Rue de la Paix

My review is for the original. The dry-down is sublime and the overall composition is absolutely divine in execution. Bliss from top to bottom and doesn't change strangely with chemistry. The citrus top notes aren't as heavy in the oldest versions, shimmering bergamot essential oils being most noticeable, and the base becomes an almost edible spicy orris/leather skin scent. Cinnamon and possibly black cumin seed. The orris and Iris/rose/lavender combination gives a delightful face powder vibe, without being dated or childish. You just smell enchanting. It does smell somewhat similar to the antique L'Or by Coty, but lacks the compost-y Ylang-Ylang/mimosa/broom/reseda note, so it's a bit more wearable by modern standards. It's also fairly unisex. It reminds me a small bit of Dior Sauvage in the spices and musk. One of my favorite perfumes of all time. The cost is extraordinary for the oldest vintage and antique versions, but you get a true glimpse into the luxury house Guerlain used to be. Absolutely worth trying, but since powdery perfumes are so hit and miss, buy a sample before investing. My gut says this would possibly be a polarizing scent.

A lovely, unisex, ambery floral. Bergamot is definitely noticeable in the top, even though it's not as overdosed on it as Shalimar, Jicky, and Mitsouko. At the heart of this is a floral core that smells a lot of rose (kind of this dry, potpourri jar scent), but made more abstract with other florals like jasmine and ylang ylang. The aromatic notes--verbena, lavender--prevent this from being overly sweet, though it still smells fresh and natural. The kind of "pickled" note that ambrette seed can give off I feel lends a sort of salty/savory quality. A lovely thread of iris/ionones, animalics, and a generally ambery tone ground the scent--a beautiful, skin-like scent. There's something that reads as castoreum to me--very leathery--that makes me feel like I'm in a flower field with a cow pasture in the distance. This is all more lovely than that sounds. It's very evocative of the outdoors. I wish it stayed around longer--it is fairly fleeting, but wonderful. It feels a bit like a "simpler time" vibe--a glorious impressionistic landscape of the countryside. It definitely has austere, dry, androgynous facets to it.

Incredibly, I managed to get a bottle of this on eBay about 10 years ago that has a clean label and juice that was remarkably fresh for its age, which had to be from around the 1950's at its latest. It must have been hidden away in a dark closet in a barely heated house, and I keep it in a dark place too. I can't remember what I paid, but it must have been under $200 or I'd still be cringing. If you can get a good bottle, it's worth every penny spent. Guerlain should bring this back instead of some of the more dubious stuff they've sprung on the public in recent years. It doesn't smell like anything else that I can think of. It's rich but not overwhelming. Floral, almost a light floral, but with lots of amber and leather. I think the honey is more a heart note than a top note, not that honey was ever named as a note in any perfume before say, 2015. I really don't smell the woody notes the description writer says are there. It lasts about 6 hours on my skin.

Fragrance Review For Rue De La Paix Guerlain Top notes: aldehydes, bergamot, verbena, lavender, honey and rosemary Heart: rose, jasmine, violet and ylang-ylang. Base: leather, orris root, musk, violet, ambrette, amber and woody notes I must have the best luck of any fume head. My friend from Boston Audrey's grandmother who passed away in 2005 has this fragrance in her collection. It is a very unique and out of this world or rather out of this era scent. I put my nose to the perfume bottle and smelled it. It was too strong for me to wear it plus it's very old, more than 100 years old. Fragrantica erroneously lists aldehydes as a top note but there was no aldehydes in fragrances prior to 1921. The fragrances of the 1900 to 1914 era usually contained opening notes of anise or neroli, citrus and lavender very much the way Jicky starts off or Royal Fougere. This has lavender and it's very obviously lavender. There's a lemon verbena scent too. Fresh and refreshing but more like an old fashioned barbershop aftershave. There's rosemary that comes up very aromatic and a violet flower. There's lots of honey and amber and woods finish up this gorgeous perfume. It's powdery the whole thing turns to a soft powder. I loved it. But after years it turned to dead animalic musk. Not something you'll find in perfume stores today. I wish they could reformulate it however. It reminds me of Royal Fougere, of Jicky and a little bit like the new Chanel Boy fragrance, with the exceptional honey accord. Very lovely .

I received a generous sample of this vintage parfum from a sealed bottle. This smells like springtime! The pungent bergamot and zesty verbena are the first notes that I detect. Next the herbaceous lavender and rosemary burst forth through the citrus notes. Followed by a light floral heart of sweet jasmine and ylang ylang. Though noted in the fragrance pyramid, I do not get any rose. As the perfume dries down, the familiar Guerlain musk is revealed in a gauzy veil of powdery orris root. The perfume is very fleeting and dissipates quickly (within 10 minutes) leaving a subtle trace of the delicate floral notes on my skin.