Un Jardin Apres la Mousson

The garden after the monsoon, to strictly translate it. Many places experience monsoons, most notably in South Asia where the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean collide. Some areas in Central America experience it too, like Western Mexico, but also Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Panama, and even Arizona and New Mexico. Africa as well, just south of the Sahara Desert. Having never experienced a monsoon myself I don't know how it shifts the landscape from an olfactive sense, and I suppose that would depend on the specific geographic area. Keeping this ignorance in mind, I still have to say that nothing about this perfume conjures images of torrential downpours or the aftermath. You would expect a very wet fragrance, much in the way Apres L'Ondee legendarily presents the sensation. While this does feel a bit "wet," it's more on the side of damp. To me this is a petrichor scent: green, aromatic, and earthy, like damp black forest soil has just been turned over in front of your face by a big shovel. There is a ginger, cardamom, and coriander accord at the top during the first few minutes that sort of calls India to mind, or somewhere in South Asia, but that association feels weak and timid. After that there is definitely a smell of freshly cut tomato stems - something Hermes tends to like quite a bit in their summer freshies; one more attempt to push the South Asian vibe. But what shines through in this perfume is the damp vetiver that sits at the base. It's a lovely vetiver. It is a bit salty, but not at all swampy; it is wet, yes, but it's aromatically wet, like you are smelling water infused with vetiver rather than freshly-cut salty and/or swampy vetiver (and certainly not dried, woody, or resinous/incense-like vetiver). Vetiver is certainly very South Asian, but in this presentation it is not a South Asian vetiver. It is extremely pleasantly smooth and clean... which sort of doesn't mesh with the overall creative direction of the perfume, presumably to smell like somewhere in South Asia after it has been ravaged by a downpour. Monsoons are big, destructive, and inundating with water, destroying many things in its path through floods and winds, turning over earth and washing it away like a broom at some dust. Un Jardin Apres La Mousson doesn't go there at all. This doesn't smell big, it doesn't smell destructive, it doesn't smell soaking wet, it doesn't smell messy and dirty like areas just hit by monsoons would; it's very clean, very presentable, very agreeable, like you've walked out into a beautiful South Asian herb and spice garden after a pleasant rain shower, bending down to the garden bed to get a whiff of the very happy plants that just got a pleasant drink. In a monsoon the plants or garden bed likely wouldn't be there still. All of this gets to a very simple, if trivial point, which is that this perfume is either misnamed or did not deliver on its creative mandate. I want to set aside this point for a minute because looking at the bigger picture of this perfume, it is indeed a trivial point: this perfume is gorgeous. As a clean and fresh summer scent it is very original with its presentation of South Asian spices, tomato, and vetiver accords. I don't think I've smelled a perfume quite like this before. Those accords are a bit challenging, but in a very pleasant, very pleasing and relaxing way. Un Jardin Apres La Mousson is expertly blended, the materials are of superb quality and they sing in perfect volumes and harmony together. Whatever the imagery this perfume is supposed to conjure I guess is up for debate, but, honestly, it's not a debate I'm particularly interested in because this perfume is so good it doesn't really matter.

