Eau de Reglisse (Liquorice)

You arrive at the long neglected family Manor - it is impossible to tell how long these halls have waited for another's footsteps. As you heave the massive wood doors open and enter the foyer, you are assaulted by a mixture of over polished wood and ancient lemon candies...while not repulsive, it was unexpected. You wind through the numerous rooms littering the manor's first floor - the kitchen, a formal dining room, a tea room, a sun room...and so many more. Despite a thin lining of dust and the thick smell of age, the Manor looks to be surprisingly well kept for its age. You decide to ascend the grand staircase which occupies the space of an entire room - you open the ornately carved door to the first room at the top of the stairs. You are greeted with the spellbinding scent of century old books - they gently whisper for your wandering touch. You crack open a heavy book that ponders the meaning of life and its serpentine paths - the scent of the pages wafts about in its vanilla hues with nuances of aged patchouli...the scent begs to linger forever. You slowly walk over to a massive reading chair, seemingly untouched by the dust and decay of the Manor, and free fall into its cushioned depths. An invisible rush of aged flesh clings to the surrounding air - the rich muskiness of your family's scholars and their endless hours of knowledge seeking welcomes you to the chase. In this moment, you feel at home. Between the vibrant lemons of the once well-kept woodwork, the smell of ancient wisdom, and the comfort of your long lost family, you feel like you could build a life here....no longer an outcast, you are home. Day 89 - A little faith Listening to: Muse - Mercy Notes: Well, I must say this is an odd duck of fumes...I am mildly put off by the opening (I get a candied lemon verbena and a rich lemon/pine note that is very hard to shake), but wildly attracted to the layers of beauty beneath. Maybe this could be likened to a blonde with brains...? The opening lasts for about an hour or so and still holds a place in the heart, so you have to be able to tolerate lemon candy for quite some time. However, the heart does begin to smell of ancient books (I live near one of the world's largest bookstores and they have a section with books that are several hundred years old, so this is more than a wild guess) with the thick smell of aged paper (much like aged patchouli) and a rich, dusty vanilla that is likely made nuttier/woodier by the nutmeg. It goes from that wonderful phase to a rich white musk that maintains some pizzazz from the vanilla...and is somehow slightly animalic in its presentation. I unfortunately fail to pick up any ginger or licorice in this....and I love those notes! All in all, this ancient beauty lasts close to the 12 hours mark on my skin and is surprisingly complex, and as with anything ageless, this is also genderless.

I know I've reviewed this already but my replacement new bottle arrived today and I have to re-iterate just HOW MUCH I LOVE this fragrance. Truly, if you love unusual and unexpected fragrances you should really try and sample this. The thing that stuns me so much is the way it morphs from one mood to another, some might say that means it has poor sillage but I disagree. Upon application the lemon verbena is sharp and refreshing and leads for about twenty minutes, then it begins to soften and turn gingery and warm vanilla, still retaining a little citrus edge. Many hours later just the warmth remains. It's like it is a day to night fragrance, it wakes you up with it's citrusy sparkle and relaxes you eight hours later with big vanilla hug, extraordinary! The liquorice is really subtle and green, it smells (tastes?!) more like chewing on a stick of woody liquorice root, it's not a black processed liquorice which I feel tends be heavier. Dying to try the Hermes Brin de Reglisse for comparison but I am sure that Caron's will be the stunner of all the current liquorice scents. The annoying thing is that Caron tends to be difficult to find in the North of England, I buy mine online. If you have the chance to try it, TRY IT!

I seldom reduce any one fragrance to the label of "freshie" just as I usually avoid all popular reductionist jargon in describing perfume, but Eau de Réglisse is sort of "fresh" that seems to suit me best. It is bracing at application, an intensely green-sweet lemon verbena with a ginger-citrus melange, that mellows into an anise and licorice "your skin but better" dry down, only subtly fixed with some patchouli and musks. This best serves me as a pick-me-up on a warmer day, something to reapply as needed when something invigorating and uncomplicated is in order. Not only is the scent itself refreshing, but also it simplicity. It isn't trying to wax poetic or is floridly conceptual. It is mouthwatering, but not exceedingly gourmand, and its one of those that I would file among those scents that have an essence of sprezzatura: not necessarily meant to be pondered, but to be casually felt.

