Favorite Scents That Nobody Has Heard About: L'Eau de Kasaneka

created with Ideogram AI and Adobe Photoshop

Menard L'Eau de Kasaneka
Japanese Rose, Cardamom, Nutmeg, Ginger, Orange, Basil, Bergamot, Heliotrope, Ylang-Ylang, Jasmine, Carnation, Ambrette, Vanilla, Sandalwood, Musk, Cedar, Vetiver

Japanese firm Menard was founded on my birthday in 1959 (a coincidence, as I wasn't born until 6 years later). Their pricey products can be found in shops in 23 countries, including Osswald in NYC.  In addition to their skincare lines, Menard currently has salons, a resort, and a museum. They have also dabbled in perfumery now and again, releasing at least 7 scents between 1979 and 2012. L'Eau de Kasaneka (2004) is the creation of Shuji Suzuki. And as befitting such a lovely fragrance, the fabulous bottle was designed by artist Shozo Shimada, whose works can be found in Menard's museum. 

There's something gently old-fashioned about L'Eau de Kasaneka, a spicy floral scent reminiscent of spilled powder on a tabletop near a carelessly discarded scarf bearing traces of yesterday's perfume. It's demure, but sexy at the same time. I have owned L'Eau de Kasaneka for years and have always thought of it as a spicy rose fragrance, though the rose isn't all that prominent. Honestly, neither are the spices. It's not like Opium, Lune Feline, or Coco--deliciously in your face. This is a Japanese fragrance, after all, so the spices are subtle and exist on multiple levels. The opening brings the sweet baking spice aromas of cardamom and nutmeg. The basil--which I know is an herb and not a spice, but nonetheless can be described as "spicy"--adds an aromatic green sensation that is noticeable on a blotter but is sadly missing on my skin. The final layer of spice is found in the peppery carnation of the drydown. However, everything is buried in a sweet and fluffy mountain of almondy heliotrope, ambrette, and musk, with a grounding base of vanilla and sandalwood. 

I don't wear this scent as often as I should. Especially as I have a backup bottle. Hm. Maybe I should sell it?

-----------------------
Posted by theminx on Minxstinks
Note: this post is my opinion. I am not affiliated with the companies mentioned in this post or any other companies.

Beauty Pie The Scent Lab No. 3

created with Ideogram AI and Adobe Photoshop

I was so pleased with the summery green La Botanista fragrances in Beauty Pie's The Scent Lab No. 2, I thought I'd try the No. 3 release as well. A good 90% of their prior perfume launches impressed me not. Granted, they are quite reasonably priced--between $34 and $39 for 50ml--but they seemed pretty one-dimensional to me. There are plenty of reviews to the contrary; however, my tender skin is a real snob. Inexpensive stuff seldom smells good on me. 

I must confess that I happily purchased a full bottle of La Botanista 001. And when their ambery-peach Element 79 was a successful blind buy, I thought the company was heading in the right direction by creating decent-quality fragrances that finally had some depth. Fortunately, I wasn't wrong. While I can't say I'm in love with either half of The Scent Lab No. 3, Flower Drench or Amber 01, I am happy to report that they are both complex and interesting fragrances, if not particularly ground-breaking.

Flower Drench

‎Ginger, Lime, Lemon, ‎Rose, White Flowers, Lily, Ylang Ylang, ‎Vanilla, Cedarwood, Amyris, Musk

On paper, Flower Drench is shampoo-like, creamy and clean, with a hint of lemon-lime soda over some quite un-subtle floral notes. On my skin, it's a bit different, less shampoo-y, more creamy, with a definite vanilla aspect. While the ginger note is largely absent on paper, it becomes fairly prominent as the scent dries down on my skin, and the lemon and lime make a late appearance as well. Unusual that, as the citrus notes are usually right up front and fade fast. The floral notes are quite loud, lots of shouty jasmine and banana ylang, thankfully muted somewhat by a bit of woody notes. The drydown is pleasantly musky.

The website refers to Flower Drench as "a cascade of dazzling white flowers and rose;"  I think both "drench" and "dazzling" are misused here. "Drench" implies wetness, a sudden shower, perhaps refreshment, but I find this scent quite heavy and sweet, definitely suitable for cooler weather. As for "dazzling," which implies bright light or impressive skill--I'd say this scent has more of a warm glow.

