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Notes05/21/2019
Hirondelle
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Hirondelle
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A stroke of luck at a flea market in the south of France
I quote a flea market salesman in southern France: "My mother had a perfumery in the fifties, now I'm selling the old stock." Yeah! That's what you wish to experience by chance. "But I don't advise testing on your skin, these things are sometimes eighty years old." No, that's clear. Further I bought an ancient version of "Tabac blond" by Caron with a minirest, but he raked the whole car, "Eau d' Hadrien" by Annick Goutal (the beautiful butterfly version), "A la reine des fleurs of Piver".
Sometimes I envy the elderly who still knew the old scents. Comments like "Today it's all softened up", "the character is no longer comparable" etc. come into my mind. Therefore I search flea and antique markets very specifically for vintage flacons, here in Switzerland unfortunately mostly unsuccessfully. You can be unlucky and the scent has long since tipped over, you never know in advance.
Now the suitcases are unpacked and first I test this old Caron, as a big fan of powder scents I am curious about the iris, the mimosa. You hardly notice when you open it, the texture is different, the performance doesn't come with a thunderous head note, which tempts you to buy impulses. No, the fragrance develops gently and roundly, very harmoniously! What is exciting about this fragrance is the tension between the powdery notes (iris and rose), which sometimes smell almost clean, and the more sensual notes like ylangylang, amber and woods. This combination adds depth to the fragrance. Moreover, the fragrance remains completely unsweet in contrast to many other fragrances of the last thirty years. In my opinion it doesn't need that much sweetness, I have trouble with the Supra-Gourmands. There I find this vintage scent in its spicy soapiness much more pleasant. The Sillage remains relatively close to the body, the durability is still amazing for such an old water. A beautiful and exciting fragrance experience!
Sometimes I envy the elderly who still knew the old scents. Comments like "Today it's all softened up", "the character is no longer comparable" etc. come into my mind. Therefore I search flea and antique markets very specifically for vintage flacons, here in Switzerland unfortunately mostly unsuccessfully. You can be unlucky and the scent has long since tipped over, you never know in advance.
Now the suitcases are unpacked and first I test this old Caron, as a big fan of powder scents I am curious about the iris, the mimosa. You hardly notice when you open it, the texture is different, the performance doesn't come with a thunderous head note, which tempts you to buy impulses. No, the fragrance develops gently and roundly, very harmoniously! What is exciting about this fragrance is the tension between the powdery notes (iris and rose), which sometimes smell almost clean, and the more sensual notes like ylangylang, amber and woods. This combination adds depth to the fragrance. Moreover, the fragrance remains completely unsweet in contrast to many other fragrances of the last thirty years. In my opinion it doesn't need that much sweetness, I have trouble with the Supra-Gourmands. There I find this vintage scent in its spicy soapiness much more pleasant. The Sillage remains relatively close to the body, the durability is still amazing for such an old water. A beautiful and exciting fragrance experience!
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