Angélique Noire

THE (NOT SO) DARK SHINING ANGEL I couldn't imagine this perfume being any other way. I knew that it wouldn't be a fruit salad like many others more conventional releases, but rather that it should have something special as many people have selected it as their signature scent. Then I thought, 'Why black angelica'? It could well be that its refers to the aftertaste of the angelica root, which gives the fragrance its special and singular style. Angelica root grows wild, but it is also cultivated for medicine use. Its essential oils are used in perfumery as well. The scent is sweet-bitter, slightly herbal, and gives wormwood its special smelly twist. This is a fragrance that appeals to my instincts, a perfume that finds its way to my innermost being and reaches my subconscious. I am fascinated by the perceptible antagonism in its olfactory progression. The eternal struggle between good ("Angèlique" = angelic) and evil ("Noire" = black) melts into an irrepressible liqueur that draws its strength from both and dissolves in perfect harmony for my olfactory pleasure. The angelic facet of the fragrance lies in the herbaceous opening and the lingering herbaceous undertone. Angelica smells as if it promises healing, recovery, comfort and hope. It smells slightly ethereal and medicinal, yet natural without being chemically oppressive. It smells of green plants, sap and plant parts. It is very strange yet beautiful, unfamiliar yet familiar, and unique yet inviting. Whenever this angel opens the gates of heaven for me, I imediately enter, usual very curious and always trusting. A little time after opening, an opulence spreads with a mixture of sweetness and a sparse fruitiness. The fruitiness is minimal, as if I were smelling sliced kiwi or apricot. The caraway note is somewhat minimalistic. Whereas in other perfumes caraway often smells of sweat or goat's cheese, here it is a round, essential flavour, like salt and pepper in cooking. This caraway note doesn't smell like ordinary caraway, but more like cumin, which has a green-greyish colour, a much more refined and subtle scent, and often adds a delicious touch to some dishes. It doesn't take long for the scent on my skin to become increasingly sweet and vanilla-like. Vanilla upon vanilla like any Guerlain should be. Beguilingly beautiful and lush vanilla. Seductive, indecent, animalistic vanilla that captivates me. When the top notes, with their slightly fruity and spicy aftertaste, eventually fade away, a very rich jasmine os revealed. Everything is spicy, warm, and deep. I felt like going to the kitchen solely to smell the caraway. The caraway contained in the perfume doesn't overpower the overall fragrance, but it rounds things off and ensures that the spicy thread remains and that the overall scent never drifts into sweetness. In the base, we have the wormy, sweet, herbal angelica note, which really defines the entire fragrance. My OPINION: And extrardinary perfume and certainly One of Guerlain's best. It's not cheap but worthy every cent. As it is usual with costy perfume you should try it before easing up your credit card. MUSIC: "There Must Be an Angel" (Playing with My Heart) - Eurythmics (published in: https://www.facebook.com/groups/733041855168347)

I am very frustrated with the House of Guerlain. Yes we can all agree the fragrances smell very good. However, I think we can also agree the longevity of almost every fragrance is atrocious. I use this word consciously because, for the price, these fragrances should last a hell of a lot longer than they do. Just as an example, I sprayed on Angelique Noire at 8:25 AM this morning. I am now writing this at 9:41 AM and I can barely smell it! This is a $395 fragrance. I don't want to hear any excuses. I am aware of all of the reasons. I am aware changing the concentration changes how it smells. I am aware of it all. I don't care. Change the composition. Change the concentration. Change it all. Because most of the people out there consider $400 a luxury gift. And for it to putput after about an hour is embarrassing and a little bit pathetic. It's like your lover finishing after two minutes. It really is. Obviously the company is aware of everything they do, so it is intentional that they leave their fragrances the way they are. Even in today's market where people are demanding more. Let's be real. When you are out in public, no one compliments you on a Guerlain you sprayed on four hours earlier. There is too much competition and they are dunking over Guerlain right now. This is my address to the brand: make your fragrances last longer. You are losing. Make your process more transparent and create your value to be equal to that of amouage or Xerjoff. Your $700 extracts are too expensive and your $400 fragrances are not worth the price either. I love Angelique, but I'm not going to buy it for one reason alone. Please change it and you will Garner more clients than you thought.

