Reviews of Garofano (1995)
by Lorenzo Villoresi

I wore LV Garofano to work yesterday. The weather was fair as there was a shower the night below. The fragrance has a very good basenote which is not too sweet. It is rather comforting to wear it in cool weather but I think in hot, sweaty days, it might not be wise. It has very good sillage and is really very good lasting.

Garofano opens with a pungent indolic rose accord of tremendous strength. Only after thirty minutes or so does it reveal an astringent clove note that’s apparently meant to suggest carnation. The rose and clove accord is straightforward, potent and linear, but ultimately clumsy and lacking in depth. Comme des Garçons’ Series 2 Red: Carnation approaches carnation through a similar rose-and-eugenol approach, but is altogether more complex and rounded. If it’s a carnation soliflore you’re after, I suggest you go for the Comme des Garçons.

This is my fifth Villoresi scent and it's a winner. A very prominent and spicy carnation lasts a number of hours, followed by a complex rose - reminiscent of potpourri in its acridness. After two hours the heliotrope surfaced and mellowed both the carnation and the rose.

Quite unique and different - maybe not for every day wear but certainly for festive occasions.

Acccording to the Villoresi site:

Top Notes: Lavender, green leaves, florals

Middle Notes: Carnation, Jasmine, Rose, Cinnamon, Cyclamen, Ylang Ylang, Geranium, Pepper

Base Notes: Heliotrope, Vanilla, Musk, Cedarwood.

Recommended as top quality novel scent.

Hmmm… Definitely one of the most original fragrances I have ever smelled. I get a blast of clove at the very opening, which lasts about five seconds, at which point the carnation wells up and stakes its claim to total domination of the territory and then it invites the rose, jasmine, and lilac to join the abundance. Those floral are multifaceted and multidimensional. It’s almost as if the clove and lavender surround each of the individual floral notes with an aura-like ambiance in order to provide a three dimensional aromatic effect. It exhibits incredible definition and separation in those luxuriant floral notes—I could swear it is a magical mystery olfactory tour. When it dries down, it has lost much of the sillage, is still a bit floral, and has a sweet base of musk and vanilla that work with the hints of sharp florals that still remain. Excellent sillage and great longevity. I do think this fragrance is somewhat more feminine than masculine, but I wouldn’t fault anyone for wearing this beauty.

The Baron de Charlus once told me: "I recall the time when I was a houseguest at the Firenze villa of Lorenzo Villoresi, the master perfumier and philosopher. Leading me into his airy laboratory above the rooftops, he liberally sprayed me with Garofano and inquired as to its effects.
"Mon cher maitre," I responded, "much as I admire your angelic Yerbamate, your spiritual Wild Lavender, the medieval frankness of your Spezie,the refined coca cola reminiscences of your Piper Nigrum, the eau de cologne quintessence of your Dilmun, the embroidered de Medici intrigues of your Incensi, I fear that with Garofano you have overreached yourself. An initial thrust of carnation is soon overcome and bewildered by a swamp of rotting flowers and slightly leathery spices. Poetic, if you will, but a sickly-stale poetry of the rubbish heap, the death bed and decay."

"On my skin "it start as a banal clove, but, after 30 min, is pure eugenol as at my dentist.
The final notes : camphre & naftaline.
Horrible!

A very nice fragrance for a lady. Gentlemen: start your engines!

Joe

definitely a magnificent work of art in the fragrance industry, it smells like no other perfumes i tested in these last years ,the beautiful and sensual carnation wave is sweetly combined with lavender,jasmine and musk ethereal notes ,a frag that couldnt be missed in any l.v fan collection

A classic carnation scent that adds just enough of everything else (namely musk, lavender and vanilla) to perfectly compliment the carnation rather than overpower it. Suitably a unisex scent.

I think it's a great fragrance, very warm and subtle. It is definitely unisex, but this quality is only apparent after leaving it on the skin for about thirty minutes. Smells very old world and luscious. Would love to have this one piped through my house. Wearable by a man but probably better suited to a woman's chemistry. Still, a work of art in itself.

I can certainly see why this would be a unisex fragrance as I always rather typified it as feminine with its soft and gentle olfactory qualities. Nevertheless, I can see that it could be pulled off as a man's scent. I view all of Villoresi's items as masterpieces, although I wouldn't necessarily own them all.