Brilliant. Ginger and licorice, fresh and invigorating, with a slice of lemon. Reminds me a little of the ginger based margaritas they serve in Bryant Park, in Manhattan: fresh lime, muddled ginger, silver tequila, ginger liqueur, anise, and shake! Serve on ice. Yum! Great in summer, but holds up in fall. This is a smart, savvy, citified fragrance that is light on the licorice, slightly boozey, but sparkling. A fresh, citrusy ginger and anise, with a little depth from a tupelo honey. Edit: Wearing this in Fall and winter, the patchouli, musk, sandalwood and vanilla become predominate. Drydown is close to the skin, but lasts a good six hours on me. A strong vanilla that is deep, dark and natural. Reminds me of Mexican vanilla liqueur. Again, I am getting a strong boozey element. A versatile, unisex fragrance.

Brilliant...natural...stunning...and a truly unisex scent to be adorned. My wife and I wore this together in October (each a full wearing) and made love to celebrate the day we got engaged years ago. It is one of the most elegant and beautiful creations of niche quality by the uncompromising house of Caron. From the box/tube to the bottle & cap - and most importantly what is inside...this is artistry in perfumery. The refinement and elegance (as Lolita said) create an olfactory experience that is to be enjoyed. This is not just fragrance. Swiftbanderilla said something great here as well. Enjoy! No rating as this is sheer beauty - and, in this case, is in both the eye and nose of the beholder. Not just a gorgeous flacon...and not meant to be understood by all. This is why I love Caron!

I agree with both swirfbanderilla and action on this... A deep liquorice , lemon verbena and patchouli on me, where the verbena and musk together is creating an almost black velvet touch with the powdery freshness. Warm and easy to wear. Sexy as for night but subtle as for the day . I also sense a tender coffee note, as the one in the gorgeous Belle en Rykiel. Thanks P in Luxembourg for my wonderful decant ! Smell 10/10 Sillage 5/10 Longavity 5/10 My full bottle is finally here, after some years looking for it!

This is just wonderful! I had high expectations on EdR which were not disappointed. The lemony notes are very prominent in the beginning but soon they get tamed and blend in perfectly with the other lovely ingredients like ginger and discreet vanilla. After a few minutes EdR changes to a very soft but still fresh skinscent. Refined, sophisticated and elegant. If you want something different that not too many people smell of this might be your choice.

I was lucky enough to get a bottle of this off mecari!!!! I love it! Caron should bring this back! What a gem! Its unique but smells like this hair tonic I bought years ago that I used to love the smell of. It doesn't smell like cat pee which others have suggested. Maybe those bottles turned. People smell different things though. I recommend this to men and women.

Just lovely! I crave an old discontinued liquorice/spice 'body treatment fragrance' by Decleor, I think it was discontinued in the late 1990s. This Caron fragrance is the closest thing to it. Warm, sweet, cake shop, very ginger/vanilla on the dry down. Unusual and delightful. Does anybody remember what on earth the Decleor fragrance was called?

Oh yes. Fantastic, realistic lemon ginger liquorice. Certainly blows Diesel Fuel for Life Unlimited out of the water. There's a hard candy where I come from that tastes exactly like this smells and it's delightful. Definitely one of the best liquorice scents I have tried.

Lovely perfume. A beautiful well-blended mixture of mainly citrus, liquorice and vanilla, with a lovely rich herby smell, and the slightly pungent patchouli. It's gorgeous, and creamy and fresh and uplifting. I love it.

To me this is a ladies fragrance but men like it too, I love the citrus and heavy smell, is an strong fragrance not light at all, but I love it, goes well with my chemistry, I get a lot of compliments when I wear it.

One of the best fragrances from the house of Caron! Rich and spicy.....its character reminds me of Opium very much. Can't wait for the weather to cool down so I can start wearing it!

Caron is not my number 1 house but they have made some true beauties! Lady Caron, Infini and this GOURMAND! One of the notes missing here is coffee!

