Victoria

Did u realize that Victoria is a lemon gourmand because in the Victorian era lemon desserts were popular.. the bottle is like a Victorian frame and the blue represents the blue skies that paintings were famous for in that era.. example beauty and the beast (disney) castle painted ceilings... artists were infatuated with skies and it fits the scent profile well because citrus is golden yellow under the golden sun and this scent is warm and soft like the early sun Rays of a warm winter day and fresh and airy like a cloudy sky of spring.. the creaminess is the clouds in the sky... I only buy a perfume if I both absolutely love the notes AND the art used in the bottle design. so I don't buy much.. Sakeena was a love at first sight because of the bottle I was gonna get it regardless of the notes but it turned out it's got raspberry and rose and salted caramel which are notes I adore.. and then this one.. I didn't love it at first because I didn't know what to think of the pairing of blue and gold together.. but then I took a closer look and saw the details encarved on the bottle cap.. aaaah.. I was smitten .. I and when I looked deeper into what it represents I loved it. It's like a piece of jewelry.. I was also looking for a lemon gourmand scent so bingo... it all came together beautifully. Thank u for the team that designed the bottle AND the perfume. I adore lemon paired with vanilla But to be accurate this to me smells like an alcoholic lemon flavoured drink with lemon cream on top and brown sugar sprinkled on the cream to finish it off.. Or like a lemon meringue pie with an alcoholic beverage on the side or drizzled all over it .. Or like a fresh lemon meringue pie flavoured with citrus leaves and still with an effervescent drink on the side. We use citrus leaves in desserts in the levant btw... the boozyness goes away after three hours or becomes faint. And u are left with a brown sugar scent thats still a bit citrusy I love love the bottle and would love to smell this on me or a man. wish the reviewers on youtube get this one thing: Just because u smell a boozy note or any other note that's not listed does not mean that this note is actually present in the perfume. U all act like u caught lattafa lying about the notes lol.. When u mix ingredients or notes together u will often get a third note or scent or aroma that's sometimes perceived as something completely different ... Examples of this is how circus fantasy to me and many others smells like apple and cherry and bitter almond but that's because of the apricot blossom and the raspberries and other red flowers combined. Components that make up one scent profile can be found in another. Hidden fantasy to me smells like mulled wine and cake but thats not because there's mulled wine in the notes but because of the grapefruit neroli and the lemon verbena and other notes mixed together. Noble blush has no fruity note in it but roses do have a fruity facet to their scent profile meaning they do smell slightly fruity.. and earthy and green and spicy musky.. Sakeena by lattafa smells like raspberry wine even though it has no boozy notes.. it also smells like woods because it's the combination of the salt and earthy elements from the rose and nutty praline.. A toast or bread note can smell like woodsy notes too. So this smells boozy because Of the lemon paired with neroli which has bitter and green airy facets to its scent profile Pure Madagascar vanilla essential oil also smells boozy just like the vanilla extract u use in desserts. And since lattafa does use natural essential oils in their fragrances, this is the scent probably contributing to the boozyness.. unlike vaniline, real vanilla beans smell woody and bitter and slightly spicy fresh in opening. Which smells boozy to me. This is more for summer though, although I couldn't get enough of spraying it in the current winter weather, but when I got devotion I now use devotion instead and will leave this to macerate some more for the spring and summer.

I might like Victoria more than Devotion because it's even more balsamic and syrupy sweet. More candied lemon here from the neroli right off the bat, very sugared, whereas Devotion has a more prominent bitter lemony green undertone in the opening, it's overall lighter not as stuffy and fluffy and it doesn't become too powdery on me. Devotion is more refined, elegant, not as linear as Victoria, it's solar from the orange blossom, more aromatic so its balsamic boozy liqueur scent is more dimensional as a perfume. Devotion doesn't become thick or powdery (same league as Le Monde Gourmand Meringue Magique but that one's built around orange -not orange blossom- with that lactonic liqueur type of balsamic boozy praline sweetness). Victoria has a green lemony undertone in the opening and throughout too, not as intense and crisp, more rounded and which is super smooth and syrupy. I tested them from the initial spray side by side. Victoria's whole scent quickly becomes super sugared and powdery on me and more balsamic-thick than Devotion's elegant rum balsamic vein, so much that it reminds me of vintage scented powders but within that gourmand lactonic, lemon pie aroma. Its heady powdery balsamic effect can feel heavy in the summer. Bbw Loyal to You is closer to Devotion to my perception, lighter more aromatic and refined with that almost bitter green lemony undertone from the lemon blossom more pronounced that stays throughout. Loyal To You is like lemon creme cookies, a lighter gourmand scent, no powdery effect. They're all balsamic and sugared, their differences are honestly negligible, but Victoria can get stuffy truth be told at least to my nose. Maybe why it gets some bad reviews. My favorite might be Loyal To You for work but I no longer reside in the States so I can't get it replaced once I run out so Victoria will replace it (or even another Arabic dupe). I keep Devotion to wear on formal occasions, but Victoria is such a sugared gourmand bomb that I reach for it more often for my own enjoyment as it feels more decadent, playful and heavier. The bottle is art.

