French Lover

Think of a day that is one of the most special days in your life, think of an outfit that embraces you when you wear it and creates self-confidence as if it were a part of you, think of a car that reflects both your dreams and your character and draws all the attention, think of a neighborhood that is the subject of poems, series and movies, think of a place that is one of the most glamorous, prestigious and elegant places you can go to and think of a partner who you feel like it would be impossible to be without for the rest of your life These days were not easy to come, of course time is very important, one should try to understand the person in front of them, listen, feel and give them time, yes yes time should be given. When I say give them time, I do not mean judging and questioning them of course, I only mean understanding what they want to say completely and laying solid foundations on the path to follow, not rushing but the feeling, excitement and happiness that comes from understanding them better each time, as if saying yes this is it. I think the day that comes to my mind must be exactly like this; Age had reached maturity, I turned 35, it is time to establish a happy home with the right person. I had already made plans for the day I would propose to my lover, who I have been with for over a year, it was a weekend night in the last quarter of June when the weather was very nice, an elegant solitaire stone was obtained before that night, that elegant Italian suit to be worn for the night was put on, we got in the sports car with only one door and set off towards Çırağan, which was the meeting point overlooking the Bosphorus. Think of such a day, the beginning of a day that is very special for you and will truly determine the fate of your life, which scent should be used on such a night, which perfume do you think would go on such a precious day, the answer to this question would undoubtedly be French Lover for me, the only perfume that will fulfill the meaning and importance of the night and come out of that heavy responsibility with its head held high. As I mentioned a few lines above, giving time is a virtue that requires patience, French Lover is a perfume that will deserve this virtuous behavior, such a perfume that turns the concept of time upside down and can give the full value of the time spent, if you really need to give time to a perfume, I think French Lover is the only perfume that can deserve this time to the end. Nobody can fall in love immediately after using French Lover because its character is not suitable for lightning love. For it, everything must progress slowly, progress so that the value and worth of everything increases day by day, and as time is given and patience it leaves awe in the mind and tongue of the person who admires it. It is a masterpiece that makes you say "Aaa yes this is it" and later on as you use it, "yes this is it" and as you use it, "this is definitely it" and "this is the perfume of my life". Its name is not French Lover for nothing, and it does its justice to it to the fullest. French Lover, a perfume created by the famous designer Pierre Bourdon of the famous perfume house Frederic Malle in 2007, is not really sad that it is not sought after by the masses. Not everyone should use such a perfume anyway, those who use it and understand its language must deserve it. When I sprayed French Lover, not everyone will like it easily and I was amazed by those moments that I did not want to pass. As explained in the scent notes, I got galbanum (galbanum gum) and dry spices, the note I got the most was galbanum, it is used in a resinous consistency, very masculine and stylish, the scent passes from the beginning to the middle notes in perfect harmony, as if you see that parade, it just leaves you in awe, it does not rush and slowly leaves its role, in the middle notes of the perfume, I detect angelica (angelica), cedarwood and vetiver, but the most prominent is angelica, the other notes are not as prominent as angelica, it is very fresh and does not contain any sweetness, it has a very elegant, charismatic, gentlemanly and gentlemanly structure in the middle part. As for the last part, the perfume gets closer to the skin, the angelica stays in the background a bit but you still feel that dry and green positive energy, vetiver takes the leading role in the last part, and with its companion oakmoss, it leaves the skin quietly and gently, as if making you miss the next meeting. Its longevity can vary between 8-12 hours on the skin and it should be noted that it is a complete skin perfume rather than clothes, in terms of noticeability, I think it behaves exactly as it should, the first half hour is above average, after half an hour it approaches the skin and goes on an average course, after the 4th hour it almost integrates with the skin. French Lover is not a perfume for young people, I do not recommend it to young people because young people may not understand its language, I recommend it to people over the age of 28, it is really a perfume that can take on all roles, it can be used in 4 seasons and it is like a friend who does not choose clothes and can take on all kinds of roles, it can also suit your sportswear, it can take on the responsibility of the most special and luxurious night, while it is a joker that you can use on your most ordinary day, its general appreciation is quite high, I think the majority of people who smell it will like it. To summarize, give French Lover time, try to understand it, listen to it and feel it

