Shalimar Souffle de Parfum

My great grandma made the most perfect lemon meringue pie, then my mother made it, and now I make it. A hand -rolled butter crust, fresh juice and zest of lemon, ephemeral whipped egg-whites, only a hint of sweetness floating above the bright, zesty lemon aroma. I envision this pie displayed proudly alongside fragrant, fresh jasmine flowers grown in my great grandmother's famous South Oregon garden. Now the daydream shifts and I'm at an intimate luncheon for sophisticated, cosmopolitan ladies. These ladies are not the temperamental, modern, working class, Irish immigrant ladies of my family. No, these ladies are the kind that you read about in Edith Wharton novels. Their corsets cinched, their padded derrieres perched precipitously on tiny cafe chairs. They are powdery, wealthy, influential, and judgmental. It's Summer, but they're not breaking a sweat. The room is cool and controlled; they can afford all the amenities that allow them to avoid the worst pains of Summer. Another broad-chested matron arrives, her pert and smiling daughter trailing behind, all well-considered smiles and airy, Summery skirts. This daughter. This daughter is no rebel. This daughter knows the rules and has chosen to play by them. There will be no dangerous liasions with unsuitable men, no adoption of new and controversial ideas and causes, and certainly no useless education for her. She understands the rarefied beauty of the world she was born into, and intends to take her place in it without drama or personal revolution. Our matrons are universally approving and delighted by her; perfectly charming, gentle, and pleasing. She offers just the kind of freshness and joie de vivre they crave and expect of a young lady of her breeding and status. They interview this new addition to their circle as they delicately nibble on petite lemon & vanilla powdered sugar teacakes. They apprise our young lady over soft explosions of powdered sugar puffing out from each cookie upon first bite. No discussion is necessary, our matrons instantly recognize our young lady as one of them; the essence of their hopes and dreams for their legacy in the next generation. This fragrance is not me, nor any version of me I've ever been. I've never met a Summer fragrance that was. Still, for all that this fragrance does not feel like me, or any woman I know, I thoroughly enjoy her company on a hot Summer day. Our young lady is transported from another, more genteel time and place; an unlikely friend to accompany me in a scented Summer reverie.

Incredibly whimsical, something that Galadriel or the White Queen in Alice in wonderland would smell like! So melancholic... It's possesses a fluffy and airy quality to it whilst maintaining a cold, distant and an aloof stance. Definitely unique to what is currently on the market and in my humble opinion 100x times better than anything that the new L'ART & LA MATIÈRE collection has to offer in terms of quality and versatility. The citrus in this isn't sparkling but muted and fleeting making way for the jasmine and orange blossom which isn't grapey but quite delicate, soon the powdery vanilla appears intertwined with the white musk which is incredibly elevating. Longevity is okay, it's quite strong in the beginning (a little soapy) and its sillage is quite vast depending on the room you're in but that all dials down and it becomes a musky, powdery, vanilla, that sits close to the skin which think suits it quite well since its named 'Souffle' meaning breath. 20 or so minutes after the initial spray I can smell this dewiness like that of rain on a spring day or after a thunderstorm (on skin), this is truly sublime 😫 I must say, in the opening it bares a similarity to Coco Noir and I think that's thanks to the bergamot however both have this cold/emotionless and somewhat stoic overtone to them that I adore and search for in a fragrance. Though noting like the original Shalimar or Shalimar Millésime Vanilla Planifolia so it can stand alone, it doesn't need to grab anyones attention as the magic lies in subtlety asserting itself whilst you move about. I love to wear this during the midsummer, spring and early autumn whilst I water my garden during golden hour and the wind is gently pushing up against my body blowing wafts of this up into the air, it's truly magical and effervescent. Can't say enough good things about it, definitely a love and I don't think you'd come across a lot of people wearing this so it's safe to say you'd be one of a kind. I wore this in Hong Kong in early 2016 and it reminds me of the misty clouds billowing down from Victoria Peak. Aside from its sister flankers this is 100% unique, there is truly nothing else out there that has the same effect let alone scent wise. I have an old soul so this speaks to me and it connects with me. Thierry Wasser truly worked his magic on this as creating something so unique with a number of facets without it being gaudy is hard to accomplish, literally a master at his craft.

