Galanos

Galanos is a beautiful, rich, multi-dimensional floral-oriental. It begins with a duet of juicy rose and brisk galbanum, perfect foils to each other. Then oakmoss comes on-stage, followed by spices---cloves, a hint of bay leaf. Next come carnation and jasmine, perhaps some lily of the valley, reviving the rose to dance with them. It ends with a fine resiny base of woods and tonka and vanilla. There is a bit of musk as well, but it is secondary to the other base notes. Over time, it becomes a little honeyed, deliciously so. Very lovely indeed. Moderate sillage (on me, as usual) and good duration. This was the pure perfume, dabbed on. I think that those who enjoy Byzance or Youth Dew would also enjoy this scent, although it isn't really like either of those exactly. Simply in the same troupe, with similar richness; Galanos shares certain compositional features with Byzance (complex floral oriental structure, with an almost chypre affinity from the galbanum, perhaps), and others with Youth Dew (warm, resiny base combined with green and spice notes). I like all three, and find them related but not interchangeable.

Galanos is "The Preciousssssss"...Galanos, along with Opium and Chanel #5, was my first Big Girl perfume back when they came out. I was in my early 20's and blew through a couple of bottles so fast, but moved on discovering more and more perfumes. Then, The Preciousssss was discontinued somewhere along the way and I came to forget about her. Just a little. I now have the reformulated version which lacks some of the depth and longevity but the golden, lush, cinnamon floriental beauty is still there.The warmth of it is simply amazing and meshs with my body chemistry in such a way that it seems to seep from my pores with a honeyed glow.... I just adore it!! A few sellers on Ebay (scammers?) have bottles they claim are "vintage" but I don't "do" Ebay as a rule and the prices are just $$$ !!! So,I'll just settle for the ones I find at other outlets and hope I can still find those for awhile. Does anyone here know what the Galanos Serene is like?? That one is very plentifful but I can't find a review of it anywhere. Thanks!

I don't know how to describe the smell of the original Galanos; it's almost a sweet, vanilla, sandal wood, musk and spice, never cloying. I honestly don't smell a lot of floral in the perfume. It has a lot in common with the Cartier Le Baiser Du Dragon, but yet is so entirely different. The staying power is enormous, and lingers for YEARS (yes years!) on clothing that it's come in contact with. This is a perfume that you must have a life long love affair with. It's the only one my mother will wear, and cannot seem to find a substitute for. You can still find the occasional original bottle on ebay; it's the one with the ball stopper/top or glass finial. DO NOT buy the one with the cylinder it's the reformulation without Oakmoss!

So today I received my older bottle (with the "ball" topper). This is just as I remember it. Distinctive, unusual, and oh so seductive. The notes are blended so masterfully that it all just comes together like a wistful and beautiful sonnet. I believe that even non-vintage/older fragrance lovers would find Galanos to be a fragrance that they want to wear... again and again. To my nose, there is almost nothing Tabu-like about it, except for maybe the hint of clove. A very nice addition to my wardrobe. It makes me feel as if I'm listening to Bach while lounging on a comfortable sofa. Nice!!!

Galanos is Elegance, Sophistication, and Sensuality All wrapped up in a Beautiful Bottle. I loved being drenched in this perfume it was and still is undoubtedly a great MASTERPIECE. This was classified as a Chypre Floral in the 80s' with Carnations Cloves spices enveloped in Oakmoss and Bay leaf Leaving you Breathless and Sexy. Excellent for Fall and Winter Oh, Galanos, what memories you bring to those Winter Slopes up in Switzerland. Galanos' Famous Hall of Famer FiFi winner 1980' will be a treasure one day So, wrack up before this Beauty leaves us.RIP, James GALANOS!

I discovered this via ebay, and it's been a constant favorite, even with my seldom-noticing husband! He loves it. Galanos is rich, with a lot of complexity, but forms a perfect identity of its own. What is unusual is that it is not so horribly sweet, has a wonderful round warm spiciness not easy to find, and a fairly strong basenote that holds the rich heart to the skin, or hair, or clothing, or bedlinens. If I want to feel surrounded by lush femininity, this is one of my go-to fragrances!