The smell of rustic dampness, the smell of woods in a storm. Fragrantica posted an article with Frederic Malle talking about how a true great fragrance needs to become part of you; be more than a smell, and be supremely wearable. I recently put French Lover as my signature fragrance, for that reason. It's too expensive for me to use most often, but it's the fragrance that I like most, to present as part of me. Pierre Bourdon intended this to be an Angelica fragrance. He believed the two woody elements of vetiver and cedar would naturally compliment the woody aspect of Angelica. So the heart is Angelica, and heart accord is three fold, Angelica, vetiver and cedar. There are 4 other very important complimenting elements, the pepper, white musk, incense, and a very important Iris note. The Iris is listed in the Frederic Malle description, but not here on fragrantica. It also has Galbanum, a slightly bitter green resin, and moss, but I can't pick them out. There are a lot of nice vetiver and cedar, pepper fragrances, like CdG Wonderwood. But French Lover stands apart. It took me a while to discover what makes this fragrance so, exquisite, classy, and a bit sexy. It is the Iris and white musk. The fragrance feels wet and juicy. Cedar, vetiver and bitter green angelica, can be very stark, dry, and a bit borring; but not French Lover. The vetiver feels wet and green, the cedar is exquisite, the Angelica is moist and green; a beautiful heart accord. I don't like Iris, like in Dior Homme series, but here it's so subtle, and secretly blended into the woody, green heart accord, and gives it a refined floral element! The Iris and white musk are what really make this fragrance so luscious, and exciting, and very wearable. The incense is also beautifull, more woody, and less churchy, ashen. This is one of my top two fragrances. It is masculine in a very classy way because of the subtle Iris note and white musc. This is so well blended, unusual, and exquisite. Performance is very good. PS: I just got a 50 ml backup bottle of Bois D'Orage. It is just like French Lover, from which I did my review. I cannot tell any difference in scent and performance. If I had to choose, I give a slight edge to Bois d'Orage. Rating: 10/10 God bless. John 3:16

I’ve never had a French lover, so I can’t tell you if this is accurate. Do all French people who are someone’s lover smell this way? If so, I should get me one asap. Apparently, the alternate name, Bois d’Orage, was given to the perfume to quell puerile Americans like myself. Ok, I’ll stop being facetious now. Malle’s French Lover by the legendary Pierre Bourdon is no laughing matter, particularly the way it’s been treated while under the heavy thumb of Estee Lauder. Several Malles had to go through reformulations when EL insisted they stay in the lineup while fully complying, without any leeway, to IFRA regulations. Reformulating is very expensive and yields no guarantees. Malle is the type that if he cannot stay true to the original to exacting parameters he would rather discontinue the perfume; his zealotry for being technically faithful to a composition and maintaining its innocence is no surprise. Though he hasn’t said that in as many words, what Malle has told us is that to save enormous sums of time and money, both factors greatly affecting the ability to craft new perfumes, some of his old-guard compositions fell on the sword. French Lover, to my nose, is one of them. Although the new formulation is not terribly far off, it’s not the same; the newer formulation(s) have had the salty sweatiness and beastly animalic musks quietened, and the longevity is noticeably shorter. Perhaps we can say our French lover has gotten older and calmed down a bit. Otherwise, it's the same perfume. The green and bitter opening, thanks to galbanum and violet leaf, and the bitter aromatic fruit of juniper, still arrests attention. They string their way down to heart and base notes of angelica, woods, incense, vetiver, and musks. The salt and sweat of the vetiver are dialed back a bit in new formulations, as is the muskiness, as mentioned, but woody, smokey (cigarette smoke?) incense, and softly green angelica are still there and in fine form. It's old school yet modern, natural but toys with the synthetic, a bit crude and brash yet perfectly capable of staccato sophistication, comfortably masculine and comfortably feminine all at once. It's fantastic.

oh my god WHAT A FRAGRANCE! I met this masterpiece at the end of 2022 when I visited a luxury department store and came across a Frederic Malle stand for the first time in my life. Caught my eye by its name but it was like a shock to my soul. I'm a cinematic person with a photographic memory so let me take you to the place it makes me envision: walking in the greenest forest, with immaculate and smooth, narrow asphalt path passing through the longest & tallest, greenest trees. The weather is cloudy, there's a crispy cold that doesn't kill, but definitely make you need a light, wrap around coat. It's a sharp, clean air, and you have no goal but just to walk. You are in the moment, completely there, and your mind isn't occupied by anything else, but only that walk through that forest. every time I take a sniff, it hits me the same way. the only other men's fragrance that leaves a similar feeling within me is T'erre D'hermes so if you are as head over heels over that one as I am, you might LOVE this one. I thought it was unisex for a while because I really wanted to wear this myself. But even the page here says "for men" still, made quite bit of a research back then to wear this whenever I wanted to channel my inner lone wolf. this is straight up the smacking scent of "the lone wolf". and I don't care if it's "for men" or not, whenever I want to get dressed like Trinity, I'mma need this scent to adorn me to make everyone walking past me feel like I've just slapped them hard across the face. that is the effect it has on me. every. single. time a masterpiece in deed. god bless Pierre Bourdon

