Cabotine Grès 1990 Eau de Toilette

Bottle Design Thierry Lecoule

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7.2 / 10222 Ratings

Cabotine (Eau de Toilette) is a perfume by Grès for women and was released in 1990. The scent is floral-green. The longevity is above-average. It is being marketed by Lalique Group / Art & Fragrance. Pronunciation

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Perfumer

Jean-Claude Delville

Fragrance Notes

Top Notes	Cassia Green notes Coriander Orange blossom Peach Plum Blackcurrant Tagetes
Heart Notes	Freesia Carnation Heliotrope Hyacinth Ginger Iris Jasmine Rose Tuberose Violet Ylang-ylang
Base Notes	Amber Musk Sandalwood Blackcurrant Tonka bean Vanilla Vetiver Cedar Civet

Ratings

Scent

7.2222 Ratings

Longevity

8.0162 Ratings

Sillage

7.6158 Ratings

Bottle

6.8161 Ratings

Value for money

8.726 Ratings

Submitted by DonVanVliet, last update on 29.04.2022.

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Reviews

09/05/2021

9.5
Scent 10
Longevity 10
Sillage 2
Bottle

Bayadere

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Bayadere

Top Review 16

Wild at heart

When Cabotine came out in 1990, a year after the fall of communism, the influences of the wild, punky end-70s and the pop culture of the 80s were already fading, but there was still that rock-provocative vibe in the zeitgeist and a lot of subculture spirit. Along with Hollywood blockbusters, there were wild, surreal films by David Lynch and later Terry Gilliam et al, grunge and alternative rock were announcing themselves, and techno culture was in the wings. The Beastie Boys returned to their punk roots after a decade in hip-hop. The thirst for life, for freedom and for intellectual exchange was overflowing for young, adventurous people like me. Everything on the move, everything previously valid questioned. A good opportunity to experiment with all kinds of things (men, music and other things I don't want to mention explicitly here).
I'm just wondering if Cabotine, with its troubled signature, was an expression of that zeitgeist, or if it (just) reflected my, own, chaotic life? Thirty years later, I know that the wild sides that each of us carries within us need to be acted out from time to time (in moderation, of course!). This attitude, despite many intervening years of life, has not changed for me:-)
And I still love this intense, fresh, green-floral scent with ginger and light sweetness, although I have to admit, it also has something scratchy about it. I find Cabotine quite idiosyncratic, but not at all stale. Sure, today the fragrance trend is different. But if you look around on the street today or on the pages of some fashion influencer, you can see a lot of things from that time again: the wide, cropped jeans, the tank tops, the Chucks and Doc Martens and the oversized parkas, and so on. Removed from the context in which they were once created, many things from that time still seem surprisingly fresh and youthful today. Cabotine has withstood the test of time very well in my opinion. It's youthfully idiosyncratic and suitable for anyone with a wildly beating heart inside.

8 Replies

06/11/2020

8
Scent 7
Longevity 7
Sillage 8
Bottle

Elysium
590 Reviews

Elysium

Helpful Review 4

The Deeper the Love, the Deeper the Hate

Too bad you can't see my face and my surprised expression when I discovered that the author of this gem is the same as many fragrances that are part of my collection. For example, Dunhill Icon Elite, Banana Republic M, and the legendary Wings Beverly Hills men. Cabotine de Grès is the youngest and most contemporary version of Cabochard. It is built around a white ginger lily flower not mentioned here, which has a tropical, fruity, white flavor with hints of ginger. Cabotine comes in two concentrations, like EDT and EDP, which share the same vibration, but the latter is a little sweeter but not greedy, and closer to Tendre Poison - or better, Poison likens this since it was released later. As it turns out, Cabotine is composed of a complex olfactory pyramid, with many fruits, flowers, and woods. It is my third bottle of Cabotine, and strangely it came after Gold and Rose. I wouldn't say I liked the first time I smelt it, I wrinkled my nose and set it aside. Maybe the tester was dated, and the slightly stale fragrance seemed to be an opulent, heavy, and cumbersome old aunt's scent. Not long ago, however, I got to see some reviews on Youtube and wanted to give it a second chance. My opinion has changed for the better, the green, fresh and sensual tones were released immediately, and as soon as I got home, I ordered it online for about 10 euros, a real bargain!