Swoon... This is the most calming perfume I have ever come across. Don't let the floral classification fool you...it is not a typical floral scent. The top is not light, but almost oily and rich, similar to bath beads. This deepens into a soothing warm resiny blanket topped by soft soft flowers. It is inviting and comforting, like a really great hug. I wear it all the time and get alot of compliments. Update: Aha! Here's the clove I was looking for in DK Gold! Lovely!

This beautiful and rich fragrance has already been reviewed so well that I only add I love it and advise you to get it if you like opulent , intense florientals . It smells vintage , that is excellent quality . I love Byzance ( my signature ) and this is the proof that the reviewers below were right . Who loves Byzance might love Galanos as well :-) !

Everyone's home work assignment is to go and give Grayspoole a "cyber hug" ....FOR, sending me a vintage bottle of Galanos!!!! And I had NO idea she was sending me one of my unicorns, unsolicited!!! It's just as full and glorious as I remember and I. Am. In. A. Swoon.

I got to test this glorious floral chypre at a friend's house today; she had a beautiful vintage bottle in very good condition that she bought new. Beautiful. They just don't make them like this anymore. That oakmoss!

carnation, cinnamon, some clove and oakmoss, geranium. The florals are there rounding out the spice. This is a spicy floriental like Ciara not as intense as Opium or as rich and spicy. Nice.

rich and opulent oriental/floral I'm going to go ahead an stand on sherapop's platform here on Galanos. the liquid in my sample is indeed dark, thick, and already different from mass market garbage in that aspect. once applied, its true nature becomes apparent, which is a rich, buttery, resinous, dark, and mysterious brew. not for the faint of heart, Galanos is meant for the woman who enjoys painting scarves of fragrance in the air as she flows by. it is hard for me to distinguish different notes here, but the mood is very dark and dramatic. almost to the point of a BPAL or other oil named such as "black opium" that I own. I am getting a vintage style soapy note, and the jasmine appears now in the long, long drydown. a slight grassyness and breath of air (geranium?) and finally the oakmoss cuts through the thick, incence Laden narcotic haze. although there is no incense note listed. this is a perfume from another era, a bottle would last a lifetime, and I will cherish my sample for dramatic moments. but this sample may be enough to last me as long as I need. if you want a big oriental, but don't want to go down the Opium, or Obsession road, Galanos could be the one for you. I think this could trancend gender as well. a beautiful and underestimated perfume for a great price point. (review was done on what i believe to be a vintage formula based on color and thickness of perfume).

i am testing from a vintage vial-this starts with oakmoss, cloves and carnation, a minute or two later i get something animalic, kind of like civet, but maybe it's just a very animalic musk (?) the animalic thing dies down but there is still a lot of musk left that's not as animalic. at this point it's a clovey musk with a hint of rose. it's warm and enveloping. i get lily/gardenia later and they seem to sweeten things up a bit. dries down to mostly clove and gardenia. this is so pretty, and despite the heavy seeming notes, ends up with a sweetness that was unexpected and makes for a lovely perfume.

Vintage parfum in the squiggly statue bottle: beautiful aromatic spicy floral. Carnation, cloves, gardenia, oakmoss, jasmine, lily of the valley and coriander are the notes I most notice. It's a nice blend of many things. Not too much for daytime wear in 2015 imo. It can often be found on Ebay these days for very reasonable to low prices. I also have 'Galanos de Serene' in parfum and it's nothing like Galanos. Very screechy citrus with a major bug spray thing that never disappears on my skin.

Ah yes, what a beauty. A warm and spicy floral with oakmoss, cedar, cloves, bay leaf, geranium, carnation, jasmine and tonka bean. It doesn't have civet so it is not animalic, and it doesn't have incense but it reminds me of a lighter version of Youth Dew, Cinnabar, or Opium. If you like those then you should definitely give this a try. And since it's not as heavy so it would be a nice alternative for daytime use. Its very gorgeous!

