All Invited! ♥ ♥ ♥ Sniff 'n' Speak Saturday, March 6, 2010 ★★★ CHYPRES

Oh Geeze!! Is it that time again???!!!

Checked out last year's EXcellent list by Moondeva and can't decide between....Mitsouko, 1000, Aromatics Elixir, Parfum Rare, (thanks Shades!!) Je Reviens (thanx TVLampboy, wherever you are) Cabochard....

...and the beat goes on!!!

YR Nature, which I have, lists oakmoss... Is this a chypre then? Otherwise, I would have to go for Aromatics, which I don't especially like... :/

Oh goody, Chypre is my very favorite. I will have a hard time choosing. Maybe I'll go with one of my favorite green scents for spring; the reliable Azuree. BTW, the date is March 7, not Feb 6, correct?

I plan to talk about the very lovely "Y" by Yves Saint Laurent.

Hmm, not my favourite category...I suppose I can wear Ma Griffe? Does Bandit count? Please help!

trikkirikki, I'd certainly consider Bandit a chypre. Ma Griffe is another great chypre.

One of my favorite categories of fragrance is the chypre. Now to decide which one. So many greats to choose from.

Looking forward to everyone's choices.

Ooh, ooh, ooh! I go in and out of chypre moods, have been out, I'm suddenly in. The month-to-accord matching is working well for me!

Will it be...
Champagne?
Scherrer EDP?
Odalisque?

Such a fragrant dilemma!

Yay for chypres, yay, yay, yay! I have several worthy candidates. I can't wait.

B., YR Nature is NOT a chypre, it is a floral, a nicely unique one too. Sometimes it is hard to tell which is which (Mille de Patou anyone?) but please do your homework -- read previous years' threads, collect some inspirations from other websites, etc.

Thanks!!! In that case, I believe it'll have to be Aromatics Elixir... :/

Too many choices!

Even narrowing it down to 3 for the day is a toughie, huh?

Can't wait though

Chypre, chypre, chypre...my favorita! I'm kinda singing a cha cha beat here.

Ooh! Chypre! My current favorite category. Hmmm. Vintage Coriandre? Paloma Picasso? Mitsouko? Niki?

I'll quite happily be wearing 31, rue Cambon !!

Chypre is also my fave category - lots to choose from - a chypre fest !

Oh chypre is my second fav group. Wore Mitsouko parfum the other day so it will by Y in parfum for me.

Chypre confounds me.

Not sure if we are supposed to sniff and speak here or in the Scent of the Day!
I have posted in today's SOTD but will do the same here too.

I have chosen to sing the praises of YSL's "Y" (or "ee grek," as they say in France.)
This is an elegant, classy, obscure, creamy chypre with lots of greeness, oakmoss
and lactonic peach. It is very easy to wear, never shouts above a discreet whisper,
yet makes it's presence felt nonetheless.

The part I like least is the very aldehydic opening, but wait a few minutes and it
settles down to one of the best chypres out there. Hard to find and relatively expensive as a result,
"Y" is worth tracking down.

I'm wearing my vintage parfum de toilette version of Ma Griffe.

This seems to be the only chypre that I've tried to date that agrees with my skin.

The opening is very citrusy fresh and extremely wearable. My husband compared it to old fashioned citrus washing up liquid, but when he saw my face drop he was quick to say "not in a bad way, it still smells really good". I get the washing up liquid feel too, but it fades quickly.

I can't pick out the floral notes, maybe it's that my juice is going off, but the base certainly carries the typical damp moss. It stays very close to the skin, no sillage to talk about. I think that's what I really like about Ma Griffe. It's my own little secret.

OH FOOF!!!
I totally forgot ....and I'm in KM Loukhoum which lasts all day....

Will report....

I'm wearing Acqua di Parma Profumo from a small sample I procured for just this event!



