The BEST Fragrance House

[apekrul]

[quote author=Octothorpe link=1130848751/15#16 date=1130864025]Niche: L'Artisan, followed closely by CDG
Designer: YSL, followed closely by Gucci

Agreed! (but I would consider following YSL with Guerlain.)[/quote]

I agree but want to add a small change:

Niche: l'Artisan Parfumeur, followed by Lorenzo Villoresi

Designer: YSL, followed by Guerlain

[kennybania]

L'Artisan followed by Santa Maria Novella

[moondeva]

Overall GUERLAIN for Men & Women

For Men:
Chanel = classic elegant colognes for powerful individuals (Antaeus, Egoiste, Pour Monsieur) till second to Guerlain though!
Givenchy = innovation & variety

For Women:
Guerlain = divine this is a perfumer who actually seems to appreciate real women. And the scents are so well crafted that they smell amazing on all genders.
Dana = classic vintage feminity in all its many forms (Raffinee, Tabu, Chantilly, Canoe, Ambush - something for everyone)!

[myaccolades]

chanel, creed, guerlain

I really can't decide between the three.

[moon_fish]

For me it is very hard question.
Fragrance Industry is not a sport industry where they can win and loose, and make final match with extra-time, golden goal and penalties...
For me Fragrance Houses are more like a artists!
How you can say that Baudelaire is winner over Tolstoy, or Picasso demolished Renoir in a Champion Match by penalties?
Yes, everyone could be a fan of some Team, or Fragrance House... But now I`m doing my best to remain eyes (and nostrils ) widespread and open to every good fragrance - no matter who did it...

Houses released so many frags, with guidance of different art-directors and noses, they`ve got good and not-so-good scents, masterpieces and populars; they have trendsetters and nothing-to-say-about-ho-hums...

So - I do not know my answer to this question!

[apekrul]

For me it is very hard question.
Fragrance Industry is not a sport industry where they can win and loose, and make final match with extra-time, golden goal and penalties...
For me Fragrance Houses are more like a artists!
How you can say that Baudelaire is winner over Tolstoy, or Picasso demolished Renoir in a Champion Match by penalties?
Yes, everyone could be a fan of some Team, or Fragrance House... But now I`m doing my best to remain eyes (and nostrils ) widespread and open to every good fragrance - no matter who did it...

Houses released so many frags, with guidance of different art-directors and noses, they`ve got good and not-so-good scents, masterpieces and populars; they have trendsetters and nothing-to-say-about-ho-hums...

So - I do not know my answer to this question!

Well spoken!

[myaccolades]

moon_fish,

I completely agree with what you said. However, I don't think many ppl are saying certain houses are better than others but rather the houses that produces scents that they enjoy more than other houses

[moon_fish]

moon_fish,

I completely agree with what you said. However, I don't think many ppl are saying certain houses are better than others but rather the houses that produces scents that they enjoy more than other houses

Yes, myaccolades, and that`s also my point!
I`m not a fan of some House for my whole life - my tastes changes, as everything in this world.
Houses make new scents that could become my favourites.
But anyway - I refuse to say even in terms of my integral (scents, designs, nose talent, house history, innovation in perfume industry, wearability, popularity, etc.) pleasure of House.
I`m looking for new successes of Guerlain, Fr.Malle, Serge Lutens and going to try their new releases. And trying to get something common in their style.

I`m not argue with people sharing their ratings of Perfume Houses. I`m glad that some fellow Basenoters could do that ratings.

I`m just speaking for myself. I have some reasons to refuse make a rating...

`Sit down, moon_fish. Very bad! Tell your parents should come to school tomorrow!`

[Magnifiscent]

[quote author=myaccolades link=1130848751/60#66 date=1132908970]`Sit down, moon_fish. Very bad! Tell your parents should come to school tomorrow!`

[/quote]

lol ;D ;D ;D
However I perfectly understand and agree what you mean moonfish, specially because my tastes are ever evolving...

[Coleman]

If I had to pick one house...? *
Even though Zino's my favorite, it's the only Davidoff that I've liked so far.
YSL pour Homme is probably my greatest all purpose cologne, but I pretty much can't stand anything else by Yves Saint Laurent.
The last time I answered Chanel on the strength of Egoiste, Allure and Antaeus--but I've since done a 180 on Antaeus and don't ever want to wear it again.
So, I'm going with...
Hermes.

Equipage
Bel Ami
and
Eau d' Orange Verte

Oh, and if we're talking niche, then I guess I'd have to pick the only one with which I have any familiarity: Caswell-Massey.