I whoulde'nt classify this as a floral it's more of a oriental floral. people interpret scents differenly my interpertation of this is. the opening starts spicy with coriander carnation gardenia warm amber dries with cypress the rose has a subtil base support vanille is somewhat promient. it's to opulent to be a floral. a fragrance fit for a Libertine!

Classy floral chypre, if you like Picasso definitely try this one. Very safe pick, nothing crazy and loud, balanced floral notes, opulent combination.

After reading so many top reviews, I purchased a vintage sample of this gorgeous bottle (ball stopper). I was on a quest for a unique long-lasting and vintage scent. It was a sunny warm early spring morning and I had just arrived home from a long shift at the hospital. I was so excited to receive this that I opened the box while still parked at my entry gate. This will make my day! Put some on my wrist. Jumped out of my car and frantically rubbed my wrist on the grass, trying to remove it. It stayed on me all day, even after washing with bar soap, after applying then removing lotion, after rubbing alcohol. It is in fact persistent. I want so bad to fall in love with Galanos. I put the beautiful box in the back of my scarf drawer. Every year or so I get it out, trembling, and try again. No, sadly, my body chemistry is diametrically opposed to this concoction. Or... has my bottle gone bad?! I can't bring myself to buy another. If anyone has a sample they would like to sell, I'm brave enough to try again. I do know that clove gives me an instant headache, so perhaps that is the problem. Tamara

GALANOS strikes me as an old school oriental--inhabiting the same general olfactory neighborhood as YOUTH DEW and the other pot liquor orientals. It's not only that the liquid is dark and composition strong and deep; the florals, too, seem almost subterranean. It probably does not hurt that geranium and carnation are included among the floral notes, both of which have an inherent oriental quality to my nose. Bayleaf, cypress and oakmoss also probably contribute to the darkness and texture. The opening is almost medicinal and seems more like a slow-cooked elixir than a bright bouquet. GALANOS is nice for what it is, but I'd be surprised if anyone who does not appreciate YOUTH DEW, CINNABAR, and company were to like this one, although I should add that neither myrrh nor cinnamon are present in this creation--at least not obviously so...

Reminds me more of 'Byzance' (original formula) than Opium, but I can see the resemblance... in that they're both spicy-floral orientals. I have to wonder if 'Galanos' might be an uncredited Morillas creation? It's not listed in the notes, but I smell heliotrope quite strongly, and a dose of cinnamaledhyde in addtion to the eugenol/carnation construction. Beautiful fragrance... and becoming harder to find. One might wonder if, because of the oakmoss-labdanum combo, if this isn't truly a chypre... but I feel it sits squarely in the oriental category as it has a solid (not listed) labdanum-vanilla base, merely made a bit "dry" with oakmoss for a sophisticated contrast. Recommended if you enjoy Opium, Byzance, Obsession, ET Passion, Moschino, Youth Dew, My Sin...

Galanos is a burgundy rose drenched in hot bay-scented oil and rinsed with carnation and moss in a bubbling cauldron, then left to dry in a spiced-musk-imbued hut. This is a spicy floral made compact, concise, and straightforward. It may at the start seem quite heavy, but it soon reveals its levity as the musks move forward and a hint of gardenia is in the periphery. Curiously enough, this one won the FiFi in 1980, the same year Reagan was elected into office. Nancy was a premier client of James Galanos, which makes me want to put together a little two and two, but Galanos certainly isn't without merit. It's a great "also ran" spiced floral that gives a bit of foreshadowing as to just how decadent and over-the-top the florals would be in the decade to come.

I have a vintage mini of Galanos which i find quite enchanting. After a green start it developes into a povdery rose-jasmine scent on a bed of spices and peppery carnation. I don't think it's as heavy in cloves and cypresse that the notes above says, but that's maybe because my mini is a vintage. It also has an oily musky note, which reminds me a bit of Rochas Byzance edp. It has definetly a vintage feel to it: eventhough it's built on heavier elements, it's a little airy and very ladylike. It's perhaps not a "must have", but an adorable, very wellcrafted and ladylike fragrance suitable for anyone who loves vintage fragrances. Mind the lasting power. I had only 2-3 hours of joy with this one. Perhaps the new one is better than my mini vintage.

