrances that will feel contemporary but also quite sensual.

EV: I think Demachy's old-school Grassois romanticism (he was born in Cannes in 1949) coupled with a very clear, a little savage but at the same time “translucent” technique make for this interesting synergy of modern and classic. For instance, his Escale à Portofino is a perfect mélange of a tried & true concept and a contemporary-feeling formula. It smells bright and fresh without evoking a stuffy, obsolete sensibility of “splashing citrusy tonic after shaving”. There’s sensuality and elegance in Portofino, if one looks carefully. The citron essence, specially treated for Dior (they also have 2 varieties of petit-grain reserved for them), is also of interest and I think it constitutes a trend we’ll be seeing more of.
He's quoted to say: “I believe in the virtues of aromacology: a fresh cologne, with Mediterranean accents of citrus fruit and aromatic scents immediately creates a good mood.” It was on that axiom that the exclusive Cologne Royale was built for Dior. On that train of thought, I would love to see him expand and fine-tune his vision of the great “Eau” (If not surpassing the gigantic Eau Sauvage, then offer the feminine suggestion to speak to young women of today); possibly beyond the established Cruise collection of the Escale scents, into a stand-alone major feminine new launch perhaps! Not only a “parenthesis in the world of perfumes” ~as he described his entry for Escale à Portofino~ and certainly a major step beyond the nostalgic Eau de Grasse Impériale composed at his father's apothecary.
And of course, now I have sampled his all too recent work for La Collection Couturier Parfumeur, I can see that the line is clearly destined to include some classics-to-be: Leather Oud is already shaping up to be a cult favourite, exploiting the multiple nuances of agarwood alongside a rough note (leather) that is making a come-back most forcefully along the industry. His pastoral theme of a certain rustic roughness in Granville (also in the Collection Couturier Parfumeur ), as expressed through the use of provencial herbs ~rosemary, thyme, basil~ shows vigour!


Last but not least, Demachy oversees projects ourside Dior as well: The question is whether he infuses them with a personality that is uniquely his own and how does this happen from an aesthetic viewpoint.

EV: I happen to feel that he has an endearing old-fashioned love for the traditional role women designate perfume for: romance! This was also highlighted in some of his work at Chanel where he collaborated since 1977 (albeit a phase shrouded in a little mystery till recently). I will bring a personal experience to illustrate my point: I recall how I was gifted with Diva by Ungaro when I was merely 18 years old by my beau who liked perfumes. Iliterally grew up with chypres, being of Mediterranean descent, so it was a natural for me, but the expansive, rosy-mossy embrace that engulfed me was almost too emotional: I felt that the perfume was speaking words of love, not only because it was offered me by a loved one, but because it was so very romantic and expressive in itself, a little "hit you on the head with sentiment!". When Demachy collaborated at Ungaro with Jacques Polge (officially head perfumer of Chanel for the last 3 decades) for it, they must have dreamt up of a fiesty Italian heroine such as the one in Visconti’s “Il Gatopardo”. Demachy, I feel, likes the gesticulating, expressive style of the Italians and the sunnier disposition of the insular Roman palazzi to the gloom and reserve of steel-skyed Versailles and its plottings.
His Italian predeliction (he is especially simpatico to the Mediterranean climate and loves the cities of Syracuse and Siena) is also showing in some other creations: Aqua di Parma Colonia Intensa, for instance or the reworking of Pucci’s Vivara (2007). It was sad to see the entire Fendi line disappear into thin air nevertheless, his being Palazzo, although certainly no fault of Demachy himself!

Christian Dior La Collection Couturier Parfumer fragrances are circulating in the following sizes in Europe: 150 euros for 125 ml, 225 euros for 250 ml et 330 euros for 450 ml and ONLY in 250ml bottles for the time being in the US.

photos via Dior, punmiris and estheticrfactory.fr

Dior Hypnotic Poison Eau Sensuelle: fragrance review

Doing the Lutenesque visuals for Hypnotic Poison Eau Sensuelle is not enough. Although purple hues and mysteriously shut eyelids with a sophisticated maquillage on them (by Tyen, no less) have a way of drawing a perfumista's attention, the juice has to be really original in a galaxy of flankers adorning Sephora shelves to equally capture devotion. And it's not circulating on American perfumery countertops, you say?


