Guerlian - A love affair.

For many years I have had a strange relationship with one of France's most notable exports, Guerlain.

The accord which makes up the "Guerlainade"* seems to becoming more prominent, heightened, volumised, steroid-fueled in most of the houses signature fragrances, they are all starting to merge into one single entity several hours after application at least to my nez.

colour, pattern, texture its all blending into one......... ahhhhh!!!

Thats me just being snobbish and looking at the company and its output as a whole. If I were to take each fragrance as a stand alone piece of work I would be hard pushed to pick a flaw in any of them.(even those I find overwhelming for personal reasons).

Recently after reading The Silver Fox's extravaganza Liquoric and Tweed and as the weather has been reeealllly dull I have prematurely approached two old classics normally reserved for the Autumn, Vol de Nuit and Jicky. Jicky allowing me to trudge around the house during the day, swathed in an invisible green forcefield..... dizzying, moody, feeling sorry for myself, depressed looking out of the windows at the muted canvas one minute and then, frenzied Technicolor scenes as the sun breaks through the next. If I do find myself venturing out of an evening I will be doused in VdN it pleases me that I end up leaving patrons of the local cocktail bar bewildered as they step into my petrolic slipstream. Appalled even. Gasps! Fantastic...

Jicky with its sodden woodland "green-ness" and creamy (spookily arousing and sexy) civet note, heart pounding layers of tonka and orris with a slight bruising of dark almost "shiny" clean leathery facets gripping at your throat. Could wear it all day in this bleak Scottish countryside (especially when wearing waxed cotton). Encountering few folks and those whom I do are left walking away wondering who or what I was.... A blur of slate grey, black and plum. A slither of silver, the creek of fine leather with every fast paced step. Glimmer of gold as my labrador rushes past.

Vol de Nuit, hmmmm. Where to start? I love you, I love you not, I love you, I love you not.... I think I love you! Do you want me to love you??

Without becoming boring with a bombardment of notes and perfume jargon I will just say this one piece.... there is galbanum in you somewhere you high flying creature of the night! and Ive dated you type in the past with sickly amounts of galbanum and its always ended sour, I tend to do the dirty and cheat. But that dark bottle green hue you engulf my mind in and the ability you have whereby you excite every neuron in my body means I have to love you, when it suits me.

Unlike its dank woodland floor dwelling sister Jicky, I tend to wear Vol de Nuit almost exclusively at night and I always run the tank dry over the festive season. Here in scotland the weather plummets, the layers are added and the icy chill needs a complimentary fragrance not a contrasting one, something that says "its cold, my hands and my alabaster skin are cold but my heart is warm"

Comforting notes swell and finally explode under a finely tailored pea coat and a burnt orange Hermés cashmere scarf warms with its residual hints of Cuir de Russie, only faint whispers of petrolic green leather as gloves pass by your face, you walk for miles among the snow covered Edinburgh streets, the lights twinkle over head and the castle's illuminated radiance beats down on guests from lands both distant and near. Sensory bliss.

Both of these scents are connected in my mind to dark, miserable countryside scenes and lonely walks along wet streetlamp lit streets but I can easily see both being worn by an angst ridden twenty something from manchester in the late 70's smoking and drinking amongst the brutalist architecture and high rise housing ala Curtis/ Morrissey. How soon is now? Twenty four hours etc. etc.

My main point to this post is to highlight my 5 favorite Guerlain's when worn by men. (or I)
No. 1 - L'Heure Bleu (Extrait) -apply 30mins before leaving otherwise you run the risk of smelling like a 19th century french whore-
No. 2 - Vol de Nuit (Extrait) -Absinthe fueled warmth-
No. 3 - Jicky/Mouchoir de Monsieur -to me these smell very close but in different ways Mouchoir on hotter days...-
No. 4 - Nahema (EDP) -Dramatised chorus of roses, think chlorine tinged pools scattered with roses-
No. 5 - Apres L'ondee - The fresher younger sibling to L'heure bleu, not a dperessed but still slightly suicidal-


No. 6 - Bending my own rules here... but cant have a post solely on Guerlain and not include just one sentence highlighting the stunning, stark beauty of spiritueuse double vanille...... goosebumps at the mere thought. Sacred, intoxication of indulgent near drinkable vanilla. Tasty. Could be my burial scent....

*The "Guerlainade" is a highly secretive accord which many of todays most notable noses believe consists of the following ingredients blended with a masterful hand: 
Jasmine, Bulgarian Rose, Orange Blossom, Bergamot, Iris, Tonka bean and Vanilla with a possibility that there may be some vetiver in there for good measure.