The perfume unfolding concerns the fruity and spicy accord, the abundance of black plums and juicy peaches, the sparkling coriander leaves, and the wild blackberries. The floral accord is intensified by the cassia and tagetes' presence, the former also known as golden shower, the latter a sort of marigold with a pungent sweet-herbaceous odor reminiscent of green apple. The mixture is lightened by a plethora of aldehydes, which enhances the greenish facet of top notes, and donates redolence of carrot and celery, very far from the aldehydes used in Chanel N ° 5, to make the idea. The dark green cap likens an afro-head of flowers, and the neon green juicy perfectly mirrors the character of this perfume. I don't find Cabotine particularly all too sweet or fruity. Instead, I think this is the best and most beautiful greenish opening I have ever smelt. It's unabashedly loud, although it eventually settles into the moderate territory.

As the flowers continue to bloom, I get a certain soapiness after a few minutes, followed by a mild, fruity sweetness somewhere along the line. It evolves into a scent very similar to classic Dove soap if my memory recalls well. Soapy at first, then it mellows and becomes less sharp. The heart explodes with plenty of blossoms, sweet flowers accompanied by earthiness and greenness. Above all, the intoxicating tuberose dominates the stage. Still, it does not shadow the other essences but gracefully melts with them. Watery freesia, violet, and blue hyacinth keep the heart cold and wet. The ylang-ylang adds a touch of sweetness, the aldehydic and heliotropic iris brings powderiness. Synthetic night-blooming jasmine Arabian potpourri proudly sustains the bouquet. Though, there is a titillating aspect coming from the white butterfly ginger lily blossom, the backbone of Cabotine since the first edition, with its rich honeysuckle-like fragrance. Ginger lily isn't a lily, but it is in the ginger family. It was most likely given this name for the robust and lily-like aroma its white flowers emit, particularly during the early evening. The scent is reminiscent of tuberose and gardenia and displays a fresh, sweet, tropical floral bouquet with a lovely ginger-like, fruity undertone. The floral sweetness is vibrant and deep with good tenacity, and pulses in the Cabotine's heart.

This floral symphony lies on a dry down blending musky and green over a sweet ambery base, rich of white musk and civet, which give a fresh animal vibe, soapy and clean. Dry, creamy vanilla and slightly animalistic musky co-starring tandem with subtle, dry sandalwood and slightly lemony vetiver support through the finish, while blackcurrant appears again in its leafy aspect.

Cabotine is a bright, green, fresh, gingery floral. It is like a garden full of fragrant blossoms and green leaves, which doesn't punch into the face like a bouquet of various flowers, everything but arrogant. The flowers show themselves one after another, along the path of the fragrance evolution while still in harmony. The sillage is quite good, but it doesn't smell heavy, more like flowers brought by the wind, floating in the air. The longevity is enormous, which is rare for an EDT. Delighting in every moment, I see Cabotine more appropriate for the warm seasons, chilly Spring days, and Summer nights out.
At last, I tried on a women's fragrance for a change. Besides, fragrance hath no gender. But in terms of how we perceive scents and their association with gender, Cabotine de Grès is feminine. The bottle design alone, more so its green floral stopper, clearly suggests that this one is for the ladies. But who cares? It may be characteristically feminine, but I guess the right guy can rock this with no problem.

This review is based upon a 100 ml (3.4 FL oz) bottle I own since June 2020.

-Elysium

12/06/2018

8
Scent 8
Longevity 7
Sillage 9
Bottle 5
Pricing

Jazzy76
320 Reviews

Jazzy76

Sweet and sour

Cabotine is to me one of the most controversial and enigmatic fragrances ever.
Do you know that old jazz song saying : " Sometimes I love you, sometimes I hate you"? Well, these are the right words to describe my relation with this scent.
First of all, I must confess that I wore it because it was my mother's perfume but in the late Nineties , when I was about 20, I 've stolend many times this fragrance from my mother's perfumes shelf . Clearly, once I loved it.
But tastes change and in recent times I've tested and re-tested this scent , but I'm not so sure as once that i like its bouquet. Of course, I appreciate its rich bouquet containing many different notes and in particular I love the sweet heart made of Jasmine, vibrant tuberose and sensual and warm ylang. The base too is very pleasant with its amber, tonka bean and civet touches. However, there are two ingredients which hurt my nose because not perfectly measured, pungent and too "green": the ginger at the opening and the vetyver at the base.
I usually don't like so much these two notes when they are too heavy and Cabotine is a "hymn to green", a sweet and sour perfume summarising in it the yin and the yang, the warm and more feminine notes and the more vibrant and quite masculine touches. Anyway, a great classic at a quite affordable price and with a good sillage and a satisfactory longevity.
It could be a 4season scent for its warmer heart and its quite fizzy opening and it's perdfect mainly bay day, at the office too, only if sprayed with parsimony.
Maybe one day I'll decide to buy anyway this scent , expecially if I'll find it on sale at very nice price. It remains a cult of the early Nineties perfumery and a must have in a perfumes wardrobe, first of all for its very pretty bottle with the bouquet-shaped cap.