The original Hypnotic Poison by Annick Menardo, with its trippy bitter almond and caraway opening, managed to jolt sniffers into a "love or hate" mnemonic sense (much like all her other perfumes do too, like for instance Black by Bulgari or Lolita Lempicka by Lolita Lempicka). There's simply no way to be indifferent to it! Of course even within the same fragrance spectrum there are the ultraviolet and the infrared ends: The Eau de Parfum concentration of the original Hypnotic Poison is the former; intensely bitter and fluorescent at the beginning like underground dance clubs with "black lights" over you and with a pythonesque grip on its audience. While the Eau de Toilette shares the latter's nightime vision ability, permeating a place and its wearer in a warm incadescence; almost a homing device.
To take the light analogy on spot, Hypnotic Poison Eau Sensuelle seems like long-wave infrared or "thermal imaging": a completely passive picture of the objects in question based on their own thermal emissions only, rather than any external light or thermal source. Basically, if you got it, it will not oppose it, but it can't "work for you" otherwise.

The latest Christian Dior flanker in the Poison series, Hypnotic Poison Eau Sensuelle, is essentially a vanilla orchid floral fantasy composed by François Demachy, a more floral variation on the best-selling 1998 Hypnotic Poison minus the frightful originality.
Hypnotic Poison Eau Sensuelle opens with the slightly medicinal facets of dominant ylang ylang, soon mollified by rosa Damascena with its feminine, velvet character, almost cancelling out the medicinal. Although tuberose is listed in the notes, the effect is nowhere near the strange, cubist renditions of tuberose soliflores of niche perfumery, instead boosting a faceless rendition rather than the sex beast on steroids. The vanillic-ambery facets (plus a hint of cumin) are played in favour of the previous woody notes which conspired to make the 1998 Hypnotic Poison the non-sweet, powdery gourmand it is. Eau Sensuelle feels more floral and more "acceptable" standard vanillic, the same way that No.5 Eau Premiere is a lighter, more vanillic but less musky version of the original Chanel No.5. Only Dior's does not have as silky an effect as the Chanel's.

Still, those who didn't really like Hypnotic Poison or just couldn't "tame the beast" (it's no coincidence it's advertised with a python encircling Bellucci's voluptuous body menacingly!), will find this essentially watered down version to their liking. And this probably explains the reasoning behind its concept by LVMH in the first place. Is it a bad fragrance, then? No, but it won't make it into the next 50 years like the original Hypnotic Poison will, most probably.

The bottle reprises the shape of Hypnotic Poison’s in deep-red, subtly translucent glass, topped with a cabochon cap that looks purple, red or mauve, depending on the light. Really great work. Be aware that the outer box is VERY similar to the original Hypnotic Poison with only the Eau Sensuelle in small typeface below the name: therefore attention is required when buying so as not to confuse the two!
Available from major department stores in Europe in 50ml/1.7oz, 100ml/3.4oz and 100ml/3.4oz spray deodorant.

Notes for Dior Hypnotic Poison Eau Sensuelle:
Top: ylang ylang, rose, orange blossom
Heart: orchid, tuberose, green notes
Base: sandalwood, vanilla, woods, musk.

Related reading on Perfume Shrine: The differences between all the Dior Poison fragrances (the original 80s Poison, Tendre, Hypnotic, Pure, Midnight and their Elixir versions)

photos via sunshinereiki.ca, blog.hola.com, brusselsisburning

Dior Diorama new re-issue 2010: Fragrance Review & Musings on Reformulation

When one of the revered classics gets re-issued, it is cause for celebration. Or disenchantment. It really is a delicate balance. Diorama is no stranger to various versions circulating through the years since its original creation by Edmond Roudnitska in 1949. (You can read our own review on this page) Alternatively dirtier/raunchier (perfume aficionado speak is "skanky") or like a bowl of sunny late summer fruit left on the table to ripen a tad longer than usual (thanks to the famous Prunol base which Roudnitska was so fond of), Diorama has had its phases. The latest one involves a re-issue, just this minute going downtown in specific stores wordlwide (contrary to its Parisian Avenue Montaigne exclusivity as of last year) and a different attribution: to François Demachy, creative art director and head perfumer at parfums Dior, rather to Edmond Roudnitska. What does this mean? Many things.

