Top Notes 
Bergamot
Hawthorn
Lilac
Meyer lemon
Orange blossom
Violet
Heart Notes 
Carnation
Heliotrope
Iris
Jasminum grandiflorum absolute
Lily of the valley
May rose
Mimosa
Violet leaf
Ylang-ylang
Base Notes 
Benzoin
Labdanum
Musk
Mysore sandalwood
Patchouli
Styrax
Tahitian vanilla absolute
Tonka bean
White ambergris
05/20/2025
ClaireV
731 Reviews
ClaireV
1
Comparisons to Apres L'Ondee set unfair expectations
Expectations are such weighty things, aren’t they? The minute Sultan Pasha mentioned that the inspiration for Violette Noyée (‘Drowned Violet’) was Guerlain’s classic Après L’Ondée (‘After the Downpour’), it was inevitable that that we would begin to stake out some pretty lofty goal posts in our heads. Expectations like these are nigh on impossible to satisfy. If the perfumer produces an exact copy of Après L’Ondée in attar form, then it is just a dupe. If it diverges too far from the original template, then people will scoff that it smells nothing like the original. When a behemoth like Après L’Ondée is involved, therefore, best not to mention it at all. That way, if people find it similar, they will point it out and the whole thing becomes a ‘happy accident’ by a talented perfumer whose work happens to come close to the standard set by a Guerlain classic.
Therefore, to judge Violette Noyée fairly, you really must put all thoughts of Après L’Ondée out of your head. They smell very little alike. But they are both beautiful in their own way. Après L’Ondée is sweet and aerated, with a heart of tender violets and heliotrope gently spiced with anise and clove. The iris in the Guerlain emphasizes the delicately mineral scent of earth after a rain shower. The entire affair is delicate and gauzy. Violette Noyee, on the other hand, has a bright, hesperidic opening that bristles with lemon and the brushed-metal greenness of violet leaf, which gives way to an earthy ‘forest’ floral. Peppy green florals such as hyacinth and lily of the valley play the main role here, rather than the melancholy purple sweetness of violet flowers. The impression is first and foremost of freshly cut grass and sunshine.
Heliotrope is strongly present in the latter stages, but compared to the Guerlain, it is neither fluffy nor gauzy, but heavily fudgy and pastry-like. The scent develops along the same spicy marzipan track as Après L’Ondée’s big sister, L’Heure Bleue, more than Après L’Ondée itself. This makes sense as the mukhallat is modeled after the rare Après L’Ondée pure parfum, which is a much heavier and denser affair than the eau de toilette (and indeed, much more like L’Heure Bleue). Being an oil-based perfume, Violette Noyée does not and cannot truly capture the silvery weightlessness of the original, nor does it even attempt to recreate its mineral petrichor effect. But Violette Noyée should be enjoyed as its own creature rather than as a point of comparison. Its bright citrus and violet leaf notes are especially beautiful, providing as they do a fantastic contrast with the damp verdancy of the florals.
The base throws all sense of restraint to the wind and mixes the cool ‘blue’ fudge-like texture of heliotrope, tonka, and amber with spicy, hot carnation, resins, vintage-style musks, and a filthy, saliva-ish ambergris. What a mind warp to travel from cool green florals and juicy lemons to L’Heure Bleue’s dessert trolley, to finally plant its feet firmly in the stinky mammalian effluviant of ambergris. Ethereal it ain’t. But judge Violette Noyée for what it is, please, rather than for what it purports to be.
Therefore, to judge Violette Noyée fairly, you really must put all thoughts of Après L’Ondée out of your head. They smell very little alike. But they are both beautiful in their own way. Après L’Ondée is sweet and aerated, with a heart of tender violets and heliotrope gently spiced with anise and clove. The iris in the Guerlain emphasizes the delicately mineral scent of earth after a rain shower. The entire affair is delicate and gauzy. Violette Noyee, on the other hand, has a bright, hesperidic opening that bristles with lemon and the brushed-metal greenness of violet leaf, which gives way to an earthy ‘forest’ floral. Peppy green florals such as hyacinth and lily of the valley play the main role here, rather than the melancholy purple sweetness of violet flowers. The impression is first and foremost of freshly cut grass and sunshine.
Heliotrope is strongly present in the latter stages, but compared to the Guerlain, it is neither fluffy nor gauzy, but heavily fudgy and pastry-like. The scent develops along the same spicy marzipan track as Après L’Ondée’s big sister, L’Heure Bleue, more than Après L’Ondée itself. This makes sense as the mukhallat is modeled after the rare Après L’Ondée pure parfum, which is a much heavier and denser affair than the eau de toilette (and indeed, much more like L’Heure Bleue). Being an oil-based perfume, Violette Noyée does not and cannot truly capture the silvery weightlessness of the original, nor does it even attempt to recreate its mineral petrichor effect. But Violette Noyée should be enjoyed as its own creature rather than as a point of comparison. Its bright citrus and violet leaf notes are especially beautiful, providing as they do a fantastic contrast with the damp verdancy of the florals.
The base throws all sense of restraint to the wind and mixes the cool ‘blue’ fudge-like texture of heliotrope, tonka, and amber with spicy, hot carnation, resins, vintage-style musks, and a filthy, saliva-ish ambergris. What a mind warp to travel from cool green florals and juicy lemons to L’Heure Bleue’s dessert trolley, to finally plant its feet firmly in the stinky mammalian effluviant of ambergris. Ethereal it ain’t. But judge Violette Noyée for what it is, please, rather than for what it purports to be.