This is described as a dry, floral, woody chypre and it has the magical and ghostly bergamot-labdanum-oakmoss accord with florals, patchouli, styrax, civet, and spices. It is very soft and inviting... it feels like a fuzzy blanket and is quite elegantly balanced, with no particular note louder than the rest. Strangely it is both very natural and simplistic to my nose, but it also recalls classic grand parfumerie and supposedly boasts over 300 ingredients. I love it. Chypres in general smell fresh and clean to me without recourse to the aromachemicals that we associate with soaps, detergents, deoderants, and aquatic/sport colognes. I think that is why they fascinate me. They are just strange and different enough to warrant curious investigation, but also familiar... what I mean is, the accord is natural, but doesn't occur in nature. It is Other; it is man-made without being completely synthetic--a combination that is more than the sum of its constituent parts. Whether chypres smell like the forested hills of Cyprus, I do not know. But they smell both rustic and refined, evocatively old and inspiringly innovative, and most in my experience, from the fruitiest floral chypre to the dirtiest leather animalic chypre defy any specific gender association/categorization... they just smell good!



This is up there with Mitsouko in my mind, but it's not quite as strong, vibrant, or spicy and it's missing that peach which for whatever reason makes Mitsouko sing (I think I'll wear my Mitsouko later as this is just whetting my appetite for it). This sample of AdP Profumo edp is the 2008 reissue of the 1930s fragrance.

Now I find chypres the most difficult category to totally understand, despite my readings. I get the necessity of the woody oakmossy base, but earlier on, there are just too many options! I'll get there.....

Anyway, as noted in my post at the Sotd thread, I'm heading straight for Ormonde Woman. This makes the most sense to me now.

Feel free to beat me, but I seem to have absolutely no knowledge of Chypres at all! I did my research, and the only frag I have that seemed to tick the category reads like this:

* Top Notes: Caraway, Rhubarb, Lemon, Orange Zest and Bergamot
* Middle Notes: Peppermint, Green Tea, Sweet Jasmine, Spicy Carnation, Fennel and Celery Spice
* Base Notes: Oakmoss, Musk and Amber

Bergamot, tick. Jasmine in the middle, tick. Oakmoss, tick. The amber should fulfill the labdanum criteria - half tick.

It was a xmas gift from a friend, and I haven't got around to wearing it before.

Spritz, spritz, spritz.

and.. now I've been wearing this for a few hours I think I can tell it's not a Chypre. Or a very neutered chypre. There's a tiny tickle from the base of something clean mossy, like roof moss, but no oomph. After a lemony fresh start, this is all about minty green tea. Oh yeah, the frag? Green Tea by Elizabeth Arden. Sometimes the clue is in the name

Definately a category I'm going to look into more for the future though!

Kewart, we're on the same wavelength. I, too, am wearing YSL's Y today. I love the tumble of moss, light peach, more moss, greens and subtle jasmine and rose. One of the greats, IMO, and always right.

No problem, Quarry. Happy to help. I miss the obvious most of the time, myself.

I also have to mention Antaeus' selection and helpful commentary. Very interesting. I also love this one. I may change into AdProfumo later on when this (Azuree) subsides. I didn't discover AdP until recently and it is a winner. Really superior juice in the time-honored tradition. It's so nice to know they still make good stuff if you know where to look!

I'm wearing Andy Tauer's Rose Chypree today both to satisfy my craving for rose and to participate in the SnS. Funny how OsMoz classifies it as a "floral chypre" but fails to list oakmoss in the ingredients. It does list "moss". However when you check Andy's own web site he states that it's a "floral oriental" based on a chypre and lists oakmoss as an ingredient.
Only goes to show, you have to check more than one resource these days to get to the truth of things.
Here's what I wrote on SOTD:

For SnS Saturday, I must continue to satisfy my craving for roses (as I am still in possession of my "pet rock" ), so today I am wearing the wonderful Andy Tauer's Rose Chypree. Here are the notes, as listed on OsMoz: top notes Clementine, Bergamot, Lemon heart note: Rose Damascena, Bay, Cinnamon, Geranium base note: Vetiver, Patchouli, Vanilla, Labdanum, Moss. OsMoz classifies Rose Chypree as a "Floral Chypre".

Here's what Andy himself says on his web site about this perfume: The composition
Une rose chyprée is an oriental rose on a chypre base.
It is an elegant perfume built around two natural extracts from rosa damascena: The absolute and the steam distilled essential oil. 15 ml Rose chyprée contains one pound of fresh rose petals, steam distilled in the traditional way.

