Shalimar L'Essence Guerlain 2025

I'm not a fan of regular Shalimar. This (thankfully) lacks the animalic notes of the original and feels much more modern. It is very sweet, especially in the opening, with floral notes and spiciness unfurling midway through. It reminds me of SDV and Cuir beluga, although I like those more... but they are also twice the price. Bottle, as always, is beautiful. Not sure if this is permanent or limited edition.

For this Shalimar, Delphine Jelk was deeply inspired, and she knew the responsibility of creating a version for Shalimar's centennial in the permanent line. I can say she honored her place at Guerlain. L'essence features a vanilla blend; I detect mainly Vanille Planifolia Extract, but also a touch of Spiritueuse Double Vanille and Cuir Beluga. The texture reminds me a lot of Cuir Béluga with its suede aspect, but L'essence features a light, delicate white suede with white musk, which also reminds me of Iris Pallida Extract, which has that light white suede tone. The iris is very evident in L'essence and brings a powdery aspect in a modern and elegant way, as in Iris Pallida Extract. As someone who loves Guerlain and vanilla, I can attest that this Shalimar is beautiful, chic, refined, smooth, and very well crafted. It's Shalimar, but a Shalimar for today!

I've never tested Shalimar or its flankers (yeah, I know, shame on me) so I was getting into this with a fresh, clean slate and no expectations. I got my hands on an official sample when I bought something on Guerlain's official website and I was pretty hyped to try out a famed, classic Guerlain scent.

I was somehow expecting something more? Don't get me wrong, the scent features a beautiful Guerlinade, but on my skin it's somehow subdued. I almost have to crush my nose against my skin to even get a whiff of it. The beginning is a mix of citrusy bergamot, sweet rose and powdery iris. As it settles down, I start getting that refined vanilla I've smelled in other Guerlain fragrances. It's a bit dusty, powdery even, but it has that balanced sweetness that's quite enticing. I don't get any leathery facet like many people have, but the vanilla is warm and comforting, almost ambery in the drydown. It also starts getting a smoky facet to it that's quite enjoyable.

Overall, I think it's very lovely, but I'm surprised by the high praise it's getting (8.9/10 at the time of this review) since I think I've smelled this drydown already in other Guerlain fragrances (Art et la Matière? Extraits?). The price for this one is undoubtedly more palatable than the more expensive vanilla featured fragrances from Guerlain, so this could be a reason why it's a nice replacement to the more expensive ones. I enjoyed smelling it, but unfortunately it's a like, not a love which is why it won't be going into my collection.

I never considered wearing the original Shalimar EDP or EDT. I found it a very specific scent which was vintage, mature and heavily powdery. I am, however, very impressed with the L'art & La Matiere line. I was looking forward to buying Spiritueuse Double Vanille after finishing a decant of it.

My curiosity was peaked after reading the reviews describing L'essence as having the Shalimar DNA in the background and powder turned down. There were lots of descriptions about the gorgeous vanilla. So I considered, maybe this could be a substitute for SDV? After all, the price was roughly 100 Euro for 90ml - much better than SDV!

This was a semi-blind buy. I had smelled L'Essence and Shalimar EDP side by side in the store. I don't remember if I sprayed them on paper or just smelled the bottle. What I do remember was one of them was pleasant and one of them was a "Oh hell no". Based on the reviews, I knew it was L'essence that was the pleasant one. The more people complained about it not being Shalimar, the more convinced I was that I would like it!

It arrived in the middle of the cold winter. The first spray was full of doubt. It was so dusty. It was like vintage clothes that had been left in a suitcase for 20 years. I found the opening so powdery and was starting to regret buying it. As it dried down, it became less offensive and had a really special character. I had sprayed myself and my sweater. The next day, the scent was still very strong on my sweater and it was gorgeous in the cold of winter. It was warming, it was motherly and elegant. I kept giving it another shot. You know what? After letting it mature in the bottle a couple of months, the vanilla is stronger and it doesn't feel as harsh and dusty in the opening. It's really beautiful. My curiosity for the other Shalimar flankers has been awakened.

Unfortunately, it is a totally different scent than SDV, so I did indeed end up with both! HA.

I’m not a fan of the Shalimar scents. I was interested and excited to try this based on the glowing reviews, and due to it being the anniversary edition. To me it’s pretty mediocre. Sure it’s nice (or just ok really) but it’s absolutely nothing special. There’s nothing unique about this. I’m not a fan of the iris in this, and it comes through as a main note along with the vanilla on my skin. It’s a light skin scent, so I guess it would be ideal for summer. It is good value for the price point if you like it, but it’s a pass for me.