Top Notes 
Heart Notes 
Base Notes 
03/26/2014
Apicius
222 Reviews
Apicius
Helpful Review
5
The best fragrances are hard to find!
What a name - Jaïpur Homme Fraîcheur Épicée ! This flanker is one of the most pleasing discoveries I made during my life as a perfumisto. Mostly, flankers do not reach the class of the original fragrance but Fraîcheur Épicée and its twin flanker Jaïpur Homme Fraîcheur are the exception from that rule. The original Jaïpur Homme EDT never got me, it has always been one of those shelf-fillers in mainstream perfumery for me. Then, there is the opulent, sweetish-spicy flanker Jaïpur Homme EDP, something in between Jicky and Givenchy Pi – not my cup of tea. But with both Fraîcheurs, Boucheron moved that concept considerably towards a light fougère, and in case of Fraîcheur Épicée, towards a delicately spicy kind of light fougère.
Of course, it was a limited edition when it came out in 2004 and should be vanished by now. Like so often, my perfume review becomes a funeral speech. May the memory of this outstanding fragrance outlive all waves of mainstream perfume releases of dubious quality!
I still remember how I found it. It was a small owner-run perfume shop in Wolfsburg where I used to drop by after a working week for Volkswagen. So, on my way home, I had Jicky on my right arm (which I had bought), and Fraîcheur Épicée on my left, which I had tested.
I wasn't too fond of it at first. The top note was rough, sharp, somehow undefined and with a strange hairspray appeal. Something in between a conservative gent's cologne and a synthetic mid-marked disaster.
Enjoying my trip on the ICE train, I focused on my new purchase by Guerlain, pondering the review I would write about that classic fragrance.
However, I could not really focus my thoughts on it. Whenever I looked out of the window, something disturbed my thoughts, and it came from my left arm. I could not really say what was going on. Actually, it wouldn't have bothered me much if my left arm emanated something completely different – like an aquatic or a woody note. But this fragrance seemed to whisper: Hey, I am better than Jicky, you bought the wrong bottle!
Indeed, there is a link. I guess it is the spices (presumably cinnamon) and civet note on the Guerlain side vs. the cinnamon note in the base of Fraîcheur Épicée. Even if these very different perfumes should not have a single scent ingredient in common – they mysteriously share the same vibe.
But let's look at Fraîcheur Épicée as a unique fragrance of its own: once you have passed the slightly chaotic head note, Fraîcheur Épicée starts settling down. There are light florals mixing into the spiciness of cinnamon and coriander. They are perfectly discreet just as it is appropriate for a gent's cologne. And that strange “hairspray” appeal dims down and blends beautifully into the composition, giving the whole thing a very unique and special character. Suddenly, the concept becomes visible: to transfer an oriental into a spicy fougère. In doing so, any oriental effusiveness was successfully cut off.
One aspect of the alchemy of Fraîcheur Épicée is that uniqueness and discreetness form a very remarkable melange. Neither is Fraîcheur Épicée a discreet office fragrance (too much sillage), nor is it a grand perfume for the evening. You may call it an allrounder then but somehow this would miss the point. For me, the magical outcome of the creation of this fragrance is simply – I really feel at home with it. I do not experience Fraîcheur Épicée as a perfume that I am wearing, the relationship has become closer: it belongs to me like very few perfumes do. I really regret that one day I will squeeze the last spritz out of that bottle.
If you see it somewhere, please give me a note!
Of course, it was a limited edition when it came out in 2004 and should be vanished by now. Like so often, my perfume review becomes a funeral speech. May the memory of this outstanding fragrance outlive all waves of mainstream perfume releases of dubious quality!
I still remember how I found it. It was a small owner-run perfume shop in Wolfsburg where I used to drop by after a working week for Volkswagen. So, on my way home, I had Jicky on my right arm (which I had bought), and Fraîcheur Épicée on my left, which I had tested.
I wasn't too fond of it at first. The top note was rough, sharp, somehow undefined and with a strange hairspray appeal. Something in between a conservative gent's cologne and a synthetic mid-marked disaster.
Enjoying my trip on the ICE train, I focused on my new purchase by Guerlain, pondering the review I would write about that classic fragrance.
However, I could not really focus my thoughts on it. Whenever I looked out of the window, something disturbed my thoughts, and it came from my left arm. I could not really say what was going on. Actually, it wouldn't have bothered me much if my left arm emanated something completely different – like an aquatic or a woody note. But this fragrance seemed to whisper: Hey, I am better than Jicky, you bought the wrong bottle!
Indeed, there is a link. I guess it is the spices (presumably cinnamon) and civet note on the Guerlain side vs. the cinnamon note in the base of Fraîcheur Épicée. Even if these very different perfumes should not have a single scent ingredient in common – they mysteriously share the same vibe.
But let's look at Fraîcheur Épicée as a unique fragrance of its own: once you have passed the slightly chaotic head note, Fraîcheur Épicée starts settling down. There are light florals mixing into the spiciness of cinnamon and coriander. They are perfectly discreet just as it is appropriate for a gent's cologne. And that strange “hairspray” appeal dims down and blends beautifully into the composition, giving the whole thing a very unique and special character. Suddenly, the concept becomes visible: to transfer an oriental into a spicy fougère. In doing so, any oriental effusiveness was successfully cut off.
One aspect of the alchemy of Fraîcheur Épicée is that uniqueness and discreetness form a very remarkable melange. Neither is Fraîcheur Épicée a discreet office fragrance (too much sillage), nor is it a grand perfume for the evening. You may call it an allrounder then but somehow this would miss the point. For me, the magical outcome of the creation of this fragrance is simply – I really feel at home with it. I do not experience Fraîcheur Épicée as a perfume that I am wearing, the relationship has become closer: it belongs to me like very few perfumes do. I really regret that one day I will squeeze the last spritz out of that bottle.
If you see it somewhere, please give me a note!
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