Breathtaking blossoms, Vanilla Vibes, and Riviera chic, they’re all here in this week’s latest launches. Will you swoon for Sahara Blue or succumb to Sana Jardin? Add a touch of Chanel Paris-Riveria, some HUGE sunglasses, and you’re ready, jet-set, GO!
BURBERRY
HER BLOSSOM
Longstanding Burberry perfumer Francis Kurkdjian tells us this fresh, airy interpretation of Burberry Her was ‘inspired by London’s parks in spring.The combination of plum blossoms, citrus notes and delicate peony petals create an unexpected floral breeze, and the addition of creamy sandalwood and hints of musk combine in this enveloping signature of enduring femininity.’ The so-pretty-in-pink flacon is inspired by an archival Burberry design, meanwhile – definitely our kind of hip flask.
From £44 for 30ml eau de toilette
johnlewis.com
CHANEL
LES EAUX DE CHANEL PARIS-RIVIERA
The latest olfactory flag on the map of Gabrielle Chanel’s life is firmly planted by Olivier Polge in the sands of the Côte d’Azur, making a quartet (following Biarritz, Deauville, Venise). Evoking the sun-drenched paradise Chanel helped to popularise, this is a bouquet of sheer summer petals, weaving together fresh citrus notes, jasmine and a special quality of neroli from orange blossoms harvested in the South of France, warmed by benzoin and sandalwood.
£99 for 125ml eau de toilette
chanel.com
JULIETTE HAS A GUN
VANILLA VIBES
The richness of vanilla cut through with a healthy sprinkle of sea salt plunges us immediately to childhood memories of the beach, sandy picnics and sticky fingers hastily licked as ice cream melts. Natural vanilla absolute is noticeable in the opening, but take a while to drip fully to the orchid-laden heart – and all the while a transparency prevents the sweetness from overtaking, a tremulous sunshine-filled daydream that shivers in the breeze.
£110 for 100ml eau de parfum
harveynichols.com
MORESQUE
SAHARA BLUE
Transporting us to the dunes of the Sahara desert under an infinite canopy of stars, there’s a grandeur granted to the seemingly humble ingredients of lemon, fresh ginger, pink pepper and the crisp greenness of Granny Smith apples. Juicy top notes, lavender and jasmine Sambac entwine with coriander, with a sunset slashing the cobalt blue sky as the softest swathe of oakmoss and a tingle of amber inhabit the suddenly chilled air.
£290 for 50ml eau de parfum
harrods.com
SANA JARDIN
JAIPUR CHANT
Sana Jardin are helping to put sustainability firmly on the scent agenda, a brand created primarily as a vehicle for social change, offering fragrances (by the esteemed Carlos Benaïm) which are exquisite enough to convert any eco-refusenik. They don’t launch newness every five minutes – au contraire – but introductions like this are worth waiting for, heady with tuberose, jasmine and French narcissus, freshened by lemon and ultimately smoothed by soft musks. Hypnotic, we’re finding.
From £180 for 100ml eau de parfum
sanajardin.comGUCCI
GUCCI GUILTY COLOGNE
Colognes are definitely having a moment – and with creations like this, we couldn’t be happier. Alberto Morillas’s modern reinterpretation of the centuries-old, classic construction – first invented in the XVII Century – lifts the spirits via vibrant Calabrian bergamot, rosemary, juniper and Spanish cypress essences, plus a floral breath of violet and heliotropine. No blink-and-you-miss it Cologne, however, it ultimately wraps skin in long-lasting layers of sensual patchouli, cedarwood and white musks.
From £52.50 for 50ml Cologne
thefragranceshop.co.uk