Its heart is lifted by spicy Bay and hot cinnamon and a fresh accord built around bergamot, lemon and Clementine essential oils.
Green Bourbon geranium oil lets the rose petals shine and contrasts with the dark resinous accord in the base, built around labdanum, oak moss, patchouli, vetiver and vanilla.

Les memorables: Precious and hand made"

Hi again,

I had to reapply my chrypre for the day, Ma Griffe, and now I can finally get the benzoin in the base. Bear in mind I have a bad cold, my sense of smell is not what it should be.

Apparently, Mademoiselle Carven had defined her creation as "an outdoor perfume that needs to give up its heady character". I say she was spot on! Notes include from top to base: Gardenia, Galbanum, Aldehydes, Clary sage - Jasmine, Ylang-Ylang, Sandal, Vetiver - Styrax, Cinnamon, Benzoin, Labdanum.

I'm so pleased that I have found a chypre I can wear. The only other chypre I can wear is Bandit, and I think I'll settle with that.

One of my favourite chypres, undoubtedly reformulated, is the wonderful EDT Cabochard.

A second vote for this oft overlooked scent. It's a beautiful floral/tobacco/leather and is now cheaply available at discount houses. Unique and uncommon so you are not one of the masses. I think this is a true classic for both men and women.

Since I knew I'd be visiting a perfume shop today, I didn't put on perfume this morning, but I'll probably dig out Miss Balmain this evening.

Today I tried Serge Lutens' Chypre Rouge, trying to keep with the theme of the day. From the Basenotes directory, here are the notes:
Top Notes
Thyme, Pine needles.

Middle Notes
Honey, Beeswax, Jasmine.

Base Notes
Patchouli, Vanilla, Moss, Amber, Musks.

Reading this, I thought this sounded right up my street, but in fact the topnotes smelled of hairspray, hairspray and more hairspray to me. Then it slowly developed a cheap fruity heart, rather like so many things on the market these days and now it has evolved into a pleasant but 'meh' base. Honestly, if you'd given me this in a blind testing I would never have guessed at any of those notes. I would probably have said it was from a D-list celebrity. I would never, ever call it a chypre.

I'm sure this review will get howls from some quarters, but you know, it's just my opinion and your mileage may differ. But I was disappointed - I'd expected more from Uncle Serge.

Anyway, there are lots and lots of wonderful classic chypres to play with and now I definitely have to smell that AdP Profumo. This week, even!

Paying homage to:

AdP Profumo
EL Alliage
AL Chypre Noir

3 favorites!

I started the day in newish Mitsouko parfum, the formulation preceding the current one. I believe this is the most hated reformulation... It starts out a bit messy, but settles fairly quickly.

Today was sunny and relatively warm (as long as you avoided any shadows) and almost springlike. This is the time of year when I really like my greens, so I picked up a bottle of Mitsouko edp at de Bijenkorf from a very nice SA who gave me a discount and threw in some extra samples.

On the way to the supermarket I stumbled across a tiny vintage perfumery and was delighted to discover that they had a 100 ml refillable No 19 edt! I have 2 refills since earlier, and now I have a container for them!

Quarry, you have described perfectly my interactions with all of those scents. I have been trying to come up with a word to describe what happens when they make contact with my skin -- "mildewy" was a word I used for awhile -- but "bitter" seems somehow a better word choice. Anyway, while I don't wish scent snags on anybody, I am pleased to know I am not the only person whose skin reacts in that particular way to Scherrer, Ma Griffe, and the like.

I am wearing Chanel No. 19 on EdP formulation. I have had a mini for a while. I am not sure how old it is, but the juice is very light green. This is so beautiful and I am sad to see that I only have enough for perhaps one more wearing. Maybe it is time to look for some vintage. What formulation would you recommend?

I'm spending the day in Cristalle, cool and green.

Azuree has been on my must try list for some time since it seems to always pop up as a fantastic green, a fabulous chypre, a sumptuous leather, and all around great scent... so impulsively I bid on THeBay for some vintage "parfum boutique" from the seventies I think and won for a song (less than the already inexpensive current stuff). So if it's turned, no biggie and I'll try a newer bottle and if it's great I'll join in the fun. I'm assuming it's an edp... not sure what parfum boutique might mean. It's over 2 oz. so I highly doubt it's an extrait. Anyone know for certain?