UPDATE I finally caved in and got myself this one and I don't regret it at all! However, it has somehow morphed into something that offers more than just the ginger-dry notes I remembered from the last time I tried it. If the previous impression I got was more like a very short story, the new impression feels more like a long travel journal. On my skin, it starts off warm and gingery as before, but instead of offering a dry and spicy drydown, Un Jardin Après La Mousson now offers dewy, greener notes. Think of garden after rain: moist, cool, somewhat tainted with that distinct after-rain smell but refreshing all the same. After a while, I could detect melon (or cucumber?) notes frequently mentioned by others. The middle notes are spicy but mixed with the melony notes, they offer a very pleasant and grounded olfactory journey. The drydown remains green and moist with sweet undertones but thankfully Après La Mousson never turns cloying even in hot weather. From top to bottom, the fresh garden-after-rain scent is never overwhelming and instead it stays fresh all the way: this may be due to the softness of Après La Mousson as I found that compared to its sisters, this cool spicy falls on the softer scale. Sillage is acceptable--if you want to increase sillage try spraying it near/on your hair--and longevity isn't too shabby either. I went to town on this and sprayed it liberally (about ten sprays around the neck and on hair) and I found that the gentle dewy-ginger smell radiates within arm's length. Overall, Après La Mousson has really grown on me and within the first few days of making it my vanity staple I've received some compliments about how refreshing and wonderful it smells. Granted, it's not a head-turning type of scent but that's how Après La Mousson works: it's shy, earthy and gentle. It's not flashy. It's not gorgeous, even. It's beautiful, and very breathtaking in the most austere ways possible. It's not for everyone, but to know it is to love it. New rating: 9.5/10 -- Like its sisters, Un Jardin Après la Mousson is eclectic and intriguing. All perfumes in the Un Jardin series are excellent, but Sur Le Nil and Sur Le Toit are so similar they could be twins, and Un Jardin en Méditerranée has a very strong personality that must be handled with care. This one, however, is the mellower sister of Méditerranée. Its opening is like a loud but harmonious orchestra: bright, though not too bold, and exquisitely balanced. It's like love at first sight. Après la Mousson dries down into something dry, though, and quickly loses its sillage. I can definitely smell ginger all the way, and the spices are more pronounced as it dries--the sweeter notes fading away as quickly as a short summer rain. Overall, I adore this and I wish I had bought this instead of Méditerranée. Un Jardin en Méditerranée has too much sass for me, whilst this one is more agreeable and delicate. If you love spices, you'll love this. I always associate spicy scents with fall or winter because the ones I like tend to smell heavy and rich (think Opium/Mitsouko), so finding one that works in spring/summer is like excavating a rare gem. Rating: 8.5/10

A sweet spicy perfume but not warm. Cardamom and ginger usually can't be cold but here they are! Cold like mint or melon. Mr. Ellena wanted to make a perfume with the smell of Indian jungles after monsoon rain and he used mineral watery notes beside vetiver to do it. Ginger and cardamom make it fresh and sweet and have an important role in our perfume. Also I can feel black pepper in this aroma. It's a good idea for having a good day in summer. . تصور اینکه مخلوط هل و زنجبیل بتونه یک رایحه ی خنک و تابستانی بسازه سخته اما در عطر ان ژاغدن اپغ لا موسون این معجزه با دستان هنرمند جناب النا اتفاق افتاده. . . "اپغ لا موسون" به معنی: "پس از باران های موسمی" قصد داره فضای جنگل های کرالای هند بعد از بارش های موسمی رو ترسیم کنه. این هدف با درهم آمیختن نت آب، و کمی وتیورِ خیس و خاکی محقق میشه. فلفل سیاه هم برای قدرت بخشی به بوی خاک باران خورده در عطر، از حس زمینی و خنک و کمی فلفل دلمه ای مانندش مایه میگذاره. . هل و زنجبیل در این کار به زیباترین و پالایش شده ترین شکل ممکن ارائه شدن. اینجا از گرما و سنگینیشون خبری نیست. از هل فقط شیرینی مطبوعِ ادویه ایش قابل لمسه. حرارت و گزندگی زنجبیل هم تحت الشعاعِ نَم و سرمای نت های ابری و بارانی قرار گرفته. اما در عین حال این دو ادویه به صورت بسیار برجسته با کیفیت خوبی در عطر محسوس هستن. عطر رو تند و فرِش میکنن و انتظار مخاطب از فضای شرقی که با توجه به طرح جعبه و توضیحات جانبی ایجاد شده رو برآورده میکنن. اما خب شرقیِ سرد! . . کلیت رایحه ادویه ای، خنک و شیرینه. خنکای عطر بوی طالبی نعنا مانندی داره. به من حس جویدن همزمان آدامس نعنا و طالبی رو میده. حالت نمناک و باران خورده، تمام عطر رو در برگرفته و تجربه جالبی برای کسانی هست که دنبال بوی باران در عطرها میگردن. برای فصول گرم مناسبه و فضای متفاوتی از روایح خنک رو در اختیار شما قرار میده که در عطرهای دیزاینریِ تابستانی، زیاد باهاش مواجه نمیشید.

