Perfume Review: Guerlain No 68
Guerlain No 68 cologne is a new addition to the Guerlain collection and is named after the Champs Elysees store street number. It’s also said to be composed of 68 notes most of which I’ll list below. There’s been some slight confusion amongst perfume aficionados on the subject of whether the scent is a remake of the previous No 68 (created in 2002) or whether it’s a relaunch of Winter Delice. Rest assured, folks. It’s neither. It’s an entirely new composition stylishly enclosed in a 490 ml bottle. If you look closer at the picture, you can see all that writing below number 68. That’s a list of notes. I’m not listing all of them here but enough to get the idea: bergamot, green mandarin, lemon, clementine, orange peel, blood orange, sweet lime, grapefruit, basil, fennel, star anise, lavender, bay leaf, thyme, bigarade, blackcurrant, freesia, lily of the valley, cyclamen, cardamom, coriander, black pepper, pink berry, nutmeg, ginger, jasmine, frangipane, magnolia, orange blossom, peony, rose, carnation, ylang-ylang, lychee, gentian, petitgrain, fig, blackberry, immortelle, opoponax, pistachio, amber, benzoin, vanilla, cistus, heliotrope, iris, tonka beans, sage, musk, patchouli, agarwood, cedar, sandalwood, vetiver, vegetable musk, praline, myrrhe.
Now that I think of it, it’s probably the most politically correct perfume out there today – its mission to not leave anything out is accomplished perfectly. But I can just about imagine your totally understandable reaction – golly, what does this really smell like? Well, what can I say. I’ve conducted several skin tests since I got my sample yesterday, and every time my nose detects a new note or two from the ones listed. The scent is as versatile as its components. The best I could come up with would be something like this: it’s a citrus-herbal-floral-green-woody-oriental. Is that good enough? Probably, not. So let me try this. It’s a slightly powdery, soft woody floral on the herbal base with bitter undertones. My nose detects a distinct immortelle note very similar to the one in Cuir Beluga where’s it’s also combined with mandarine and heliotrope. The floral notes aren’t as apparent – I’m able to detect a few (ylang-ylang, carnation, magnolia) when I smell it up close only. The only herbal notes I find prominent are basil and bay leaf although prominent is a relative concept here – the notes are just so masterfully blended you can hardly tell them apart (yes, I tried to detect all 68 of them – kidding). No 68 has a decent staying power for a cologne, and it’s certainly not cologne-like in nature. It’s rather unusual but appealingly so, and it’s growing on me. The way it manages to blend all the fragrance families into one makes it truly outstanding.
Guerlain No 68 is available exclusively at the Guerlain boutique in Paris. Orders can be placed by calling this number: 33 145 62 52 57.
Image source: www.aufeminin.com
21 comments July 12th, 2006