Amber 001

‎Bergamot, Cardamom, Basil, ‎Sage, Cinnamon, Cocoa, ‎Patchouli, Sandalwood, Vanilla, Tonka

Out of the sprayer, on paper, this scent leans masculine. I think it's the addition of herbs like basil and sage in combination with the warm spices and foody notes. On skin, mine anyway, the opening has a very prominent alcohol note that turns into a medicinal saffron-adjacent thing. I don't get the herb-y notes at all, but the cinnamon is there, way in the background. That saffron-y smell, or whatever it is that's going on, is so distracting when sniffed up close. When I put my arm down at my side, however, I get whiffs of an almost caramelly amber that is quite pleasant. As Amber 001 dries down, it gets sweeter and creamier, with a pronounced tonka note. 

According to the website, Amber 001 "a buttery-soft and mellow scent for days (and nights) when you want something warm and enveloping." It's definitely warm and enveloping, though I wouldn't call it buttery. The medicinal quality is slightly spiky, and the drydown is a bit powdery. On my husband, there is no saffron-like note. Rather, it's almost immediately a sweet amber and definitely leaning towards the masculine. I think I'd like it better if it were more unisex. 

-----------------------
Posted by theminx on Minxstinks
Note: this post is my opinion. I am not affiliated with the companies mentioned in this post or any other companies.

Guerlain Eau Secrete/de Coton/de Bain

Mostly Photoshop this time, with a little help from Ideogram AI 

I am confused.

A couple years back, I was browsing at Saks (as one does) sniffing what appeared to be a new line of Guerlain fragrances, Les Matières Confidentielles, and fell in love with the white-musky Eau Secrete. It was damn expensive for what it was ~$175 or so (at the time--that line retails for $190 today). I could--and did--buy a big bottle of Body Shop White Musk for less than a quarter of that price. Still, I was a little obsessed with Eau Secrete until I was able to snag a full bottle from a Mercari seller for a considerable discount. I wore it twice before deciding there was something weird about it that I didn't like, put it away, and didn't think about it again. 

Recently, while rummaging through my ever-expanding fragrance collection, I happened upon my abandoned bottle of Eau Secrete and decided to give it another chance. I spritzed it on the back of my hand and gave a quick sniff. Yes, it was still primarily white musk, but I also noticed some citrus and almond notes that I hadn't noticed before. These were probably the "something weird" that turned me off my brief obsession. My brain was so focused on the musk that anything not-musk stood out as something that didn't belong. Au contraire, brain, they do belong in Eau Secrete. This is very much a Guerlain scent, like a much younger, and less-complex third or fourth cousin to both Shalimar and L'Instant Magic. 

Another reason Eau Secrete and I may have had our falling out is that I'm ordinarily not a fan of clean laundry scents. I grew up in my grandmother's house, and she did laundry several times a week. There was no drier, so everything went on the lines outside. Pretty much everything got ironed, including towels, socks, and underwear. (I think Grandma enjoyed ironing.) While I adore the ozonic scent of clothes fresh off the line, and the clean hot metal smell of a shirt still warm from the iron, I don't want my skin to smell like either of them. Yes, I realize some people adore those smells. Whole perfume lines have been created around the olfactory sensation of the various aldehydes and keytones produced by the action of garment cleansing, and there are numerous candles and air-and-fabric-scenting products on the market that mimic those smells. I just prefer to encounter the natural versions caused by washing and drying--actual clean--as opposed to filling my world with the scent of dryer sheets. Eau Secrete does has a whiff of clean, but it's subtle. As if the almond note is sugared, like Jordan almonds, and they are nestled in a freshly laundered white napkin.

So let's go back to the part where I'm confused. 

Apparently Eau Secrete, now discontinued, is very similar to Eau de Coton, another member of the Les Matières Confidentielles family. There are people who swear they are identical, that Eau de Coton replaced Eau Secrete. There's some confusion about their release dates. As best as I can tell, Eau de Coton was released in 2023, Eau Secrete in 2022, so it seems plausible. And then there's Eau de Bain, a release from 2019. Some folks think--you guessed it--that it was renamed Eau Secrete, and then became Eau de Coton.

Let's compare the notes, keeping in mind that most online sources for this sort of thing, like Fragrantica and Basenotes, are not reliable. Eau de Bain (2019) has Almond, Orange Blossom, and White Musk, with additional Bergamot, Lemon, Green Notes, Vanilla, and Precious Woods. Eau Secrete (2022) contains Almond, Orange Blossom, and White Musk. Finally, Eau de Coton (2023) is made with notes of Almond, Orange Blossom, and White Musk, plus Cotton Flower and Linen. All three scents include the same triumvirate of notes, but there are a few differences.