#1 FM for men. Wonderful unlisted notes: Juniper, pimento, Florentine Iris! I haven't worn this for a year. My smell was gone from covid for 8 months, now it's 90% back. This has always been in my top 5 or signature fragrance, from a large collection and over 600 reviews. I'm rediscovering what a magnificent masterpiece this is. Not just for the craftsmanship of the composition, but the sheer enjoyability of it. FM lists pink pepper or pimento, and juniper, angelica in the top. It does feel like it has some fresh peppery spice, added to the pimento note. I always got a touch of Iris in this, that takes it out of the pure woods category, and gives it a moist orisy, floral touch. Maybe not, but something is balancing the great medley of dry woody notes, with at least something moist and green. Maybe it's just the pimento, angelica, and a nice mossiness; a green vetiver perhaps. I just read a piece on Pierre Bourdon's French Lover on the FM web site. They list a Juniper Flower note. Junipers have small yellow flowers, or it's hinting to the unlisted iris note? Overall it's a simple woody fragrance, but the absolute best simple woody fragrance; understated eligance. PS: The best and most accurate description I found, is from Selfridge store in UK, who carry FM. They say it's built on a heart of Angelica note, complimented by galbanum and FLORENTINE IRIS ! So my hunch is correct about Iris being in it. Pierre Bourdon's other fragrance for FM is Iris Poudre. So I think for marketing, they kept the Iris unlisted. Not to appear he composed 2 Iris fragrances.

I remember long ago, someone I dated for a short while and he wore this (it was called Bois d'Orage at the time). Since I already had Vetiver Extraordinaire at the time and wasn't so monied, I just appreciated it a great deal, even though in the end I didn't quite appreciate him as much. There was something about the spiky green ether and effervescence that drew me in, and I recognized the vetiver (I was new to that note at the time!). What I didn't know was the angelica that was the centerpiece, and that is magic of what we now know as French Lover (I rather miss the old moniker). It is believed that Pierre Bourdon composed French Lover as are more robust version of Frederic Malle's Angeliques Sous la Pluie, rendering it warmer, piquant, nearly coniferous, and transitioning the accord to a huggable, comforting earthy amber as the sparkle and tingle subsides. It opens like an incantation and expands outward into a meditation. Galbanum renders it verdant and wild, and I could swear from my familiarity with it that galbanum resin is used in addition to the essential oil. I could be wrong, but its just a hunch. It captures the romance of nature, the suggestions of undergrowth, but is also grounded and approachable, embracing me with reassurance. Calm, but not shy, it carries with me as my morning accelerates and decelerates with me at just the right time in the afternoon. It's a true love for a tree hugger like myself and long haunted me until I revisited again and was thrilled that it smelled just as I remembered.

I'm convincing myself everyday more and more that EP Frederic Malle is one of the best niche houses of the last 15 years and French Lover just makes my beliefs even stronger. An incense-pepper-vetiver scent that is as dry and bitter as much your immagination can go. It opens with a bitter blast of galbanum and woods, and even if not included in the note list I also get laurel galore. After 20 / 30 minutes a strong but sophisticated vetiver shows up together with frankincense. French Lover is a completely desweetened composition that leaves nothing to prettyness but at the same time it's austerely elegant, refined and modern. If you're into fragrances such as Sycomore, Vetiver Extraordinaire or Memoir Man, you will probably dig this. Even if they don't share many objective similarity we can say they're in the same vein, they have a similar effect. Don't get me wrong, French Lover with its bone-dry structure and the overall lived-in vibe can result disturbing to someone but its extremely sophisticated composition make this scent unique and immediately recognizable. IMO this is an important and potentially influential release, kind of trendsetter in the modern male perfumery. After two years from its entrance on the market it already counts a few clones (i.e. Comme Des Garcons Monocle Scent # 2 Laurel). Great projection and tremendous lasting power (12 hrs on my skin). A superb work and one of my favourite from this house. Something to carefully avoid if you're into fresh and clean type of stuff. Rating: 8-8.5/10

An excellent fragrance, and has become my most-worn scent for its versatility and quality. If I'm not mistaken, this used to be called Bois d'Orage (woods in storm), and there's a clear connotation of petrichor. I would describe the fragrance overall as very "mineral" in a way that brings to mind both nature and human skin. Because of this, it's a fragrance that's easily appropriate for a date night, social function, or work, despite being strong after it's first applied. I... don't really recognize this fragrance the way it's described in many of the reviews. It's dry, and has depth. It's medicinal in a way that evokes classic men's fragrances. It skews older, masculine (and so would be interesting if worn by a woman or younger man). It's neither showy nor delicate. To the extent that it's "green" I would say it evokes trees not grass. I have worn it for several years and haven't yet noticed a big change from reformulation, which I did several years ago with Monsieur by Frederic Malle (still good, but not as good as it used to be). As I've gotten older, my tastes in cologne have evolved. I joke sometimes that for a man in their 50s, the range of "age-appropriate" colognes all would have names like Mossy Tombstone or Leather Tongue. (I've aged out of wanting to smell like an exciting shower gel or hotel soap.) French Lover feels age-appropriate to me, for me... and notes like moss, stone, rain, and juniper all bring a sense of comfort and elegance. If you're in that zone too, you might like this one.

