Climat (1967)
by Lancôme

I used to like Climat; though I haven't smelled it for a number of years, I can remember exactly what the Parfum version smelled like; therfore my review is for the vintage version: a clean aldehydic white floral, which I tended to wear for work during the warmer months.

I wouldn't have said Climat was the most disctinctive of fragrances, but it formal and elegant (easily the most elegant Lancome fragrance). I think the Parfum has been discontinued, which is a pity.

29th March, 2010.

Climat is a classically constructed aldehyde and white flowers fragrance. But it is also a warm aldehyde that acts more like a quiet skin scent (a little is better than a lot), that is more intimate and less formal or obvious. A small dab of this just melts into the skin and has an unusual warmth - some sort of summery, light hay like accord. At first I thought this would be hard to wear because it didn't really work with the image of a classic French aldehydes - all black dresses, red lip and pearls. That was the mistake. This is a jeans and white shirt fragrance perfect for comfortable, friendly occasions, like small wine and cheese picnics in the country. I think it fits more in the Estee Lauder American natural-sporty aesthetic than the Lancome French formal aesthetic. This may not blow people away, but I don't think it intends to do that. It has a warmth and fragrance like skin has a warmth and fragrance. I recommend testing this unusual and well blended fragrance before buying because it is not like standard white flowers fragrances. This could also be unisex on the right man.

25th March, 2009.

When I recently tested the relaunched EDP as part of the Lancome La Collection series, I was taken with how much better it had smelled than when I had previously tested the regular edt years ago. The original was bitter, harsh and astringent, the current rich, layered, and wonderful. Yes, a strong aldehyde pervades the composition, but tempered by a rich grassy vetiver.

15th January, 2006.

To my nose, Climat is a fairly uneventful and unimpressive aldehyde. It seems to have been constructed without using much imagination. I smell it now and then on a lady at church; it’s okay on her, I suppose. I have a mini of Climat in my own fragrance collection; when I first applied the fragrance, it brought me back to when I was an adolescent and would receive for Christmas one of those fragrance collections from the Sears or JC Penney Christmas catalogs. Anyone else remember those from years back? Those catalogs would offer a collection of mini perfumes, and I don’t recall these collections being terribly expensive, either. They were fun, too. But anyway, Climat reminds me of a fairly nondescript aldehydic fragrance which was in one of those collections. This isn’t a terrible fragrance, but it’s not particularly enticing to me, either. There are better, less nose-grabbing aldhydes out there. Climat is missing something. It needs a little oomph, like when your food needs to be seasoned. . . . Pass the salt.

11th August, 2005.