Opium Yves Saint Laurent (1977) Parfum

Version from 1977

Opium (1977) (Parfum) by Yves Saint Laurent

Bottle Design: Pierre Dinand

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Opium (1977) (Parfum) (Yves Saint Laurent)

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8.0 / 10 386 Ratings

Opium (1977) (Parfum) is a popular perfume by Yves Saint Laurent for women and was released in 1977. The scent is oriental-spicy. Projection and longevity are above-average. It was last marketed by L'Oréal.

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Perfumers

Jean-Louis Sieuzac, Jean Amic

Fragrance Notes

Top Notes	Bergamot, Clove, Jasmine, Coriander, Laurel, Mandarin, Pepper, Plum, Citruses
Heart Notes	Orris root, Lily-of-the-valley, Carnation, Patchouli, Peach, Rose, Sandalwood, Cinnamon
Base Notes	Amber, Benzoin, Coconut, Musk, Myrrh, Opoponax, Sandalwood, Tolu balm, Vanilla, Vetiver, Frankincense, Cedar, Cistus

Ratings

Scent

8.0 (386 Ratings)

Longevity

9.1 (263 Ratings)

Sillage

8.9 (250 Ratings)

Bottle

7.5 (257 Ratings)

View Video of Opium (1977) (Parfum) (YouTube)

Submitted by DonVanVliet, last update on 20.01.2019

Interesting Facts

Perhaps Opium is the most popular perfume by YSL. Launched in 1977, the name was deliberately provocative: There was great public anti-drug protest and the perfume was initially banned in the United States, China and the United Arab Emirates. In the U.S., it was again for sale, after a study proved that there were no drugs in the mixture and that the use of it would not encourage drug use.
One year after the market debut, there was a launch party at Studio 54, with Andy Warhol among the guests. This party was said to be a sumptuous Bacchanal beyond decency. What ever really happened there - the rumours about it contributed to the legend around Opium. Opium set the benchmark for a renaissance of oriental (floriental particular) perfumes in fragrance fashion, in a time chypres and aldehyde patterns were favoured.

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Reviews

01/28/2016

7.5/10

10.0/10

9.0/10

Flore

Helpful Review 2

Great incense perfume...

Opium Yves St Laurent ;

A fragrance that carried my grandmother and my mother and myself and my daughter . For me this is a scent of Memories . If my mother kissed me as she went out. She was then nicely dressed and wrapped in a beautiful cloud of Opium . When I went to visit my grandmother and the whole house smelled of her signature scent . Just beautiful and so appropriate for her . Now I wear it myself especially in the cold winter months. My daughter always sniffed at me as I carried Opium. My daughter now also has Opium and she's totally in love !
The spiciness in this fragrance is wonderful and despite being a strong fragrance has it a fresh accent .
In short , a delicious smell of incense that impresses when you wear it .

01/25/2016

Sorceress

Helpful Review 5

Strangle The Weak and Enslave The Willing

Back in the day when I was working the fragrance counter at Macy's and hawking it, Opium was flying off the shelves. Everyone was wearing it. People talk of Giorgio and how it created a sensory overload but Opium was right up there in its distinct aroma and how women over-sprayed it. Now, the prices for a vintage bottle are ridiculous. Is it worth it?

Looking at its notes, yes, Opium is everything its cracked up to be. It embodies all its notes. It's an outrageous perfume. This can be a grand old dame, wrapped in soft velour, adorned with Mikimoto pearls, carrying a Judith Leiber clutch or a bar-fly with a hiked-up faux-leather Guess skirt, Sam Edelman booties and a crop top. Anyone and everyone has worn it and altho it is a classic that stands alone, it is so well-known it is no longer special. It's lost it's uniqueness.

It had its place back then in the late '70's and '80's when the powerhouse perfumes were all the rage. Rock 'n' roll was loud, clothes were big and so were the hairstyles and attitudes. It just fit the time period. You'd wear it and strut because you could. Wearing it today outside takes a certain attitude, a certain way of dressing, it's a completely different way to be.

I'm not saying Opium can't be appreciated today, it just can't be appreciated in the same way because this isn't the same time period. Some perfumes stay beautiful and always will be, but they just don't make it into the mainstream of the future decades.
Opium is a perfume that needs to sampled by all vintage lovers because it belongs in the perfume Hall of Fame. It's rich in feeling, opulent in spices and incense, animalistic in nature and makes you want to let go. It will strangle the weak enslave the willing. If you are a fan of patchouli, spices, incense, myrhh, cloves and too many others to list, go for it. You won't be sorry. But be forewarned, you're signing up for the den of inequity to other perfumes. You may never be the same.