What a surprise! The moment I sniffed it I knew this, but it took a few hours untill I realized what it was - "Nu" from Yves Saint Laurent. They do have a lot of notes in common, cardamom being the most prominent. Also black pepper, bergamot and vetiver are in common. I am even pretty sure that NU used to have ginger in the eu de toilette making it very fresh. The only note they dont share is the strange, but not unwelcome; cucumbery/melonlike heavy wetness. It even suits this disguised NU with a little twist in this direction. First out the bottle is a blast of the cardamom (something incense like too?), then after a short while comes fresh black pepper. The fresh wet cucumber/melon thing is quite prominent for the better part of an hour, but cardamom and pepper still lingers in the background. Then it becomes "Aqva Divina" from Bvlgary only without the creamyness from the beeswax (it is more green here). Dry out comes in 3-4 hours and is a hint of ambroxan and vetiver that creates the salty ocean (very subtle now). It really is a chameleon that changes all the time, nothing remotely linear about this one. However if you dislike very spicy og incense rich scents you should try it first. Edit: This has SO many secrets. Today it was a little cold and after 2 reappliances, it smelled different all of a sudden. A slight trail of powdery bourbon vanilla emerged. Not sweet but very powdery and discreet.A little like the powdery scent "Habanita" from Molinard. What a chameleon this is.

During my first visit to the Hermes shop, my initial impression was, "Hmm, nothing particularly special, it's quite fresh, but I need more floral notes." However, as I decided to purchase their 15ml set, which I ended up with La Mousson, Terre EDT, H24, and L'ombre, along with an additional 30ml of La Lagune (I truly adore the floral essence in La Lagune). Fast forward a month later, before bedtime, I decided to apply La Mousson, and to my surprise, I fell in love with it. I could distinctly perceive the scents of ginger, pepper, and cardamom, which I hold in high regard. It was akin to sitting in a rainforest by a tranquil lake during cool weather. The fragrance resembled a refreshing, beautiful, and gorgeous blend, providing a soothing aroma that resonated deeply with me. PS: I live in Jakarta, Indonesia and the scents makes me feel fresh and cool and calm at the same time... so I don't know how it would smell on the other country Update 22/08/2024 For me, this is the best scent in my Hermes collection. I truly adore it; it smells like I'm by a crystal-clear river, surrounded by lush green grass and a garden of ginger plants stretching along the riverbank on a cool, beautiful afternoon after the rain.

There are notes in this lovely, cool perfume that are not listed above, including some kind of melony fruit (melon? mango?) and vetiver. The melon-like smell is not the inside of the fruit, though; it is more like the fragrant, intact outer rind of a fruit, the kind you would smell in the market stall to see if the fruit is ripe. I love this perfume. I like cardamom and I love the way you can smell that note right away when you spray Jardin Apres La Mousson, without it being overpowering. The ginger is there, but with a light touch. I'm not getting the cucumber others have mentioned but cucumbers, watermelons, melons and cantaloupes are all members of the Cucurbitae plant genus, so they are related; and the same scent might smell like one or the other of them to different people. So on first spray, I get cardamom and melon rind. Then a touch of ginger and ginger flower, with a little pepper. As time goes on, I smell the coriander emerging but the melon rind and ginger flower linger, to be joined at last by vetiver. I did blind buy this perfume because I have loved Un Jardin Sur le Nil, but this is a unique and distinctive fragrance. I love it but not everyone will, so maybe test first.

A Watered Garden with Quenched Roots... This is still widely available, although it may be discontinued. Translated "A Garden After the Monsoon", overall this has an earthy 'after the rain' vibe, with cardamom & ginger flower evolving into water sinking down into soil around the golden ginger roots. A mix of aquatic ginger-flower, roots & damp soil. It has an initial aromatic spiciness from cardamom & ginger, with near-cucumber & vague florals to elaborate the ginger flower with Hermes style. Average, or slightly above average performance for a light summer wearing experience. The base is similar to many Hermes scents, or has the Hermès DNA from Jean-Claude Ellena. But this may be the point - a returning to roots - since smelling this also evokes imagery of roots being watered beneath the soil. Golden ginger is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.... Update 07/08/24: Very cooling, fresh & rain-like, and the ginger-cardamom is coming a lot more forward now. Still has the Hermès DNA in the floral note which includes some jasmine. Good projection & moderate longevity. Best in hot weather. Still a love.

