Vanilia EDT by L'Artisan Parfumeur - review

VANILIA EDT BY L'ARTISAN PARFUMEUR

Launch: 1978 (RIP)

Perfumer: Jean François Laporte

Olfactive Family: oriental - floral

Olfactive notes: lavender, ylang ylang, spices, vanilla, amber, sandalwood

Description: SENSUAL, WARM, RICH, FLOWERY

Silage: medium

Fixation: good compared to other fragrances of the brand

Rating: ❃❃❃❃, Where:

❃❃❃❃❃ - Outstanding vanilla

❃❃❃❃ - great vanilla

❃❃❃ - good vanilla, but I have seen better ones

❃❃ - cheap vanilla

❃ smells like something you would even not eat

Not sold by the brand anymore due to the fact that Vanilia EDT was discontinued.

VANILLA ORCHID ILLUSTRATION

Some curiosities about vanilla: It is a native plant from Mexico, from the orchid family, originally cultivated by Pre columbian Mesoamericans (wiki.). And in 1590 Hernan Cortes introduced it to the Europeans. Vanilla is the second most expensive spice after saffron, due to the quantity of labor applied to grow and treat its beans (seed pods) and it takes approximately 10 months for the beans to be ready to be harvest. Five types of Vanilla are offered in the market: Bourbon, Madagascar, Mexican, Tahitian and West Indian. And Madagascar is responsible for half of the world production of vanilla.

VANILLA ORCHID PHOTO

Vanilia EDT by L'Artisan Parfumeur was quite a surprise to me. One can expect vanilla perfumes to smell like something edible and very sweet. But not this one! This one is dreamy. You might be wondering why would I bother to write about a perfume that was launched in 1978 and it is even discontinued...first of all, I don't have to agree with the company's decision to discontinue this marvelous fragrance and second, because they launched in 2009 a new vanilla perfume - Havana Vanille. So you might want to have the previous one as reference. Not to mention that Luca Turin gave it a 5 star rate - which is not impossible, but rather rare.

It starts a little bit salty and mineral (wet pavement) - but this effect lasts for seconds. Once you breath, it fades away and it gives place to a diffuse flower note. Orchid - sensual, hypnotic. I loved the idea that the brand chose to explore the fact that vanilla is indeed an orchid, and moved away from pastries and ice cream and therefore, moved away from gourmet inspirations. This is a vanilla that can be very appealing to men. This salty side of it makes this fragrance possibly unisex. It has the warming touch that all vanilla notes provide. The closest thing I could think of, that gives me this warm salty impression, is milk or blood.

I do smell the spices mentioned by others, such as cloves and anise. But today I smell a tobacco undertone, not noticed before. It is a perfume that is constantly moving. Sometimes is woodier, sometimes it is saltier and very earthy.

This is not a fragrance that brings you the cocooning urge. It does not make you comfy and secure, but it has a tender touch. Tenderness is a concept that can be related to it. Perhaps this is why I chose (unconsciously) to wear on mother's day.

Luca Turin finds it vulgar and he calls it a great vulgar. He also says it is related to summer, tanned faces and banana split... I have to disagree. I don't relate to summer at all. I would never ever wear a vanilla perfume in a hot weather. It would strangle me. I see where the vulgar identity is coming from, but again...I am not a fan of vulgarity, I tend to move away from it, so I also find it hard to relate to it. In fact, it does not smell fancy. I would settle for lack of fanciness.

The amber y touch is really great - also it is very L'Artisan.

Nobody ever mentioned but it has lavender notes. How do I know it - I could smell it from far away. I made my father a 100% pure lavender perfume and when he wears it, he leaves the in the room the same lavender spectrum I found in this perfume.

So, there is this famous quote "Never change a winning team"...maybe L'Artisan was unaware of it...

I would love to smell Vanilia on Jim Morrison and his leather pants!