10/13/2018

8
Scent 9
Longevity 9
Sillage 9
Bottle

Minigolf

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Minigolf

Top Review 17

"Blumerales" super container with wide radiation

Some people will think that the "minigolf" likes flowery scents after all...?!
Well, on the one hand these may have the right, but only limited....
I like them if they don't exceed a certain "sweetness level", if they have a lot of "green stuff" and a great variety.
And all that goes for "Cabotine".
The "opening" of the fragrance bouquet alone shows how multifaceted this fragrance is.
Fat green meets dark and light fruits, striking spices and a tart fruity citrus note, before a huge container of sweet and unsweet, powdery and "spicy" flowers spreads over the whole area.
As colorful as a flower show, for example.
All colours from cream white, sky blue and rosè to deep violet and dark red.
Like a whirling color wheel at high speed.
But there is no "Tohuwabohu" here, (at least only a little bit), and all the flowers are not visible at all at the first, second or third "Riecher". But the mixing ratio of the fragrances does it.
The sweet ones stay nicely in the background, while the bitter and spicy ones party in front.
They make it really groovy and rock. without any fatigue.
Practically until late hour.
Until the "credits follow"...somewhat calmer, but no less colourful and powerful, long-range and incomparable.
"Blumerales" is supplemented by woody-animal. Some musk, a little pussy, together with some amber playfully scramble with vetyver, woods and patchouli.
What is most striking about "Cabotine" in the base is that the "theme" from the beginning is taken up again or continued with other "partners". The fruity spicy-bitter black currant runs like a deep purple thread through the fragrance.
In the "middle" hardly noticeable.
But towards the "end" it is clearly reviving and striking again.
There are only a few fragrances that "do" this, to which perfumers have assigned a "cycle" with reversed signs, such as "Cabotine" has.
A refined, wide-ranging, exuberant masterpiece....

4 Replies

10/05/2018

7.5
Scent 10
Longevity 7
Sillage 5
Bottle

Hasiputz80

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Hasiputz80

Very helpful Review 10

90 years of pure feeling

I came to the fragrance through an exchange and didn't really know what to expect. I was just curious how it smells, because everybody calls it the fragrance twin of the Tendre Poison ( but I don't know it either.)
Full of curiosity and what can I say. It catapults me right back into the '90s. My limbic system must have noticed and stored the smell quite often. I have a vague recollection that a former professor must have smelled like this.
For me definitely no modern fragrance that corresponds to the current zeitgeist. Sweet, flowery, heavy, and very mature, he takes me by surprise.
Spicy sweet, but no pralines, cotton candy sweetness but rather like honey mixed with coriander. Tuberose and orange buete are also very dominant, which for me are mostly too heavy, overblown and madamic.
It's nice, but it just doesn't suit me at all.
All those who love retro fragrances will surely enjoy it.

2 Replies

08/11/2018

8
Scent 8
Longevity 8
Sillage 7
Bottle

Rosaviola

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Rosaviola

Top Review 23

Fully ripe flowers

I bought Cabotine de Gres as EdT a few years ago. He's supposed to smell like Tendre Poison from Dior, so I had to take him.

Cabotine de Gres is a very dense green-flowery flower fragrance and a child of its time. A "flower poultice". You gotta like that. Very young girls will have a hard time with the fragrance, because it doesn't correspond to the current fragrance trends at all. But I am very old-fashioned and so he is something for me...

Since the fragrance is very dense and compact, it is not easy to disassemble it.
Cabotine starts with a slightly fruity peach note with a green undertone that is maintained throughout the fragrance and is paired with a floral sweetness. This is followed by many, many ripe, almost overripe flowers such as freesia, heliotrope, hyacinth and jasmine. If I guessed, I'd say there are lilies of the valley and lilies inside. But they're not according to the scent pyramid.
All in all there is already a little bit of a slightly sweet-ashy impression of flowers that bloom in full splendour and once again give away everything in animal attractants to be pollinated shortly before withering. Like a late motherhood at the last moment, it comes to my mind. This scent is a hot flower "Milf"!
The base also has it in itself with its animal notes like civet, amber and musk.
Warm sandalwood is also included.
Sillage and durability are very good with me.
I also have a square vintage EdP bottle at home with 30 ml. Unfortunately I haven't managed to open the bottle (splash) yet, but I'll be able to do that again.

Cabotine is often considered a twin fragrance by Tendre Poison, but I find Tendre Poison lighter and "fresher", while Cabotine is darker. But a little bit it reminds me of another Dior, namely of Diorissimo EdT as vintage from the eighties.

