L'Initial

I know many have been frustrated with how Guerlain handled this re-release, given the price hike and renaming, etc. I don't mind it, honestly. The olfactory affinities to Shalimar are relatively distant, there’s more in the bottle, and this price point is identical to that of the other Parisiennes. Being a huge fan of Shalimar, of iris, and of the Parisiens, it felt only natural for me to add this to my collection. Plus, I'd been curious about the discontinued and hard-to-find Shalimar Parfum Initial for quite a while, so when I finally got my hands on L'Initial, I was ecstatic. To my nose, the only notes here evocative of Shalimar are the starchy-leathery iris, bright bergamot, breezy vanilla, and faint neutral musk. The intense leather-lemon-smoke-civet architecture of Shalimar has been spirited away, leaving behind the crystal lattice of its airier elements. The prominent iris reminds me quite a bit of Chanel No. 19, though this is much less woody and aromatic. It never enters waxy-lipstick territory à la Dior Homme, either. No, all the facets here are light, refined, balanced, and reserved: the haughty iris is gifted depth by the vanilla, sparkle by the bergamot, and salty sweetness by the subdued caramel note. There are also glimpses of elegant rose, leafy patchouli, and tonic almond (perhaps this is where that strange, almost medicinal aspect is coming from, as noted by other reviewers). A sheer warmth radiates from a delicate musky base. L'Initial reads as an extremely pretty, fresh powder with a hint of sweetness. It's more stylish and chic than elegant and dignified, more polished and recherchée than luxurious or opulent. I think it's to die for. The performance is moderate verging on long-lasting, and the sillage is understated but noticeable. More traditionally feminine, but so modern and graceful that anybody could pull it off. The occasion could be casual or formal, and the weather cool or warm, but this works better in daytime than at night. And the bottle is A-DOR-A-BLE, definitely one of the loveliest in my collection. Thanks again, Guerlain!

L'Initial is close to, but not strictly identical to Shali P Intitial from 2011. IMHO it's the best release from this house in 2020. I understand that some of us are surprised by the price. As I was when I looked up the price of Iris butter today vs. the past, or the share price of it's producers like Givaudan or Robertet, today vs. 2011.... So may I suggest 2 solutions to get around this problem ? 1) Buy a 1000 ml white bee at a Paris Guerlain Boutique fountain for 1225€ and share it with others : this cuts the price by more than one third (153€/125ml rather than 240). But someone has to go to shop it in Paris, that is probably after the Covid nightmare. Once you have the flacon, refills go for less and cut the price nearly by half. That's what I did, but finally that was to keep it all for myself, so outstanding it is ! 2) Buy the first degree cousin of l'Initial, Shali Philtre de Parfum, which goes for similar prices as "ordinary" Shalis. Hope this helps.

Most of the comments are criticizing the price comparing with the old one. Well, I don’t mind any price for this perfume, because I was waiting it for last 5 years. I bought one yesterday. And thinking to buy another backup one soon. Why I’m so crushed on it ? Simply it reminds me beautiful memories and romantic moments in 2013 and 2014. Oh gush. I love this perfume. Its so sexy so sensual. Its the best perfume in the world for those women who’re in love. It is adding a flavor to your love with your partner. It starts with Iris and bergamot.. then it drys down into delicious vanilla and caramel. I promise your partner will fall in love with you. Please Guerlain, try to produce a complete set of shower gel and body lotion with the same sent. Please! Please! Please!

I am an irreverent person, who tends to like what others insult or denigrate. I spent more than a wonderful hour, in this guerlain boutique, during the red period of the covid, dizzy from the scents, each more divine than the next bottle. Initial is the one that caught my attention, this one received my so hard earned money. Its papery iris, its zesty orange, its honeyed caramel, its perfect balance between sweetness, emotion, strength, wisdom, joy, class, elegance: It was it. I don't know if it was the most beautiful of all. Probably not. But it was the one able to speak to me in the best way, to settle easily on my skin like an old soothing friend. The one that was not only a piece of art, but chose to become a piece of me.

It has a wonderful harmony of sweetness, emotion, strength, wisdom, joy, class, and elegance. It has papery iris, zesty orange, honeyed caramel, and caramelised orange flavours. Only the starchy-leathery iris, crisp bergamot, breezy vanilla, and light neutral musk are detectable to my nose in this composition. The powder L'Initial is quite attractive, fresh, and somewhat sweet. It is more polished and classy than luxurious or opulent, more fashionable and chic than elegant and dignified. The sillage is subtle yet discernible, and the performance is moderately long-lasting. This works better during the day than at night, whether the occasion is formal or informal and whether the weather is cool or warm. Adorable!

This is quite zesty in the beginning, almost sharp. But give it 5-10 minutes then the most beautiful powdery caramel emerges. An absolute beautiful take on the classic Shalimar. Not too sweet, just a fresh, youthful and cute interpretation of the original Shalimar. I am a huge fan of the house of Guerlain, hence why I bought this. However, I would not think that it is necessary to buy, if you have other Shalimar flankers. It is beautiful indeed, and I’m so happy that I have it. But it is not a must have.