My main confusion is this: if the scents are so similar, why discontinue one and put out another on its heels? I realize that Guerlain is trying to appeal to many different tastes these days, what with the introduction of multiple oud fragrances, regular releases of the watery-fresh Aqua Allegoria EDTs, and updates to their classics. But I have to ask: as pleasant as they are, does Guerlain really need multiple white musk fragrances? 

I needed a definitive answer, so I asked a friend who had worked for Guerlain, and he said the three were definitely different fragrances. Then I sent an email to Guerlain customer service and received this response:

Eau Secrete and Eau Coton are indeed different fragrances. While both offer a fresh and clean scent, they have distinct compositions:

Eau Secrete: Known for its light, airy, and slightly citrusy notes, Eau Secrete is designed to evoke a sense of freshness and subtle elegance. 

Eau de Coton: This fragrance tends to have a softer, more powdery profile, reminiscent of clean linens and a comforting, cozy atmosphere. 

As for Eau de Bain, it is a third fragrance entirely and not the same as either Eau Secrete or Eau Coton. Eau de Bain typically features a blend of fresh and aquatic notes, designed to evoke the feeling of a luxurious bath experience.

Eau de Coton is the only scent still available, and I feel like I have to give this one a good sniff at some point. It's not really a shame I missed out on Eau de Bain if it has "fresh" and "aquatic" notes (not my faves). Still, I would really love to be able to compare them side by side by side.

Has anyone out there been able to do that? I'd love to hear from you.

-----------------------

Posted by theminx on Minxstinks
Note: this post is my opinion. I am not affiliated with the companies mentioned in this post or any other companies.

Gourmand Fragrances

created with Ideogram AI and a whole lotta Photoshopping

The word "gourmand" refers to a person who enjoys eating and often eats too much. It's actually a negative term, akin to "glutton." One could use that term to describe me and not be wrong, but I'm not sure why it's applied to an inanimate object like perfume. It's not unusual for words to be appropriated to signify something vaguely adjacent to its original meaning, and "gourmand" has become the term for a family of perfumes that have sweet or "edible" notes like toffee and marshmallow.

There seems to be a real interest in sugary fragrances these days. Why? With influencers on Instagram and TikTok spreading the good-smelling news, there are more and more young consumers attracted to the world of perfume. Also, the preponderance of scents marketed by pop stars and celebrities like Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish, Sabrina Carpenter, and less-recently by Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey, and Paris Hilton, tend to be sugar bombs aimed at this younger audience. Some of these consumers will grow up with a preference for smelling like dessert, but for others, a candy-scented spritz might be the gateway drug to other fragrance families. But it's not only the young folks who go for treacly scents. Judging by the success of expensive marshmallow bombs like By Kilian Love Don't Be Shy and Parfums de Marly Oriana, there are folks of all ages (or at least people with more than just babysitting money) who enjoy indulging their olfactory sweet tooth. 

It's widely accepted that Mugler's Angel, released in 1992, was the first modern gourmand fragrance, though I would argue that companies like Comptoir Sud Pacifique were making sugary fragrances in the 70s. Angel was groundbreaking in the use of sweet, non-vanilla, food notes like red berries, cotton candy, caramel, and chocolate. While Angel is definitely sweet and candy-like, there's also a bunch of other stuff going on, including a quite obvious dose of patchouli. I don't know about you, but I do not want to eat anything that smells or tastes of patchouli. Or woods, or jasmine, or any of the other notes that are combined with a pinch of sugar here and there in the many so-called gourmand perfumes on the market.

There doesn't seem to be a consensus as to what exactly constitutes a gourmand fragrance. The person who wrote the Wikipedia entry on the subject states:

A gourmand fragrance is a perfume consisting primarily of synthetic edible (gourmand) notes, such as honey, chocolate, vanilla or candy. These top and middle notes may be blended with non-edible base notes such as patchouli or musk.

Note their use of the word "primarily." They then go on to mention examples of what they consider to be other gourmand fragrances, including Calvin Klein Euphoria, and Viktor & Rolf's Antidote. Euphoria has a single whipped cream note and is a fruity ambree. There's nothing particularly sugary in Antidote, though it has spice and citrus notes, along with vanilla in the base. Most perfumes have citrus and/or vanilla notes (and rose), but that doesn't necessarily make them gourmands. 