A cup of herbal liquorice tea, anyone ? This one opens like a typical cologne with a bright lemon verbena, which is quickly joined by anise or liquorice. Actually the very sharp lemon verbena reminds me quite a lot of "Escale a Portofino" by Dior, but with liquorice hiding slightly below it and slowly peeking through as time passes, joined by teasing hints of coffee as well. A little later the licorice is also joined by a fresh ginger accord, that only sits around for about half an hour before it dries down to a sweet milky and musky woody base, with patchouli and vanilla as the main players. Straight up this is not a semi-gourmand licorice scent like Body Kouros or Lempicka au Masculin, as it only turns sweet in the drydown, but actually there are some similarities to the drydown of Body Kouros after 3-4 hours. A bright, sharp and clean fragrance and quite minimalistic, even if it's not linear as such. Very unisex indeed. Projection and longevity are unfortunately on the duller side, projecting for a good hour, but as it passes into the drydown it turns into a skinscent. I would find this to be mostly suitable for a warmer summer day.

got this blind because i (a) love the House of Caron (mostly the Daltroff scents but i wanted to try one of the more recent offerings); and (b) found the thought of a licorice-based fragrance intriguing. arrived yesterday and i kept testing it all evening. my vote? It's delightful. i agree with lolita that it's a lovely light perfume that would be perfect for my low-scent workplace. the whiff of licorice only lasts a short while and then it settles into a citrusy sugary vanilla. i bought it with a licorice-loving daughter in mind, but might have to wear it a while before it's gifted.

A fragrance I could live without, but a nice fresh fume for those who like colognes. VERY lemony top notes - more verbena or lemongrass than actual lemon - followed by fresh ginger root and a touch of licorice. The drydown is faint and milky. It lacks the creamy heart of most Caron fragrances, but the main issue for me is lack of longevity - I like a good 8-9 hours out of a fragrance, but this is more of a 1-2 hours cologne. Good for spring or summer when I want to feel fresh but can't commit to an all-day fragrance.

Oddly-enough, I was instantly reminded of vintage Jade East (a higher-quality fume than today's pallid incarnation). Eau de Reglisse Licorice is very soft, refined, and definitely has an old-fashioned charm. I never would have guessed that this was produced in 2006... The note of licorice does not stand out for me, rather it is part of a seamless blend that you really need to experience to understand.

Absolute ginger and lemon verbena paradise! Reminds me of herbal teas. Liquorice isn't very distinctive on me - nothing reminds me of LL creations here. The best scent twin might be Guepard by Guepard - the same ginger blast, not too sweet, just refreshing, cool, a little spicy day frag. Be careful when spraying - one spray too much might give you (and those around you) headaches...

One of my first niche fragrance. The citrus and liquorice smells, give an opening breath. Well belanced niche fragrance, but it doesn't long lasting. Una delle mie prime fragranze di Nicchia. Le note esperidate e di liquirizia danno apertura. Fragranza Ben bilanciata ma non persistente.

Lemon verbana and patchouli are some of my favorite notes in a perfume. This was definitely a winner for me.

Straight up limoncello- for lemon lovers!

The first time I tried Eau De Reglissé I was amazed by the opening. The lemon-anis (liquorice) duet is pretty fantastic, but within a few minutes it sadly turns to be a generic Eau De Cologne as millions of others. Go for Eau Sauvage or Eau de Guerlain. Rating: 7.5/10 (for the opening) 6.5/10 (for the drydown)

Cat pee. Too much Citrus, not enough licorice.

Eau de Reglisse opens with a bright flash of lemon verbena undercut with a licorice accord of what I believe to be the perfect strength. It sits a couple notches below the verbena in terms of how much it projects, and what's interesting about it is that it also has a similar density to the verbena. I like this, as it keeps the fragrance in a light, ethereal dimension, with a smooth balance between the citrus and reglisse; nothing feels bogged down or competing for space. It smells clean, sharp, and maybe even a little soapy. The bright citrusy aspect of Eau and its licorice pairing last for about an hour before fading into the background, replaced by the base which is a quiet, vanilla-dominated woody patchouli. I like the conclusion. It's simple, not too sweet, and leaves a nice scent on the skin. Overall, this is a very good fragrance, but probably not a great one due to the fact that its performance is generally lacking (decent projection for an hour followed by a skin scent for a few more). Also, while it's very nice, don't expect to be "wowed" by it either (it's not that kind of scent). Eau de Reglisse has the right heft, great balance, and succeeds by executing its theme more or less flawlessly. If its concept intrigues you, it's definitely worth sampling. *Also worth noting: While this is listed as a female fragrance, it is absolutely unisex and while I tried it not knowing how it was categorized I actually thought it was a men's fragrance. Don't be dissuaded.

