Collection Heritage Que Sais-Je?

Easily one of the most enchanting, bewitching, magnificent scents ever made. Every aspiring "nose" is told that this is one scent he must sniff as part of his education. QUE SAIS-JE? [ka-SEZH'] means "What do I know?", as in "I am falling in love and not using my head". A head of sweet peach, aldehydes, bergamot and a slightly urinaceous honey (yes, you read that right) descends into a floral heart of carnation, orange blossom, jasmin and rose, with a musky/ambered/patchouly base. There is also a slightly camphorous note in the head that is the magic foil to the sweetness of the fragrance, and, I believe, some cedar and ambergris in the base. A real Art Deco/Roaring 20's masterpiece, QUE SAIS-JE? is exuberant and optimistic and, with its piss-like hint, slyly sexy. When they say, "they don't make 'em like that anymore", this is what they're referring to. This flawlessly constructed scent is transporting, exceptionally flirtatious and giddy-making. A marvel. <> The newer "Heritage" version of QSJ is an appallingly bad jus that smells nothing like the 1920's original, and should be avoided at all costs. Without the toasted hazelnut-- so integral to the 1920's jus--- this just cannot be called QUE SAIS-JE?

Never had the luck to try the original, but on its own merit this one is absolutely fantastic. What sets it apart is not simply how wonderful the peach note is, but also the fact that it comes across as aromatic (rather than that heavy fruity thing one gets with most fruity frags). The composition literally sings. Bear in mind that it needs a very long macerating time. Carnation adds a spicy dimension and dry down is honey-musk. Performance on the average side.

A sneaky, musky sweet concoction that hums along quietly and close to the skin. It somehow conspires to smell slightly nutty, as if you are only smelling the stonefuit pits instead of the flesh. I like this for it's understated elegance, however, I am immensely pissed off that Fontaine left the frickin hazelnuts behind on the mixing bench. Maaaaaate. That was the whole damn point.

This is peach, apricot and carnation w/ a little bit of animalistic tang from honey. There is also a vintage powdery and soapy notes. I can understand why they called this one Que Sais Je? or What Do I Know? Because it is hard to describe. It isn't excessively sweet, floral, fruity, animalic, powdery, balsamic, herbal, woody etc... I agree w/ the review below, it is dusty papyrus on an ancient scroll probably found tucked away in an ancient library in Egypt. It smells slightly vintage. It reminds me of Mitsouko from Guerlain quite a bit, probably from the peach. There is an earthy quality to this as well, earthy isn't one of the accords listed above but I would've listed earthy, at least it is to my nose. This smells like what I imagine the Library of Alexandria would have smelled like. I think I will wear this one when I am reading a classic book, which I do often since I am an avid reader. An introspective and thoughtful perfume. Edit: 12/2/22 The more I explore this fragrance the more I love it. There is a subtle but voluptuous beauty about it. Heady and thick in the beginning but becomes classic and chic as it goes a long. I would actually love this on a man because of the heavy carnation. Most male fragrances are horrid, I like my husband to wear my unisex or more feminine fragrances like this one. You wear this perfume; it doesn't wear you but that is the case w/ most Patou's. A house that knew how to create beauty, class and refinement. I am so glad I picked this one up. Just a very unique fragrance that shows different facets (Joy does this as well) every time you wear it. Another side note I have sampled FB Tyger Tyger and did not like it at all. The peach note in that one for me was very rotten. Que Sais Je? is sooo much better. Besides Que Sais Je? can be bought for a lot less today on the grey market.

I don’t believe fragrances in Collection Heritage, a set of remastered fragrances based on vintage releases, should be compared to respective predecessors. They aren’t meant to be identical, if they were meant to be the same, SA Designer Parfum Ltd would have just manufactured the originals & sold those (assuming they had the license to). So, this review is of the Que Sais-Je? from Collection Heritage as a different fragrance to the original. Initially, I get a strong honeyed peach but the presence of the lime note makes it fresh & appealing. The Honey note is fairly dominant for about an hour and a half on my skin but that settles allowing the floral notes to peek through. For better reference, Viktor & Rolf’s Bonbon shares a few similar notes but Que Sais-Je? is more stripped back & mature, less of a candy vibe because of the use of honey instead of caramel, which gives the fragrance a bit of a tangy vibe to it. There is also the presence of rose & carnation in the heart which makes this far more floral, it’s a lovely fragrance for when a little maturity & sophistication is required like a wedding/job interview etc. Has heavy longevity & sillage on me. Not sure either bonbon or Que Sais-Je? are worth their Recommended Retail Prices (£90 & £180 respectively) because neither are groundbreaking in the innovation department, both are solid fragrances though. That being said, Que Sais-Je? can be picked up on eBay for a mere fraction of the cost today, far less than say Bonbon. At these lower price points, I would say it is definitely worth a try, especially if you like Bonbon but want a more mature take on it & like strong honey fragrances.

I've got very musky loving skin so first go, definitely love. It's very spiced honey and a sandalwoody patchouli on me. It's updated, but the spirit is absolutely still there. It's very unique to me even though all the notes are my go to! I've been going on a vintage scent journey and being a kid in the 00s I don't feel me in older scents. Obviously, not going to stop me having a go 🤣 This won me over to reinterpreted classics. I still feel transported back then, but instead It's like, "this is what it smelled like to people back then living in a fog of cigarettes & air pollution". Some of the older scents we forget were formulated against a different scentscape. I'm hoping the fruity notes will bloom once it's macerated. For now, they were very flash in the pan. Superb for fall!

