Ode à l'Amour (2001)
by Yves Rocher

The first time I sniffed this eau de toilette from a paper strip I was delighted by its fruitiness and sensuality so I ordered a flacon straight away. But after trying it on my skin I realized it made me feel physically sick. Too overpowering, too sickly sweet, the strenght of amber clashed violently with overripe fruits such as cassis or mirabelle plum making this concoction unbearable. It leaves a rancid drydown -even the cap smells bad, definitely a no-no.

No. Just.... no. This was just a bad idea from the get-go. Someone in the YR offices must have come in one day after a long night of drinking, and managed to convince his superior (who was also recovering from a night o' frothy brew) that the company should try to do their own version of Giorgio BH's Red, but with the added notes of crowded high-school-gymn, subway-in-summer, and vomitous teenager, with a hint of marigold to make it a little more "perfumey." The description from the YR web site: "Fruity Amber, Mirabelle Plum, Currant Blossom, Damason Plum, Ylang-Ylang, Amber, Cistus, Sandalwood." Even now, as I sit here forcing myself to smell and re-smell this over and over and over (to be fair), I can honestly say that I do not get *any* of these notes... not a single one. Fortunately, the bottle designers made the brilliant decision to design a bottle that lies on its side... Did we miss day one of "fragrance bottle design 101"? I must live with the constant fear that this beast will leak. (Is it possible that I can dislike any fragrance more than Red?)

L'amour is a fruity oriental suitable for summer wear. I can smell a slight strawberry note. This is nice, but too sweet for me. If you like this one you'd probably like Hugo Boss Deep Red and Liz Claiborne's Spark.