Reviews of L'Eau d'Hiver (2003)
by Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle

l'Eau d'Hiver--hmmm...paint...a mixture of artists' paint and the kind I have used to paint interior walls. So let me break it down a little. Some kind of aromatic wood scent, vanilla, some kind of bitter nut, maybe almond, pecan or walnut. There must also be something like linseed oil and a touch of turpentine. Ed'H is fairly dry and nutty, but some very faint sweetness and powder is developing as it dries.

Turin claimed this fragrance has an "almond water" quality. I can understand this interpretation--the nuttyness is definitely prominent, and it is amazing what other notes may be evoked by a simple almond. I read somewhere that some nuts contain cyanide. It is definitely of the poisonous family of cyanide chemicals, but in a very small amount. I wonder if that is what gives some nuts their astringent, bitter quality. This is the sensation I get when I smell Ed'H. I have just shelled an almond or a walnut, and the natural oils are newly released onto my hands and the meat of the nut. Then, when I taste it, it is sweet, bitter, dry and woody. That is what I smell in Ed'H.

This is a fascinating fragrance. I wonder if people really wear this as it seems more like a scent experience rather than a perfume. About an hour after application, it is very light, verging on a skin scent. It still smells nutty and dry with a hint of linseed oil, but it also has taken on a bit more of the powder I noticed earlier. I definitely want to smell this again, although I am disappointed by its longevity.

Watery and weak, definitely not worth the pricetag. For a mild fragrance, there are sooooo many others to choose from that won't run you broke!

watery, powdery, synthetic smelling..dont know what to make of it. to an extent it smells like a mint flavored toothpaste. totally uninspiring. very hard to believe its an JCE creation. ignore this one with confidence.

Vanilla, almonds and polymers. A little too synthetic with florals for my taste. Great sillage and longevity.

This does not smell like "eau chaude" (warm water) to me. It smells like cool or possibly lukewarm water. It's definitely watery, soft and transparent, but also fruity in a sort of synthetic, abstract, apricotty, osmanthus-like way. Maybe that's an impression created by the iris and heliotrope? The iris here is not dark, rooty and earthy, nor is it as cold and metallic as it sometimes can be, nor as powdery as it is in other incarnations. It's rather a cool, watery, unsweetened, soft, ethereal iris note. I'm not a fan of iris, it's just too cold and "unnatural" and aloof for me. Here it's considerably softened, with that fruity aspect, not an ice queen like Iris Silver Mist or a root pulled up from wet soil along with carrots like Hiris. Still, it has the same, to my nose synthetic, coolness that I find offputting. Fans of Osmanthe Yunnan might appreciate this fragrance, I think they are very similar sort of pretty and soft yet chic and resolutely artificial florals. Despite the scent being soft, I feel it's wearing me - and nagging me for not having spent hours creating a "natural" "effortless" makeup and ironed my expensively casual clothes... A "comfort scent" for Very Preppy People.

This is like smelling violets and your grandmother's cologne and vanilla pastries through several veils of pearly white chiffon.

It is extremely clever, supremely sophisticated and the perfume equivalent of "money shouts; wealth whispers."

This could be worn at any time, any season by people of any age. Yet somehow, this almost feels too chic for me, but that's my fault, not the perfume's.

Love the clean Heliotrope note that comes in 15 minutes into the scent, this is a comfort scent which can be worn anytime.

Strongly reminds me of Johnson's No-More-Tears baby shampoo. Definitely not worth the money...

Extremely synthetic smelling. The top notes smell exactly like my new summer flip-flops - rubbery- plastic-y. Then it warms up and sweetens a bit. The middle notes rather pleasant, less synthetic, and the dry down is green, to my nose. It's interesting frag, but does me nothing emotionally, not "moving". I won't be able to wear not this one nor Lipstick Rose - another very synthetically smelling perfume of Malle. I'd say they are both for mannequins - why not? Plastic smell for plastic girl. I prefer something more naturally smelling.

L'Eau d'Hiver smells like powdered sugar. I really love the smell of powdered sugar. Soft, delicate and discreetly sweet.

This is the definition of softness... Not downy softness or pillow soft, but the creamy softness of a thick, white flower petal; the softest skin imaginable. To dumb this review up a bit, it reminds me of the flavor of a milk and almond infused fruit flavored TUMS in its pastel fruited (I say this tentatively as it does not give the impression in any way of "fruit") opening. But really digging my nose in I get an Iris and honey, plain as day, rounded without the hint of a sharp edge. It's like white paint... dense and creamy smooth.

The most fascinating part of this is that it seems as light as snow, I suppose, but dense enough to sink your teeth into, if that's possible to imagine, and is very long lasting. There is just NO hint of alcohol edge here, just simple, utter creamy softness.

hmmmmm....what a wonderful scent! clean, innocent yet seductive and voluptuous ...
not only for the winter time ...

Bergamot, angelica, iris, honey, hawthorn, jasmine, heliotrope, white musc. It manages not to be cloying, in spite of the honey and heliotrope, which can really take over if not tamed and balanced. Also, it retains an aura of freshness, even into the drydown. The sweetness seems to be from the jasmine, honey and heliotrope; yet the green hawthorn and angelica do wonders for keeping it bright. Really like this one. I thought the 10% concentration would be a bit light, but I think any more in the direction of EdP strength would have made this too heavy. I get the Eau Chaude idea: sort of cologne-y, but with some warm undercurrents.