2 Replies

04/27/2014

8.0/10

Mujo

Very helpful Review 5

Vintage Opium

Opium is one of the hardest scents to review. Because I love it so much, I seem to fall short in words to express my love. Nevertheless I will have a go. I have tried several reformulations, but my love is for the original version. The current formulation is so weak compared to the original and so completely different. I have 2 versions of the EdT: the 1st bottle is somewhere from the late 70's until the first years of the 80's and the 2nd bottle is from 1994. There is already a huge difference between those 2, but the '94 version is also very nice. My review will be for the original formulation though.

Just sprayed it's overwhelmingly strong. I only need a tiny bit. I can directly smell the incense combined with a somewhat soapy (makes me wonder if there is ambergris in the original composition) and spicy cloves. It takes a few minutes to settle into a delicious, warm, sweet, spicy, mysterious and oriental brew of the gods. And it last for more than 10 hours on my skin. After I finished my 30 ml bottle, I will probably not be able to find a new one. On the other side, seen the strength it will take quite a while. I will defintely cherish my treasure.

03/27/2014

10.0/10

ScentFan

Very helpful Review 8

An Eastern Oriental

Having avoided Opium all my life because it sounded just too gauche, I finally sniffed it the other day and was sunk. Opium is a quite fabulous oriental in the style of Panthère and other greats of the genre, except as its name implies, this one was truly born in the east. I'm sure if you added a wonderful incense perfume like Jovoy's Liturgie des Heures or Naomi Goodsir's Bois d'Ascèse, to any classic floral oriental, you'd get something close to this. Think Panthère with lots more frankincense, as well as myrrh and opoponax. The result is far more than I'd guessed, a hypnotic fragrance that could have perfumed emissaries traveling China's old silk road, something Marco Polo might have smelled at Kublai Khan's court, only to be disbelieved in Europe when he told of the marvels he'd found. Projection and longevity are great and I expect sillage is, too. When you tire of smelling like a potentate (Bal à Versailles) or growling like a panther, wear Opium and smell like China's only female dynastic ruler, Empress Wu Zetian.

3 Replies

02/08/2014

10.0/10

Rachel

Very helpful Review 5

Opulence personified!

Oh boy where do I begin with this?! First off the vintage version is far superior to the modern version. Truly decadent scent wrapped in oriental warmth and mystery. If you love strong oriental/ spicy scents you will love this! Why did they have to reformulate this master piece? If I spray just one spray I can still smell it the day after on my coat it's that strong. Smells of good times long gone by

1 Replies

01/28/2014

10.0/10

9.0/10

Athenaida

Very helpful Review 10

Dreaming of Vintages

Sometime ago I tried some Opium from a big 4 oz bottle and it was
a m a z i n g !!

I saw an endless paradise.
I felt real warm carnation waves...
My hair bathed in moonlight coconut.
My heart beat sandalwood hard.

and...the next day...paradise still being there with some amber on my chest...
I tried Opium in a perfume store.
Oh my why.....
It was strong, bitter and so...chemical......

I forgot to tell you my Opium is about 24 years old.
why they killed this jewel...Oh why Oh why do you destroy such a gems like this one...
The answer my friend is blowing in the wind..!

1 Replies

10/19/2013

10.0/10

GothicHeart

Very helpful Review 11

Words could never be enough...

-It is a scent of contradictions, like the ancient incense of vespers and the fleeting musk of an one night stand.

-In small doses, Opium is not incompatible with dining, clubbing or romance. Used excessively it will ward off flies, humans and evil spirits.

-A spectacular incense of monstrous proportions.

-The smell of Marco Polo's clothes as well as come back at Venice from his journey along the silk route.

-I particularly love to apply a single, small squirt before bed. The smell is just heavenly. And all night I dream of the hanging gardens of Babylon...

-I know why this perfume is called Opium. It is totally addictive...

-Good lord, this is chemical warfare of the highest concentration!

-God, Opium... what are you doing to me?

-Is it possible not to be consumed by its beauty?

-This is a sin. It must be.And the name, God that name! The whole thing is criminal.

-The Opium is the most glamorous and dangerous girl ever appeared from Paris, seducing one feeble admirer after the other as she moves along.

-Holy mother of god, this is amazing!!!It is just to die for...

-OPIUM feels more like an impressionist painting about life and love on the ancient Silk Road. Truly you can't appreciate what an oriental fragrance really is until you've smelled this masterpiece.

-Oh god, I literally felt like this perfume had a death grip on my throat.