As I smell this my eyes cross it is so beautiful. I am only able to sample it because a friend gifted me a decant, but Holy, what a gift it is! I don’t see any review here that speaks to how gorgeous this is, and I’m the worst at reviews so mine won’t be sufficient either since I’m just saying it is lovely, without talking about the notes. It is worth the price, for 127ml, however I wouldn’t be able to afford it. It is a shame they don’t make smaller bottles so more people could experience it.

I always forget to review this beauty. It's warm to me upon dry down, which is where the magic happens for me. Wassers' famous sharp musk is mellowed by the powdery iris and sweet, caramel vanilla accords. Fragrance is so personal to me, and this one just makes me feel good. That's what I look for, that feel good, and if a fragrance achieves that it's got my devotion until I need a break. But this one, even with a break, is still a love.

It's exactly the same juice as Shalimar Parfum Initial, if you want to know how it smells go to Parfum Initial page. Longevity and sillage are better in L'Initial. I love my sample but i won't spend my money for this, I will purchase Shalimar Parfum Initial instead when my bottle will be empty

Hi!! Guerlain did listen to us L’Initial fans!! At the European site L’Initial is now available in the inverted heart bottle 75 ml for €125. Isn’t it great? Already ordered a bottle!!

This one smells exactly like shalimar parfum initial. No difference ❤️

This is warm and lovely. I can't put it into words. I never really got to wear the original L'Initial Shalimar, just a small decant from a couple years ago. It had vetiver in it which can go screechy on some skin types. I like it and keep a couple of the Guerlain's Homme Vetiver on hand for summer, but I like the icy feeling of it. This flanker eliminates that, but don't look at the pyramid, see caramel and go "oohh gourmand!!". I think that's where a lot of people go wrong with Thierry Wasser's creations. While they may be a bit sweet, it's not quite what you are expecting bc of the complexity of the other notes. This definitely carries his signature musky Guerlainade which can go acidy on some. It's not a blind buy. Test it first, you may be surprised. For all of those who are fans, this isn't quite like the original bc the vetiver is gone. On me, the best I can describe is that orange and Iris mix with vanilla and a smidge of caramel to make a very warm scent with a bit of a musky bite. Heavens, it's beautiful. I know it can't make my skin hot, but that's how it smells, I swear, lol. I love it. Upon dry down I smell a warm, orangey Shalimar. So that DNA is still there. I hope this review made sense, I've held off a few weeks bc I've been having trouble putting the feeling of that hot skin to words. Projects nicely, lasts about 6 hours on me.

Very similar to Shalimar Parfum Initial, owning both is redundant. The only noticeable difference is that the shalimar version has vetiver, and this has the almond note. To the average person it is the same scent.

Definitely more powdery than what I was hoping for. Smells like a nice antique shop. But I can see a very beautiful woman wearing this in the 1930s. It's preferable to the other Guerlain I've sampled (Black Perfecto) since it isn't syrupy sweet at all. I'd give this a 2.5/5 because it's a powerful classic scent but ultimately I scrubbed it off.

If powdery iris is your thing, this is your juice.

This smells like an airplane cabin to me. Not a fan. Though I can't stand something about Shalimar either so that makes sense that this one wouldn't sit right with my nose as well.

Oh no... I'm afraid my suspicion that L'Initial doesn't smell exactly like Parfum Initial is confirmed. Parfum Initial is my favourite perfume in the world. I only have one backup bottle so I was hoping to purchase L'Initial once that one was finished (I personally don't mind the steep price tag. I think Guerlain's quality is worth it and the bee bottle is second to none IMO) but I was waiting for an opportunity to sample it and compare them. I just purchased a decant and although it is very close - it doesn't contain the vetiver which I so love in PI. That vetiver used to cut the sweetness and give it a subtle delicious savoury touch. L'Initial also adds an almond note which I generally love (for example in Kilian's Rollin in Love) but in this case it made it a touch too sweet for me. But don't get me wrong - I WILL PURCHASE THIS as it is still fantastic and it is still my favourite perfume. However if I manage to find another "reasonably" priced bottle of Parfum Initial I will favour it over L'Initial.

Guerlain Initial' Sounds great for those Shalimar Parfum Initial fans but $300 really Guerlain smh What a shame... So Thierry Wasser flipped the dirty Woody vetiver of the original Shalimar PI with Almond into this one to make it pungently sweeter than the original Shalimar Parfum Initial. So let's see how this goes out to those fans of the original PI which unfortunately when introduced to the market in 2012 it seemed to miss the mark and wasn't given the chance she deserved until later on in which she became a fan favorite only to be discontinued, thankfully there's still some flankers you can buy. Guerlain's Shalimar Parfum Initial was innovative and one of the best reinterpretation of a classic Shalimar different but with the Guerlainade DNA definitely deserved a crown all to herself next to her legendary King or Queen Shalimar! Why not bring back my girls the original : S PARFUM INITIAL! SP L’EAU SP SI SENSUELLE

I got this at the guerlain botique in vegas and I'm telling you this is exactly the same perfume as Shalimar Perfume initial! The one difference is that this version is not light and citrusy in the opening like my 2013 batch. Its fluffy, warm and with a dense carmelly citrus in tvs opening and Longevity and sillage is amazing. Most of the time when perfumes are re-released or have a different name they are tweaked and changed a to be weaker. I put one spray on the top of my hand 12 hours later I could still smell it! I think it was released because of all the complaints and letters that they were receiving from all the Shalimar Perfume initial fans. So if you can swap this up. Its richer and has more carmel than the original. Im in Heaven!