Meteorologists have announced ten days of relentless rain, and somehow, almost naturally, this fragrance emerges as the absolute first choice for such "November-like" days in the middle of spring. Honestly, I struggle to imagine a more fitting moment to wear it at least when it comes to weather conditions. The scent itself is remarkably serious, refined, and sophisticated crafted with pixel level precision. Yet, it effortlessly complements both a rugged look of a thick sweater and slightly unkempt beard, adding a touch of raw masculinity, as much as it elevates a sharp suit and a clean shaven face. This is undoubtedly a fragrance that demands maturity. It is not for the young or inexperienced, it is profoundly masculine, clean, and stands as one of the finest examples of unapologetically green perfumery. From start to finish, it remains deeply green, rooty, spicy, and vegetal. Interestingly, it contains absolutely no citrus notes, not even the slightest hint of brightness to counterbalance its dark, earthy depth. Perhaps its only flaw is the relatively quick onset of anosmia, likely due to the absence of more aggressive synthetic molecules. Still, this is a natural-smelling composition, and maybe it’s for the best that it remains somewhat restrained because if it were stronger, might become simply too overwhelming to wear. I’ve heard from some ladies that this fragrance has an X-factor effect on them is that really true?

#1176 in my "Tour de Fragrance" My dad had something like this. No idea what it was. But I knew when he took it with him as he left town for this or that meeting or convention, he was absolutely stepping out on mom. He always took his best suits and ties (and he had a closetful), his most expensive watch and rings, his finest diamond cufflinks, and he'd be smelling like this. One of dad's shipmates from the Navy who came to visit, a retired admiral someone, told me the joke around the ship was, "The Signal Chief was a Filipino pimp in a previous life." Mom wasn't fooled, but she knew who he was when she married him. He never changed his ways, but he did change scents to the Chanel "Pour Monsieur" that he'd be wearing at his funeral. Wish I'd paid attention to that other scent. I probably wouldn't wear it for obvious reasons, but it was a good one, and still etched in my olfactory. No one will mistake this for a unisex fragrance, but it doesn't come across aggressive like so many masculine scents do. It comes across classy and confident. Nice incense note. Nice woodiness. Nice greenery. Solid longevity and projection. While it doesn't smell particularly similar, this affects me the same way as Dior "Eau Sauvage Parfum." It is fabulous. No other way to put it. Formal business wear or date night, this is the juice. And I just ordered a bottle.

A lot of people are saying it's a greenish woody fragrance. That it is basically. 10 years ago I maybe purchased a partial original vintage version and it was my #1 fragrance for a couple years. I have a version from about 5 years ago now. It's not nearly as good as the vintage. But my bottle has good longevity. Recent versions people are saying doesn't last? First of all nobody is mentioning Iris. This has a strong Iris floral note. Not listed here, but on some Frede Malle sites, yes. I enjoyed it this Spring morning when I first sprayed. Now in the dry-down I'm getting a sjanky synthetic musk. Not so pleasant. Compared to the vintage, it's very sharp now with the galbanum and angelica and pink pepper. Give it a sharp green pepper vib. The woodiness is vetiver and cedar. The amber could be better and would soften the woodiness. But it doesn't. The Iris, not so much Oris, is the interesting piquant note, as it allways has been. This has a violet leaf note, but not much of a violet floral. The floral is Iris. As in the popular Dior men's fragrance. Forgot the name. The juniper is a good touch. It is something between Encre Noire and Spice and Wood. It has some of the powdery Oris of Gypsy Water with juniper. Still a solid like for me. But not what it used to be. Ephesians 2:8 For by grace are you saved through faith, it is a GIFT from God. .

With this I'm ending my fragrance journey. I found my true signature, it just feels at home on me. Subtle dry woods after a storm. I got a 2024 1st of March batch, it's pretty good out of the box. The name is really comical, and whoever thought of it had humour, the scent essentially gave me the feeling of being in a forest after a storm, but after many wearings at last now I know what it really reminds me of. It reminds of daisies (the flower) on a stack of cedar, which the French famously used daisies for the "She loves me... she loves me not" game with the flower's petals;, that is why it's called French Lover. With that being said I think this is the best name yet FM has put on his perfume line. People read the name and expect something oriental & gourmand-ish/sweet & sensual, but that's not the case, people that dislike it just because they expected to be like this and found out that it's not at all; their way of thinking is too one-dimensional for the humor and brilliance that the name carries. Most of them say this is way too "Unkempt" to be called like this, but they don't get the picture of adolescents plucking daisies on French provinces & fields. Brilliant.

