A leisurely stroll along the water. An abundance of fresh citrus provides a welcome coolness-like a refreshing breeze on a balmy Summer’s day.
A great fragrance for anytime, but I especially love it in the heat. Never cloying or sweet, sur le Nil has long been one of my absolute favorite fragrances. Having walked away from traditional fragrances for several years, I wanted to revisit a sample before purchasing a full bottle. I’m so glad I did!
It immediately swept me up in a lolling swell of light, dry juicy greenery and mysterious blossomy waterside. I’m guessing the mysterious quality comes from the frankincense in the base.
The full power of the scent never lasts beyond three to four hours on me, but every once and a while I will catch a whisper of lotus, tart fruit, and wood toward the end of the day. On me, sur le Nil’s sillage is close to the skin, which is nice for me since I wear fragrance to refresh, relax, and let my mind linger on thoughts evoked by the scent.
Although my nose can pick out certain notes, I try not to get bogged down by feeling like I “should” smell this or that. Rather, I focus more on the way the fragrance smells on me and how it makes me feel when wearing. One of my absolute favorite aspects of fragrance is how they differ based on the wearer. What smells like trash on me may smell delicious on someone else and vice versa.
Un Jardin sur le Nil is a
mango still life.
The craftwork is impressive but it feels like an intellectual exercise
and fails to entice.
3*+
Sample vial in a box set
This is so lovely! Honestly, I don't have the nose yet to pick out the notes listed here. I've worn this many times and never picked up the top note as grapefruit, though I love grapefruit in fragrances. Hermes Un Jardin sur le Nil smells so distinctively like itself. Delicate, fresh, and unique.
An explosion of summery loveliness; green mangoes, florals, breezy and chic. Quite an abstract composition with a bit of complexity, part synthetic and part as natural as sliced watermelon. The dry-down on my skin veers more towards musk than woods, which is a plus for warm-weather scents. In fact, it blooms quietly in hot weather, with close sillage and admirable persistence for something that seems so brittle. It's similar in vibe to some of the other Les Jardin perfumes, especially Sur Le Toit, but is still utterly unique. A pleasure to wear in summer, and sometimes a burst of joy in the dead of winter.
4/5
The light mix of citrus - mainly a light grapefruit-style one - with a mango - again not sweet - creates a fresh feeling, but the mange is a bit in the in the background on my skin.
The drydown has a hint of while florals in it, which is given a green slant, whilst the base developed a herbal line that is rounded off with a sycamore-style impression that sees it to the end.
I get moderate sillage, adequate projection and five hours of longevity on my skin.
The top notes are the best feature of this summery creation. Their drawback is their synthetic nature, an the whole development for beginning to end is characterised by its aroma-chemical character. Additionally, after the opening notes it becomes very generic, linear, and lacks any texture or depth. Still, the top notes are passable. 2.75
This one doesn't really do anything for me. The carrot note reminds me of the dirt accord in Terre d'Hermes. But, unlike TdH I feel like none of the other notes balance it well. Does it smell like a vegetable garden? Yes. Is that a good thing? For me, no. I've tried better earthy fragrances, this just reminds me of a grandma.