The first time I got this sprayed on I got circled by a very powerful cardamom-pepper mist. My grandparents had a pepper tree in their yard, and that was exactly the smell I was getting. I fell in love with the feeling it evoked in me. After twenty minutes, the scent gradually started to change: the ginger began to appear, and so did a subtle floral scent. These got stronger by the hour until completely overrunning the spicy scent, which lingered very subtly in the back. The dry down is mostly ginger with an aquatic feeling. My overall impression is like a walk in a botanical garden after the rain with all its flowers in bloom; I've never smelled something as evocative. The only problem? My partner says it smells like watermelon chewing gum. I've read a lot of similar comments, so I assume it's the ginger-floral-watery scent that takes this path in some noses. I do get a very sweet whiff after the second hour is gone, but I wouldn't describe it like melony. Its a pity, because if this is your case, you're truly missing something beautiful here :) 9/10

After sniffing the entire Jardin series at an Hermes boutique, this is the one I chose to take home. I plan on using this mostly during spring/summer, but it's also sublime during Mediterranean winters where it drizzles but never snows. This unisex perfume may be meant evoke Kerala after the monsoon season, but it's still raining softly in this Indian garden. Un Jardin Apres Las Mousson starts off smelling like a a freshly cut and peppered cantaloupe that was left at the base of pond reeds during a light drizzle. It then blossoms into a wet cucumber, coriander, and ginger infusion with cantaloupe and rain still in the background. It's fresh with a watercolor brushstroke of murkiness, quietly aquatic without the saltiness of marine calone. It's airy, but the skies are saturated and grey. In the most abstract sense this is how I imagine beautiful dreams smell like, so I wear it to bed after showering, and spritz my pillows with it. The bottle may not last long that way, but at least I'm enjoying it!

Most personal and intimate fragrance I have ever smelled. Beautiful and nostalgic blend of aquatic and citrusy notes on my skin. I would say it smells like rain in the italian countryside, during spring. Not a sunny smell, actually I would classify it as rather sad. There's nothing heavy or violent about it, but it's a very introspective and wishful fragrance. Almost like a memory. It stays rather linear on my skin, it's not invasive in any way, but it's there and people will almost wonder what it is, without even being sure IF there's something there. I would say it would make a great signature scent for a woman who could pull it off. But an ordinary "pretty, sexy, feminine" girl wouldn't. I'm thinking it would fit a very deep, mature and at the same time serene person. Ageless perfume as well. Could be worn by a 20 year old or a 70, as long as the spirit is there.

Beautiful and transporting. A delicately balanced mix of fruit, spice, and fresh "watery" notes—past reviewers have already described the scent in detail, I'll just leave this Baudelaire poem that captures the olfactory experience: The Exotic Perfume When, with both eyes closed, on a hot autumn night, I inhale the fragrance of your warm breast I see happy shores spread out before me, On which shine a dazzling and monotonous sun; A lazy isle to which nature has given Singular trees, savory fruits, Men with bodies vigorous and slender, And women in whose eyes shine a startling candor. Guided by your fragrance to these charming countries, I see a port filled with sails and rigging Still utterly wearied by the waves of the sea, While the perfume of the green tamarinds, That permeates the air, and elates my nostrils, Is mingled in my soul with the sailors' chanteys.

A garden after the monsoon........ oh now this is just enchanting, I was looking for a perfume that could harness the smell of petrichor (the smell of nature after rainfall) and this fragrance MORE than delivered. The Jardin collection by Hermès is something special and this little beauty has so much character! To me this juice truly smells like a private grove of fig trees that are laden with rain drops after a heavy storm, the air is thick, humid, and languid, capturing the green vegetal scent of the atmosphere. You can even smell the earthy richness of the damp flora and fauna. It’s a joyous scent that celebrates fertility through vitality. My favorite fragrances are ones that transport me to a certain somewhere, and Un Jardin Apres La Mousson uses that deft Hermès finesse to make this particular scene come alive. love, love, loveeeeeeee Perfume Realm 💙

This is such a great, atmospheric perfume. It opens up with a spicy, peppery, green wetness (fresh ginger maybe?). It's not a sharp green, but a tropical green. Heavy, rich and deep. Then the melony notes arrive and the fragrance becomes sweeter, but never too sweet. It retains an almost translucent character. Ginger, pepper and cardamom manage to cut through the ripe aquatic sweetness and provide balance. I should not like this fragrance. I don't like aquatic scents and I really don't like melon notes in a scent. But here, the melon is beautifully abstract and the aquatic notes are so masterfully blended. There really is a sense of relieve after a heavy tropical downpour. Maybe that's the secret of this deceptively simple scent: the aquatic wet feel here is not cooling or refreshing, it is hot and humid. It's like mini journey in a bottle.