I’ll be honest, I watched YouTube reviews and read some reviews and opinions of this fragrance on here before making my purchase (another blind buy). I was nervous! All I could see/hear anywhere was how green the opening was. Saying it’s overwhelming and in your face it was and how you have to give this fragrance a try (or 5 tries). I’m just thinking “what have I ordered?!” First of all I’d like to say that the so called “sour” “in your face” “overwhelming” green note (the Angelica) was actually very pleasant and soft to my nose. I didn’t hate it in the slightest, I actually really loved it. The Angelica opening is very fresh and light, I can even pick up a bit of the pink pepper. It adds a little spice to the green opening. Reminded me of a meadow on a spring day. Very refreshing. Then the dry down. Oh MAN! The dry down is beautiful. The Angelica note softly starts fading into the signature Guerlain vanilla. But the Angelica does not completely fade away, it gets mixed in with the vanilla and you get this heavenly green vanilla concoction. And let me tell you, it’s divine! I didn’t think anything would top Tonka Imperiale as my favorite L 'Art et la Matière fragrance, but I’m 100% sure this just did.. I’ve never smelt anything like it before. This fragrance is literally a heavenly, peaceful, spring meadow day in a bottle. The dry down really is as good as everyone says it is. This fragrance really is as good as everyone says it is. You guys have GOT to get on this fragrance. Its sophisticated, it’s sexy, it’s elegant. I might need to get myself a back up bottle because this just became my new signature fragrance!

Guerlain and I don't have the best relationship. I wish it was otherwise, but on my skin most of the fragrances don't last more than an hour. For the price, especially the high-end collection, I think it's ridiculously expensive. I would much rather have amouage simply because of the longevity. However, I wanted to discuss Angelique Noire even if I do think it is overly priced. The fragrance itself is outstanding and truly stand out from other fragrances in the collection. I am a fan of Angelica to begin with. It provides a freshness while still allowing the character of the plant to come through. It is green and a bit woody, but fresh and airy. Before I sampled the fragrance, I didn't think adding vanilla would really work because it would remove or damper that light and airy Quality I just mentioned. Somehow, Guerlain managed to maintain every aspect of the Angelica plant I love. The addition of the vanilla is minor, so it elevates the Angelica more than it overrides it. I believe that Jasmine plays a key role here as well because it coalesces with the vanilla and emerges from the combined notes a more vegetal sweet note as compared to simple vanilla. This sweet combination and the Angelica are what you get most. You almost always see pink pepper with Angelica. Is here as well, I'm sure to provide the crispiness I'm not exactly sure if that is the case or not. Either way, it works. This is Beautiful.

Well, here goes, my first review. I was seduced by this perfume last March. Was minding my own business walking thru the perfume department of a large store, when a charming woman from the Guerlain counter asked if I might like to smell some perfumes that were there for a 'trunk show'. It was love at first smell. From beginning to end, no fragrance had made me feel like this before. Once I found out the price, I had to walk away. The clever Guerlain rep sprayed a little of Angelique on my scarf. The following morning I woke up and could smell Angelique, coming from somewhere in my house. It was the scarf. Over the next few days, I kept going to my scarf to sniff. It was simply intoxicating. I became obsessed over how I would ever be able to afford and acquire this fragrance. Being part of a trunk show, Angelique had left the city. (The charming Guerlain rep got a bottle of my precious scent shipped out from Montreal.) I am not proficient at perfume speak so I cannot go on about notes. What I can say is that when I wear this fragrance, I feel like a strong, beautiful and elegant french woman. Most perfumes that I like - and there don't seem to be many - feel as if something is missing. Angelique Noire feels complete.

I first tested this when I was just starting out with my obsession for collecting perfumes. I wasn't too keen on the sharp greenness of the Angelica note, but decided to keep my sample and put it away. At that time I’d only tested it on my wrist and felt it was too much for me to wear, so I opted to buy Spiritueuse Double Vanille which I adore. Since then I have tested so many fragrances, and my taste has evolved, so I decided to give this another chance. This time I wore it as I would any other perfume. Angelique Noire is highly rated for a reason. The sharpness of the Angelica note doesn’t last long, but actually I really quite like it. It’s fresh, herbaceous, uplifting, inviting and quite comforting. Once the sharpness subsides, the scent becomes smoother. What you are left with is an exquisite, unique, sophisticated, sexy, boss lady vanilla! The scent bubble this creates around you is just stunning. I actually find myself craving this scent at the moment and ended up purchasing a full bottle. It’s addictive! This is anything but boring. It’s a masterpiece!

