Spiritueuse Double Vanille Guerlain 2007

SDV was my first Guerlain fragrance that I tested, aside from the horrifically smelling LIDGE. From the very first sniff, I knew this could be something for me. It contains vanilla, a splash of rum, and plenty of emotion-triggering substances that evoke a winter flashback for me. It starts off vanilla and ends the same way, with no development, no story, just pure vanilla from start to finish for a good 12 hours. I don't need to give a 26th comment on the fragrance itself, but I want to share what it has done to me.

I think since my father has always liked vanilla in fragrances, I inherited this preference from him, quite unlike my brother, who clearly sees a feminine note in it. I've never really cared; as long as I like the scent, that's what matters. I just didn't realize that subconsciously his statement could lead me to write and think so controversially about one of my absolute favorite fragrance notes. Until now, I had considered vanilla to be anything but feminine and had never really cared about gender-related fragrance components, which actually don't exist at all. Still, I had to ponder my brother's comment repeatedly. Well, whatever. First test with "SDV" and "Tonka Imperiale." Clear favorite, SDV! Vanilla, beautiful, and enveloping. Sweet, gourmand? I don't care, it was the middle of winter, and I just jumped on this warming vanilla. Several individual tests and comparisons followed; my nose was already quite dazzled and trained on sweet notes. Flashbacks to family Christmas days, baking cookies and eating gingerbread, drinking warm tea, lighting incense cones, and the softly falling snowflakes in lantern light. Flashbacks that are meant to remind me of my favorite season, and that in a golden-yellow bottle?! Time and again, I was on the verge of pulling out my wallet, showing my card, and transferring the €180 that is demanded for this. Time and again, a reflex held me back. Then the memory of my brother's comment came to mind again...

There are no gender-specific fragrances. Anyone can wear anything. There are floral scents that work better on men and also strong scents that come off better on women. Since then, I've been torn about vanilla fragrances, all because of a casual remark from my brother. Will I wear the fragrance often? Do I want to support the sweet-gourmand style of recent years with their Le Male and 1 Million wearers with a much more qualitative sweetness? What will my surroundings think of me if I, as a man, lean towards the softer and more feminine vanilla fragrances that are generally considered more suitable for the average person? These and a thousand other questions torment me when I think of SDV, Bois d'Armenie, Angelique Noire, and all other gourmands that almost everyone likes to smell but not everyone has the conviction to wear or endure. The fact is, with such vanilla fragrances, my heart opens as a vanilla lover. However, the fact is also: There is no place and no time when I could wear this fragrance as a man. It gives me a feeling of warmth, reminds me of my favorite moments, yet it hardly makes me appear confident. Rather, I emphasize the feminine side that all men should have but no one really wants to show. So will I buy it? I still don't know. There is no occasion when I could wear it outside my home. It would never see the light of day; it would definitely be just for me. A fragrance component that gives me a headache. Why am I writing this about this vanilla fragrance when there are so many other beautiful vanilla perfumes? Clearly, because SDV carries, in my eyes, the most beautifully realized vanilla. Clear, natural, pure.

A confusing comment; I don't understand it or myself... It gets 100%, no doubt. But I feel like I've lost something before I could even possess it.