Ah, French Lover... you’re the worst thing that’s ever happened to me... This is, by far, my favorite fragrance. Cold and green and unapologetically male with that irresistible Malle contemporariness. A hairy fist covered in forest mud, some moss and wood splinters punching you in the face, telling you who is the alpha. Masculinity distilled. Now, you would think this kind of scent would last, or at least project. French Lover doesn’t. Performance-wise, it behaves like a dainty Jo Malone cologne. It’s there, sure, but only if you hold your wrist to your face. The way a very scented hand soap or hair product would waft. This will get you compliments when you perfume yourself in front of someone. Ten minutes after, it’s your dirty little secret. But this is not a secret I want to keep. Now, best scent + worst performer is nightmare material. I can’t convince myself to buy a full bottle so I compare everything to French Lover. Meaning I’ve gone on a mission to find a fragrance that evokes the same emotion in me but that will also be detectable beyond my bedroom door. To no avail. Truly, a waste of a fantastic and immensely original scent. I can’t live without it.

A bitter and slightly sour vegetal composition, French Lover walks successfully a very dangerous path between vulgarity and elegance. Scarcely someone comes upon a fragrance which while utilizing an overdose of wood amber elements manages to be at once refined and crude. I imagine that this trick is very hard to pull and needs phenomenal perfumery skills and top notch materials. Otherwise there is serious danger in delivering a product that is too primitive, lacking imagination and most probably cheap smelling. Only Pierre Bourdon and probably only within Malle would be able to balance so perfectly such an edgy composition, without producing a mess. In FL, he manages to both highlight the true rough nature of these materials and simultaneously tame them in an exquisite final result. French Lover evokes an atmosphere of serene brutality, a “lone wolf” notion and has a roughhewn elegance. It is a single-minded, sober creation of lean style that smells musky and spicy fresh alongside a humid earthy aspect and a hangover, cigarette smoke, aromatic vibe. A cunningly crafted fragrance and my favorite Malle.

oooooohh i really like this... it's so good... its extremely green and earthy. i tend to have an affinity for dirty green and herbal scents so this is super comforting to me, but i'll tell you right now this is definitely not for everyone. this smells like a beautiful damp forest surrounded by beautiful flowers releasing their plant oils from the rain. the opening is dark, herbal and woody, but a more spicy element comes out from the dry down. i get a bit of cinnamon and clove in here. the incense isn't intense but it really rounds out the other notes to give it that realistic earthy factor. as the scent dries down more, it gets heavier and dirtier. the vetiver comes out more in the dry down as well. it's very reminiscent of petrichor and geosmin, like straight up dirt after it rains. the scent sort of reminds me of ELDOs herman a mes cotes, but with more depth and some added spice factor. the opening of this fragrance is my favorite part. it's a really beautiful scent; would love a french lover that smells like this!

Just buy an unopened bottle of Miss Dior Eau de Cologne of which there are still miraculously thousands around. This will get you almost identically close to the first bottles of French Lover. After all, it was an homage to Pierre Bourdon's and Frederic Malle's mothers' signature scent, the original masterpiece Miss Dior from renowned perfumers Paul Vacher and Jean Carles. French Lover is basically the dry down of Miss Dior without the florals - it's essentially a 1 to 1 dupe. The best way to experience that is to get the old Cologne versions of Miss Dior, slather it on and just enjoy it. The Cologne version is the one that seems to survive the best in terms of vintage, owing to the high alcohol content and it completely downplays the floral heart, rather like the cologne version of No. 5 which is another absolute steal of a unisex scent and of which there are gallons of the original still around. Don't waste your time on any current version of FL - it will have had all the key oakmoss ripped out of it.

Applies brisk green up top, anchored by dry musky emptiness. I got the same absence with Santal 33. Trusting it'll develop with time and warmth. On skin, swiftly dominated by white musky wood, while superior mossy green shines on clothes. The first sample I tried 3 yrs ago maintained loamy green so well, it replaced Malin + Goetz "Cannabis" oil as my signature scent. Revisiting to confirm and this is so much worse now. This is just dry woody musk. Only clothes gives the green I miss, but not as well as "Cannabis" oil. 1ST REVIEW: Incredible damp foliage, rainy forest floor, soil covered roots. Nearly identical to my (now ex) signature scent Malin+Goetz’s “Cannabis” oil (not EDP). This is more dense and complex. Strong base of cedar and white musk blend with incense spice. Naturally sweet wood/vetiver adds just enough balance while elevating other components. Spice projects strongly while vetiver/wood and mossy herbs swing back and forth in dominance. Love the loamy nuance.

