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12/20/2023
Intersport
62 Reviews
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Intersport
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15
irresponsible restoration at its best!
"...the small woody chypre nucleus that Vacher had originally sneaked in gave me the opportunity of opposing this almost numbing floral heart to an elegant Parisian chypre chicness. The result could have been a bit uptight. It was then, almost by accident, that I added a marine accord, overdosing a floralozone-cetonal duo, that did the trick. The woody iris like qualities of cetonal, allowed it to replace the traditional role that methyl ionones play in elegant chypre floral structures. Its ambergris qualities also hinted at the opportunity of spotlighting more of the animalic character, so a healthy heap of indol and lactoscatone were added. Lastly, in order to maintain the lush, wet freshness on top, a rather bitter "gardenia leaf" note made its presence, with a touch of grapefruit peel tanginess. I'd call Le Galion Jasmin a bit overreaching and hyper present, "irresponsible" restoration at its BEST. For its fans, it's like catnip to cats!"."
- Rodrigo Flores-Roux, cited from: Le Galion Jasmin (Rodrigo Flores-Roux) 2020+ Behind the Bottle with Rodrigo Flores-Roux, ÇaFleureBon, 10 March 2021. https://tinyurl.com/4w2aerc8
This admittedly long and partly technical quote from an even longer statement by Rodrigo Flores-Roux, based on his very personal, quasi-teen-age relationship/encounter with Le Galion's original jasmine (1937) is what ultimately made me very curious about the fragrance - and here it speaks of a facet that is no longer so emphasized by the house, but which clearly speaks to the peculiarities of jasmine.
The fragrance could quickly be dismissed as a slightly nostalgic white flower, a jasmine that is based on a historical jasmine, by Paul Vacher, and on top of that by Le Galion, a brand that likes to indulge in the glitz and glory of past decades. And yes, in the end, jasmine, especially on fabric the next day, seems wonderfully antiquated, familiar, lived-in. I, too, can't help but think of sweaters or scarves from aunts decades ago that had a floral-chypre-like aura of the great signature scents of decades past, which were not yet called that back then, where a continuous winter or summer scent, which then also settled in the wardrobe, was perhaps more common than with the mono-signature-less pack (like me) of today... enough wallowing, because jasmine is more than just a flawless but nostalgic construction: the special thing, I fully agree with Flores-Roux, is a salty, maritime factor which, together with the grandiose blend of two jasmine notes AND narcissus, which I perceive as clearly as the eponymous jasmine, has something modern, even coolly meticulous about it, which takes away any air of stuffiness from the fragrance in the first few hours.
At the time of publication, Le Galion called this detail "spray", an apt image, breathtakingly refreshing and effective. Despite this description, jasmine never drifts into the aquatic, of course, the fade is simply too fine for that, and this note itself is also too subtle, rather everything works towards the jasmine/narcissus team.
With Florabellio (2015), Diptyque already had a slightly maritime white floral in its range, altogether less detailed. However, Arquiste's Boutonnière N° 7 (2012), also by Flores-Roux, could serve as a much more closely related harbinger, which exudes a similar coolness and clarity to jasmine - albeit in more compact dimensions and with a more pronounced astringency. Both Jasmin and Boutonnière N° 7 work well as festive fragrances, serious fun, protocol, seating arrangements, in short an antidote to all kinds of gourmand art. At first glance, they seem so austere that they could easily be dismissed as old-fashioned, but there are so many details at work that make it clear, someone has gone to a lot of trouble not only to design a decent retro fragrance or to create a historically correct restaurant scent, but actually to sneak in a little something new - as in this case 'spray', irresponsible, as the perfumer says. But then you should be in the mood, jasmine is not a fragrance for the gym - even if it smells quite discreetly humanizing in sections, jasmine is also nothing at a sundowner on the beach or on an alpine climbing tour - and I thought so far that I like my jasmine rather green / scrubby, so jasmine was one of the most surprising discoveries in 2023.
- Rodrigo Flores-Roux, cited from: Le Galion Jasmin (Rodrigo Flores-Roux) 2020+ Behind the Bottle with Rodrigo Flores-Roux, ÇaFleureBon, 10 March 2021. https://tinyurl.com/4w2aerc8
This admittedly long and partly technical quote from an even longer statement by Rodrigo Flores-Roux, based on his very personal, quasi-teen-age relationship/encounter with Le Galion's original jasmine (1937) is what ultimately made me very curious about the fragrance - and here it speaks of a facet that is no longer so emphasized by the house, but which clearly speaks to the peculiarities of jasmine.
The fragrance could quickly be dismissed as a slightly nostalgic white flower, a jasmine that is based on a historical jasmine, by Paul Vacher, and on top of that by Le Galion, a brand that likes to indulge in the glitz and glory of past decades. And yes, in the end, jasmine, especially on fabric the next day, seems wonderfully antiquated, familiar, lived-in. I, too, can't help but think of sweaters or scarves from aunts decades ago that had a floral-chypre-like aura of the great signature scents of decades past, which were not yet called that back then, where a continuous winter or summer scent, which then also settled in the wardrobe, was perhaps more common than with the mono-signature-less pack (like me) of today... enough wallowing, because jasmine is more than just a flawless but nostalgic construction: the special thing, I fully agree with Flores-Roux, is a salty, maritime factor which, together with the grandiose blend of two jasmine notes AND narcissus, which I perceive as clearly as the eponymous jasmine, has something modern, even coolly meticulous about it, which takes away any air of stuffiness from the fragrance in the first few hours.
At the time of publication, Le Galion called this detail "spray", an apt image, breathtakingly refreshing and effective. Despite this description, jasmine never drifts into the aquatic, of course, the fade is simply too fine for that, and this note itself is also too subtle, rather everything works towards the jasmine/narcissus team.
With Florabellio (2015), Diptyque already had a slightly maritime white floral in its range, altogether less detailed. However, Arquiste's Boutonnière N° 7 (2012), also by Flores-Roux, could serve as a much more closely related harbinger, which exudes a similar coolness and clarity to jasmine - albeit in more compact dimensions and with a more pronounced astringency. Both Jasmin and Boutonnière N° 7 work well as festive fragrances, serious fun, protocol, seating arrangements, in short an antidote to all kinds of gourmand art. At first glance, they seem so austere that they could easily be dismissed as old-fashioned, but there are so many details at work that make it clear, someone has gone to a lot of trouble not only to design a decent retro fragrance or to create a historically correct restaurant scent, but actually to sneak in a little something new - as in this case 'spray', irresponsible, as the perfumer says. But then you should be in the mood, jasmine is not a fragrance for the gym - even if it smells quite discreetly humanizing in sections, jasmine is also nothing at a sundowner on the beach or on an alpine climbing tour - and I thought so far that I like my jasmine rather green / scrubby, so jasmine was one of the most surprising discoveries in 2023.
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