Phileas (1984)
by Nina Ricci

There is no other scent like it. Love the herbal celery note. It last all day!

This is my all time favourite. Best looking bottle ever too. I had a bottle of Phileas about 20 years ago, and recently, I got my hands on a miniature. Just bought it to see if the smell was as good as I remembered. And it was! Rich, spicy, warm, oriental,complex but balanced. Never have smelled anything like it. I think it's a good thing though that Phileas has become rare and is not produced anymore; makes it even more legendary!

Very soapy, very 'erbal, unashamedly full-bodied, beatifully mixed and just downright pleasant. Add excellent longevity, Nina Ricci quality and the unique celery note that run throughout the progression - and you get a must-have in the vintage department.

"Doctor, have you been preparing celery sticks again for your diet?", my noble assistant asked me. "My good man, what at first sniff smells like celery, is in fact the most noble and sadly discontinued fragrance, Phileas, from our dear Nina Ricci."

[b]Phileas[/b] is an outstanding fragrances and I, too, am very happy to have this among my flock. As has been noted, this scent is solemnly herbaceous, with a prominent, masterful celery note leading the way. I imagine this could have been a scent that would have been easy to go astray with during formulation, but whomever perfumer did a masterful job! Beneath the celery and herbs are delightful woods and subtle spices, that never quite eclipse the celery, which is quite astonishing. Definitely a must-try for the serious fragrance aficionado.

Wicozani

PHILEAS is a sharp aromatic chypre. I've found a legend that told it's a perfume "incarnation" of round-the-world voyage. It contains ingredients from Europe (balkanian oakmoss, cypress, cistus, celery from Provence, lemon from Italia), Asia (indian sandalwood, pachouli from Indonesia etc. ), America (virgin cedarwood, caribean lime etc.) and Africa (Reunion vetiver, Marocco wormwood, jasmine from Egypt etc.). It reveals lots of various spices and woods that perform a dance on your skin. The scent lasts forever and is VERY strong. I tried to apply a very few drops from splash (it was enough) and it made a marvellous smell. It kindly asks for a suit just to place you in Jules Verne's "Aroud the world in 80 days" atmosphere. I smell it from time to time. Foggy and rainy autumn days will be the right time to wear it.