Galanos is an 80's aromatic Floral, honoring the excess and pomp of the era. It's about dry, sharp florals, unapologetic aromatics, and fresh spice. The main player though, is oakmoss, supported by musk and vetiver. Galanos is big and bold, much like the era, and we women who experienced the 80's - in all its frivolity- greedily spray Galanos on our hairline and between our breasts and recall the era when bustiers, permed hair, and carelessness reigned supreme. So while I was far too practical to be either careless or excessive, nonetheless admit to perming my already-curly hair, and to wearing Galanos - and it will always represent the time in my life when the door to my future was wide open and bright.

I recently snagged a new vintage bottle on Ebay, a luscious fragrance I wore almost everyday in the 80s. Although it is included in florals, it is more of a warm spicy oriental. Carnation, geranium and rose are prominent sure, but so is clove, cinnamon, coriander. On the dry down the cypress, oakmoss and bay develop, sweetened with the florals. I love cypress. This is a sophisticated and complex fragrance similar to my two other favorites, Bellodgia and Opium. Galanos is smoother and I think more sultry than Opium (vintage Opium). Very sexy fragrance. Fantastic bottle too! It just may be my new everyday. I am in love with it all over again.

It's clear that the late 70s / 80s is one of my favorite perfume eras. This fragrance epitomizes it: It is heavy, mysterious, intoxicating, and definitely too much for the modern "light and fruity" sensibility. That being said, it's a beautifully balanced fragrance. Spicy, mossy, and floral: the notes I get are carnation, clove and coriander first, gardenia, lily of the valley, and jasmine next, combined on a solid base of oakmoss and woods, with just a hint of the underlying richness of vanilla and tonka. It's heady and sensual, and really speaks to an era of gorgeous excess.

Yourfoxiness gave a very good description of this very lush floral oriental. I too have a smaller bottle of this rich dark elixir. Mine is vintage EDT. It's a full bodied very striking fragrance that is great for a cool weather evening out. If you like spices mixed with carnation and wood, Galanos does that very well. Sillage is decent but longevity is brief,lasts about 4 hours on me. The older bottles are plenty available on Ebay very affordably.It's a nice fragrance to have in your collection if you want a little something special that no one else will be wearing!

I just bought this old school scent. I adore it. It is very soft and spicy. I cannot detect much in the way of floral anything. My taste in perfume is all over the map but this is a keeper. It gets better and better as the hours pass. It is a wonderful mix of spices, greens and flowers that it is hard to pull just one smell out all by itself. If you can find it you should get it, truly one to have if you are into orientals and it did amaze me this was made in the USA, quite a gem.

I had a little sample of this one (launched my birth year!) Sniffing from the vial I was like "whoa everything going on here!" On skin it wears a bit like a cousin of Opium or Youth Dew but without the overpowering incense or spice cupboard feeling of those. Galanos is the quieter relative, with a spotlight on florals like geranium and carnation. She is restrained. I noticed herbal qualities of bay leaf or some coniferous needles. This made it feel fresh and not at all dated.

Vintage. I like it a lot. This scent is dewy garden and gentle sun for me. Roses, jasmine, carnations... I also feel aromatic, good mulled wine, with just the right number of spices in it, and this mulled wine goes amazingly well with the un-winter garden. And how wonderful is bay leaf here, outside the mulled wine!.. It’s backgroundy, or it lurks in the garden, surfacing from time to time, or it comes to the foreground, full-on. I do like it a lot.

I am so happy that this available again! I used to love it; like bath oil beads as noted above. Rich, creamy but lacking in overall spiciness that makes it truly differents than Cinnabar or Youth Dew. It is just so luxurious, and the swirled bottle is gorgeous. I just tripped over this on e-bay and I am going to put in back into my collection.

A classic oriental in the vintage style, with powdery notes that remind me of Vol de Nuit and that ilk. Nice, elegant, golden.