Reviews of Grand Amour (1996)
by Annick Goutal

I have recently figured this one out, after many many testings. For a long time I just wouldn't work for me and it would flatten out tremendously after the gorgeous honeysuckle floral opening. But now I understand it - to me it smells like raw dirt, fresh plants and garden flowers, cut green stems. There is a dry, powdery earthiness to it that I now enjoy as much as I enjoy being in my own garden. Whereas I do believe it is supposed to have a much more dramatic impact as the name implies, I read it as a very earthy, dry, floral. I may very well be missing any musks that are in the dry down as I am anosmic to most musks, and they may give it some extra romantic oomph. This is not a fragrance I enjoy more than the magnificant Chamade or the lovely and intimate Heure Exquise, etc, but I do like to wear it from time to time. The edp has much better richness in the floral accords than the thin edt, which may have something to do with the mixed reviews of this one. It really just makes me think of being outdoors, digging and planting in my favorite garden, and there can be romance in that for some. I highly recommend this fragrance be tested before purchasing.

I am too lazy to learn the notes so I will only state the feeling it evokes. It is a very grown-up fragrance. It makes me feel like a mature woman who is getting ready for a night out.

I love Grand Amour. I rarely wear it now because I'm always trying new things rather than staying with my tried and true. Sometimes I will wear it for nostalgia's sake. It is a rich, lush, feminine, floral fragrance. To me, it smells like easter lilies, but dries down to a velvety ambery-balsam finish as Helg's notes mention. Yes, it is a little decadent. The hyacinth or lily has that bit of decayed odor beneath the extreme high sweetness of the fully developed blossom. It is a fragrance in full bloom that is just about to turn, which is when it's at its best. For me, Grand Amour is a romantic, evocative fragrance. I used to get quite a few compliments when I wore it. It is quite potent and long lasting. For floral lovers only.

A sexy actress in her boudoir after her performance. Pensive , smiling hazily to herself as she lifts her hair off her forehead and gazes at her image in the mirror. Her most enthousiastic fan has sent her armfulls of liles , bunches of honeysucle and posies of hyacinth to fill the room and her lacy clothes with an initially fresh and sweet fragrance , with a penetrating aroma that becomes deeper and slightly decaying as time passes.
The whole concoction is intoxicating somehow , yet it makes her think of him with nostalgia. She thinks she's falling in love... It's a Grand Amour. It has to be.
That's my impression of this rich floral with hyacinth , lily , honeysuckle , rose , amber , vanilla , balsam musk and myrrhe. Mature and rather heavy in the EDT , to be used sparingly , and only by white flower lovers and such. Extra feminine , both in scent and presentation. A little decadent , not as airy as the majority of the Goutals , more in the company of Gardenia Passion and Passion. Try it. You may like it. It is intriguing.