Caleche Parfum

How I adore this, bought in Sydney when my beautiful Norwegian immigrant lover Odd Erik and I drove there in a decrepit VW beetle with some weird lever on the floor that controlled the fuel line. (Sometimes we hitchhiked around, I know unbelievable now, but not a worry when you were a pair, but then Erik got the veedub, he learned all sorts of hacks to keep ‘er going). (I also had a Honda 100 motorbike, that I’d ride back to our farm on weekends and being a good woman, I was delighted to pillion behind him). (The fates decided to spare us.) We may have not slept anywhere for that Caleche weekend because we were starving uni students but it didn’t matter. It was my first ‘adult’ perfume bought from a department store (David Jones). I bought versions of it repeatedly in my early twenties before finding Mitsouko. I spent most of my scholarship on perfume instead of art supplies. I’ve got two tiny bottles of vintage parfum, god, no wonder I fell in love with it. Just wearing this perfume, luxuriating in cascading memories...so joyous...beyond masterpiece

I’ve always liked Caleche but had never tried the vintage parfum until yesterday, when I got a never used travel spray from the 60’s, by the looks of it. When first sprayed you can tell there’s a lot of fresh lemon, not fruity but the kind you might smell in an alcoholic beverage; a few minutes later the florals come roaring in but in a restrained manner, like a silent scream if that makes sense. Without knowing the actual notes I could tell there was some incense in the base before the dry down and I thought to myself “this is like Chanel 22 but without the typical Chanel mess”. This is a formula that knows exactly what it wants to be and convey, it doesn’t try to appeal with unnecessary sweetness or with pretty florals, instead it’s a grand aldehyde floral with a solid structure, no note stands out, like a great perfume should be. Superb.

Remarkable beauty. I can't believe there are no reviews for this version. It's a richer version and the aldehydes are much smoother and toned down. Could be because mine is vintage. While I enjoy the EDT and EDP, the aldehydes are shrill and piercing and I don't enjoy the fragrance for at least an hour. This one goes straight to the beauty. The parfum allows me to fully understand the love for Caleche. It has always been a like for me but this version is love.

Liquid sunshine gold; sparkling sunny aldehydes lead into ylang, powdery orris, and lightly waxy white florals. All sits on a musky and woody base. Very beautiful, alluring in a comforting way. The heat of spring and summer make this shine, best-suited for warmer months. Lasts for ages, becomes like a second skin.

I love this perfume, just love it. This is one of the classiest, most universal, most head turning perfumes ever made. There's absolutely nothing like it.