Carosello '75 Atelier N°7 Erika Gualtieri

Who hasn't seen this scene from The Matrix? Neo is sitting with the Oracle in the kitchen. Brownies in the oven, almost ready. And the Oracle is smoking a cigarette. The apartment looks a bit like it did in the eighties or early nineties. A bit like Carosello 75, that's how I imagine the smell in this apartment. In fact, it's a bit like what I remember from my own childhood. I smell gingerbread rather than brownies, there are spices, possibly cloves, cardamom, maybe coriander, but they are also still in the oven. I'm holding a glass of punch in my hand. These typical Christmas spices are in there. But the cigarette is also present. Freshly lit, no cold, unpleasant smoke. My grandma didn't bake, but she smoked, even if only secretly. I always enjoyed spending time in her kitchen as a child.

As with Mane, Gualtieri has once again used a typical "parlor accord" here. The fragrance has something homely and cozy about it. However, I smell less animalic here, but more spices, sweetness and this slightly burnt note is quite present.

I dosed the fragrance homeopathically, as I am familiar with the concentrated power of Ms. Gualtieri's fragrances. In this dose, the fragrance is actually very nice, even though I definitely don't need cigarette smoke, especially in my home. Nevertheless, a hint of Carosello gives me a feeling of coziness, of calm, yes, of contemplation, and that's exactly the kind of mood the Advent season is supposed to bring, which is why I find it so appropriate at this time of year. It's a perfume to smell, not to wear, in my opinion. Too special. Nevertheless, it puts a smile on my face and, for a while, makes me feel like that little girl again, beaming in front of the little artificial Christmas tree that my grandma used to put up every year in her attic apartment, which is now mine. I just have to close my eyes. Everything looks just like it used to.

Thanks Schoeibksr for the testing opportunity. And thank you, Carosello.