I ordered a decant of this a while back and have had some time to test it out. This is one of my favorite woodsy scents and is perfect for the spring, or anyone who wants to present themselves as an outdoorsy person. The fragrance opens with a fresh galbanum, pepper (crushed black and red), and a faint waft of incense. Violet is hardly noticeable but is present and helps project the fragrance. Over time, the green galbanum morphs into cedar, and the spice from the pepper becomes angelica and fresh-leaning orris. After some 6 hours, the drydown leaves you with just ambery musk (kinda like how Galloway dries down). The projection is amazing and often has people asking who walked by minutes after I sit down. The biggest detractor is the longevity; the projection only lasts ~4 hours, and it's only vaguely noticeable into the 7th hour. However, if longevity is the trade-off for how dynamic and unique it is, it is a decent trade-off.

Amazing fragrance. Its amazing and unapologetic but somehow still keeping it professional. The opening is dark green, imagine a foggy night. Its amazingly blended with some florals. Its held together amazingly, prickly and serious onto the drydown. For me the drydown lasts a long time and does change a whole lot. The pricky/thorny-ish aspect tones down, it gets a bit more sweet, dry and woody. At this point it is less about it being dark and it gets to a point where its very likeable and less polarizing. An amazing perfume. It does last abt 4-5h on my dry skin. And more than 7 on clothes. Not a lot of silage on par with what the perfume is going for. Its is very different on skin and on clothes for me, on my skin i get more spice, the green woody aspect of it shines through. Very versatile not for the hot summer though. I love it but i can see this not being liked by others, especially because of the opening.

I'd love to buy a full bottle for my husband, but he would be appalled at the price, assuming he liked it any better than, say, Encre Noir, which is not guaranteed. To me this is very beautiful indeed, but it doesn't evoke a French lover, pas du toût, not unless that French lover smelled like riding a hot horse through a cool forest, like fine old riding tack and pine needles, with a slightly mineralic-animalic tang like new sweat and damp earth. Honestly, a few spritzes from this teensy vial is enough to satisfy my curiosity about this fragrance, and if I were going to spring for a spendy Malle, I'd probably go for Carnal Flower or Portrait of a Lady, but if you are looking for something less austere than Sycomore, friendlier and less foreboding than Encre Noir, something more along the linees of, say, Serge Lutens Fille en Aiguilles, this might be the spendthrift French lover of your dreams.

Just like the name said Bois d orage, it litteraly smells like the woods in stormy weather time, and personaly i prefer wearing it during the dark rainy days.. Smells dark, deep and masculine from start till the end, there is 0 citrus, 0 freshenes, it is vegetal, earthy, woody green and spicy. I pick up galbanum, angelica, incense, cedarwood, lot of chili powder, i assume there is also big dose of sulfurol and indanone cashmeran in the base. Even it is pretty quiet, seems like somehow raw, wild and free. French Lover have a big seductive X factor, that you will realized if you ask your female friends for their oppinion. I suggest don't even think about FL if you are under 30. Perfect for intimate occasions and moments when you wanna be complimented by your intimate friend, but you should be always keep in mind this on doesn't match with a beauty babyface guys.

After countless samples , I finally went for a full bottle of this beauty. And let me tell you, if you like your scents dry, green, and completely devoid of sweetness, this is it. There isn’t just a lack of sweetness; it’s like sweetness got evicted and a “No Vacancy” sign was put up in its place. And I love that. I do have a few slightly sweeter fragrances for colder weather, but honestly, smelling like a cotton candy, dessert just isn’t my thing. Now, some people complain about performance, and yeah, after about two hours, sometimes it feels like it’s gone full Houdini. But I think that’s just my nose tapping out, because I still catch whiffs of it for a solid eight hours, especially when I’m moving around. Bottom line: This is one of my favorite green fragrances. Classy, sharp, and completely free of any sugar-coated nonsense.

Green, spicy, woody, dry & fresh scent. Extremely French in its construction. The opening is almost like freshly cut grass and cedar wood with a bitter galbanum. Green and brown are the colors I associate with this scent. Underlying this is a smooth vetiver and light musk base. A very nice office scent for older guys, I'd say. Classy. Longevity for my 2023 bottle is 5-7 hours with at least an hour of solid projection. I saw some comments say that performance got better recently. I read so many comments saying this was a performance dud but not with my bottle. It performs like any other decent office scent. I smelled it on my shirt that I went to wash the next day. Strong 8.25/10. Up there with other office classics for older guys and a "dumb" reach for me many days. Nearly a signature scent.

