Gardenia by Penhaligon's, 1976

Greens and violet and fruity notes and so many florals... It is so crowded that i cannot get much gardenia. ylang ylang and and clower provides a crispiness to the scent which is not common for a white floral and makes an opposite to the real misty gardenia scent. Not a bad scent but not a gardenia scent to my taste.

This is a very pretty, feminine floral. The opening is clean and clear, with soft blossoms balanced by a somewhat brisk, green-soapy quality. Gradually the notes deepen and become even softer and rounder -- that crisp edge goes away. The scent still is not too sweet. There are hints of spice. The base develops more power under the intensifying influence of benzoin. There is light musk, but also a kind of aquatic-beachy note. There are many flowers here, blended very well. It is difficult for me, a non-specialist in floral notes, to pick them out. The overall effect is lovely, Not at all my style but I can appreciate it.

This is a wonderfully "light" take on the classic scent - the delicate notes of jasmine support the hint of gardenia at the start and it floats along happily light as the rest of the supporting notes evolve. The closest thing I can suggest that does for the lightness of jasmine as this does for gardenia is Serge Lutens A La Nuit. It is as if a blossom has just opened. Most gardenia colognes go for the effect of full heady bloom and can be overpowering, even nauseating in their heaviness. Not so this happy creation by Penhaligon's. Very much welcome.

There is a hint of gardenia & some greenness, possibly lily of the valley in the opening, & a little tuberose. l get the rhubarb note although l wouldn't have identified it as such without the notes list. lt then becomes a crisp & fresh, but quite generic floral without much sillage, although it is quite long-lasting. There are far better, truer gardenia scents out there than this.

It's funny, there seems to be something about the composition of gardenia perfumes that creates accidental, naturalistic fruit notes because I got unripe peach from Un Matin d'Orage and I get juicy, ripe, freshly cut Conference pear from the topnotes of this one. I'm not a big fan of fruit notes as they're often too sweet and synthetic, but these "accidental" fruit notes I enjoy.There's a sharper, less pleasant note besides the pear though, and after a little while the fresh pear fades and the scent turns more generically gourmandy - something like a combination of marzipan, anise, booze and bitter almond. Looking at the official notes, where did that come from? Eventually, though, the scent turns more floral as expected: a creamy/powdery white floral that might plausibly be gardenia if you know it's supposed to be but which is abstractly artificial like the kind of floral fragrance you get in lotions.

What can I say, Bertrand Duchaufour has struck a high note in the realms of Gardenia fragrances. Gardenias are often a fickle fragrance to get right, the balance of sweet watery florals juxtaposed against dank resin like mushroom notes. Most perfumers murder Gardenias but Bertrand has worked a little magic on this old dame from 76'. The Violet, Hyacinth and magnolia bellow out at me like a perfectly tuned triad of scent perfection but only for a few seconds until the soprano's of Gardenia, ylang, tuberose and jasmine take to the stage, singing in perfect unison. Only disturbed by the refreshing rose and orange blossom which weaves in and out of the perfect heart.

Bertrands signature like base accord of benzoin,vanilla, sandalwood and musks work achingly well in this fragrance allowing the sweet earthy dankness to perform in the Base section. After many contemplations with this fragrance I couldn't quite put my finger on the 'odd' note I kept on smelling the only conclusion I could draw was it was aroma-alchemy at its best creating the strange mushroom note gardenias seem to embody. A lovely well balanced floral that is perfect for summer days.

This is a sweet curiosity. I have grown wary of gardenia fragrances lately: though I've never had the pleasure of smelling this tropical flower 'for real', I am conscious of constant assertions that no perfume ever reproduced its scent with veracity. So, I do not review this EdT in terms of its faithful replication of the gardenia flower's aroma.

What I experience with Penhaligon's interpretation is at first a limpid, watery 'gardenia' scent, boosted liberally with tuberose. Its topnotes are melony, cucumbery, fresh. Its middle is mainly a sprightly melange of magnolia and jasmine, fleshed-out and rendered more sensual with ylang-ylang. Projection is good; I am enjoying wearing this in small, steadily re-applied dabs, rather than braving a full-on spritz.