🩵Ohhhhh my I just got a bottle of this and I am totally smitten by the gorgeous heavy , luxurious marble bottle. The light indigo 🩵 color of the bottle is so whimsical. The bottle looks like it would be on a beautiful Victorian woman's vanity. This scent is absolutely bewitching. It's one of the best gourmand scents I've smelled in a long time. On me it smells like 🍋 Limoncello, the famous Italian lemon liqueur or Limonata, a traditional Italian sparkling lemonade. It's so juicy and so creamy with hints of vanilla bean 🍦and very inoffensive. I also detect the citrus scent of yummy pineapple. 🍍 I can feel the oil on my skin after spraying which makes this high quality. And usually when I spray perfumes I'll sneeze a couple times but with Lataffa perfume I have never sneezed not once. Right now I have three bottles of Lattafa's fragrances and more to come. This perfume is absolutely scrumptious. I am so impressed by Lataffa. I'm going to be buying more bottles of their fragrances that's for sure. 🩵💙🩵 The notes - In perfumery,🍋 a Lemon Meringue Pie accord smells bright, creamy, and sweet. It is characterized by three distinct layers: Top Notes: 🍋Sharp, tart, and zesty lemon or lemongrass. Heart Notes: Rich, custardy vanilla and sweet, airy meringue (often achieved with sugar or marshmallow notes). Base Notes: A warm, 🧈buttery, and baked crust scent, usually created using graham cracker, biscuit, or cereal accords. Neroli smells like a fresh, sweet, and slightly metallic blend of citrus and white florals with a green, bitter undertone. It is distilled from the blossoms of the bitter 🍊orange tree, giving it a crisp, clean, and refreshing aroma often associated with high-end colognes and soap. In perfumery, 🍦vanilla smells warm, cozy, and sweet, but high-quality natural vanilla is complex—often featuring rich creamy, 💙🪵woody, balsamic, and slightly smoky facets rather than just sugary sweetness. It acts as a powerful fixative, adding depth, comfort, and sensuality to fragrances, especially in gourmand and amber perfume families.

Leaning into my love for all things gourmand - especially where vanilla is involved - I fell in love with D&G Devotion, but not the price point. So I first got a Devotion dupe (Divain 833) that I adore, which is already at "half dent," as it's my standard cozy bedtime scent. Because I was going through it so quickly, I also picked up a bottle of Shahoor Elixir - just as scrumptious - as a backup. Then just today I received a full tester bottle of Victoria that I got on eBay. WOW - she may be the mother of them all! 💙 I actually hesitated about getting Victoria based on some negative reviews, and I've been burned more than once with blind buys. The sillage and longevity aren't the best (of course 🙄), but I don't know what it is about the juice itself - had it already had time to macerate? The way it works with my chemistry is amazing. Like, mankiller stuff. LOL A big thank you to @Louvafae, for explaining what that little "something" is that I smelled in Victoria that I couldn't put my finger on (as well as a lovely Victorian history lesson): "lemon paired with neroli which has bitter and green airy facets." That's exactly it. I kept thinking perhaps it was a touch of licorice or booze. It's definitely not as cloyingly sweet as my other two bottles; that little kick of freshness has turned it into what will be a true daily wear fragrance. Call me crazy, but on me, this stuff is STUNNING. 💙

It’s always the cheaper one that ends up stealing my heart. This one—this bright, beaming, lemon-milk sunbeam of a scent—has Devotion’s spirit, but stripped of her shrillness. None of that saccharine screech of candied lemon peel soaked in sticky rum. Nope, this opens like the citrus grove at golden hour. Bergamot fizz. Lemon zest, crystalline and soft-edged. Neroli! Not the sharp kind, but the tender one, like spring light diffused through lace curtains. The kind of green floral that makes you want to sigh into your wrist. Then something miraculous happens. The base doesn’t collapse into sugar sludge. Instead, it puffs (yes, puffs!) into something fluffy and smooth, like the gentle curl of meringue atop a tart still warm from the oven. There’s tonka, I think, anchoring things with its creamy, nutty vanilla whisper. Maybe a dusting of heliotropin? That soft almond-powder effect that makes everything feel silk-lined. Luminous, not flat. Brilliant. It’s gourmand, but never juvenile. Airy, but full. Like dessert made by a perfumer who’s read Rilke. A poetic pie. And the best part? It lasts. Lingers. Settles into skin like sun into seafoam. Devotion who? Honestly, this wears like a reverent upgrade. An ode to lemon cream—longer-lasting, smoother-edged, better balanced. Even cheaper (!). Which feels like a small cosmic win.