Top Notes 
Heart Notes 
Base Notes 
05/05/2012
Sherapop
1239 Reviews
Sherapop
1
And You Must Make of Fenugreek Your Friend...
Another member of the Escada Indian grocery-inspired perfume series, JARDIN DE SOLEIL features not asafoetida (thank God--or reasonable facsimile), but, according to my nose: fenugreek.
True, fenugreek is not listed as a note, but it was the first word out of my mouth upon spritzing this stuff on after years of neglect (and not without reason...) Perhaps the synthetic saffron has reacted with some other chemical in the mix to produce a molecule which happens to vibrate at the same frequency as the olfactorily relevant part of whatever molecule makes fenugreek smell like nothing on earth but..., well, fenugreek!
Whatever the explanation may be, based on my skin's reaction, JARDIN DE SOLEIL would be more aptly named BOMBE DE FENUGREEK. This does not smell like saffron--a note beloved to me--and the flowers, too, have all been watered with a saturated solution of fenugreek. Even the bees who try to gather pollen succumb, falling to the wayside as though drunk, never again to return to the hive. Perhaps "jardin de soleil" refers to the shimmering bodies of dead bumblebees strewn about this garden of wilted flowers.
Don't get me wrong: fenugreek has an esteemed place in Indian cuisine, but here it has been too liberally applied. I recommend JARDIN DE SOLEIL to all and only those who work in Indian groceries which sell spices in bulk, doled out using large aluminum scoops in the open air. (I swapped my bottle away.)
True, fenugreek is not listed as a note, but it was the first word out of my mouth upon spritzing this stuff on after years of neglect (and not without reason...) Perhaps the synthetic saffron has reacted with some other chemical in the mix to produce a molecule which happens to vibrate at the same frequency as the olfactorily relevant part of whatever molecule makes fenugreek smell like nothing on earth but..., well, fenugreek!
Whatever the explanation may be, based on my skin's reaction, JARDIN DE SOLEIL would be more aptly named BOMBE DE FENUGREEK. This does not smell like saffron--a note beloved to me--and the flowers, too, have all been watered with a saturated solution of fenugreek. Even the bees who try to gather pollen succumb, falling to the wayside as though drunk, never again to return to the hive. Perhaps "jardin de soleil" refers to the shimmering bodies of dead bumblebees strewn about this garden of wilted flowers.
Don't get me wrong: fenugreek has an esteemed place in Indian cuisine, but here it has been too liberally applied. I recommend JARDIN DE SOLEIL to all and only those who work in Indian groceries which sell spices in bulk, doled out using large aluminum scoops in the open air. (I swapped my bottle away.)