Im collecting this series. I agree with some of the posters here and im befuddled why would you leave out the hazelnut? It smells better in its sillage trail than up close. A new "chypre" with patchouli anchoring the base and nary oakmoss to be found. It has a Joy Forever edt vibe where Fontaine uses the apricot accord. If you loved Joy Forever, its a natural pick up. Theres a lot of lovely moments in here, like the textured opening with the tart bergamot against the fruits and neroli, the rose against the honey. Its in a hard position. If you judge it on its own its quite interesting and could be a stand alone new pillar for a fragrance house. Some will be upset as it doent echo the vintage.

This is just an incredible find. I can’t put my finger on what makes this scent so interesting and intriguing. The peach apricot jammy top but on something more complex - honey rose carnation amber what? Some interesting contrast here I can’t just yet pinpoint but that leaves me wanting to spend more and more time with it. This one is truly bigger that the sum of its parts - some magic happens in this bottle. Its the intriguing stranger you see in passing somewhere and keep remembering...what if? I think I need to buy a back up for this while I still can.

For those that miss the hazel nut of the original (I never smelled the original) layer this version with L'Erbolario Olio di Argan body cream. A really great combo.

Why, why, why Thomas Fontaine?!! To me the idea behind the Collection Heritage was to take the best out of the old formulations and create something with a nicer spin and/or more appealing to the current crowd. Here they have unfortunately taken out what was the whole spirit of the original - the Hazelnut. Moreover, the distinct vintage feeling (which you can really help play out differently even In Chypre) is still present throughout, which is probably why the Heritage Collection, although a great idea, was not a great success and to this day keeps getting dusty on TKMaxx shelves. Not fair for Jean Patou.

I have purchased this perfume by internet (EUR 83 for 100 ml) and deeply regret. No more blind buys for me. The problem of this perfume is that it is so weak that it does not last at all. Also, it seems to smell relatively nicely during first 15 minutes (I could definitely smell rose and peach). Later it smells just by honey. And you really should make an effort to smell something!!!

This in no way resembles the original Que Sais Je. This is a modern, white musk dominated fragrance, with more in common with modern Hermes perfumes than it does with the original (in exactly the same way as the Heritage Collection version of Colony). Obviously, we all perceive perfumes differently, but how this reminds some of Mitsouko extrait or Yvresse is beyond me.

Honey, peach & apricot with subtle support. Neither sweet nor rich. Neither fruit tart nor Bit-O-Honey. One must admit the opening has a contemporary (because undateable) aldehyde impact, which is jolie laide, pungent, a tad medicinal, and a bit mysterious. That's chic. Then Que sais-je? is elegant, papery and unrecognizable as Patou style until several hours in the ride, when it becomes somewhat perfumey. A dry papyrus scroll note runs all the way through it and with the honey, common flowers and desiccated apricot, a soupçon of souk via the amber and patchouli, and voilà we're in a sunny languid courtyard in Egypt, of all places. Did you expect to arrive here? I did not. Overall this in a French niche "petite astuce pour les initiés" style. And my little trick was buying it for 30 bucks. Que sais-je? isn't a question, it's more "Que sais-je encore" - God who knows what?

I have had an unopened box of this Jean Patou re-creation which I just finally opened today. To say I was excited is an understatement because frankly, after this long pandemic I needed something new and lovely. After over six hours of this intriguing olfactory journey I find the name to be so very apropos! Puzzling, everchanging, multi-faceted... The intricate evolution of this scent is one of surprise and delight from a very juicy stone fruit beginning followed by a spicy touch from the carnation to an enduring drydown that perhaps, due to the honey and amber combination (I get NO patchouli whatsoever!) is very resinous with an almost tobacco feeling to it. At times it reminds me of vintage Champagne (later Yvresse) and others, a touch of Karl Lagerfeld infused with peach and apricot brandies! What do I know after all...Que sais-je?

Classic honeyed peach with a twist of animalic and powderiness. Mature and vintage without feeling dated or stale (or grandma as people like to say) it smells expensive. I think this is how Rochas was supposed to smell or how it smelled before time passed it by. Quite rich could even say ambery or spicy, in that it reminds me of a rochas or similar old school ambers, but the honey, peach and florals are very realistic and modern. Slight touch of animalic makes this one interesting, although I don't see it in the notes. Chewy, floral, spicy, with a touch of animalic and powder. ** 200 samples for swap UK - I do 20 plus bundles only, check my customs, get in touch!**

Here is the alluring Que Said Je? story from the Jean Patou Collection Heritage booklet that came with the perfume: "1925. EMBRACE THE MOMENT OF WONDER. The moment your will starts hesitating. QUE SAIS JE? is the first question mark and pause for thought, the readiness to go further without knowing exactly where. The fragrance opens with the sweet tones of Peach, Petitgrain and Bergamot which are gently caressed with the delicate floral notes of Rose, Carnation and Jasmine. This sweet story is concluded with subtle accents of Patchouli and Amber. QUE SAIS JE? The fragrance that embraces the moment of wonder and transcends into desire."

I tried the latest version yesterday and thought it to be quite lovely, if a bit nondescript: some flowers, some fruit, some honey. A scent completely unknown to me. Then I went home and gave the version from the 1980s coffret another try. Even though the top notes are a bit off, the rest is simply overwhelming: a fruity chypre with some character. If you look for a relaunch of this formula, you'll be disappointed. I'll try to make my 4 mls last as long as possible now, as this latest version might be nice, but that's all. Neither Deux Amours nor Adieu Sagesse come close to their predecessors, and in my opinion are not even appealing.

For some reason most of there’s are $200 or more on ebay. i’m selling mine brand new for $100 on depop if anyone’s interested. My username is @keshawnkelly and shipping will only be 4.99 regardless of your state :)