Orange Blossom (2003)
by Jo Malone

Many years ago on my way to school I used to walk past a garden with a huge Mock Orange (syringa) in the garden, when it was in bloom I loved it - so rich and sweet. Later (much later) I visited Morocco and was overwhelmed by the scent of orange blossom in the sunken gardens of the El Badi palace so I expected to love this.

Maybe I may prefer it as a scented candle - a fragrance that you can walk away from when it gets too much, but, having sprayed my wrist an hour ago with a sample that one of the generous girls at Jo Malone gave me I spent the first 30 minutes fighting the urge to run & scrub it off. It's fading a little now and is a bit easier to live with, but I don't think it will ever become an essential part of my wardrobe - I suppose I'm just not a Jo Malone person (although I love the occasional soak in a solution of Red Roses bath oil - the perfect end to a long muddy winter walk).

Actually I rather resent the suggestion that one needs to shell out for two or more of anybody's fragrances in order to smell good. Chanel, Guerlain and many other perfume companies, large and small, reckon that they can make you feel chic, sensuous, businesslike, glamorous (delete as appropriate) with just one bottle of their better juices, so why do JM expect gullible members of the public to buy 2 or more of their fragrances at £34 a pop when you can get 75ml of Mitsouko edp for less than £45? Sorry folks, but I think this represents a triumph of marketing over commonsense.

15th October, 2010.

Not too much to say. Very transparent, easy breezy scent. A nice clean orange blossom..morphing to jasmine notes on my skin..then fades away. But not completely..there's a slightly irritating base that is slower to dissipate. I That's all she wrote!

2nd September, 2010.

I agree with Quarry. I like layering Orange Blossom over Narcisse Noir if I want to wear NN during the day. Citrus scents can be tricky to me. Sometimes the "straightforward, uncomplicated" ones end up smelling like my memory of Love's Lemon (everyone remembers this classic from junior high!) or Lemon Pledge. Orange Blossom has, to my nose, more of the soft round scent of the blossom rather than the agressively stringent scent of the fruit.

20th October, 2009.

Notes:
Top: Citronella leaves, Tangerine
Middle: Orange blossom, Water lily
Base: Lilac, Neroli

Falling somewhere between Czech & Speake's focused orange blossom rendition in Neroli and Creeds snappy citrus-high Neroli Sauvage, Jo Malone's Orange Blossom (OB) does its own thing with the orange blossom note...flanking it between a juicy orange top and watery white floral notes.

The tangerine blast that greets you first is suitably juicy, orangey and pleasant. The orange blossom note that peeks at you afterwards though is not of the finest quality...its not as petit-grainy as in Fleur du Male, but neither is it as indolic or rich. Rather it smells a lot like the version found in Serge Lutens Fleur d'Oranger, with a strange lack of clarity in evidence with woody highlights and little to no indoles. Good thing that this note is further flanked by pleasant lily/lilac floral notes (with an almost nonexistent base...OB just peters out over 4-5 hours) to construct a fairly unique take on the Neroli/Orange Blossom genre resulting in a tangerine-white floral perfume with an adequate orange blossom note which runs through the composition without really overtaking it. All the better I say, considering its not attractive enough by itself to sell bottles. It's Ben Affleck in the Affleck-Damon partnership (while it lasted..).

Rating: 6.0/10.0

19th October, 2009.

Jo Malone Orange Blossom EDC

Notes: clementine leaves, orange blossom, water lily (from jomalone.com)

Orange Blossom starts with juicy sweet orange, bergamot and orange blossom. The combination is classic and a tad soapy, however, there is an unexpectedly tenacious indolic edge to the orange blossom which keeps the fragrance from being too clean. The indoles are rather fecal in this composition, and at first adds a welcome complexity to a fragrance that would otherwise be very dull. Unfortunately, after a bright beginning, all the tangy, sweet, creamy qualities fade away, the fragrance loses its balance, and turns into a screechy white floral with fecal notes that challenge the most die-hard civet lover. The indole in OB does not develop the way natural indoles would, so the accord never loses its rawness. That is to say, OB smells strongly of bleu cheese crumbles, mothballs and urine from start to finish. When there is nothing left to balance and blend with the indoles, OB is not enjoyable anymore. Longevity is too long, all things considered--the indoles are going strong after six hours. Sillage is surprisingly strong, perhaps not a good thing. I am convinced the only way to wear this fragrance is to layer it, probably with another Jo Malone offering.

17th October, 2009.

Out of the bottle, one of my favorite scents in the world. The spray fades quickly on me, however, and the creme develops a sour note after it's reacted with my body chemistry for a few hours. What a pity!

18th September, 2009.