Rose Absolue

If I told you guys that I almost CRIED when I smelled this perfume for the first time, would you believe me? Well, that’s what happened – and it almost happens every time I wear it. I apologize for the length of this review, but this is a perfumaniac’s heartfelt outpouring lol. You see, rose has always been my favorite flower, with one of the most sublime scents God ever created in nature: rose is considered the Queen of flowers; in antiquity, it was associated with the goddess Aphrodite, it has been the subject of poems and poetry, referenced by Shakespeare’s Juliet, is one of the symbols of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and, of course, rose is one of the foundational flowers of perfumery, alongside jasmine. I have always wanted to own a rose perfume and, in theory, it should be an easy task, since there are hundreds of fragrances dedicated to this flower. I’ve tested almost all of them — from the cheapest to the most expensive, from the popular ones like Roses de Chloé (which I blind bought and regretted), Atlas Mountain, Stella McCartney, to niche creations like Elizabethan Rose by Penhaligon’s, Miss Charming by Juliette Has a Gun, and La Fille de Berlin by Serge Lutens. NONE of these perfumes was the rose I dreamed of: almost all of them were artificial, plasticky or musky roses, or with a fruitier, syrupy nuance. Some of them almost get what I wanted, but the rose ended to be fogged by other notes. My disappointment was so great that I even came to think I would never find a true rose perfume. I had, of course, read about Rose Absolue by Annick Goutal and was interested in it, but I had never had the chance to test it or even seen it for sale in my country— until I finally found it and decided to blind buy it. I was terrified of being disappointed yet again, until the unbelievable happened. Rose Absolue is my PERFECT rose perfume, exactly as I had always dreamed: the purest, most sublime, most natural rose you can imagine. This perfume is rose from start to finish, without the interference of any other note that might distract from the flower. No citruses, fruits, woods, resins, or musks — nothing but rose petals, an enormous rose garden on your skin, the rose in all its facets: with nuances of tea, honey, a slight soapiness and powderiness, but always ROSE. Rose Absolue is one of the most poetic perfumes I have ever smelled; every time I wear it, I find myself smiling and sighing. I wish my bottle were 100 ml, I wish I had a backup so I could use it without restraint. Longevity is moderate — 6 hours at most. It projects really well in the first hour, then becomes more intimate. I could easily wear this for the rest of my life. Wonderful!!!

If you want a naturalistic rose fragrance, Rose Absolue by Annick Goutal is your perfume! It smells just like the real thing, which is quite a feat in perfumery. There aren't any woody, spicy or fruity notes mixed into this perfume and you can tell that all of the rose oils that they have put into this are of the highest quality. This perfume is very feminine, light, sweet and airy in the most glorious way and I feel like I'm in Princess Belle from Beauty and the Beast's rose garden when I'm wearing this, smelling with delight the pink petals of the damask roses covered in morning dew. I loved Rose Des Grasses by Aerin Lauder as well, but that fragrance had problems with its lack of longevity and I found out that Rose Absolue by Annick Goutal lasts a lot longer on me. It's not a beast in longevity by any means, but it lasts a decent 4 and a half hours on my skin, with it starting to become a skin scent at the 3 hours mark. Sillage is moderate too and this gives you a nice scent bubble that's not overpowering at all. All rose lovers will adore this, just like I adore it. I highly recommend it and I don't think that there is a better rose fragrance out there personally. Rose Absolue is the queen bee of rose 🌹 perfumes! I really don't understand Luca Turin when he said that he thought that this smelt like "rose liqueur." He's just dead wrong! 10/10 from me. This is a must-have in any perfumista's collection and is a masterpiece! I'm so glad that I took the chance on this and blind bought it 🥰

I admire Goutal as a house, particularly their older creations, and they make beautiful soliflores. I had to try Rose Absolue, which is, as expected, a rose soliflore by way of Goutal - very classic and French, made with high-quality ingredients. I am a lover of rose, and this is a beautiful example. Realistic and well-rounded, it is fresh yet jammy, bold yet airy. Rose is more than just the focal point here - this scent features none of its common complementary notes (citrus, tea, woods, patchouli, violet, spice etc.) which actually makes it pretty remarkable. Rose from top to bottom, RA is comprised of a blend of high-quality rose oils from multiple varieties of rose. I cannot discern between different roses, especially when blended together as they are here, but the overall effect is of the blooms themselves, lush, floral, petal-y perfection. Dewy and fresh initially without any green tinge or thinness, it becomes jammy as it develops while remaining sheer. It becomes somewhat powdery as it dries down, with a hint of muskiness as it fades. Sillage and longevity are moderate, and it is best worn in spring/summer. It is a pretty, feminine rose, perfectly formed. A true soliflore, RA is for rose lovers. A rose is a rose is a rose. By any other name, etc. 4.5/5.

Imagine you are out shopping and you’re craving chocolate. But you’re not craving the chocolate from the usual chocolate boutique that you go to. Although this chocolate is very good quality, and you enjoy it immensely, you are craving something a bit more out of the ordinary. So you go to the most expensive, high end choloate boutique in your city. While you are perusing the choices, the shop keeper shows you a box of chocolates that has a combination of the finest chocolates from Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Italy and United Kingdom. All in one box! This is Rose Absolue. The roses used are not the common garden variety and come from many locations in the world. If this was a food, it would be considered very gourmet and of the highest quality, I can smell nuances that I have not smelled in other Rose fragrances. This fragrance is all about the roses, with no base. So if you prefer a fragrance with a bit of musk or woody base, this is not for you. But as a rose lover, I am in sheer heaven when I wear this one. I feel like I have bought the most exclusive box of gourmet chocolates from the highest end chocolate store.

For my perfume wardrobe to be complete I wanted it to include among other things my dream soliflore of every flower that I love the smell of and rose was among them. I was looking for a rose perfume that smelled like the living flower and not a rose perfume, so I was not looking for one with woods and musks. Also I was not looking for one that was weighted down with massive, syrupy Bulgarian rose absolute. I saw all the types of rose absolute that she picked to put into this and correctly predicted that the effect would be a very well balanced full, rich rose that just offered everything that I could imagine in a rose and nothing more and nothing less. That is pretty much what this is. It's an extremely natural smelling rose presume that smells like a living rose and not a heavy rose perfume. It is not overly sweet, nor is it peppery or spicy or heavy on the citronella. Once my bottle ran out I did not replace it but in the neat future I will. It is a great rose perfume that I think every rose enthusiast should definitely have in his or her collection.