This perfume used to be a masterpiece. What is the point of buying a house and then destroying it just for the sake of profits? French Lover should be considered a discontinued perfume because this is an insult to the house, the founder and the nose. Those who run Estee Lauder think that customers are dumb. I think brands need to be forced to announce if their product has been changed and by how much a concentration has been altered. We need a separate page for the original perfume and this current nothingness. > EDIT >> Today my colleague is wearing French Lover and you could most certainly smell it in the air around him, I immediately said that there an excellent perfume in the air. This perfume might still work, and smell great, but according to him he uses at least 8 sprays.

This is a masterclass in tonic perfumery by Pierre Bourdon: as invigorating as the first deep breath of cold mountain air in the early morning. To me, it achieves a perfect aromatic harmony: the galbanum, violet leaf, pepper, and angelica are such natural complements of vetiver, that they all sparkle as a single, bracing, bitter-green, semisweet but rooty, and bitingly earthy pick-me-up. The incense and orris root round out the bite, and the musk in the drydown is subtle and sexy. This feels natural from start to finish; no spiky or prodding woody ambers needed to carry it forward, unperturbed and persistent throughout the workday. The juice is masculine, smooth, and sensuous. Exactly my jam.

This is a deeply bitter, vetiver fragrance, and my personal favorite vetiver because, despite the bitterness, it feels modern- unlike many classic, vetiver-oriented fragrances, such as those by a brand that rhymes with cher-lane... it is vegetal, but in an elegant way. This is a go-to fragrance of mine on dark, rainy or humid days, and shines equal parts in urban and rural locations. Perhaps didn't live up quite to the internet hype for me, but I loved it in a totally unexpected way. Tldr; you're getting a really green fragrance, really vetiver focused, don't be misled by the mentions of masterful composition or incense notes.

Dry, masculine, intoxicating fragrance. My favourite atm. Smells like a rainy forest, brightened with Angelica. Apparently the US market has this as Bois D'Orage, or storm wood, which is a far more suitable name. As it dries down it becomes less dry and intense and more warm and mild. The longevity is a little bit lacking as a result, but the smell makes it worth it regardless. Other reviewers say only older men can pull it off. I disagree! Sure, your average Dior or Aventus wearing nightclubgoer would probably not suit this fragrance at all, but if you're an outdoorsy masculine younger man this is perfect

I owned a 30 ml bottle a few years ago and it was first time i fell in love with a fragrance. It was elegant, masculine, classy. It opened with a green blast of bitter grass and field plants and dried down to the most delicate woody, musky, iris scent. It was perfect! I recently purchased a 100 ml bottle and it is now different... It is still French lover, but a louder and less balanced version of it. New formula is HEAVY on incense and resin. Maybe different Galbanum oil? IDK what happened but i prefer the older version. Yes, now it projects and lasts longer but at what cost?

French Lover is a special scent. While it is not the first fragrance to platform vetiver with dark, earthy notes—think Terre d’Hermes and Montale Red Vetiver—it trades the front-footed aggression of its predecessors for refined subtlety. Colorful Haitian vetiver is the star, but French Lover balances it with a dry, smoky framework of vegetal herbs, cedar, and incense. The resulting combination is dark and confident in a soft-spoken way, and delightful on the nose. I can’t help but feel Frederic Malle have realized the final form of this profile. 9/10

This French lover smells bitter and green, as if he has just returned from exploring a forest in Norway during a violent storm The opening is intensely bitter and green, damp to the point of wetness, threaded with spices and woods. It truly evokes a Norwegian forest caught in a storm—cold, soaked, and austere. That bitterness does not last long; it gradually recedes, leaving behind warm spices and a steady woody presence. The sensation shifts, like falling into a lover’s embrace: drenched by rain on the outside, yet still warm within

an incredible bouquet with galibanum kickoff, accompanied by gorgeous cedar smell so rich here, the mythical vetiver and angelica are used in a very particular and assuaging styl in the foundation accords. I feel as if I was invited to that secret mascarade in that long forgotten palace and behind the golden masks that we are holding by their adjacent sticks towards our faces in satin gloves, I am cruising with that mysterious guy slightly approaching in the disguised steps of waltz to my direction.

A legend The scent of this fragrance cannot and should not be described by words. You should smell it. What I can say is that this frgrance is a perfumery in its most technical, and artistic form. Only those who spend many years in a fragrance game and tried hundreds of fragrances can comprehend the scent of this fragrance. Not for everyone, especially beginners or younger guys. You should have a specific style and character to wear this fragrance. Don't blind buy! 10/10

An absolute masterpiece , i'm not someone to wear perfume for others so projection typically is the last thing i'm interested about but i still like to be able to smell the perfume on myself without having to burry my nose deep where i sprayed, indeed the performance is criminal given the high price. Yes the name is cringe, but there is a candid story behind it that made Pierre Bourdon choose it, it is not french hubris like i read in the comments below.