• First of all, the industry secret on it being reworked was revealed to me quite a while ago alongside the difference attribution, when approached by a journalist who wanted my input for his research on something concerning the brand and the perfumer. I hope to be able to reveal the length of our coming and goings in the future. But I digress. The matter is the attribution to Demachy signals a change in the formula. Surely, the formula had been tweaked a couple of times already, like mentioned above. But the name of the illustrious creator was guarded as a porte-chance (a good luck charm). Divesting it of its legendary lineage creates an enigma as to whether Demachy has gained full creative control at Dior under the LVMH shortage of budgets for creations or whether his talents are sort of "sold short" as I believed, especially given his tutoring under Edmond himself. (After all François Demachy did beautiful work when the formula restrains were either lifted momentarily for J'Afore L'Absolu or concaved into the inherent idea of simplicity in the style proposed, as in Escale à Portofino). Is an attribution of the reworking of an acclaimed fragrance the final test and the signal from LVMH that there is perfumer lineage there? Is it merely a marketing trick? Or a desire to highlight the role of their head perfumer?

• Another aspect is that the former unattainability of Diorama (being a Paris flagship Dior store exclusive) for most of the perfume lovers the world over is now into crumbles, even if the places of sale are not low-brow at all. Still, the opening to the Anglo-Saxon market signals something important in the luxury business outlook. Namely that creating a hard-to-get exclusive creates a frenzy (uncle Serge played this game first and best) but you have to make sure that that frenzy finds a way to invade the biggest consumer market of them all and the one more attuned to the Internet: the USA and North America in general. Ergo Saks is now carrying Diorama as an exclusive, catering for the increased awareness of classics and more obscure fragrances by an audience which was brought up on the Internet or delurked enough to take notice. It was with surprise I had found out last year that even regular fare which we consider normal perfume counter-material (Diorella, Miss Dior etc.) is hiding beneath specific counters in the US and you have to explicitly ask for them to try them out. Maybe LVMH has finally realised they're sitting on a (very) dumped down brand (lately) and decided to make amends? Let's hope so!

• Which leaves us with the actual fragrance of the re-issued Diorama. How does it smell like? To cut a long story short, it is still recognisably Diorama, meaning a ripe juice with plummy goodness embracing an unidentified white flower at the heart, somewhere between sweet jasmine and the caramelised scent of immortelle.
  Comparing with the till recently circulating re-issue on Avenue Montaigne one would detect some cleaning up which veered it further into Le Parfum de Thèrese direction with a bastardised peach overripeness rather than melon; and at the same time further away from Femme (both Roudnitska creations, the latter preceding Diorama, the former following it). It was still a nice perfume, but not on a par with the older vintages and I personally voted with my wallet for the contemporary bottles of Diorling.
  The Diorama re-issue of 2010, much like the 50s vintage versions, is closer to Femme with its patisserie density and its bosom-heavy cumin tonalities and sports a particularly vivid Damascena rose on its lapel alongside the peaches and plums. Still, the inky, muddy depth of oakmoss is flamboyant in its...absence. The new re-issue of Diorama feels more like a fruity woody with a thin voice than a traditional chypre with timber tibre, much as it tries...

The re-issued Diorama is currently a Saks exclusive in the US, and available at Harrods and Fortnum's in London. Dior is re-issuing their classics under an umbrella collection called Les Créations de Monsieur Dior (no matter that Dior died in 1957 before many were conceived). You can read all about those here.