I understand now why people describe this perfume as haunting. This perfume immediately intrigued me because it felt airy, green, powdery, and unlike anything I had smelled before. I kept going back to my wrist, which is usually a sign for me that something is special. I was more curious about this perfume than any other I have ever sprayed. The dry down is where this fragrance shines. After an hour it turned into this soft, elegant, powdery vanilla that feels refined rather than sweet. The transitions in this perfume are unlike anything I have experienced before. It has a soft, dreamlike quality that I find incredibly intriguing and comforting at the same time. This doesn’t smell like a trendy vanilla perfume. It smells artistic, textured, and emotionally evocative. My only complaint is that I wish it projected more and lasted longer because I could honestly wear this every day if it had a little more presence. This gorgeous perfume is where addictions are made. I absolutely love it. Now I just need to figure out how to afford a bottle.

Angélique Noire opens with a slightly bitter angelica, quickly followed and supported by a round vanilla, gently sweet but also delicately spicy. We could almost call it a 'gourmandise' but it's so beautifully balanced, so delicate... I find this perfume truly magnificent, this angelic/vanilla duo is simply splendid and the two complement each other wonderfully; the bitterness of the angelica prevents the vanilla from falling into the 'food side', the rich vanilla prevents the bitterness from falling into the acidity. Sublime, huge crush. N.B: I went to smell Angélique Noire because I saw people comparing it to Belle d'Amour by Fragonard and I was intrigued. There is a similarity indeed but the angelica is much more noticeable here while the Fragonard is very vanilla focused and leans more towards a gourmandise. In my humble opinion, the Guerlain surpasses the Fragonard thanks to its perfect balance and its incredibly well-crafted vanilla. On the other hand, the Fragonard is much more cheaper...

This is my signature Guerlain, as everyone in my matriarchal line has picked one, whether they owned a bottle or not (mine is just a sample, the price is true for the legacy). The Angelica, pear and pink pepper dance like a sweet white feather above, lifting what could be a linear vanilla into something ethereal. A blast of green stem and grass with the cedar, that settles into the violet note I pick up on later. The Angelica is a papery, dusty note that keeps things clean, like fluffed white linen but is also sort of savory and buttery. I pick up a powdery violet on my skin, almost in the same dna as Insolence, but I think that’s the musk. If you like Eau Duelle... this is a bit more sharp and sophisticated, less smokey but you will probably love this. Even though most ingredients in this are black or white, something makes me think of light purple when I wear it. The use of angelica really is that unique twist. I’m obsessed and can’t stop smelling myself.

Bright! Enchanted with life, spirit filled. Romantic. Oh, I love this— and more than that, I want to live this. The angelica is so green at the outset! Almost reads as citrus? The pear brings an innocence, rounding out the spaces the angelica carves. To me, for the first hour or two the vanilla is subdued (perhaps this is only after testing vanilla bomb Narcotica’s Happy Dust yesterday), in harmony with and warming the greenness rather than being spotlit. The jasmine almost extends the greenness of the angelica in a surprising way— I never would’ve put those two together, but here they almost sing with each other. Angelique Noire is such a delight and so much brighter than I thought it would be given the name: nothing about this says “Noire” to me. It goes a little medicinal to me in the middle, but not in a negative way; just herbal, then it moves to a deep vanilla base that’s cozy and enveloping. Just gorgeous and surprisingly wearable.

What a delightful and charming fragrance! The noire in the name , suggesting something dark and edgy is completely at odds with the fragrance that to me conjures up a fresh Summer meadow. I have never experienced angelica in any form other than the dark green candied diamonds in cakes. I'm intrigued to know how the fresh stems really smell. I suspect it is what is giving this fragrance the beautiful, uplifting greenness in the opening, maybe even the teeniest amount of bitterness but everything else is so soft and sunny and warm. An absolutely gorgeous vanilla and it reminds me of the one in Mon Guerlain but I prefer this fragrance overall. It's a perfect signature scent. It didn't last quite as long as I had hoped but it's worth the sprays. Unnassuming yet kind of special.

An absolutely stunning fragrance. It took me a few months after buying my sample to give it a chance as I was comparing it to Diptyque Eau Duelle EDT, my fave of the moment, and finding it too different/somehow lacking. I put it away then on impulse tried it again and took it on holiday. Something about this scent got under my skin and into my brain and I fell hard in love with it. A week after my holiday, my 2ml sample exhausted, I bought a 100ml bottle. The colour of my 2025 bottle is lighter than the 2023 sample I had, so I think it will take time for it to deepen into the vanilla heaven I have become used to. But it has become my signature fragrance, and I am completely obsessed. I love it so much. I have found The One.

