L'Heure de Nuit

This scent really fulfills the brief of modernizing L'Heure Bleue and making it more accessible to a contemporary audience. All the things that make L'HB itself and quintessentially Guerlain are there--jasmine, orange blossom (orange flower being maybe the most dominant floral note), orris, heliotrope/coumarin/vanilla, and some resins and musk in the drydown--but all just calibrated and tuned in a different way. It still has that hazy vanillic Guerlain goodness in the background, but the thick and sticky heliotropin note is tempered a bit (Vanilla is really present though) and the floral core made a bit more transparent and luminous. Whereas L'Heure Bleue is really spicy, L'Heure de Nuit has some sprinklings of the clove, cinnamon, and whatever other spices live in L'Heure Bleue. I saw someone discussing the rarity of the Fol Arome re-release, but saying that L'Here de Nuit scratched the itch just enough and I actually have to agree smelling them both together. Fol Arome, itself, feels like a more transparently floral and herbal/agrestic version of L'Heure Bleue and L'Heure de Nuit definitely shares some DNA with that vintage unicorn. I get some of the Fol Arome peach and a sort of Citronella-like rosy note, and I also feel both L'Heure de Nuit and Fol Arome rely less on the doughy coumarin/heliotrope pairing that is more prominent in L'Heure Bleue. If scents remind me of each other, I like to smell them side by side to detect the differences...and doing so with L'Heure de Nuit and the Fol Arome reissue is interesting! There is actually a lot of similarity--so it looks like Thierry Wasser was inspired by Fol Arome even before the reissue of it--and therefore the distinctions really stick out. Some distinctly herbal notes that read as sage and carraway and a deeper animalic growl stick out from Fol Arome, and L'Heure de Nuit wallows in its vanilla a bit more. L'Heure de Nuit is rare too, but now that I have a big decant of it, I'm not nearly as sad that my last sample of Fol Arome is running out.

I just bought this beauty! This is what happens whenever I go to Montreal: I am so excited about being able to sniff some niche or higher end perfumes that I just cannot exert any cool self-control. It's the equivalent of the "now or never" deal. Do I regret it? Absolutely not! So what do I love about it? It starts bitter and powdery which is something I happen to adore. It may be the heliotrope (although there is no vanilla effect at this stage) or maybe some roots iris. Maybe there is some hidden violet? As it develops, the iris, musk and sandalwood become more present. It still is dry and powdery, with little or no rich or high pitched floral notes. Frankly, the listed jasmine and orange blossom are lost on me. But then... The dry down... It is simply magnificent. A very delicate yet present guerlinade. Iris and heliotrope are clearly present and so is sandalwood. No vanilla per se, but one gets the dry soft vanilla feeling. As for comparisons: yes I can smell a bit of l'Heure bleue... minus any spices. Since my skin just projects spices, l'Heure bleue ends up smelling somewhat like Mitsouko, which itself ends up smelling like dried moss and spice (and I mean dry... as in stale). So for me, l'Heure de nuit is like how l'Heure bleue should smell: tender, beautiful, a bit nostalgic, without the old arid desert scent of dry and unforgiving spices. But mostly, I find L'heure de nuit to be a more a approachable (and likeable) Après l'ondée... Less violet and green, but still delicate, dry and powdery. In fact, L'Heure de nuit is the most perfect combination of two perfumes I loved from afar, but could never wear... Spices and violets are not for everyone... So thank you, Thierry Wasser.

Maybe we should get this straight... When Thierry Wasser reinterpretated Jacques Guerlain's Heure Bleue in 2012 for the centennial after the initial release in 1912, he reconstructed it completely and initially called it Aurore. Aurore is the hour before sunrise (dawn) whereas Heure Bleue is the hour after sunset. So no surprise that Wasser's creation differs a lot from the one of JG. He privileged again the floral scents (mainly Iris and Heliotrope), still while limiting the powdery side of LHB. In 2012 the Guerlain house made a very few of "transitional" numbered special collector sets with each set containing 4 flacons of 30 ml (sold for 3000 €...): (1) LHB extract, (2) Zenith (Midnight) EdP (never reedited since then - something supposed to be in between LHB and HDN), (3) Aurore EDP (which was renamed Heure de Nuit thereafter) and (4) Aurore Extract. This was done to show the differences between the original LHB and its reconstruction by Wasser. In the end, Guerlain kept both creations and released Wasser's interpretation as Heure de Nuit (and dropped the name Aurore). On my skin LHB sometimes turns sour after a few minutes because of its powdery base (like quite a few other parfumes), whereas Heure de Nuit develops for many hours into a firework of scents, making it by far my preferred parfume of Guerlain. It's always useful to take a look on the transparent sticker fixed under the flacon: if you have a flacon of Heure Bleue with a sticker labeled "Aurore", it's a precious collector bottle, especially if it's the extract ... and it's Heure de Nuit!