Great choices everyone, we all smell so good today. Cabochard is another favorite and 19 is just glorious. Keep sharing.

Wordie, I too was flummoxed by Chypre Rouge. Smelled exactly like celery on me.

Thanks to our divine Chaya, I am wearing vintage Jean Patou Colony. Pineapple I think is one of those polarizing notes, I guess because it can be tricky to recreate well. In Colony the pineapple combines with bergamot so that it is bright and fresh. It smells natural, like freshly cut fruit; nothing like canned fruit in heavy syrup. There is a note that hints of sap and lush vegetation. Colony is a true old school chypre with a winking, sly sense of humor. She's wearing a crepe wool suit and a white silk shirt but has left a couple of pearl buttons undone.

Chanel Pour Monsieur. It is class in a bottle.

I love the way this wonderful fragrance is so unobtrusive -not something that can be said for all traditional chypres, especially those targeted at the masculine end of the market It opens with lemon and petitgrain against a mossy and woody base, but somewhere in the mix is what I think of as the Antaeus note -a touch of spice and perhaps castoreum. As the citrus notes fade, it may seem like the fragrance is gone, but it gently gives out sweet, woody, and mossy wafts throughout the day to let me know it is still there, and to remind me why I love it so much. It is such a gentle blend, I think I could wear it every day and never regret putting it on.

I think that it has a certain old fashioned charm, and as a man it makes me feel like I am wearing a finely tailored suit, but I think it would be great on a woman too. It has the kind of unpretentious elegance that I think would make just about anybody feel dressed up.

Antaeusintheair, my bottle of Azuree just says 'Natural Spray'. It is strong enough to be an EDP, I feel. Good luck with your purchase.

Another year older and supposedly wiser, and I still don't understand chypres any better than I did the year before. I read the lists here and other places, and I think "wow, I would have NEVER thought THAT was a chypre!" Anyway, on a few lists I read that Jean Patou 1000 is considered a chypre and as luck would have it, I have a sample of it sent recently by kumquat.

I'm sure you have all read the story of 1000. That it took over 10 years and 1000 different submissions until the perfect scent was found. (read about it on Perfume-Smellin' Things perfume blog) I think 1000 smells like it took that much thought, that much attention to detail. To my nose, it is so seamless, the notes so well blended, that no one note sticks out over the rest. But alas, it doesn't smell like ME ... It is elegant and classic, but it never melds with my skin, it never settles in and becomes comfortable. I feel like I'm wearing something foreign, something that doesn't belong to me. I think I will keep trying this one though ... who knows? Maybe another year older and wiser, I might just grow into 1000!

Notes include:
Top notes: Bergamot, Coriander, Eucalyptus, Angelica
Heart notes: Osmanthus, Rose, Jasmine, Violet
Base notes: Sandal, Patchouli, Vetiver, Civet, Oakmoss

Hi everyone!

I love a lot of chypres, especially those born in the 70s and 80s, but I always seem to think of the early Gucci fragrances first and foremost when it comes to classic, beautiful chypres. Gucci No 1 and Gucci No 3 are both very complex and very beautiful, and each have their own unique and instantly recognizable signature. Although No 1 has always been my emotional favorite, I chose Gucci No 3 today because I think it falls more squarely into the mossy-green chypre territory than No 1, which has more of a fresh/floral feel (although there's no mistaking the oakmoss in there.)

As any good chypre should be, Gucci No 3 is very well-blended. Aside from a general floral-fresh-yet-earthy-mossy-green that all of my favorite chypres have in common, I have a difficult time dissecting the components - I just can't do it. But I can say that, in addition to the mossiness (which manages to be cool and green at one stage then warm and earthy later on) and a touch of leather, this has a sparkle and an elegance that sets it apart. It's not a sweet, delicate and romantic scent, but it's far from sexless, and I find it extemely feminine, but not girly. It conveys an ultra-sexy but mature sophistication and confidence and it's just as chic as they come. Some chypres, such as Azuree and Halston, can seem sort of casual, or sporty to me (I wear Azuree to play tennis.) I think it's the green and herbal earthiness that does it and I love that about them. I have a clear and fond memory of my grandmother telling me I smelled "like a hippy, only cleaner" when I'd wear Halston. But that's not at all how I'd describe Gucci No 3. This is just a bit too soignee to be very casual. It's easy to imagine a champagne silk charmeuse-clad Lauren Bacall wafting seductive trails of it...although I suppose Lauren Hutton would be a more appropriate example.