Bought some of this at a bargain and, although I admire the caron fragrance line some of them just do not suit my skin. I am male and wear fragrances that are marketed at both males and females. Today is a cool summer day, it has been raining and I base my choice of fragrance on the weather, thhe occasion and my mood. I wanted something uplifting but not too citrus or summer type cologne so I chose Eau de Reglisse today. Fortunately the lemon furniture polish smell after the initial spray only lasts about 10 minutes. This then morphs into something much softer and sweeter, yes almost edible. A lovely natural mixture of soft liquorice and vanilla. 100 percent suitable for both men and women. Inoffensive but different and not as synthetic as Lolita lempicka..Lasts 3 to 4 hours on my skin which is fine for casual daytime wear. Love the uniqueness of the entire fragrance. yes I can smell the nutmeg and ginger at first but as a whole it smells soft,natural and not at all cheap. Will continue to wear this on a regular basis as I am a little tired of today's sweet , in your face male fragrances. Think this will become a classic in the future. My rating 9 out of 10 (on a personal level ). lasting power 7 out of 10 projection 6 out of 10

I recently tested Hermès Hermessence BRIN DE REGLISSE, next to which Caron EAU DE REGLISSE seems *very* light on the licorice. This composition reminds me much more of the Lolita Lempicka limited edition EAU DU DESIR. I know, I know, obscurum per obscurius... So what's it all about? A very lemony herbal cologne with a underlying light layer of licorice in an oriental base which becomes sweeter in the drydown--must be the vanilla, though this does not smell very vanilla-y, in the end. EAU DE REGLISSE is definitely more sweet than EAU DU DESIR, which is a super-refreshing herbal-lemon cologne. I like EAU DE REGLISSE, but for what it is, I do think that EAU DU DESIR is quite a bit better, and if I were looking for all black licorice almost all of the time (with a touch of lavender...) I'd go for BRIN DE REGLISSE.

If you're going to try this i would first ask yourself a few questions: can you drink licorice tea without making a face? When leaving an Indian restaurant do you down a handful of that licorice stuff on your way out? How often do you buy licorice in general? This is, at least to me, a difficult herb to deal with. i do like eating it, but drinking it and wearing it cause adverse reactions. this scent was a no for me; it was too irritating on my nose and I started to get a headache. i couldn't even wait it out to see what they dry down would be like. Try before sampling, for sure.

I had to try a sample of this today in Les Senteurs, Marylebone because of the odd name. I found it very special, beautifully blended so it's not easy to detect the ingredients. In my view, when one ingredient in a perfume dominates, it's a boring failure - a bit like drinking a wine just made of one type of grape. It's very good to know that a classic perfume as lovely as this can still be created as late as 2006 and that Caron can still do the magic. I leave the analysis to others...

The absolute beauty of this is astounding. The lemon verbena drenched top notes are truly delightful and mix wonderfully with the main star of the show - liquorice. The drydown is very close to the skin with an ever present light and woody patchouli softened further by a lovely ginger-vanilla and slight musk. This has quickly shot to the top of my list as my favourite liquorice scent. Most certainly more masculine than feminine, but easily worn by both. Highly recommended.

You know when you first encounter something wonderful like new music or a piece of art, or, in this case, a new fragrance, and you think "I've yearned for you"? You didn't know exactly what you wanted but others had missed the mark. That's my experience with this wonderful fragrance. The anise is soft and delicious, not overpowering. In fact, with the lemon verbena notes, I think this can match cool or warm weather. Love it.

I am obviously in minority here but I find this very much like a generic barber shop smell. I don't get any licorice, not much of vanilla either; just a leather, a little nicer then a shaving foam, but still very soapy; some musk and the lemon verbena that make this a masculine fragrance. Not for me. I'll try the rest of this sample in warmer weather, things might change, but I don't expect much. Stays close to the skin.

@puddley I LOVED that Decleor fragrance as well! I've been trying to find it; I think it was called Aromessence or Aromantics. It was definitely part of their Skin Care Aromatherapy line (which is why the name just didn't stand out). But I remember the elegant frosted, bulb-shaped bottle and the orange-yellow "juice." It was one of the most glorious scents I've ever worn! I now must find some...

What a nice surprise to find something like this! It opens sharp and citrusy, making room for the licorice and ginger, which is quite prominent here. The vanilla doesn't make the composition smell gourmand. It smells more like a slightly sugary lemon ginger anise tea instead. 10 out of 10!

I'm not getting any licorice or anise from this one. It goes on as a pure lemon scent, and then dries into a strange but not unpleasant light, grapey-leather. It's likeable, but not what I expected.

i have purchase it yesterday upon your reivew also i have some similarity with j del poso in black that what i remeber when i smell it