Today I want to write about another two, one of which has left me baffled. I just started thinking how I’m starting to smell more and understand scents a bit better than before and then comes Aramis/Portos by Estee Lauder and I get lost in the drydown notes. Notes by Carol: bergamot, rosemary, lavender, geranium, vetiver, pine, cedar, moss, fir, musk, patchouli, amber, tonka.
What I smelled was a fresh start (by that I usually mean, it gives my mind a slight fresh boost and that usually happens with citruses). It smelled to me warm, spicy, woody and old (as in vintage, not today’s stuff). Then I started getting something dry and vegetable-like, possibly smelling of mushrooms. So I thought that might be msuk (I was so glad to read musk as one of the notes). My idea was that it smelled like an old wardrobe, where flowers were kept to keep some freshness in it. Which doesn’t sound as good as the scent smells. It reminded me of my grandfather and the way he used to smell, it gets slightly sweet and woody and possibly smoky. The smoke hint just hit me, because if it reminds me of my grandfather then it had to smell at least a bit smoky and that is why I was getting a slightly nauseous vibe from it. The cigarette smoke combined with something sweet smelling always makes me feel slightly nauseous.
I won’t be wearing my sample but I will be smelling it more because there are more notes to be learned from it and I know this one is the equivalent of a really difficult math equation.
The other sample I tried today was Extra Vieille by Roger et Gallet. That one was made right for me. 🙂 It starts green, flowery and colognish.
Turns out the notes are as follows: bergamot, lemon, tamgerine, orange, rosemary, carnation, neroli, petit grain, rose and clove.
To me it smelled like minty, flowery grass, you know, there was a herbal fresh aspect to it making me think mint. It feels like you are walking through a fragrant meadow where there is some rosemary and lavender growing. But since this is really a cologne, it lasts correspondingly. Not that I mind. I could walk through that meadow every day. Breathing in that green, aromatic spiciness.
Pic by: http://ideachic.wordpress.com
Tagged: Estee Lauder, Extra Vieille, Portos, Roger et Gallet, vintage perfume, World of Perfume
All I am - a redhead 
The Aramis/Portos sounds lovely. Thanks for the great review!You're so right – there are things to be learned even from those perfumes we don't/can't wear.
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Josephine, I'm glad you liked it. That's actually one of the things that made me start loving perfumes so much – there is a new world out there to discover and learn at the tip of our noses. 🙂
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I have allowed the whole vintage scene more or less to pass me by, but you have reminded me that I may be missing some gems! Maybe not the difficult math equation one(!), but there are many vintage scents to which modern perfumery cannot hold a candle.
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Flittersniffer, maybe you should let it pass you by for a little while longer and then you forget and save money and are not sad they are no longer in production. 🙂 Not that I'm the one to give advice since it's pretty obvious I can't follow it. ;)But you know, there really are gems hidden there.
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