Guerlain L'Heure De Nuit is an elegant lady wearing a demure pale blue dress without anything 'prissy' about her. She is nice, but not overtly so. She is classy but not arrogant. She is beautiful, but she doesn't show it off. I can describe this perfume as something vintage and classic, yet very pure and soft. At first impression i thought it smelled very clean and similar to baby powder. How I was wrong! It opens with a slightly citric white musk, mixed in with a bunch of gentle florals - iris, rose, and heliotrope. The heliotrope is not vanillic, nor almond-like, seen often in typical gourmand fashion. It bears a powdery undertone accompanied with the musk. Let it settle and breathe in its sillage. The flowers become more subtle eventually and this leads to a soft floral-woody-musk. The overall feeling I get is calmness and contentment. L'Heure De Nuit is suitable for a lady with a sense of self-assurance and inner confidence. She knows that she is nice, classy, and beautiful. She does not need you to notice her perfume. She is happy in her own peaceful aura.

I sampled this nearly by accident when purchasing something else... and it won my heart at first sniff. It is now one of my most used Guerlains (my favorite brand). I truly love this perfume because I can smell its resemblance to L’Heure Bleue, yet it has some citric notes that uplift it up and make it more optimistic and wearable. For context, I am a 30 year old woman. I own and adore the legendary classics but in all honesty I do wear Thierry Wasser’s modern versions of the classics more often than the classics themselves. For example I wear Shalimar Parfum Initial more often than Shalimar, and Iris Ganache more often than Après L’Ondée. So L’Heure de Nuit is really perfect for my everyday life. I wear it for myself, not for others. It doesn’t project that much and I have never gotten a compliment on it. But I am floating on a heavenly cloud every time I wear it, I feel at peace and very much myself. I have L’Heure Bleue Extrait but for a different kind of occasion, like an elegant soirée. Long live Guerlain 🤍

***I’m not sure how this is only lasting minutes on others skin. I wore a few dabs from my bee flacon in the 100 degree Texan heat and 4 hours later it’s still going strong- I have dry skin. My beautiful fragrance friend sold me 125 Ml flacon of a 2018 bottle. To my nose, this is L’heure Bleue with carnation and anise removed from the opening and mids and balsamic and amber notes removed from the base. I can’t believe there’s no Violet listed in the notes because it’s reminding me of a marshmallow powder puff version of insolence and by extension Apres L’ondee without the watery vegetal notes. LdN is smooth, sweet and mostly Iris, heliotrope and orange blossom but I also smell vanilla and something that smells of incense. I can’t wait to spend more time with her.

Fun fact number 1: It's incredible how fragrances can evoke associations and memories instantly upon smelling them even after more than a decade has passed. I had the pleasure of visiting the Guerlain boutique at the Champs-Elysees in Paris in 2006. It is 2018 now and I recently acquired a bottle of this fragrance. Well, let me tell you- L'Heure de Nuit is so "Guerlainesque" (yes, this is a word!!! :D) that I was instantly teleported back in time! This fragrance has that unmistakable powdery Guerlain women's fragrance DNA. It must be the combination of heliotrope and iris. Fun fact number 2: I can't wear this fragrance because I'm not a woman but I still have a bottle of it because I appreciate its quality and presentation!

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that I believe this scent could be a legend in the making. I got a bottle for my 50th from a best friend and as soon as I have the cash, I'm going to buy another bottle to hoard. Scents change and are reformulated, discontinued, disappear. I wish I had savored my bottle of Apres L'Ondee perfume more and allowed it to last now that it has become the holy grail and I only have about a quarter of an ounce left in a bottle I can't open because I broke the glass top off the stopper. I won't make that mistake with L'Heure de Nuit. It's no Apres l'Ondee, but it's good. Very good. Coming from an Apres L'Ondee devotee, I will say that' it's pretty lovely, alright.

This is basically L’Heure Bleue Eau Legere lol. It’s LHB with the medicinal vibe and heavy powder cut out, simplified and modernized and easy to wear. Thus it also reminds me of Apres L’Ondee and Esprit d’Oscar (which too is like a modern LHB, but very citrusy in comparison to LHdN), and more distantly, another heliotrope-centric frag: Ellen Tracy Bronze (much fruitier though). I can sense that classic distinct anisic opening that defines LHB and ALO but it’s toned way down here. The drydown is dominated by a sweet luscious heliotrope that’s definitely not PlayDoh-y to my nose, nor too almond-y or too vanillic. Good sillage and great longevity. A lovely delicate and powdery scent.