It was launched in 1985 and I probably would have worn it more frequently back then had that not been right in the middle of my love affair with Coco, which came out a year earlier. I just thank my lucky stars that I had the foresight (based in part on my love of Gucci No 1) to get a few bottles before it was discontinued, for it's currently one of my 5-Star favorites, and I don't think my life would be the same without it.




Top notes - aldehydes, coriander and bergamot
Middle notes - tuberose, iris, jasmine, lily-of-the-valley
Base notes - leather, patchouli, musk, oakmoss and vetiver


Antaeusintheair - most of those vintage Estee Lauders are designated "cologne" or "natural spray" like kumquat mentioned, but they wear like edps. I was watching the one you're talking about, and I'd say whatever "Parfum Boutique" is, I highly doubt that the strength will be an issue for you. Also, fwiw, I have lots of vintage Estee Lauders and they all seem to remain true through the years - I haven't had one turn yet. Yours looks like a good one - good luck, and enjoy it!


Kumquat - I'm not convinced that Perfume Intelligence is right this time....those notes sound nice but they just don't sound like Azuree to me...what do you think? It was bugging me a bit so I just had to double check. This is what I found at EsteeLauder.com -

Top Notes - Basil, Jasmine, Citrus
Middle Notes - Armoise (Artemisia), Vetiver, Rose
Base Notes - Patchouli, Moss, Amber

I can't say what sea grass smells like or that it's not in there, but I would think that any list of notes describing Azuree would have to at least include citrus, oakmoss and patchouli.

Evangeline-Thank-you for an excellent, detailed description of Gucci 3. You should put this in the review section. I have wondered what The 'Guccis' smelled like for some time now. Now I know which one is the chypre.

And thanks for the additional info on Azuree. I think you are right. There was some definite lack of info there. I also think they both left out the galbanum.

ShadesofBleu, I hope you can learn to love floral/chypres (as I would classify 1000) one day. Think of springtime & fresh air & you will be transported to another place! Anyway, if you aren't in the right frame of mind for it, you won't 'meld' with the frag. I know I go through phases of liking certain types of frags more than others.

Quarry, have you tried Scherrer EDP? I just discovered a manufacturer's sample in my stash and it is much softer, less bitter than EDT. I had a "where -have-you-been-all-my-life" moment.

But I agree with you and Leesee--there is a "something" there that makes me wear it not so often. But I do love it, in my way. Ma Griffe, Cabochard, Jolie Madame--I can' t wear them at all.

Hmm, now Jolie Madame gives me no trouble, perhaps due to the intense floral aspects of the scent. Interesting!

A few hours ago I put on some of my Chanel Cuir de Russie edt from a treasured tiny decant. I love how this scent develops on me, spreading slowly from leather and booze into a flowers-nestled-amongst-the-moss aspect, and then holding steady in a sort of ambery haze. (Admittedly, I don't know how it is supposed to develop, or how it strikes others, but on me, that seems to be CdR's scent story.)

I finally received my samples from Luckyscent. I think I ordered a few chypres (I will have to look them up to be sure), so I may be chiming in again a bit later.

A semi-funny story I wanted to share with you guys: I made a list of chypre scents that I possibly had samples somewhere. My hubby saw the list and asked me what it was. I told him that we had Sniff-n-Speak today, the theme was chypres. I offered him my wrist, freshly sprtized with Jean Patou 1000. He sniffs and says: "hmmmm powdery?" So I give him a little lesson in chypre ... oakmoss + bergamont + usually patchouli or labdanum; say foreign words like: topnotes, basenotes, and other stuff he doesn't understand. His eyes glaze over ... He isn't listening ... so I stop and say: "yeah, sort of powdery." He smiles and says: "see? I know a lot about this perfume stuff."

LOL - I can just see the face he made when he said this S.

