Top Notes 
Aldehydes
Bergamot
Clary sage
Green notes
Lemon
Heart Notes 
Carnation
Galbanum
Geranium
Jasmine
Rose
Base Notes 
Ambergris
Cedarwood
Musk
Russian leather
Sandalwood
Gentilhomme
120 Reviews
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Gentilhomme
3
it was at Fujiyama...
...during cherry blossom season :-)
So began a rather kitschy hit from the 60s, and with Gilvan, one easily gets kitschy associations of a perfect Japanese world, clean and neat, clear yet subtle.
After testing Eroica, Royal Eroica, Temujin, and Valcan from Kanebo and finding them extraordinarily interesting, I was still missing Gilvan from the series of men's fragrances by Kanebo. I searched for it for a long time, or rather, had others search for it... and eventually, luck was on my side when a friend found this fragrance in a pharmacy in Kobe, Japan, many years ago.
The packaging is very elegant in gold with a subtle red stripe and labeled with black Latin letters on one side and Japanese characters on the other, containing a discreet cuboid bottle with a gold-colored cap and label in the same color scheme as the packaging. Enough about appearances! :-)
The scent is very harmonious, elegant but reserved. I do not see it as purely a men's fragrance; it certainly has a "feminine" side, which I attribute to the subtly dominant aldehyde note and the jasmine-carnation-rose heart. The fragrance ends powdery-elegant with cedar and sandalwood, musk, amber, and a light leather accord, which makes it feel more masculine again. (Nevertheless, the scent evokes memories for me, initially of Je Reviens by Worth, later of Calèche by Hermès)
Still occasionally available in Japan, Gilvan has, to my knowledge, never really made it to Europe, which is a shame :-(
So began a rather kitschy hit from the 60s, and with Gilvan, one easily gets kitschy associations of a perfect Japanese world, clean and neat, clear yet subtle.
After testing Eroica, Royal Eroica, Temujin, and Valcan from Kanebo and finding them extraordinarily interesting, I was still missing Gilvan from the series of men's fragrances by Kanebo. I searched for it for a long time, or rather, had others search for it... and eventually, luck was on my side when a friend found this fragrance in a pharmacy in Kobe, Japan, many years ago.
The packaging is very elegant in gold with a subtle red stripe and labeled with black Latin letters on one side and Japanese characters on the other, containing a discreet cuboid bottle with a gold-colored cap and label in the same color scheme as the packaging. Enough about appearances! :-)
The scent is very harmonious, elegant but reserved. I do not see it as purely a men's fragrance; it certainly has a "feminine" side, which I attribute to the subtly dominant aldehyde note and the jasmine-carnation-rose heart. The fragrance ends powdery-elegant with cedar and sandalwood, musk, amber, and a light leather accord, which makes it feel more masculine again. (Nevertheless, the scent evokes memories for me, initially of Je Reviens by Worth, later of Calèche by Hermès)
Still occasionally available in Japan, Gilvan has, to my knowledge, never really made it to Europe, which is a shame :-(
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