Gingembre Roger & Gallet 2003

Sponge cake is a precious thing. It should be well-guarded. In GINGEMBRE it is not a vulnerable thing, ginger shepherds it strongly and bites everyone, who gets too near.
So GINGEMBRE is a spicy, citrus, fresh fragrance on a cake-bed for my nose, so I would rather eat than smell it.

It is a bit weak, does not intend to captivate people around you, it keeps the secret of the cookie for your skin.
It is totally unisex in my opinion. Maybe the name discourage men.

There must be something else in it besides "floral notes, fruity notes, ginger." Alongside the ginger, which here comes across neither pungent nor soapy, but rather delicate and fresh, there is something else, something truly wonderful. Because the scent is immediately, directly with the spraying, very warm and very amber-like, like a wonderfully warm-spicy fragrant skin. Very calm, somewhat elevated, distinguished, a "just don't panic attitude" à la "strength lies in calmness." This is a super exciting contrast to the otherwise very zesty, invigorating, stimulating ginger.

Research has revealed:

Top note: Ginger flower, Neroli, Bergamot
Heart note: Ginger, Ambrette
Base note: Benzoin balsam (Benzoin)

Ambrette, that must be it. It comes through immediately, is there right away, and makes this wonderful scent so full and round and multidimensional, giving it, despite all its freshness, a lot of depth and grounding.

Unfortunately, this perfume from the Roger & Gallet series is only an Eau Fraiche Parfumee, so the longevity is limited to a few hours. But at the rather small price, it is a great companion for the warmer season, which you can spray on more often to revive the wonderful scent.

For a year, I wanted to test Gingembre, but it was only a few days ago that I encountered it in person - finally found a pharmacy that had the entire range in stock and set up for testing, and then at a reduced price. You can easily imagine how my encounter ended - I left the pharmacy with two more fragrances, a lamenting wallet, and a jubilant nose.

Now to the scent, which is absolutely not boring; this Eau has something to offer. It starts with a bitter-fresh bergamot that is gradually overlaid by the ginger note. It is fresh ginger - I just cut open a ginger root for comparison - it smells slightly lemony, spicy, and sharp, just like Gingembre. Well done, I can only say! It has pep. The sharpness increases in the heart note, but it doesn’t scratch the nose because the scent simultaneously becomes softer and rounder, as if one or two flowers have come to life. Now Gingembre reminds me of my favorite summer drink: lemon juice with pureed ginger and elderflower syrup, all stretched with water and served over ice - I know no better refreshment. (Recipe available upon request via PM ;-) ) - I think I’ll take a short trip to the balcony, grab a long drink glass and a straw, put on my sun hat, sway a little in my hammock, and listen to Sunshine Reggae… After an hour of letting my soul dangle, the ginger has largely said goodbye, and what remains is a warm-spicy, subtly sweet accord on the skin, for which I hold the musk and benzoin (as indicated on Basenotes) responsible. With this soft feel-good scent all over my body, I would love to sail off to dreamland. The spicy scent on the skin lasts quite a long time, but unfortunately, you can only perceive it directly on the skin. Those who want to achieve more projection will need to reapply after 2 hours and should best reach for the 200ml family pack.

There are now legions of fresh waters, most of which are citrus bombs, many of them synthetic and harsh, some reminiscent of toilet cleaner or baking aroma, which definitely gives them an "ick" factor for me. The scents from Roger & Gallet stand out in their fine balance and naturalness. Until now, I only knew their fine soaps and am now completely taken with the discovery of these Eaux Fraîches Parfumées, which can easily overshadow some fragrances that are twice as expensive.

Sometimes, to be honest: most of the time, after a workday, I feel like diving into the depths of the sofa with 2 sprays of Eau de missions, along with Dr. Oe. (Pizza) and Inspector Columbo. For reasons of practicality, I obviously don’t do that, but instead dutifully pack my gym bag. I have no desire to go out for five cents, but now I have an ally: Gingembre!

Because this fragrance works for me like a flywheel. It serves only to refresh me and revive my senses, as this mood lifter has hardly any sillage. The longevity is also very short, even for an eau fraiche. But enough to give me the drive for everything I need to muster up the energy for, perfect for the trip to the gym.

In summer, I like to use my Arden tea scent or the Rochas, but I find both to be very "cold." In winter, I do want it to be fresh, but with a hint of warmth and sweetness. Now Gingembre comes into play, because that’s exactly how it is. Fresh, but not just that. Fresh and warm. The ginger doesn’t bring the expected sharpness, but does add a bit of warmth. Surely there are other components involved, but for that, I would have to press my nose against my skin after an hour to catch a whiff.

By the way, Gingembre smells absolutely natural. Nothing prickles, nothing disturbs, no artificial toilet freshness.. Although the fragrance is inexpensive, it doesn’t smell cheap.

If I want a fresh and long-lasting scent that others can also perceive on me, I turn to other freshies. But they are not marathon runners either, at least mine aren’t.

Gingembre only works for ultra-short distances (100 m). But for me, he is Usain Bolt!

Actually, I had already purchased the ginger scent from 4711 in early summer and only tested Gingembre at the pharmacy out of pure curiosity and without any real intention to buy.
I expected more or less the same scent 1:1, but Gingembre is definitely different. The ginger in 4711 merely serves to round out the lemon and is thus simply fresh.
In contrast, R&G has created a fragrance with a certain warmth and greater complexity.
The top note initially comes across with an almost aggressive freshness, which is likely due to the sharpness of the ginger.
The lemony aspect of the bergamot remains until the end of the heart note, while the fresh sharpness of the ginger is underpinned by the musk note of ambrette with a bit of warmth, giving the fragrance a bit more volume. The base note becomes slightly darker due to the musk but tends to retain its freshness thanks to the ginger, now feeling very close to the skin.
I find the scent stimulating and uplifting. Definitely not just for summer; it also brightens up those gloomy autumn days.