Log in

Choc de Cardin by Pierre Cardin
Bottle Design:
Serge Mansau
We may earn a commission when you buy from links on our site, including the eBay Partner Network and Amazon.

Choc de Cardin 1981

8.1 / 10 61 Ratings
A popular perfume by Pierre Cardin for women, released in 1981. The scent is chypreartig-spicy. The production was apparently discontinued.
Pronunciation Compare
Similar fragrances
We may earn a commission when you buy from links on our site, including the eBay Partner Network and Amazon.

Main accords

Chypre
Spicy
Green
Floral
Citrus

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes Top Notes
AldehydesAldehydes Green notesGreen notes LemonLemon BasilBasil BergamotBergamot PeachPeach
Heart Notes Heart Notes
HoneyHoney JasmineJasmine Lily of the valleyLily of the valley Orris rootOrris root RoseRose
Base Notes Base Notes
OakmossOakmoss PatchouliPatchouli CivetCivet MuskMusk SandalwoodSandalwood AmberAmber

Perfumer

Ratings
Scent
8.161 Ratings
Longevity
7.652 Ratings
Sillage
7.155 Ratings
Bottle
7.154 Ratings
Value for money
9.415 Ratings
Submitted by Kittycat · last update on 07/29/2025.
Source-backed & verified

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to
Empreinte (1971) (Eau de Toilette) by Courrèges
Empreinte (1971) Eau de Toilette
Givenchy III (2007) by Givenchy
Givenchy III (2007)
Iceberg (Parfum de Toilette) by Iceberg
Iceberg Parfum de Toilette
Empreinte (2012) by Courrèges
Empreinte (2012)
Corfu by Memo Paris
Corfu
Jasper Conran Woman by Jasper Conran
Jasper Conran Woman

Reviews

8 in-depth fragrance descriptions
Krmarich

229 Reviews
Krmarich
Krmarich
3  
Warm weather requirement
The world had changed quite a bit since Choc de Cardin came on the market. One of the biggest differences I have noticed was the steady loss of the icons whose names are on these products. Pierre Cardin, the French equivalent to Halston has left the stage. Oh, the perfumes he left behind...I somehow overlooked them after the very busy 1980s had began. I decided to revisit Choc from 1981. This was a year that a glut of fragrance from both sides of the Atlantic flooded the market.

I had no idea what Choc was like until this summer. The best time for this misunderstood masterwork. Right out of the box you get coriander, oakmoss, lime (gin and tonic) accords. This is the most oakmoss forward offering I have ever came across. Its bitter, sharp and not that green deep forest that seeing other writer below sends them into "shock". I personally love its stinging, sharp and clean character. Choc could be the posterchild for the reason oakmoss would later be banned. I suffer from pollen allergies and frankly find oakmoss soothing for my watery eyes.

There is some vetiver and verbena to accompany this sheer cooling cocktail that did not translate well in the US market. It was unnoticed on my radar. I was only 17 at the time but familiar with Cardin a few years earlier with clouds of it fogging up our local roller rink! In those days men were not supposed to cross the line and wear anything marketed for the opposite sex. Pierre Cardin was a gender bender at a time when this was not common. This is so fresh, clean and cooling that there was no boundaries.

Just because it is light doesn't make it weak! All of the notes are represented on the tree listed. You cannot detect them until the next day faintly on your skin. I get the original Cardin echoing distinctly and carefully. The heat really defines this beauty. Its perfectly composed. This is a treasure to have in your collection.
0 Comments
Aura

89 Reviews
Translated · Show originalShow translation
Aura
Aura
Top Review 21  
Dear 12-year-old Aura...
...I want to thank you for starting to love perfume at such an early age. It's true, Mom and Grandma were also responsible for that; they thought it was quite cute how much you loved to dab on perfume and play "Miss" - and they always made sure you had a supply (you could never have afforded it with your pocket money).

I have good news for you: We now have perfume as a proper adult hobby, and we already have 72 really great bottles! And we bought almost all of them ourselves. There’s now a game called the Internet, which works somewhat like a Game Boy; you have to press a few buttons, and then you win - but not points, rather perfumes! It's a lot of fun! But I'm glad you couldn't play it back then...