Opens up with the green angelica along with the exquisite rich Guerlain vanilla which play together throughout the entire wear. The combination gives a sweet floral feel, like honeysuckle, with slight fruitiness from the pear in the background. It is a very enveloping and sweet fragrance bordering on dessert but does not get into the sticky sugary category. I love how the two notes balance each other, with the angelica keeping the vanilla from becoming too linear and the vanilla keeping the angelica from becoming grassy. Who knew these notes would complement one another. Genius composition and a definite love! Edit: Hours later and still going strong in the deep dry down to a sensual, spicy musk.

Absolute love for me as the pure fan of the Guerlain house. I adore the sweetness and green notes of Angelica. The perfume is aromatic, sensual, and soft. It surrounds you with its feminine (in a good sense and not explicit) character. I own and wear this masterpiece since 2014. The old bottles with the pomp were leaking a little and were poorly transferable, including by plane. This is the fourth bottle I own for now and for me it seems that the formula has not changed significantly since 2014. The perfume has longevity and I feel it from my skin even the day after use. I think this is due to my personal compatibility with the Guerlain perfumes 😌 So, I love it deeply, 10/10

I feel completely myself when I wear this. I can’t imagine a time or situation that this wouldn’t be a good choice. This was one of my first niche/luxury loves- a forever favorite and masterpiece scent. The combination of angelica, sparkly pink pepper and pear reminds me of pear brandy- not necessarily sweet, but syrupy. I can’t distinguish the jasmine or caraway, but they lend an herbaceous floral aspect. I typically enjoy when vanilla and cedar are used together. Here, touch of wood keeps Angelique Noire feeling light and fluffy. This is a year round vanilla, wearable even in high heat. But, I think she really shines on drizzly spring or fall days.

A lovely green vanilla fragrance with the herbaceous, earthy angelica cutting through the sweetness of the pear and jasmine and adding a wonderfully different and contrasting note. The dry down is warm, creamy and seductive with a woody depth from the cedar. This is for someone who in the daytime tends her verdant kitchen garden bare footed with her hair up in a messy bun, singing softly to herself, but at night she puts on her high heels and a silk dress, and people are drawn to her like moths to a flame. It’s a beautiful and unusual fragrance and I really, really love it and after going through a sample I ordered a full bottle despite the price.

Truly one of the best fragrances I've ever smelled. Jasmine (to my nose, jasmine sambac) plays a deeply underrated part here, bringing the green, intoxicating element to the sparkly, earthy angelica and boozy, almost caramel-like vanilla. As with many people here, this is my favorite vanilla as a person who cannot stand most vanilla fragrances. Angelique Noire is deeply addicting. Every time I catch a whiff of myself my eyes roll to the back of my head. This gives off a very stately, feminine presence. A very elegant Upper East Side woman. Not that it matters; I've made this my signature scent as a 30-year old gay man living in Brooklyn.

I have quite a few vanilla forward fragrances; Cuir Béluga, Absolute Aphrodisiac, Delox, Tobacco Vanille, Vanilla Diorama, Sultan, and many others. This is by far the most beautiful vanilla I have ever smelled in my entire 41 year existence on earth. This gives white T-shirt in the spring or white button up with some Chelsea’s in the fall. Only downside, extremely feminine. Personally, IDGAF! I just over compensate my masculinity when I wear it. I’ll scratch my ass in public, change a tire for no reason, take out random people’s trash, sit on the couch with my hand in my pants Al Bundy style , build a house, etc. You know, man shit...

This is the most unique smelling perfume that I have smelled (and that’s saying a lot for our community)! It is inviting, yet mysterious. A seductive mix of comforting NATURAL vanilla that stays fresh and modern with the Angelique. I, like many of you probably reading this review, was not familiar with the precise scent of Angelique. It smells like a very natural garden of freshness- a smooth contrast that goes beautifully with the vanilla. This is a night out fragrance, though life is a special occasion so there’s nothing saying you can’t also wear this to bed ;). 10/10, I look forward to refilling this on my next visit to Paris.

this is a vanilla that i can well and truly get behind. the sugary, musky vanilla is almost cold and distant underneath the bitter, fresh, green angelica. guerlain does the best vanilla, and it's so beautiful along the dew-like greeness of the angelica. it's rooty, bright, sharp, uplifting, and it eventually gives into the rich, comforting vanilla. i never thought a 'green vanilla' would work, at least for me, but here we are. this is beautiful. l'art et la matiere never seem to disappoint and whereas these fragrances are very expensive, the quality of every one i have tried so far has matched the price point. magical. 9/10