Dior Escale aux Marquises: new fragrance

This coming June, Christian Dior adds a third cologne to his Escale cruise collection (fragrance de croisière ) with Escale aux Marquises (pronounced Eh-SKULL o Mar-KEEZ), which joins Escale à Portofino and Escale à Pondichéry.
Like the last two, this one is also composed by head perfumery at Dior right now, François Demachy. The composition is worked in Eau de Cologne style aiming to a fresh, feminine spirit. The heart revolves around the exotic and much loved tiaré blossom, garlanded with spicy and fresh notes evoking the Indian Ocean.


The îles Marquises of course are part of the French Polynesia which is in the South Pacific, so I am a bit lost on why the Indian Ocean has anything to do with the concept, but I guess it's a well-known scent reference, since so many essences come from the subcontinent. But you know how perfume brands work...(see Terracotta Sous le Vent)

Dior's Escale aux Marquises features notes of blood orange, pink pepper, cardamom, pepper, cinnamon, ginger, clove, nutmeg, coriander, elemi resin, benzoin, Amalfi lemon and tiaré blossom.
Escale aux Marquises will launch on June 2nd 2010 in three sizes: 75ml (68,26€), 125ml (97,37€), and 200ml (136,52€), available at major department stores.

Miss Dior Cherie L'Eau by Christian Dior: fragrance review

It's not often that I am caught completely off-guard and totally surprised by something. Usually my instincts and my (hard-paid for) experience guide me through most eventualities with assured steps. Yet the latest Miss Dior Chérie L'Eau managed to make me do a 180 degree turn! Not because it is a masterpiece. Far from it. But because I was fully prepared to absolutely hate it, just because I have been alienated by the sugary, patchouli, fruity spin of Miss Dior Chérie, a scent that is completely different than the classic chypre Miss Dior from 1947 (Dior's first scent) of which you can read a review here. The shared name makes one think hard on how much travesty one can stomach.

Furthermore, the developments at Christian Dior for some years now have been quite unsettling as the whole image has been cheapened and ultimately vulgarised. Not to mention that the very latest observations I made regarding reformulations afoot to all their classics, from Diorissimo and Diorella onwards ~signaled by cunningly new-old looking packaging only~ has left a bitter taste in my mouth... So a testing at Sephora just because it was the latest thing provided a rather pleasant jolt out of the doldrums of contemplating on "what Dior had been"...
According to its creator François Demachy, "Miss Dior Chérie L'Eau is not a complicated fragrance". Imagine a freshly scrubbed young lass, put a headband on her bouffant long hair, a mock pout with no depths of murky sexuality à la Catholic girls and you're basically got your sanitized BB.9
(ie. Bardot version 2009) ~a product of bourgeois paternalism and market satiation! Yet, didn't Bardot herself began her career posing for bourgeois magazines and studying ballent under Boris Knyazev?

Demachy has been instrumental in the creation of Aqua di Parma Colonia Assoluta, the re-issue of Pucci Vivara, Fendi Palazzo and a pleiad of scents for parfums Christian Dior (he almost seems like in-house perfumer at this rate, which I m not sure how to interpret!): the newest Dior Escale à Pontichery which we recently reviewed, as well as last summer's Escale à Portofino, Farenheit 32, the masculine Eau Sauvage Fraicheur Cuir and Dior Homme Sport, the Dior numbered Passages special collection of scents Collection Particuliere, Midnight Poison, Dior J'adore L'absolu...

Vogue.co.uk describes Miss Dior Chérie L'Eau as "a sparkling and distinctive floral scent blended with notes of tangy yet spicy bitter orange, Gardenia and white musks that aims to sum up the certain 'je ne sais quoi' of the ultimate French girl. Pretty in every detail - down to the bottle's iconic bow - this lighter, François Demachy-designed adaptation of the original perfectly fits a long-standing perfume brief from Christian Dior himself, "Faites-moi un parfum qui sente l'amour" (make me a fragrance which smells of love)."