Vintage Greenbriar
Persian Leather
Number Six
Tricorn
Jockey Club
Lord Ashley Cooper

[musclegod007]

Frederic Malle or Serge Lutens

[Dennis]

The houses whose products I'm currently most interested in:

Bond No. 9
Creed
Gendarme
Ralph Lauren

RL is the only designer house in the list-- Romance and Purple Label compel my respect...

[discovolante]

No launch from Paul Smith was a disappointment for me !

[The_love]

Serge Lutens

[Ren]

I'm going to say it's a tie between Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier, and Comme des Garcons.

With an unexpected third: Clinique. I think everything they've put out is great, female mostly but male as well.

[nefertem]

Liz Claiborne.




just kidding

[myaccolades]

I changed my mind

1. Chanel
2. L'Artisan
3. Guerlain

[jim2154mn]

As many have mentioned, this is a hard question, almost unfair. There's a lot of houses that produce great stuff, and many are represented in my wardrobe. So, to answer the question, I asked myself "is there a house that produces a number of fragrances that I really enoy, and none that I hate?":

Creed - the first house that popped into my head. I've enjoyed virtually every scent I've tried from this house since the first bottle of Millesime Imperial started this crazy journey

Aramis - as someone above mentioned, Aramis just hasn't made a bad scent....however, I've been somewhat disappointed with some of their recent offerings (e.g. Aramis Life). But the run they had in the 80's and 90's is hard to beat.

Cheers,
Jim

[ozebarjadi]

Hermes

For one, life without Terre is simply not possible -- no Terre? --> ...I die!
also, Hemes keeps it INTERESTING. JM, Bel Ami, Voyage, Poivre Samarcande... their creations are incredibly unique and so full of personality. You can build true relationship with their scents. ...you wear them, love them, try to understand them, reinterpret their meanings... After some 20 years of Equipage you may find yourself talking to the bottle, asking it "WHO ARE YOU???"

...oh, and they didn't resort to Aoud and Liquid desert dust to please anyone.

[hednic]

Guerlain

[bokaba]

Creed, Dukes of Pall Mall, Guerlain, Crown Perfumery (original, not Anglia)

[lovingthealien]

Guerlain (crossing fingers), Caron, YSL a couple of years ago, Hermes.

[chrisbar1104]

Maybe I'm alone in this, but Tom Ford has some absolutely astounding fragrances. Tobacco Vanille doesn't even scratch the surface; I'm not even sure there's a Tom Ford I dislike.

[Arhlll]

I am by no means saying it's the best House, but if I could only choose from one it would be Parfums de Nicloai. I am amazed at how much I am liking everything from PdN. I do not have a sophisticated nose yet and expect my tastes might change over time.

[Merely]

Moonfish is of course right...

With a single exception, I like particular scents rather than houses. The three houses whose scents most please me are Caron, Chanel and Guerlain. I do not care particularly about Chanel as a house/brand - they leave me cold. But their Cuir de Russie is superb, and near the very top of my list of anything I have smelled. I have mixed feelings for Guerlain - on the one hand, they have some masterpieces, but (considering their being a 'house' as a separate thing) I think they try too hard with their branding. They shout at one from the street with their promises of elegant illusions and the depth of history. It is all rather strained.

The only house that I like on the basis of itself is Caron. Caron is discreet. It does not insanely inflate the cost of its productions (the exclusivity strategy of Creed, which Guerlain and Chanel also follow). They are quite 'true' to their perfumes with respect to reformulations (I incline to believe this), and only add new perfumes to their modest line-up very cautiously - so they have an air of being thoughtful and judicious. This has, to me, an almost moral quality, which is only enhanced by their long affiliation with female perfumers, and creating scents in the cause of female triumphs in various fields. And they have some superb scents, such as Caron Pour un Homme, Tabac Blond and En Avion.

[Kagey]

Tom Ford, Serge Lutens, or Robert Piguet for me.

[rubegon]

Easily Guerlain for me. If limited to only 1 house, I could live with HR, Heritage, Jicky, Imperiale, Mitsouko, MdM, Shalimar, LHB, ...

[Marais]

Easily Guerlain for me. If limited to only 1 house, I could live with HR, Heritage, Jicky, Imperiale, Mitsouko, MdM, Shalimar, LHB, ...

+1.

[Sofyaan]

the answer has got to be Christian Dior !!! look how many amazing fragrances they have produced..

[MrFragranceReview]

Tom Ford, Lutens, Bond No.9, Gucci and Mugler are my favorites