Jardin du Poète Eau d'Italie 2011

I have to agree with Aromi, the grapefruit (and orange) is excellent in JARDIN DU POÈTE. So fresh citrus notes together with generously dosed spices and pepper makes me think of eating fish. So it is a rahter unusual take on gourmand for me.

Later on top notes disappear to give place to more sophisticated spices (pine kernels, forests, prayers in the heaven - I mean it is not a sensual fragrance at all, so poetry is present), calm ferns and cypresses are cumbling, it gives a really new shade of dark green.

And after it... I get freshly carved pencil. All right, that is really an equipment for writing, but... so unspiritual.

JARDIN DU POÈTE unfortunately is weak on my skin, but at least endurance is average. I found it unisex and refreshing. Please test it before buy, even if you sniff it in a shop, because it changes a lot.

In the poet's garden stands a fig tree. In spring, it bears no fruit yet, and every morning in spring, the poet goes out, approaches the tree, and rubs a green leaf between his fingers. And then the lines of thought and worry on his forehead smooth out a little.

His muse, shortly thereafter, smells of flowers, as befits a muse. They grow in the meadow in the green grass next to the basil. She kisses him on his still somewhat pale forehead in spring, and it now smooths out completely.

A cheerful hint of citrus hangs in the air.
A beautiful companion on the walk through the Jardin du Poète.

p.s.: What, not a single fig? Not even a leaf?! - Fragrance pyramids...!

I like Japanese gardens - the natural beauty combined with the seemingly purposeful arrangement has a calming effect, in my opinion. It may cost a lot of money, but I would consider it worthwhile both materially and in terms of the care it requires. I am generally a grounded person, but I do see a strong, powerful source there. Spirituality is too distant a concept for me to apply it. Nevertheless, the babbling of the streams, the shapes, whether in the pebbles or rock arrangements, as well as the occasional play of light or the scent of all the green elements are simply sensual - this patch of earth lives or radiates an atmospheric joy of life. Vegetative dynamism as well as calming charm.

In the world of fragrance, the garden variants from Hermès are well-known, with the version of the Nile being the most famous and, in my opinion, the best. Less known, however, is an Italian niche treasure that fully embodies the spirit of an expressively depicted Mediterranean green space. "Jardin du Poète" is truly Italian poetry, so fine in the natural beauty of regionally typical fruits and so spicy and woody, as one imagines in the Mediterranean region.

This is pure bella Italia, with all its facets. Citrus in every conceivable form - bitter, sour, fresh, and above all beautifully lifelike, as if one were strolling through plantations and harvesting the fruits, rubbing one's hand on the skin, splitting it in the middle, and collecting all these accompanying sensations on the skin.

Furthermore, the typical Italian cypress appears, giving the garden a wonderfully woody undertone. Basil adds a green, fresh herbal touch to this fragrance poem, but not exaggerated, beautifully subtle as a homogeneous part of this splendid Mediterranean blend that Eau d'Italie has conjured up here. This has been interpreted better or more charmingly than Hermès or their perfumer Jean-Claude Elléna did with "Un Jardin en Méditerranée."

This composition is truly pure advertising for the charisma of Italian gardens, a poetry of scents that invites one to visualize this green space. In terms of the attractiveness of this Mediterranean version, one even forgets for a moment their fondness for Japanese forms and sensuality, if one likes that or has such a preference. Be that as it may, in my case, this clearly speaks for the Garden of Poets from Eau d'Italie. A poem of a fragrance, even if it is not one of my absolute favorites that I would wear as a companion. It is more of a scent that one enjoys smelling from time to time. One should test beforehand whether it works as a perfume for them individually or if the scent itself is simply perceived as "very beautiful," as in my case.

A much better sample is hardly to be tested in spring, so many thanks to the donor. As a fan of the Hermès Jardin series and with a small poet hype slowly building on YouTube, I was extremely curious and filled with high expectations. Let's just say this: in the end, those expectations were just barely met, but there could have been so much more.

I was even briefly at 100%, I liked the scent so much, it really did me good and brightened my mood. When it comes to capturing a green, spring-like garden atmosphere, no other fragrance can compete with it. It is zesty, refreshing, fortunately not too green or full of figs, yet still grassy, herbal, floral, and somehow meaty-vegetable. As if you were standing in the middle of a Sicilian allotment garden full of tomatoes, lettuce, lemons, and all kinds of grasses. Mediterranean feeling deluxe - natural and so perfect for the current time. Folks, this scent could define your spring 2014, and it is affordable. Or just take it with you on your vacation and forever associate the beautiful memories with the garden of poets. You probably just need to reapply more often.

Bottle: bold but somehow very clunky and simple. High recognition value.
Sillage: about like the Hermès fragrances, even somewhat less.
Longevity: 4 hours in the garden of rhymes and dreams - disappointing!

Actually, I should have definitely rhymed with the perfume name - but that has become a bit too much for me lately, and the frustration over a botched higher rating was also not small. Nevertheless, it remains on the wish list because the scent itself is truly great open-air cinema.

I think that Bertrand Duchaufour, while composing this commissioned work, was still inspired by a vacation in Tuscany or Provence. In his garden impression, it smells herbaceous and Mediterranean, but without spreading the scent of a kitchen or pharmacy.

After reading the top notes, I expected one of those green waters with Barbershop appeal, or an interchangeable men's fragrance. So it was all the more pleasant to experience the fragrant surprise after application.

Except for a brief and subdued sour moment at the beginning, Jardin du Poète is something like a herbaceous green soliflore, and the scent impression of a summer garden has been skillfully realized here. All the fragrance notes create a pleasant and very natural unity. I have rarely smelled a perfume that smells so "organic" without being generic or off in any way, and it also seems to contain a decent amount of synthetics.

With just over 7 hours, I was also surprised by the longevity. Only in terms of intensity has it been kept subtle, as JdP remains quite close to the skin from the start.

I think I will mark this garden for next summer, as at the moment I have had enough of the fresher scents and am enjoying the heavy spice bombs for the cooler season.