L'Artisan Parfumeur, too, includes scents with just a couple of food-y notes on their website's gourmand page, including: Mechant Loup (honey and praline notes); Noir Exquis (maple sap, coffee); Premier Figuier Extreme (fig, dried fruits); L'Eau D'Ambre (vanilla); and Histoire D'Orangers (um, nothing foody). As far as I'm concerned, their one truly gourmand scent was Traversee du Bosphore; its nougat, sugar, pistachio, honey, and rose base notes were very Turkish delight meets baklava. Sadly it was discontinued. It might have done really well in today's "I want candy" climate. 

I suppose we're stuck with the term "gourmand" to describe scents on the saccharine side, whether or not they "consist primarily of edible notes." Gourmand fragrances should be mostly sweet food notes. In fact, I want to refine the use of the term to include only fragrances that are meant to smell like actual food and drink, perfumes that deliberately smell like cupcakes, candyfloss, hazelnut lattes, Bakewell tarts, scones smeared with lemon curd, or chocolate fudge brownies. Sugary food items in which gluttons like me enjoy indulging.

What about savory food notes? you ask. There are plenty of perfumes with cumin notes, and green scents with basil or herb notes. Without the sugary aspect, however, I don't consider a scent to be gourmand, even a scent like Snif Pie Society--a perfume that is meant to smell like pizza, with notes of crust and tomato sauce. While it has a vague yeasty aroma with a bit of tomato and basil at the opening, it soon turns into a hot mess. A fragrance like that deserves a new category: Novelty scents. They're interesting to sample, but not actually to wear. 

My collection currently contains only three scents that I would consider to be "true" gourmands, that is, scents that are deliberately created to mimic the scents of sweet desserts, beverages, or confections. I own a few other sweet perfumes, including a couple of Angel flankers, but to me, they are just that--sweet perfumes. Not gourmands. 

Arte Profumi Bisquit

Cocoa, Coffee, Chocolate, Vanilla, Bitter Orange

This is supposed to smell like freshly baked "milk biscuits," with chocolate and orange. I'm not very familiar with this type of cookie, so I did an extensive 90-second google search. What I discovered is a cookie also known as a biscottoni, or an Italian breakfast cookie. The closest I've ever come to one of those is a Stella D'oro breakfast treat, which I must admit I've always liked. They're a bit vanilla/almond-y in flavor, IIRC. In any case, Bisquit does not smell like a baked cookie to me, as it lacks the toasty flour aroma. What it does smell like is sweet chocolate cake batter with a hint of orange and coffee. I normally don't gravitate toward chocolate fragrances--though I adore eating chocolate--because I find most cocoa or chocolate notes to be artificial-smelling, often with a peculiar dustiness. I dabbled with wearing Montale Chocolate Greedy for a minute, but I found it to be cloying and sickly on my skin. Bisquit, however, is just lovely. The chocolate smells like real chocolate, somewhere between milk and dark, with a good hint of vanilla. Because chocolate really isn't truly chocolate-y unless it's paired with vanilla. (Ever notice that every chocolate recipe also includes vanilla?) Bisquit is lovely, and it's also not tooth-achingly sweet.

Chabaud Lait et Chocolate

Jasmine, Chocolate, Cedar, Teak Wood, Vanilla, Musk, Milk

While this fragrance has jasmine, woody notes, and musk, it does not violate my rule that a gourmand fragrance should smell only of food. Lait et Chocolate smells of...lait et chocolate. There's a wee bit of brightness in the opening, from the jasmine, but that disappears quickly. The wood notes add a bit of backbone and longevity to the fragrance, but don't actually make it at all woody. Lait et Chocolate is a big mug of milk, warm and frothy, with a spoonful of Horlicks (malted milk powder) on the table next to it. Not in the milk, just near it. I don't get much chocolate at all. This is a very nice bedtime scent, soothing and comfy, but I also love it on a cold winter morning.

Theodoros Kalotinis Lemon Tart

Tart Crust, Vanilla Cream, Lemon Juice, Butter, Lemon Zest, Sugar

I've tried Akro Bake, and despite its rave reviews, it doesn't work on me. The lemon note turns into washing up powder or detergent on my skin--not all that gourmand or pleasant to my nose. Lemon Tart, on the other hand, has a zesty lemon note that is also creamy, and a bit buttery, too, like lemon curd. And there's a definite toasty pastry note in this fragrance as well. It's very much edible. Sometimes I like to ramp up the lemon with a spritz of Monotheme Venezia Boccioli di Limone on top.

-----------------------
Posted by theminx on Minxstinks

Note: this post is my opinion. I am not affiliated with the companies mentioned in this post or any other companies.