Indiscret (1935)
by Lucien Lelong

A little beauty, a treasure, a darling. A self-possessed floral with a soft hint of spice. Opening with a sharp-to-soft welcome of jasmine and orange flower, opening up to a warm, but ultimately sheer, golden bath of neroli and ylang-ylang. A strongly held middle yields eventually to a pretty violetty, powdery base. Resolutely of its era, but giving force to the notion that 'what is old is now new'. I found this a satisfyingly 'vintage' scent, while also somehow surprisingly modern.

For years, I have only smelled this in a vintage bottle. It's notes are Mandarin, orange flower, bergamot, orchid, neroli, iris, mostly becoming orange flower and bergamot on dry down. The vintage version is a somewhat resinous mixture, but is very warm and pleasant, like lying in the sun near rock rose in spring. Not that it smells of rock rose, but the resin is in there somewhere.

Recently, I got ahold of some of those little ampules from the 1950s and sampled Indiscret again, this time with less aging. It's still lovely, but the fresher sample lacked the resinous edge, coming out as a light, crisp summer scent softened by the Neroli. If there's Iris in there, it's buttery, not green, and any Orchid is simply another layer in the build. Not entirely orange blossom, but something more like a bouquet of fresh golden-toned flowers on a clear day.

I recommend this one in any form, so long as the vintage hasn't turned off. (Huge bottles are still available on ebay) Also of note; if Shalimar goes too powdery on your skin, this will too. All my notes on this experiment are based on my sister's chemistry, as I have never been able to wear Shalimar or Indiscret. She can wear both and Indiscret has been a favorite of hers for years.