I think it hasn't been discontinued yet because it's available in the bee bottle as ordering directly at the boutique. Surprisingly, it's available at Guerlain boutiques at big department stores in Japan...(there are so many Guerlain obsessed people in Japan, so maybe prioritized?). But, you should wait the bottle since it's refilled in France so, ask specific info there or Guerlain customer service. I asked the boutique in Paris for the bottle of Chypre Fatal but, I was told that it's unavailable (no stock). It's really unprofessional while it's available in Japan but, not in Paris. Nuit d'Amore, Mon Precieux Necter, and Baiser de Russie? also available as well.

This is definitely the younger, prettier and more approachable sister of L'heure Bleue. It lacks the depth and guerlainade that is present in LHB, also the longevity isn't as good. It's a very lovely fragrance, it does feel like a more modern guerlain (along the lines of mademoiselle and petite robe noire). I don't think it's a love from me, I'll stick with LHB for now but I can see why people love this and may prefer it to other guerlain classics. EDIT: the longer I wear this the more I actually like it, it's almost identical to LHB in the dry down which is a bonus. If I didn't already have LHB I would probably consider getting a FB of this.

Anyone who curious how this smell just try Oscar de la renta it’s almost identical on the mid till the drydown.I just dont like Oscar opening way too sweet just give me a headache only if I smell close to the area tht I just spray.must be the tonka and the citrus overpowered the opening notes.lucky the lheure the Nuit opening till the drydown is fluffy,creamy and powdery just enough sweetness not too much is just done beautifully .definitely worth the price just hate the spray atomizer u need to spray lots of times to get enough perfume that u need it.sillage and longevity is good

This has to be brought back, together with Iris Ganache. They are so timeless, elegant, beautiful, something Guerlain is known for. We need this back at Guerlain. I am so not a fan of some of the latest launches, such as Florabloom and Neroli plein sud, as they simply lack elegance. Edit: I bought the discontinued as well Violet Blonde from Tom Ford, which is similar, in order to satisfy the craving for this makeupy profile, but honestly I feel that L’heure de nuit was better. It was a true Guerlain, unlike the boring money grabbers coming out of the house lately.

its exquisite. Soft powdery not too sweet vanilla violet. I'm a guerlain lover so purchased it as a blind buy and i am delighted. I have always wanted to love l'heure Bleue and kept going back to it in the hope of it growing on me but there was a note that just did not please me or quite fitted my taste. This is slightly reminiscent of LB but is softer and modern. its romantic, powdery yet clean, yes the longevity is not great but keep applying it!!! it is not a sexy perfume in the overt way but it has feminine charm and i shall enjoy wearing it in spring summer.

This is my most expensive perfume (bought with Christmas and birthday money from several kind people). I find it soft, comforting, melancholy and extremely well-rounded. It stood at the end of a long search in which something seemed to disturb me in nearly every perfume I tried. Finally - nothing disturbing here, only goodness and nostalgia. This was a few years ago. I still love this scent, also the bottle and the colour. It's a very safe scent for me. Sometimes I find the dry-down a bit too sweet.

The beautiful Iris fragrance I have been looking for. Soft sweet and timeless. The sweet I smell isn't gourmand but a floral sweet from orange blossom. The star is Iris with smooth vanilla unique to Guerlain. Great longevity and soft steady sillage while on clothes. I suggest spraying this perfume directly on your blouse, shoulders, chest, back of the neck and you'll be in heaven all day. I decant the fragrance into a small atomizer and I avoid using the bulb atomizer included.

L’Heure de Nuit is a magnificent powdery fragrance. To my nose it feels like a purer, cleaner and more refined interpretation of the L’Heure Bleue universe. The heliotrope here is extraordinary creamy, buttery, musky and beautifully powdery in a way I have rarely encountered before. The composition feels smooth, elegant and perfectly balanced, with a soft warmth that gives the perfume depth without ever becoming heavy. Sophisticated, luminous and quietly luxurious

Ethereal in its nature, L'Heure de Nuit is an ode to Queen Elizabeth II. Exuding a delicate grace and whimsical elegance that she so very much did. Though I heard that she wore L'Heure Bleue I still associate L'Heure de Nuit with her instead. I need not say much more as the fragrance itself can speak a thousand words, more fluently than any other can. Today, I wear this for her. Rest In Peace 🕊

This is soooooooo lovely! This lasts much longer on me that LHB does on ANY day. Some of you are very angry about this fragrance. I can understand being disappointed, but *brrrrr* no need for anger! lol "lalalovesroses" said it best (for my opinion anyway) out of the reviews I read. Lovely, powdery, floral...classy. Right up my alley!

This smells to me a little like my older sample of LHB, decanted before the current terrible reformulation. This restores something of LHB's beauty and softness, though not its full anise-vanilla depth and plush. I appreciate what TW tried to accomplish with this. Not LHB, but LHB refreshed and reborn. I think it's lovely.