Néblina (1999)
by Yves Rocher

This is one of those synthetic-as-an-aesthetic-statement fragrances that is quite strong and memorable. Nothing natural here at all. It's a virched tropical rainforest, like a video game set. So it's weird, it's unnatural,very brightly colored. It's also very sweet. But it's fun and the drydown is softer and quite pleasant. The bottle is absolutely gorgeous and strange, a must-have for a bottle collector.

It seems YR is re-releasing or re-marketing this fragrance. Its nearly lime green color makes one think of an green scent, but the florals in this one are very strong. I would have preferred a bit more roundedness in this scent, as it is quite overwhelmingly floral, and very angular at that. There is little subtlety to this one.

Neblina is suprisingly heavy upon first application, almost overwhelmingly so (getting slapped in the face by a bunch of stargazer lillies). The top notes disappeared almost instantly and I was left with orchid stuck to my nasal passages. The only reason I purchased this fragrance is because I received a tester and liked the drydown.

It settles down nicely and has a warm woody thing with a hint of the flowers from the beginning. Due to the dominance and loudness of the floral notes, Neblina (which means "fog" in Spanish) smells a bit like rolling around in a pile of wood chips and slightly rotten orchids on the damp floor of a rainforest. But imagine how you might smell two hours after rolling around in said pile: probably not too bad, and certainly rather interesting.

I doubt I would by this again, but for the price, it was a fine one-time purchase.