Zibeline Weil 1927

Zibeline has been reformulated many times since it first appeared. I don't know when the incarnation I received as a gift from Symphorosa76 was created. It is a very dark liquid in a bottle with a glass stopper. The most recent version apparently dates back to 2010, when the three perfumes Rêve, Secret and Zibeline were reworked and combined into a collection called "Les Merveilles de Weil" to celebrate the brand's 100th anniversary. However, this new version already appears to be a completely different perfume in which, according to the manufacturer, only "the basic structure" has been retained, whatever that may mean.

My Zibeline begins strongly animalic, but this soon subsides, after which musk and civet are pleasantly present in the background. I don't smell any pronounced citrus in the top note, just a brief hint of it - perhaps my sample is so old that the top note is no longer quite there. Herbs are also hardly noticeable on my skin, but on my clothes they are, where it smells distinctly herbal. (Tarragon may be, but I don't find coriander.) I also smell a lot of things that are not listed in the pyramid on Parfumo, for example something fruity at the beginning (is that due to the aldehydes?), after that I would have guessed orange blossom rather than jasmine, and there are also a few spices, but without a typical floriental spiciness. The floral and balsamic elements are in the foreground. Tonka, ylang and sandalwood create a meltingly soft base. I think it also smells of opoponax (perhaps only because I recently had it pure under my nose) and there is also dry wood. Before the scent disappears, I detect a slightly medicinal, light note. Everything is densely interwoven, nothing is sharply contoured, but is blurred and softly drawn in the manner of very old fragrances, and here without much powder. Perfectly classic, French perfumery.

As a color, Zibeline would be black-brown for me, just like sable fur. It's a soft, indescribably fragrant perfume that I can't get enough of. It smells wonderful on clothes and feels like a warm fur coat that envelops me. When I smell this fragrance, it gives me energy and peace at the same time.