I tested this scent on paper at the beginning of last December, and thought this is the most elegant scent I smelled-indeed the only scent lives up to my beloved Allure. I detected the Allure vibe right away. Lemony vanilla softened with gorgeous white flowers. Pure elegance, I made the wish of buying this classy scent one day. Two weeks later all parfumes got a good sale; I went ahead and bought a bottle on the last week of December:). Then I could test the scent on my skin. My initial reaction was a bit disappointing because I felt that the scent is lemony on paper but vanillish on my skin. For some reason I was attracted to the soft lemon smell when I first sniffed this scent; felt “fooled” by my skin chemisty. I experimented with the scent. I mixed it with L occitane Lemon Verbana deodorant and also with the citrus fruits peel oil of Tisserand ( both mixtures are blends of high quality brands and my Shalimar). I could get the level of lemon smell that satisfied me. I was so disappointed that I even considered selling my bottle, thinking that Souffle is not my scent. I am glad that I did not do so. I wore it everyday for a month, learned Shalimar Souffle, and came to realize that the amount of lemon is just right. It is the creation of M. Thierry Wasser of Guerlain after all:) This is very elegant, classy scent. Soft and lovely but expensive- one of the most expensive on the mainstream (excluding niche brands). I do not know the original Shalimar because we dont have in my country. I will test it as soon as I can travel abroad. As I mentioned Shalimar Souffle is on par with Allure, Shalimar is lemon vanilla, Allure EDP is peach-tangerine vanilla. I truly love both of them. As others I thought Souffle refers to desert, but later learned it means breath in French, not desert:). However one can still view this Shalimar flanker as a desert of a very high level Chef, very expensive desert. I actually learned to prepare Lemon Curd after getting my Souffle:). I am into lemon nowadays. I am very glad that I have this beauty in my collection, I recommend that you give a try. Now I look forward to testing the new Shalimar flanker, the one with the lavender note. Edit March 22: I was wrong on mixing it with citrus to make it sharper. I wore this scent, and in the course of time I fell in love again and again. Wonderful smell:)

I have to admit, every single day I have to stop myself for always reaching for Shalimar Souflee. I’m a little obsessed! I purchased this as a blind buy, because of all the descriptions as lemon vanilla cake or cookies, but I really paid close attention to those reviewers who pointed out that yes-it’s like a lemon vanilla cake, but without a lot of sugar. There is a review below by India Oceane which really spoke to me and I think it’s a spot on description of what you can envision with this scent. I LOVE lemon and vanilla, but despise when it’s too sweet. I like boozy vanillas and tart lemon. Think of a glass of bourbon with a vanilla bean in it and a twist of lemon. That’s my thing! I was not taken by surprise fortunately by how unsweetened this fragrance really is and quite pleasantly surprised by how much I love it! I do really understand though how people are mixing up soufflé and souffle because of the similarities of the word and the dessert being an “airy” sort of confection. I do get a lot of lemon right at the top with this. As it dries down I start getting some vanilla and the mandarin. After a bit more time, now I am getting even more of the vanilla but now the mandarin is settling into a beautiful orange blossom. Almost the perfect orange blossom scent that is very elusive to me. In the far dry down a lot of the lemon and citrus fades and you are left with the musk, vanilla and jasmine. It’s begins to get a bit powdery, but to me it’s almost like a cosmetic powder (which I love) and definitely not a talcum powder or baby powder. The sillage on this is impressive, but not a knockout. Longevity is great, I can still smell this on me (mostly vanilla by the end) almost 12 hours later snd still on my clothes the next day. But despite the citrus notes, and the strongish longevity and sillage, this is still so airy, so classy and so beautifully soft. ETA 4/4/2021: wore this today, Easter Sunday, which was a cool but sunny early spring day. This scent was absolutely perfect in this weather. The cool breeze carried the fresh/floral lemon scent and the bright sun warmed the skin and brought forward the vanilla and orange blossom. I’m am officially obsessed!

It is indeed different from all the other Shalimars , but as genny17 already said it does have a Guerlain stamp , a signature that hints towards Shalimar, but only vaguely . Its sophisticated and has something classy about it yet it's very young and sweet. The sweetness I love in this, its fluffy , airy sweet , soufflé is the perfect name for it. This is great for summer yet I think nice and cozy for cold days as well. I smell "sweet fluffiness" or feathery sweetness but I can't pinpoint this, it's very different but in a extremely positive way . I only just received it and I am only wearing it for two hours now , I will report back tomorrow on better details. So far I totally love it !!! Update, I agree with finanna( a reviewer ) that it does fall abit flat and that the opening is definitely the nicer part of this fragrance. The dry down is not very complex and has not that much grounding as I would want it to have. Update; I just read someone calling it a thin tangerine fizz and I have to agree, I feel it lacks something, its nice indeed but thin in the end ,lacks complexity , I still prefer l'eau de Shalimar ! And I do think people need to realize that perfumes are changing, it still has a classic vibe but yes its nothing like the original, and why should it be ??? Our children are nothing like our grandparents were , or are they? People these days don't want to smell like in the 20 s , they don't dress like that nor act like that , so why smell like that? Fashion and Styles change ! So getting with the time is not always bad , and if it is not for you than stick with the classic version. I like both. I am happy to say. I like old things and new things. Same with times , love the old world but also like the modern world. Why all the complaints?