Do you remember Choc de Cardin? Of course you do, because it was one of your first perfumes and always remained a big mystery to you. I can't even remember how we got it; I think someone just gifted it to you without you knowing or wishing for it. If someone had asked you what you wanted, you would have surely shouted "vanilla," "coconut," and "sweet."
But Choc de Cardin was so completely different: citrusy and spicy, a bit like a rugged men's fragrance, it also somehow smelled like vacation - I think that’s because you took it with you on your trip to Morocco. You actually kind of liked it, but couldn’t understand why. Maybe because you always felt so grown-up and chic when you wore it - but it was still a bit embarrassing for you since it wasn’t sweet.
You were totally fascinated by the bottle, those oval and round shapes - and you always looked at the wonderful box with pink, black, and purple (your favorite colors) for a long time and played UFO with it. When the bottle was empty, you kept the box for a while, but then that was gone too. You didn’t mourn it but dove into sweet Joops like Nuit d’Eté and All about Eve - but you never forgot Choc de Cardin.

Shall I let you in on a secret? We have it again now, almost 25 years later! And it smells just like it did back then! You can really tell which decade it comes from. Today, fragrances don’t smell as strong anymore - you would be disappointed, but believe me, it’s okay. And it’s funny because it says here that lemon and the masculine mossy notes aren’t even listed. I couldn’t believe it and googled it (that’s what they call “searching” now)

Top notes: Aldehydes, green notes, peach, basil, bergamot, lemon
Heart notes: Honey, iris root, jasmine, lily of the valley, rose
Base notes: Sandalwood, amber, patchouli, musk, civet, oakmoss

See, we were right after all! Lemon, wood, moss - that’s how we know it! And the fact that it still somehow remains feminine in overall impression is due to the rest that’s in there. I can still recognize rose, jasmine, and lily of the valley with a lot of goodwill, but not the rest; our nose can’t do more yet, but I’m working on it, I promise.

So, I might have finally solved your riddle of why you liked it: Choc de Cardin just fits perfectly with the adult Aura. Maybe you felt that back then!? And I’m not embarrassed by it at all anymore, even though it’s a bit “out.” Because you know why it fits so well with the adult Aura? Because it reminds me of you.
6 Comments
Medusa00

846 Reviews
Translated · Show originalShow translation
Medusa00
Medusa00
Top Review 18  
Choc, a shock?
Not at all, because the word Choc has nothing to do with the German word Schock, but one could be shocked if he/she is not used to such calibers. Here I can only say again: If it’s too strong, you’re too weak or too young or both, and you just can’t handle Chypres anyway. I have also been pondering what the term "Choc" could mean. I even consulted my tattered dictionary (English/German/English) and couldn’t find a match, except that Choc in English is short for chocolate, but the scent has about as much in common with chocolate as an Eskimo does with the inhabitants of Madagascar. Ah, I thought then, a play on words:
Chock= bursting full, yep that’s it
Choke= suffocating, can happen quickly with an overdose, especially for untrained noses or just skin-close fragrance lovers
Choice= exquisite, that fits too!
I bet my long underwear (fuzzy on the inside) that the above pyramid only gives a fraction of what is really in Choc. After a strong aldehyde start, the top note smells as if fruits have been forced into the bottle with a Bunsen burner. I really had the snakes on here. However, this opening bears a strong resemblance to the Komachypre: Soir de Lune by Sisley.
The ears and the snakes remained on during the heart note. Super cool, super dusty, super radiant. Iris and jasmine can’t achieve this alone! Goodness, what a perfume! Sillage estimated at 15 meters!
Now the base calms down a bit. But I bet there’s at least leather and incense involved here. Compared to this, Azurée by Lauder is a tame kitten. Wish list? But of course!
14 Comments
Minigolf

2568 Reviews
Translated · Show originalShow translation
Minigolf
Minigolf
Top Review 21  
Summer Mossy Feel-Good Chypre
Finally, I ordered "Choc de Cardin" at a good price and received it shortly after. IMMEDIATELY TESTED!!! Wonderful! Summer cool, green, mossy, spicy, and woody. My chypre collection seems to be bursting at the seams, but whenever I see a fragrance on sale, I first check its chypre quality on "Parfumo," and then the "must-have" instinct takes over. Just like with "Choc." I waited too long in the store, and the next day it was gone. So, I opened the "price comparison" on this site, and lo and behold..... 50 ml for just under 30 euros!!! It must be a newer batch, but it smells wonderful. Just like in the fragrance description. And now to the scent: A wonderfully cool summer morning before a hot day. I cycle through the forest to work. Actually still tired (my gardening job isn't that easy), I enjoy the moist scent of the dew-soaked grass. The tree trunks, "harvested" and lying at the edge of the path, waiting to be picked up, exude a robust and woody pine scent. And then there's the moss, growing here and there, breathing out a damp green freshness. And there are also the flowers along the grassy path: wild carnations and mallows, bellflowers and soapwort, purple vetch, chicory, and blue flax. Subtle floral scents mix with the moss, the grass, and the wood. Later, I will apply "Choc," later when it gets hot. Enjoying the cool moment of the scent. Just like now, here in the early morning in the delightful coolness. It rained last night. Damp, the sun is still low, and the forest smells. No "shock," as the name of the perfume suggests, but a balm. Pure summer joys and forest delight with spice.
Updated on 07/15/2021
3 Comments
Gutriechfee