This is why I’m done with Guerlain. A beautiful scent gets discontinued, then brought back at a much higher price point and sometimes under another name. Competing with the scalpers on EBay are you, Guerlain? The 100ml bottle once sold for something like $120-130. Another .25 does not constitute a price point of $300 even with a bee bottle. The average consumer that loved SPI can not afford that. This is alienating the customer base by holding them over a barrel. It’s like saying, “ok we’ll bring this back, but it’s going to cost you.“ This is how you thank your loyal customers who wanted this back by fleecing them, Guerlain? Sorry, this sheep says baaaaaaaad!!!!!

L’initial does not appear to be identical to Pafrum Initial, the vetiver has gone as has the Jasmine from the heart, replaced? instead by Jasmine petal in the opening. Based on the notes listed, it seems as though L’initial addresses the astringency of Parfum Initial which may have played a part in its sales figures however, the price tag of L’initial is definitely prohibitive so I don’t see this fragrance making their sales any better! This version may quickly become discontinued too. If anyone could kindly oblige, I would love a small decant of L’initial to test my theory 🥰

This perfume is a true masterpiece. It's deep, balanced, warm vanilla/caramel + sharp citrus. MMMMMM lasts so long Now it's time to be a bit notty :) I own both- L'Initial and Parfum Initial and when somebody says that they are the same... Well it's like when you see ocean vs picture of the ocean :) It's a Guerlain trick they always do- Mon Exclusive (ocean) vs Mon Guerlain (ocean picture), Rose Centifolia (ocean) vs Rose Amir (ocean picture) and so on :) NOT THE SAME! NOT THE SAME AT ALL.

Fragrance2123 - ever seen a review of a car or iPhone before they are released for general sale? Ever seen a magazine showing you what everyone will be wearing next season....but you can’t buy right now? Yeah.....because manufacturers send samples out in advance or invite industry press to launches etc. Your argument is that no one can sample something before it goes on sale. Naïve in the extreme.

I just got a beautiful bee and I was under the impression this would be entirely different than Shalimar Parfum Initial. It smells the same to me. Everything I don't like about most of the Shalimars is present. I want to sell or swap my bottle as soon as possible. Please message me if you are you interested. Update 8/7 - this bottle has been sold

This is once again being discontinued and transported to a new collection. This time to the classics collection. So it will be in the same collection as the likes of Jardins de Bagatelle, Nahema and Jicky. They discontinued the exclusive collections in order to just have the new L’Art et la Matiere collection

Woohoo its back! Now I can start using my original bottles again and not saving it for special occasions/when I really crave it. Only thing is I preferred the old bottles with the pink tassel to the bee bottles, but I know I shouldn't complain. Hope the price isn't too crazy!

I'm afraid I have to disagree that this smells exactly like PI. It does not, not on me, anyway. It's softer, smoother and sweeter, which is good. I have PI, but I don't like it. I compared the two, and PI is still screechy on me. This one is perfection, and it lasts all day.

Oh wow the 75ml bottle is now my unicorn, I’m guessing it will eventually hit discounters in the states I CAN’T WAIT SO EXCITED! I realized that I actually don’t care for the vetiver in Parfum Initial so I really want to get my hands on this updated formula.

like every House has its own high-class perfume line with high prices in standard-boring-ugly bottles nowadays, this is the product in Guerlain's high-class line today, just it's a 2011 re-produced and the price turns out to be almost 3 times HIGH. XX

OMG ...thank you Guerlain !!! However.....will this be a normal priced item or one of those $250-$1,200 priced items.....???? I hope it is a great "reformulation" of the original.

Oh My God!!!!! This is amazing!!! The more expensive line of Guerlain is not imported to Uruguay but Im still happy that this beatifull perfume has came back to life.

Ok.......$300.00 !!!! No thanks.... I will invest in a back-up bottle of the original one for less than $100....they CAN be found still.

I am not trying to defend Guerlain’s pricing. I did want to mention that the new bottle is 125ml while my old one is only 60ml.

Compared to Shalimar Initial, This one has a sweeter bottom and a somewhat sharp, medicinal nuance in the top.

I wonder if they are going to do the flankers to this too? It would be great if L'Eau was available.

i wanted it sooo much!! but too expensive! 230e LOL no thanks

Disgusting. Discontinue it, then make it pay 300 dollars.

Can we just have a THANK YOU shout out to Guerlain? 🙏🏽

lol, same than before but 3 times more expensive...