I don't think Miss Dior Cherie L'Eau quite captures all that (especially the amour part), but it's not typical of the myriads of fruity florals on the market: First of all, the scent is decidedly floral for a change, but with a certain modern translucence and a lightl dewy feeling that makes for a refreshing take on green florals. The direction is "muguet"/lily of the valley "clean" (the lucky charm of Christian Dior himself) but done via a green, budding gardenia accord; which might be replicated by jasmolactones, if the eerie feeling of familiarity with Pur Desir de Gardenia by Yves Rocher is anything to go by, although the Rocher one is much more gardenia-oriented than this one. A small facet of the pleasantly bitter citrusy touches of Escale à Portofino and Mugler Cologne is also hiding in there with a very soft powdery drydown, fluffy like an air-spun macaroon with green filling and a little laundry-day feel. The girl wearing the John Galliano dress in the shade of candies, model Maryna Linchuk shot by Tim Walker, is perky, and innocently upbeat in a 60s kind-of-way (hold the orgasmic cries of the original Bardot song that accompanies the commercials shot by Sofia Coppola,; this one is a pouting Bardot seen through unknowing ten-year-old eyes!). The blotter beckons me from the depths of my old, ivory LV Monogram Vernis handbag: should I give it one more chance?

Notes for Miss Dior Chérie L'Eau:
bitter orange, gardenia accord, white musks

Miss Dior Chérie L'Eau has just launched widely, in amounts of 50 and 100 ml (1.7 and 3.4 oz) for 59€ and 85€ respectively.
If you have a few moments to kill, the Dior website for the fragrance is fun!

The rather confusing Miss Dior Chérie line comprises so far:
Miss Dior Chérie Eau de Parfum 2005,
Miss Dior Chérie Eau de Toilette 2007,
Miss Dior Chérie Eau de Printemps 2008(limited edition),
Miss Dior Chérie Blooming Bouquet2008(exclusive aimed at the Asian market),
Miss Dior Cherie L'Eau 2009.

Last but not least: For those of you who might as well get a dose of the old standby classic gardenia chypre of Miss Dior, there are some bottles over at Fragrancenet.com as well as the standard Miss Dior Chérie. Using code SHRINE saves you a further 10%!(offer good throughout May).


Related reading on Perfumeshrine: the Dior series

Pics via punmiris.com and imachildofthemoon.blogspot.com

Christian Dior Escale a Pondichery: fragrance review

If the idea of travelling to far away, sweaty places full of the pungency of warm bodies, overripe fruit at the marketplace, mud and animals' dung appeals to you more than the actual travelling, there is the escapism of travelogue fragrance snippets meant to ignite your olfactory nerve in stictly non-offensive ways. Escale à Pondichéry is the latest release from parfums Christian Dior following Escale à Portofino from 2008. The new cologne is a tribute to the erstwhile ex-French Colony in India and is the second instalment in the series "les escales de Dior" (Dior's ports-of-call), initiated and composed by François Demachy, Senior vice president of olfactive development of perfumes for the LVMH group(he created Fahrenheit 32 for Dior as well). And is appropriately accompanied by a make-up follow-up in a Rose Pondichery nude-rose gloss to go with it (don't ever let anyone tell you you're not matchy-matchy, huh?)


According to the Hindu Business Line, Dior scheduled the official fragrance launch at The Dune Eco Beach Hotel in Puduchery in a move of almost parochial emphasis. The celebration took 3 days and 40 journalists from around the world staying at the popular 36-acre eco-friendly resort.

The Eau-de-Cologne-with-a-twist interpretation of the Escales de Dior series blossomed into pleasantly appealing local folklore in last year's Escale à Portofino with its Italian accents of bergamot, citron, petitgrain, glorious orange blossoms and bitter almonds, all part of the local flora. The pneuma of those colognes is expressed by the link between the raw materials and the chosen destinations, lands of culture and fragant history. François Demachy next chose India, inspired by the fragrances from Pondicherry and Kerala, to unravel the exotic fragrances of India and the raw materials we have come associate with the peninsula: Jasmine, sandalwood and tea. According to the press release "The perfumer has selected a black tea enwrapped in a fresh and light signature that harmonizes with a spirit of happy insouciance".