I understand why the descriptions on the Malle website call this delicate delight an 'Eau Chaud' - a warm water. It's a light fragrance - as light as a snowflake and as white as a winter sky - but it is soft, warm and sweet as a baby's skin.

It would suit a young woman or teenager; if you have enough money to splash out on a Malle as a gift for a daughter or niece they would be very lucky to get this.

It's sweet and soft but not cloying and not overtly floral or gourmand - there's no vanilla or other edible notes.

I find it much warmer and less synthetic smelling than Demeter's Snow (not a comment on the chemical composition, just trying to decribe Snow) and less overtly floral than Philosophy's Baby Grace. It has rather more in common with Pure Grace, I would say, though again it feels less synthetic than Pure Grace. It's an absolutely lovely perfume that lasts well, lying close to the skin and gently radiating class.

A huge thumbs up from someone who is usually a stick-in-the-mud oriental or citrus gal. (Though I've also been swept off my feet by Malle's Iris Poudre.)

L'Eau d'Hiver is all honeyed sweetness on me with the merest hint of floral. Delicate but extremely long lasting.

Yet another disappointment from the Malle house. I have to say after this one I will not be testing another one of their perfumes. Very boring scent.

Beauiful execution. Some what similar to Demeter's Snow (think it's the heliotrope) But WAY better.. Light clean and just great....

yuck

am trying to recall exactly what this reminds me of, some flowering bush, only the flowers smell more like choraophyll than nectar. mountain laurel?

me no like it smells kind of .... spinsterish (?)

Absolutely heavenly in every way. It's sweet and floral without any spices or woods. It is definitely on the feminine side but if you can get over that, like I did, then you will be rewarded with the something that actually smells like you are carrying around a bouquet of flowers drizzled in wildflower honey. Pure heaven...

L'eau de hiver is an extremely delicate scent on me. It stays close to the skin and seems to melt into it. The top notes, true to the fragrance's name, do connote the smell of fresh winter air. That watery note poised in the atmosphere just after snowfall seems to burst from this liquid. I suppose snow should smell "cool" but L'eau de Hiver is a "warm" fragrance to me. As it dries down it's all honey and heliotrope, and this mix brings to mind a "baby" scent for me. My skin must bring out whatever notes Hiver shares with Philosophy's Baby Grace, because these two are oddly similar! I enjoy L'Eau de Hiver and it will be a perfect fragrance for cozy winter evenings when all I want to do is read by the fireplace, cats at my feet.

Another Malle that has some interesting stuff going on in it, but just isn't something I could wear. Honey and musk are all over the place, but there's again that rotten flower note that gets involved and sadly ruins what is very interesting in its progression. Very much on the femme end of unisex. Definitely worth a try as it will leave an impression. Just not something I could wear.

Very floral... but could easily be worn by a male if he has enough courage to smell good without too much masculinity. I wish this wasn't so expensive..

L'Eau d'Hiver is my favorite Frederic Malle, and maybe favorite fragrance ever! I was SO shocked that the first Malle scent the sales girl suggested after hearing my poetic waxing, whining, and demanding was L'Eau d'Hiver. It did not seem to fit what I told her I wanted or liked-- nor was it the one I had planned to purchase. Well, I was wrong. D'Hiver is like no other fragrance I have ever smelled. It is a flawless blending of opposites: cool and fresh but warm and comforting, soft and subtle but green and long-lasting, natural and classic but slightly modern and scientific, elegant but non-chalant. I especially catch and love the iris, and I am very happy the jasmine is not overbearing, and the heliotrope is not like amaretto. D'Hiver may be a touch feminine for some men, as there is little in the way of woods-- but I bet a few wears would change any lumberjack's mind. Wear L'Eau D'Hiver with a sweater in fall to pick up the kids and meet the SO for lunch.

This is such a yummy, soft scent! like wearing a beautiful, soft, well-worm sweater. It manages to be warm without relying on spices, and to be transparent and fresh without marine, ozone, or excessive greenness. It does have florals but mostly heliotrope and iris, which aren't typically 'flowery'-- on me it starts out blended citrus-floral-powdery musk and ends up almost like carmelized light musk, if that makes sense. I would call this a four-season fragrance!

This is a beautiful fragrance in its own right, but is for me much too soft and understated. It does have a "winter" smell if such a thing is possible. However, I think it is too timid in its composition. Whereas Musc roars, this one whimpers. I'm not saying it's not beautiful- just not for me.

Wonderful! Starting fresh and transparent with the iris and white heliotrope notes, then dries down with an unexpected warm touch of angelica honey and white musk that never stops. Unexpectedly sexy and very elegant!

Lovely fragrance. Soft with bursts of helitriope and sweet honey finishing with musk. The name Water of Winter gives the impression this is a warm christmas fragrance. But it would suit all year,not heavy or in your face.

Created by Jean Claude ELLENA, fresh, floral and very elegent, a long lasting cologne, a beautyfull chalenge!

The composition is a wonderful blend of
Bergamot
Angelica
Iris
Jasmine
Heliotrope
White Musc
L'Eau d'Hiver opens with the Iris, then the Angelica appears followed by the Heliotrope. This is a very soft fragrance and quite long lasting. I feel it's perfectly Unisex! Jean Claude Ellena's done it again!