Bouquet Imperiale (1991)
by Roger & Gallet

Bouquet Imperial by the esteemed house of Roger and Gallet attempts to be a refined, traditional cologne with an added modern, albeit feminine, flair. I suppose it accomplishes this if you consider heavy synthetics an accomplishment. Smells much like insect repellent with some roses.

Imperial Bouquet presents a bright citrus opening that has a recognizable light fruity tinge to it. It’s a fairly unique and completely enjoyable experience to find an accord like this in a light summer cologne. It’s quite a bit different from the heavy fruitiness of the typical fruity EDT. The fruitiness doesn’t last long for me and I very soon pick up a green accord that is quite dry, which surprised me because I wasn’t expecting such a change, and I feel neutral about the accord. But it changes with the base: I enjoy the dry down very much; It’s a skin scent from which I can identify cedar, musk, and oakmoss… a classic accord done superbly well and with pretty good longevity for a cologne.

The first several times I tested Bouquet Imperial I disliked it immensely. I put my bottle away for a year and when I tested it again, I found this delightfully different cologne that performed so nicely. Go figure…

Smells like L'Artisant Parfumeurs Mûre & Musc on citrus. Delicious!

Top – mandarin orange, lime, golden alyssum
Mid – rhubarb, raspberry, blackberry
Base – coriander, musk
(from R&G’s site)
These fragrance notes are different from the Basenote profile. Further Basenote says it is discontinued, it is not... it is still in production and available. Looking at R&G’s site has made me slightly revise my opinion on Bouquet Imperiale. I had wanted to complain that it was too light and ephemeral. Now I realize that this is designed to be a light, breezy warm-weather splash. It is that! The good Baron’s picaresque anecdote conveys an air of faded and slightly decadent opulence. Other reviews speak of very fruity, flowery and sweet notes. I get none of those things. For me, it starts with a bright citrus burst – really excellent and interesting. Then it beats a hasty retreat. Hints of dusty flowers (alyssum) lurk at the edge. I don’t get ANY fruit... I see the fruity ingredients listed but I can’t smell ‘em. The dry-down is a lovely quiet spicy musk. I think this is a delicate scent, unisex in style. The soap has a stronger presence, and I wish the scent did as well. I like what I smell, I just wish there was a bit more of it.

A much sweeter EdC by R&G, this one is fruity-candy sweet (but not intensely so) and very flowery as well. It’s one of the more femenine current EdCs by R&G, along with Eau deLotus Bleu(wich is an eau parfumante or fragant water) .
It also has some spices to kick it up a notch.
If you’re into fruity scents, this one can become quite addictive.
It’s also a bit musky (white musks it seems) on the base wich is very nice after all those fruits.
The most I get is ripe apricots and peaches and sweet oranges.
I like it a lot but never seem to wear it as often as I’d wished.

Memories of Paris in the 1890s. A soiree at the apartments of the great tragedienne Berma. They are all there: the Princesse and the Duchesse de Guermantes, the Marquise de Villeparisis, the Princesse de Parme, the Baron de Charlus, and, seated on a chaise longue, a pale and somewhat tired Marcel.
A dimly lit interior, potted palms, a songbird in a gilded cage, a ray of afternoon sun piercing the thick gold brocade of the curtains, exotic eastern carpets, wrought iron spiral staircases, vases of orchids and lilies.
'And tell me, Monsieur le Baron,' inquires Berma, 'what do you think of Bouquet Imperiale?' 'Definitive luxury,' replies de Charlus, 'if even with a hint of stuffy Victoriana. Quaint aesthetic depth, sheer sophistication, aristocratic shadows, ornate murmurs, while, against the closed windows, throbs the babble of commerce and democracy.'