The idea of a light cologne in an Indian setting has been previously explored in the perplexing yet astute Un Jardin après la Mousson by Jean Claude Ellena for Hermès. Boucheron created Jaipur, a different beast, a fruity oriental inspired by the legendary city of jewels; Patou featured the banana note of ylang- ylang and jasmine in the floriental Sira des Indes; while Kenzo Amour Indian Holi even has "holi hai" written on the red bottle in Hindi! Even Cabochard was inspired by memories of a soujourn of Madame Grès at the exotic peninsula. And of course there's always Shalimar... India has never been short of pefumes dedicated to its olfactory traditions!

It seems however that travel destinations are very popular right now with big companies (judging by the travelogue of the Guerlain scents which we were the first to reveal back in August last year or the travel exclusives of Lauder and Lancôme) as are Eaux de Cologne in general (from the new Hermès Cologne collection including Eau de Pamplemousse Rose and Eau de Gentiane Blanche to the Chanel Exclusif Eau de Cologne which pre-emptied the trend).

India however has not been unknown to the Christian Dior fashion house: Chandernagore/Chandannagar, another Indian town of French colonisation, was referenced as early as in Dior's Fall-Winter 1947 collection! In 1962, Dior held two shows in Delhi and Mumbai and the last creation presented was ‘Voyage en Inde’ (Voyage to India). And of course the Dune hotel nicely references the now classic Dune fragance by Dior, a non-ozone "marine" for the 90s. However Goa, the ulta-popular destination for the new generation of India-travellers was eschewed in favour of Pondichéry, “a distant and exotic destination, an ideal of escapism and travel”, according to Demachy.

In Dior's Escale à Pondichry the diaphanous, almost colourless juice ~in the matelassé glass bottle that is meant to transcend the collection~ delivers a shot of refreshing and nicely bittersweet aroma meant to act as a journey carnet in very simple strokes. Four major Indian ingredients went into the making of this perfume and they're mingled into the composition with delicate mannerisms that should please without aspirations of symphonic cadenzas. Demachy lists them as Cardamom Essence in the top; Jasmine Sambac Absolute in the heart; Sandalwood Essence in the bottom; and Black Tea Extract as a "fil rouge" (common thread). Although one almost expects by default some spice in a composition inspired by India, the graceful weaving through of cardamom, used to aromatize both coffee and tea, is the protagonist in the delicate and contemporary take on a refreshing cologne of citrus opening with a pleasingly dry base and very transparent floral accents. The composition doesn't especially smell of the tannic facets of stong brews of black tea (and aren't there enough tea fragrances on the market already?), but more of an abstract idea of ambery woodiness and lightly smoky powder (probably due to synthetic musks). Will it prove as popular as Escale à Portofino did? It remains to be seen. The demographic is the same, but I predict that this one might attract more men without being too masculine in scent.

From a visual point of view the advertisements with the big-straw hat blonde Edita , all decked in white bat-sleeves and pop sunglasses bring to mind more of Estée Lauder or Elizabeth Arden cruise-style collections for WASP ladies than the exotic locales of India or the boho-chic tourists that pilgrimage. And it leaves one in aporia as to why Kalyani Chawla (the indian face of Dior) wasn't appropriate for this project of all projects! But the marketing angle is thus apparent and who can blame them? The modern consumer of globalised galivanting is far removed from the Ravi Shankar apprentices who followed en route to the spiritual. Perhaps taking that last observartion in mind might ellucidate the facets that surface in the latest fragrance.


Escale à Pondichéry launched in India on Saturday March 21st, launches in European boutiques on May 28th and is expected to arrive on the US shores in July 2009. It will be available in 75ml bottles of Eau de Toilette for 64,95€ .

Oh and if Dior is taking ideas, might I suggest the next escale is inspired by Assos in Cephalonia, Greece? (click for pic here)

Pics via Dune hotel blog and fr.bkrw.com.