I must have an original batch because I don't get the faint and disappointing lasting power at all. This stuff is absolutely nuclear lol. To me it performs like an extrait. But I love this fragrance. I typically go for unisex scents this one being pretty masculine but not the old school generic smell. Very green, woody and a little dirty. It has some depth i think from the incense, musk and those spices that adds some mystery to it. Intoxicating juice.

Very embarrassing name, Bois d'Orage being much more appropriate, poetically linked to the inspiration (Angéliques Sous La Pluie) and not at all embarrassing and/or indicative of French cultural hubris (there's no word for hubris in French). The perfume is great, but is surprisingly fleeting considering how robust the opening is. Still, I love it, and if asked I say I'm wearing Bois d'Orage.

Opening is kinda harsh you have to wait 20-30 mins to smell it’s beauty for me this smells like a sexy gentleman, elegant, respectful and humble at the same time this the type of fragrance I would wear if I wanna earn someones respect (it reminds me of in a exclusive foggy forrest and the smell of that waterfall hitting the water that only exclusive people can enter) if that make sense

Initial first impressions from a tester applying on skin. Freshly cut grass, with some spices. Synthetic but pleasant; uhisex but masculine leaning; I imagine someone in their mid 20s and up wearing this. I have such strong scent associations with this fragrance, reminds me of when I got railed by two guys in the woods in my youth. I really enjoy this scent, perhaps full bottle worthy.

Absolutely love the scent. But longevity on my skin is almost non-existent (~1 hour). It’s a pity that I didn’t notice this despite testing a few times with an original discovery sample. EDIT 2/12/24: I keep using it and performance seems to be better. Even with the performance issues this is absolutely great. Probably my clear favourite for fall/winter.

The scent itself is extremely perfect but the longevity and projection is not good enough. After 20 minutes its GONE! ٰVery luxurious and well crafted. Smells like a rainy forest and its perfect for fall. but as I said projection and longevity is not really satisfying with this price point. Try "Ex Nihilo French Affair" its close enough

Indian summer has arrived. It has rained recently; the leaves are turning red and gold, and the soil is a bit damp, yet today is sunny and warm. You walked a mile or two, slightly uphill, and sat on a moss-covered fallen tree. Closing your eyes and facing the sun, you bask in its gentle warmth, simply breathing and feeling alive.

Good news: it seems like FM has fixed the issue with the performance. A friend has recently purchased a 30ml bottle, and the fragrance is strong and stunning again. I was unlucky to buy a bottle last year (which I've returned, and received excellent customer care). Oh well. At least this great fragrance is back.

I guess Jean Paul Belmondo in "À bout de souffle" would smell like this. A green, bitter, earthy and rooty experience. Classy and sophisticated, it also exudes a sense of spontaneity, rebellion and freedom. This is where I started my perfume journey decades ago. What a great start!

This is just fantastic, really versatile and signature scent worthy. Better and more interesting than Creed's Royal Oud. Does have an old money vibe, green, earthy and smoky, i just wish it lasted longer and projected more but you can always spray more and it'll do the job. 10/10

Very very green. It’s not fresh or clean green. It’s like you pull off the grass from the ground and it comes out with some dirt on its root - that’s exactly how French Lover smells like. I don’t know how it is “French Love” - but, it is a super unique fragrance and I love it.

French Lover is everything I look for in a masculine scent. It's deeply woody and aromatic with a hint of sweetness from the amber and musk. The incense adds a touch of mystery that makes it truly captivating. This fragrance lasts all day and gets compliments everywhere I go.

Very nice green fragrance, stays long. At first there's juicyness and grapefruit, maybe a bit of cucumber, there's also sweetness. After some time the juicyness and freshness understandably wears off. I'd say it's rather long lasting fragrance. TLDR: a solid yes.

Premier league this scent, I love it, slow shy forest like opening, then pow! Between your eyes Zing! Musk, dominant herbal evergreen that blends in with my skin lovely. For me it’s way up there, more masculine than uni in my opinion. Good value as well.

The scent that my lover leaves on a pillow, the morning after.... The power of this scent compels me to his darkest, brutal, dirty loving and I can not get enough of him while he smells like this.... p.s. We are married now...he still smells divinely HOT

Bitter, dry and masculine florals which dry down to a woody base of cedar and vetiver. This is a hard one to describe and smells like nothing I've smelt before. This needs to be tested on skin to be truly appreciated, another classic from FM.

This stuff grows on you. Classy, elegant, woody top to toe, green with some punchy pepper on top, bitter, earthy... Smooth af, with a delicate, rustic feel to it. FM all over, couldn't have mistaken it for something else, really.