Balahé (1983)
by Léonard

Tonights great discovery! Amouage copied 80% of "Balahe" when making "The Library Collection Opus III" !! "Opus III" is an almost exact (but sweeter/more" rounded") copy of "Balahe" edt (by LEONARD), which is discontinued. But "Balahe" can still be found for a good price on the internet !! AND best of all = you can get "Balahe" for a *MUCH* better price. And the black Balahe-bottle, with a silk red string is such a beautiful piece of art itself!! Oh, good I saved me some money by already owning this scent in Balahe! :)

3rd May, 2011.

At the initial blast of greens, anise & bergamot, I was VERY impressed. Unfortunately, this exhilaration lasted for about 15 seconds. Next came pineapple & plums, quickly followed by jasmine, rose & vanilla. Soon, the whole thing turned into sweet, fruity, powder.....Bubblegum! I am so disappointed.

8th October, 2010.

Oddly, with its gentle plum note and its powdery dry down, it reminds me very much of Chant d'Aromes (a chypre!)! I have had the pleasure of comparing the two side by side, and Balahe is, in fact, like the Oriental sister-scent of Chant d'Aromes.

It's a super complex scent, but another one, sadly, I would have to advise non-vintage appreciators to steer clear of. The opening is slightly challenging, and bitter, especially. But its dry down is warm, and deep.. and very comforting.

27th February, 2010.

i first bought balahe in the mid 80's.not realising it was a "female" frag. must admit,the bottle was what initially attracted me.the top notes can be slightly off-putting,rather medicinal.but the dry down is so intoxicating...very sexy !! the notes of mirabelle plum are very predominant, a favourite of mine. such a shame it is so hard to find these days,even though it is still in production.i managed to buy 100ml vapo on ebay recently for only £7.00.

13rd March, 2009.

Balahé by Léonard: My girlfriend wore this in the '80s. What I remember most about it was the fascinating bottle – a heavy black bottle. To be honest, my memory of the scent is a bit weak: I remembered a very fruity, somewhat exotic Oriental with a dark, typical '80s drydown. It was very… errr… abundant… okay, …heavy… It certainly made itself known to the people of the neighborhood. Now as I look at the pyramid, I can see why it made an impression on me: pineapple, plum, anise, aldehydes, rose, jasmine, tuberose, orchid, orange blossom, sandalwood, vanilla, vetiver, musk, civet, opoponax, to name a few. But what an excellent bottle! Thumbs up, but just for the bottle and the memory.

16th December, 2008.

I can't believe they still make this! Balahe was one of my first 80s statement perfumes (of course, at the time, I didn't classify it that way and thought it was simply "yummy" and sexy. Can't imagine what my reaction to it would be now*).

It's a sweet, fruity, boozy scent with a dominating base of vanilla and balmy notes. Not that far from some of the modern gourmand launches, in fact - but the volume is turned right up.

*Edit after a nostalgia-purchase: It's still very pleasant; definitely has an 80s perfume-vibe and may have been tweaked many times since the original, but it's great!

15th July, 2008. (Last Edited: 17th June, 2009.)