I was extremely busy working this morning, so it totally screwed up my participation in SnS...nonetheless I left the house this morning in Moss Breches by Tom Ford, from my decant this is slowly dwindling (!). I love this stuff. It is one the newer chypres that really respects the chypre structure and carries it off with style, elegance and that wonderfully-comfy-honeycomb note. I didn't want it to project too much (I was working with food this afternoon) and MB doesn't...but I smelled it (thru a long sleeved shirt). I am pretty sure this is officially discontinued - which is pretty sad, because it's one of my favorite TF Private Blends.

Maybe tomorrow I will wear the grandmama of them all, Chypre by Coty.

I'm chiming in late, because it was hula class day. I wore my usual Saffron James Le'a, because it evokes the islands for me so well. But when I came home, I got out my sample of Acqua di Parma Profumo, the 2008 reformulation. What a nice surprise to see that several of you chose it, too! I am honestly smitten. Its soft, very slight powdery texture is dreamy. It is hard (for me) to isolate any note in Profumo, except that I get a lovely bit of vetiver in the drydown that just takes it over the top. Does anyone else get vetiver with this fragrance? Or am I smelling the tangy side of oakmoss???

Other chypres that I like and considered for SnS: Niki de Saint-Phalle, Y, Mitsouko, and Calandre. Love all of these. The chypre category is one that I'm still learning about. I marvel at the variations!

I home from the park and other errands, and the vintage Givenchy III edt (from Ben) still smells amazing. I think it's been about 8 hours now. I like it much more than when I first tried it last summer, perhaps because the weather is now crisp, but sunny. The aldehydes at the beginning are difficult for me (as usual), but the drydown is sublime. Lovely, not fussy or aggressive or sharp. Sophisticated, but not uptight or very dressy. Splendid stuff!

Btw, DH was also mossy today in his Grey Flannel. I finally caught the sweet violet that some mention as I was walking behind him on the trail.

I wore Une Folie de Rose from Les Parfums de Rosine. I'm not a big lover of Chypres but I love the spicy rose, sandalwood & benzoin notes in this fragrance.

From the Rosine website:
Olfactory family : Chypre.
Top note : Bergamot, Coriander.
Heart note : Ylang, Jasmine, Tea rose, Bulgarian and Turkish rose absolue, Iris.
Base note : Sandalwood, Oak moss, Patchouli, Vetyver, Benzoin.

To continue the March of the Chypres, I posted this on SOTD:

I "put on Natori body cream and edp. OsMoz classifies Natori as a floral chypre. I wrote a review of it & you can read it here http://www.sniffapaloozamagazine.com/NATORI.html if you like.
I'm still craving rose scents. They satisfy me."

I continued with vintage Givenchy III today. It feels a bit like Mitsouko without the peach, an archetypical chypre really.

My mom says this, too! Love it!


I'm right there with ya, but I think maybe you've hit on the key here. That is my understanding, after today, anyway.


Okay, right here just might be why chypres confound me. I haven't really connected with any. I did with Mits, for a while, but then I learned more about my preferences and it fell out of top 5. But until this morning, as far as I can tell, I've smelled all of two chypres. This morning I spritzed on 31, Rue Cambon (thank you thank you, Ubu! ). This is a 'modern chypre,' I believe, right? Anyway, 31, RC strikes me as a more nicely put-together Chance, not so sharp or edgy, and actually sort of akin to Bois des Iles, too. So is BdI a chypre, too?
Anyways, I think I sort of get it, now, and I def need to explore this genre more before I go making any base judgments.

Testing Lubin Nuit de Longchamp (the reissue), along with some non-chypres, from my Luckyscent samples haul of yesterday. The Nuit de Longchamp is supposed to be a dark, mysterious, and glamorous chypre, but on me it is just rose, rose, and rose. Now, I like rose, especially in scents like Rive Gauche and whatnot, but I admit I was expecting something other than rose here. So, not bad, but "no sale."

Sunnyfunny, I love 31 Rue Cambon!

I would think of Bois des Iles as an Oriental (it has a preponderance of wood & spice).
#31 Rue Cambon is called a pink chypre. I think of pink champagne.
Nuit de Longchamps, I think of more as an aldehyde, but a snappy one at that.