LOVE. A spicy, tropical garden next to the warm ocean. A ginger-cardamon bomb opening. Nothing else I own comes close to this one. It’s hard to get spices to work in warm weather, and Jardin apres la Mousson does exactly that; without any sweetness. Underneath the tropical spice bomb is some kind of juicy melon, but the essence is light. I would not have known, but I read other reviews below and I agree. I cannot place it though; could be watermelon, cucumber or cantaloupe, or a combination of all three. Whatever is causing that sensation just adds to the layered complexity of this scent. Good performance for an EDT, with soft projection. Recommend with reservations; the reviews are polarizing. It works on me and I want a back up bottle as I heard rumors this is, or will soon be discontinued.

I have Un Jardin En Mediteranée, Un Jardin sur le Nil, and now recently I purchased this. This is BY FAR by favorite. The others were lovely but this is just so unique. I love ginger so I blind bought because people commented on how ginger-heavy it is but actually I probably wouldn't have minded if there was a bit more (that's just a personal preference though, there's still plenty of it). It starts with the most interesting melon smell, but there's a little something else in there too and altogether it's very soothing and cool. Then the spices come into play. They're prominent but I don't think it's overkill. I smell lotus like someone else mentioned, but it's not listed. I probably wouldn't buy second bottles of the others but this one I will definitely be purchasing again.

The main notes I get are fresh cut ginger and black pepper. Strangely enough the mix of notes make me think of something very green and watery. I see some people say that has water melon notes, true, but to me there are very obvious green tea notes. This is how I imagine a green forest in a extremely humid climate would smell like. Spices, tea and water drops... Where I live, this would translate in a spring and summer early morning scent. Very sunny, green, full of power fragrance, like an energy drink. A fragrance that seems to whisper constantly: "you can do it!" lol. I agree, it has that unisex vibe, but a very unique one. Good longevity on me, a little bit too loud with ginger in the opening. Drydown has bitter sweet notes of herbs, liquor and melon juice.

How on earth is melon not listed as a note. I get a very clear rind of unripe honey dew smell from this. Ginger note is soft, buttery, not sharp or citric and the peppery facets in here are not biting. They are, however, unique and interesting. The pepper is a white uncrushed dried peppercorn scent. Helps separate this from many other melon heavy fragrances. So nice and exotic and interesting. All of the Jardin fragrances are just impossible to pinpoint. Your first impression is different from the next and so on. This is very wet and juicy. It is the opening night of the lion king and it just stormed here and is very hot and humid out! I am wearing this to the film and it seems so freaking awesome and appropriate.

this is my fav fragrance from Hermes beside terre d hermes.. in my country ( indonesia ) there is a traditional food called "Nasi Kuning" and this nasi kuning have a lot variants.. and i just want to share about authentic nasi kuning in my town "east java" and nasi kuning have a similarity scent with opening of this hermes.. ginger... turmeric.. coriander..all is blend together.. and i can detect very well from apres la mouson. and from spicy group fragrance this apres la mouson is one of may fav fragrance... i still remember when i bought this hermes in 2011 i wore this and my friend sniff on me and he said i smell some delicious foods on you. LOL just received unique compliment from this fragrance.

It is probably my favorite of the garden collection. I’ve never been to India, but I can imagine the scene of an Indian garden after monsoon through this bottle. It paints a picture of a meadow dressed by raindrops, with the ginger lilies swaying in the June wind, twisted into a sweet, soft melon-like scent composed of ginger flower, ginger, vetiver and some other spices. It is totally fresh and moist at first, bringing the clean air after rain to me, and after about 30 minutes, the air of the garden is getting warm with the scent of ginger and pepper emerging. This perfume really captures a vivid scene of a garden after monsoon, and every time I want to choose a bottle to wear, I think of it.

Apres La Mousson is easily the most beautiful of the Jardin line, possibly one of the best Hermes fragrances and in my "top 10" of all time fragrances. It's not that complicated, but it will also take you to a different place. Ginger in fragrances, if done right, smells absolutely amazing. There's nothing like the smell of ginger either in food, drink, or fragrance. In Apres La Mousson, this is a slightly floral and aquatic ginger. There's a lot of vetiver in the background, along with some coriander seed. It has layers, and some oomph as it lasts AND projects like a beast. It's the best thing to wear to bed, or while leaving the house on hot days. So sad I only have a 50mL. Highly suggest.