Héritage (1992)
by Guerlain

Overdried herbs in the opening are overpowered and repelling but it grows into a softer sweeter and mature scent. Reminding me many other herbal pine nose burning masculine scents which i do not like. If you like M7, yatagan etc. you can like it too.

I recently bought a 1.7 oz HERITAGE purely on the merits of my vague yet positive recollection of it, having owned a bottle in the early 1990s. Now that I'm wearing it again I wish I had bought a larger bottle. For this is an exquisitely crafted oriental which bears all the hallmarks of Guerlain's earlier classics. In fact you'd be easily forgiven if you thought this was a classic from the 1920s for the construct is similarly complex - multifaceted yet harmoniously unified, with a depth that hints at profound artistry only a select few can muster. Better noses have described its scented symphony with far greater clarity that I could ever manage so I shall only offer my verdict: Héritage is, in a nutshell, luxury, refinement and class 'personified'.

Heritage EDT (Vintage) - Extremely powdery..and i mean "Extremely" powdery opening accords of lavender with citrus..with the lavender giving absolutely no spce for lime to breath..the heart notes, again, powdery to the core, courtesy florals such as Iris and rose..there is a certain, oily, almost resinous feel to it all..the heart notes reveals it;s stark woodiness with musk, amber and vanilla. there is an signature smell to Heritage..somethin which defines guerlain.. This is an oriental par excellence. they dont make it like this anymore. im lucky to have the vintage version..prior to when Oakmoss was still in use. the quality is only evident..and the depth, i can only cherish. saying so, the new version isnt bad per se. get it while you can

Heritage EDP (Vintage): It smells absolutely nothing like the EDT! it's like one wouldnt know they are siblings if not for the name. the EDP version smells more like Serge Lutens Arabie mixed up with Parfum d Empires Ambre Russe. in that, it;s pretty leathery and amber oriented. pretty dry and mildy spicy with hints of sweetness. quality wise? it cud take down arabie & ambre russe down anyday. absolutely phenomenal scent. Get both if you cud :)

For those who care here are the notes:

Top: Bergamot oil, Coriander, Cypress, Green Note, Lavender, Lemon, Mandarin, Pepper.

Heart: Bay oil, Cinnamon, Jasmin, Lily of the Valley, Orris, Rose.

Base: Amber, Cedar, Cistus oil, Musk, Patchouli, Sandal, Styrax, Tonka.

I'm a fan of Orientals esp woods, and this--while not my all time favorite--was money well spent.

Only one spoiler but it's important. This is close to Zino and, imho, Zino is better.

Preface: The mini that I bought at a mall shop differs from the decant that I got from the Perfumed Court, and I know some people had mentioned a reformulation. The mini is more woody and very heady right out of the bottle, and it gets a moderate thumbs up; the decant is more sharply candy-sweet and gets a neutral.

At first, I figured this would remain too sweet for me to use in earnest, but during several trials of my mini I kept re-sniffing it because it had gotten really nice by the end of the day. This version in particular smells much older than it actually is...not even 20 years! At first spray, I find my decant a bit too sweet and "perfumey"...there are so many things hiding in there: sweet spices and honeyed vanilla, with a little green bite, though greener in the mini. Soon the honey starts to break and I get some cedar, which cuts the sweetness further. I find a slight smoky sharpness after the sweetness, which honestly smells like rubber bands, though there isn't much of it. In the end, just the right blend of spices and smoke keeps it from teetering over the edge of too sweet in the mini, but fails to do so in the decant. It's still heavier than it needs to be by comparison to similar scents. It's probably a good super-formal scent, but I'd have to think more about what it says when paired with my usual casual clothes; the version in my decant just feels like it's trying too hard, but the mini would probably work OK.

Classic? Not to me, but definitely a modern classic. I hear the EDP version is much better than the EDT I own - and absolutely love. Easily my Top 5 scents currently. It took me just a mere 2 weeks of wear to justify getting a back up bottle since they are often sold out fast. Though nothing similar scent-wise, Heritage does for Guerlain what Envy does for Gucci and what Tuscany does for Aramis. Rich and warm, mildly spicy and herbal. I find it very aromatically therapeutic and I reckon the credit goes to the lavender? Despite the very humid tropics I am bound to, Heritage is perfect for outdoors, day and night wear, formal or not. I was introduced to Heritage pretty late in my fragrance explorations, but better late than never. "timeless"? YES. I can only imagine how good the EDP version will be.