The bottle with its green flower head goes very well with the fragrance, but I like the EdP's square bottle with its three-part cap even better.
For me Cabotine is a fragrance for experienced women who know what they want.

6 Replies

02/08/2018

7
Scent 8
Longevity 6
Sillage 6
Bottle

StellaDiverF
213 Reviews

StellaDiverF

Helpful Review 4

A floral path to a spring garden

Cabotine opens like tuberoses grown from earth. Sweet flowers accompanied by earthiness and greenness. Then it evolves into a scent very similar to Dove soap if my memory recalls well. Soapy at first, then it mellows and becomes less sharp. After about 3 hours, jasmine becomes prominent among all the floral notes but not overpowering. It then continues the ode to flowers for another 7 hours.

Cabotine is like a garden. It doesn't punch into face like a bouquet of various flowers. The flowers shows themsevles one after another along the path of the evolution of the fragrance while still in harmony. I can't pick any green or woody notes distinctively, but I can certainly feel their efforts balancing the whole fragrance. The sillage is quite good, but it doesn't smell heavy, more like flowers brought by the wind, floating in the air. The longevity is between 10 and 12 hours.

A wonderful fragrance for spring!

Originally written in 2013

01/28/2015

10
Scent 10
Longevity 10
Sillage

ScentFan
331 Reviews

ScentFan

Helpful Review 5

Big & Green

If someone had said, "Try a perfume that has green notes in the top, hyacinth in the middle, and vetiver in the base," I would have swiftly replied, "No thanks!"

Unspecified green notes don't automatically sound promising to me and vetiver I don't always love. As for Hyacinth, it often makes me cringe, but not here. Just when I think it's going to become ugly, something else overwhelms with loveliness. Cabotine is a fragrance truly less than the sum of its many parts. They blend to create a seductive greenness--a woman wearing an oriental perfume shopping for fruits & vegetables. Actually, it does contain proper oriental notes, as well as almost everything else at the market. Cabotine dries down to an unusual, but appealing steady state. I like the result. It's also a strong perfume. No need to spray on very much.

Ahem. If they'd added, Guerlain's Nahema has them as well as Paco Rabanne's Metal, a perfume you wore for years, I would have quietly said, "Sure, I'll give it a try." [Advanced search first, cringe second].

12/20/2012

Beachgirl2
19 Reviews

Beachgirl2

Very helpful Review 7

Wanted to like it!

Oh my! All those lovely notes. So sorry, I can't get comfortable with this one. The top notes are like a harsh soapy green smell. Like green beans freshly snapped, or frozen green beans just thawed, not cooked. Or lettuce that got too old and started to wilt and has a sharp green mushy lettuce smell.
So, I waited for the top note to die down. There are some wonderful soft floral notes hiding just beneath this all. But the top notes just won't go away. Yes, they are lighter, and somewhat faded, but it's still there. I'll say this much for it. It's strong, and won't wash off very well. I washed with soap and I can still smell it. I mean it's not horrible or anything, it's just not the type of "green" smell I was hoping for. I was thinking perhaps something a little grassy? Not vegetal. Also, it's a little old fashioned. Not that that is necessarily bad, but I can't get used to it. I wanted to like it, I really did.

1 Reply

07/07/2012

8
Scent 10
Longevity 10
Sillage 5
Bottle

LadyRogue
166 Reviews

LadyRogue

Helpful Review 12

Dior's Tendre Poison: But Better!

The House of Gres gave us Cabochard and the Cabotine range is -supposed- to be a younger, lighter version of this classic, a "daughter". Well, not to me:

The 'Green' Cabotine I own is a very fresh, classy yet playful scent in its own right without any comparisons I could draw to Cabochard.
It's flowery - instead of smokey. Cheery - instead of solemn. Medium light - instead of heavy.
Its florals have a greenish tone, not grass but fresh. The dominant notes to my nose are clearly the tuberose and hyacinth. (I could swear it has Lily of the Valley - although it's not listed. I assume I smell the ginger-lily, wonderful!)
From the base-notes I can only detect the tonka bean. In fact, it doesn't smell as complicated as the ingredients above would suggest. It reminds me a bit of a much more lively "Soir De Paris". The staying-power is wonderful, this one lasts and lasts. I think one can wear this whenever and wherever one likes because it has a very pleasant vintage smell that is uncomplicated.
However, you might want to spray with a light hand, it's easily over applied and might give headaches. If used 'wisely' it's another winner from Gres.
This was my first encounter with a member of the Gres Cabotine range, but I'm looking forward to sniffing more!

::update:: I got a chance to smell Tendre Poison and can confirm: It's VERY similar to Cabotine! Amazingly so.

Show all reviews 12