101 Reviews
Translated · Show originalShow translation
Gutriechfee
Gutriechfee
Top Review 14  
Old Treasure Rediscovered
I have owned Choc since the family phase, back then I was made aware of it by an acquaintance and acquired it. Recently, while tidying up, I found a brand new package of 50 ml Choc, and today I am wearing it again.
Wonderful scent. A light chypre with a dreamy expression. I am immediately enchanted. Considering that my bottle is over 15 years old, it is possible that it has changed in intensity and expression due to the long time.
My Choc is warm, deep, green, chypre, and intense in expression, without being overpowering. It lasts about 8 hours on me, so it has decent longevity. The sillage is rather low. The expression is finely and sensitively present.
It makes me nostalgically think of the past; scents are important components of our memory system. I feel a bit melancholic with Choc. But I know I have always had this love for beautiful fragrances; I have a nose for it, that is one of my talents, which is why I am here with all of you in the community......
Enough of bathing in nostalgia. Choc is a great scent, and I will wear it more often now. Does anyone know if it is still available today? When I purchased it, it was being sold off on bargain tables for small amounts of DM, like so many wonderful fragrances still are today. I have rediscovered an old treasure.
3 Comments
More reviews

Statements

10 short views on the fragrance
7 months ago
2
Veeeery good unisex chypre. For that price buy couple of bottles.
0 Comments
26
15
Sparkling citrus freshness bursts onto a dark green chypre wall, overgrown with bitter pollen and spicy moss coolness!
Translated · Show originalShow translation
15 Comments
23
6
Still available in France, slightly reformulated, still bitter, extremely brittle, cool, intense. In this uncompromising way oui, un choc.
Translated · Show originalShow translation
6 Comments
21
14
The vintage version is great. Initially sharp and spicy, the scent becomes softer and then earthy creamy with a hint of animalic in the base.
Translated · Show originalShow translation
14 Comments
21
4
Chypre classic with strong spicy, citrus, and herbal notes. The bottle and packaging are real eye-catchers.
Translated · Show originalShow translation
4 Comments
14
3
CHYPRE! Cool meadows, warm summer fields, nature-inspired groves and gardens in a bottle. If "shock," then the most positive one that can happen! TOP!!!
Translated · Show originalShow translation
3 Comments
6 years ago
12
After 10 min. of nose-wrinkling, I suddenly stick to my wrist. After the aldehyde shock, it becomes soft and somehow cozy. I won't part with it.
Translated · Show originalShow translation
0 Comments
7
1
First a hairspray note, then bitter-citrusy and herbal, very cool, and it transforms into a skin-close mossy scent with a hint of animalic. For adults!
Translated · Show originalShow translation
1 Comment
7
Not as good and mysterious as Paradoxe, but definitely the second P.C. masterpiece.
Linear.
Abundant flora.
No smoke.
Still quite good.
Translated · Show originalShow translation
0 Comments
6
2
A really great old-school chypre bomb for strong women.
Translated · Show originalShow translation
2 Comments
More statements

Charts

This is how the community classifies the fragrance.
Pie Chart Radar Chart

Images

8 fragrance photos of the community
More images

Popular by Pierre Cardin

Pour Monsieur / Man's Cologne (Eau de Toilette) by Pierre Cardin Paradoxe (Eau de Parfum) by Pierre Cardin Rose Cardin by Pierre Cardin Bleu Marine pour Lui (Eau de Toilette) by Pierre Cardin Pour Monsieur (Eau de Cologne) by Pierre Cardin Pour Femme by Pierre Cardin Cardin / Cardin de Pierre Cardin (Eau de Toilette) by Pierre Cardin Revelation (Eau de Toilette) by Pierre Cardin Pour Homme (Eau de Toilette) by Pierre Cardin Enigme (Eau de Toilette) by Pierre Cardin Cardin / Cardin de Pierre Cardin (Parfum) by Pierre Cardin Pierre Cardin Collection - Cèdre Ambré (Eau de Toilette) by Pierre Cardin Emotion for Men (Eau de Toilette) by Pierre Cardin Emotion by Pierre Cardin Ophélie by Pierre Cardin Tristan by Pierre Cardin Pour Femme L'Intense by Pierre Cardin Bleu Marine pour Elle by Pierre Cardin Pierre Cardin Collection - Cuir Intense (Eau de Toilette) by Pierre Cardin Centaure Cuir Blanc by Pierre Cardin