-Even after 32 years on the market, this scent still screams "OBEY ME."

-I like it because it doesn't try to be likeable. It's just there.

-I do believe that this perfume wears you...

-While I do not wear it regularly, when I do, I intoxicate.Seduction in a bottle...

-This is what I imagine the spice from Dune smells like...

-It caused such a stirring in my loins that I'd track and hunt a woman wearing this down forever. BRILLIANT!

-Treat yourself to the parfum. There is nothing in the world like it.

-Opium is intoxicating and heady stuff. Something no wicked, decadent girl should be without.

-It is my default fragrance. The one I want to be remembered for. The one I want to be buried in.

-When it comes down to Opium, I'd have to say I'm a total sucker for it.

-Dear God!!!What on earth is this???How could you ever create such a temptation???

-Opium is timeless and magical, and it is still THE Oriental.

-Proof that there is a heaven.

-I admit it, I'm hooked. I always heard that opium was highly addictive...

-This stuff should be illegal...

-It doesn't offer any favors, you don't have to just like it, you have to love it and if it loves you back, it will be a best friend for ever ...

-It’s a bit of a creepy feeling, like meeting one of your old boyfriends, or someone’s walking over your grave...

-Opium is the most magnificent antidote to the waves of pubescent pop princess, foody/deodorant-style, mass-made scents that rule young fragrance buyers as the 20th century closed and the 21st century begins.

-I thought I bought a scent,I got Lilith in a bottle...

Do I need to say more?...

1 Replies

01/30/2012

10.0/10

7.5/10

10.0/10

Lola82

Helpful Review 4

Opium

Y.S.L Opium has many identities A glamorous spy
for the Japanese intelligence in ww2,
A faded movie diva or a world-renowned
Opera singer with some dirty little secret
that She is really a He and his British
diplomat lover hasn't got a clue.
Opium despite it's sheer beauty hides a lot of naughty secrets, we well discuss
this later.

The notes to my senses the bottom of the basenotes seem to be more dominate for me then the top and middle section the opening starts with spicy coriander with it's dryness shifts to an scent semi-sweet aroma of cloves and of black pepper dries to a scent of bitter bergamot and citruses.
delicate jasmine makes a nice entrance
in the middle balance IMHO the
jasmine are in the middle not the top
then the sweet dry intoxicating scent
of cinnamon and the spicy nuances of
carnation adds to the delectable sensibility.

The succulent notes of plum and peach
makes it's presence know and adds a primal sexuality to the already complex scent if there's a Lily of the valley
note in here i think there's no evidence of it or it's hiding because it hasn't got a chance against the heavy notes
it's the shyest of the opium family,
The drydown is the best part of the fragrance Coconut starts the drydown
with it's tropical sweetness then it becomes dark and woody with tolu balsam
dry sandalwood with it's fiery aspects
makes it assertive and the deepest most
finest Resinous woods of Frankincense
and myrrh Opoponox and benzoin.

an earthy drydown of Patchouli
Warm Amber civet for the animalistic qualities and patches of musk for a bit
of masculine undertones and a wisp of mysterious incense.

Opium conjures an image of an 1930's
Shanghai speakeasy with half circular doors Burgundy in color and inside are gold beaded curtains hanging nonchalant
from the celling the lighting is of dark red like your in a boudoir everyone is
half lidded from the smoke of opium
hallucination and laughing American Sailors leaning towards the table while
an attractive girl dances to an sad ballad of Billie Holliday while the
gangters mistresses and them do some illegal bribes.

Opium is not a Ingénue scent or a scent
for good girls this is an scent if you want to walk on the wild side.

01/19/2012

7.5/10

7.0/10

Missk

Very helpful Review 8

One of the best classic orientals - pre-reformulated that is...

Oh, how I love spicy orientals from back in the day!

Back then perfumers knew what they were doing. They knew how to create a sensual fragrance that would last decades. They understood the art of perfumery.

Opium is one of those breath-taking scents. A seductive blend of spices, smokey incense and floral notes inter-mixed with subtle fruits. A scent that requires an acquired taste for sure, but one that you can hardly push aside.

The woman that wears Opium is very stylish and as some might agree, exotic. There's an element to Opium that is rather dirty and shocking, like the scent of a heavy smoker or the scent that lingers in the air after a night of passion. While some will find Opium repulsive, others will love its blatantly sexual appeal.

For an EDT, Opium lasts and lasts, so I assume that both the pure parfum and EDP could possibly last on the skin for days, (that is if you didn't shower). I highly recommend.