Yria Yves Rocher 2001

I had high (perhaps too high?) expectations for this scent. Even as a young thing, when I discovered the elegant bottle in a Yves Rocher catalog of my mother's, I thought to myself: "I must have it!" And in 2013, many years later, I remembered it again and treated myself to a bottle.

At first, I was quite taken with it - as always, when I just spray it on. Powdery, herbal, yet still subtle. Something soft but at the same time warming for cold days. Mossy wood burning in the fireplace. A cabin in Ireland. And then, sad but true, a not-so-nice association. I can hardly bring myself to write it, but after a few minutes, Yria smells like cat urine. Pungent (as already noted by Ginger) and musty. This doesn't last, though; afterwards, the scent becomes milder and warmer, primarily smelling of amber.

Nevertheless, this brief interlude makes the scent unbearable, at least for me. It's a shame because the bottle is beautiful, and the initial impressions were quite positive. I was willing to like it, but I can't overlook that.