Cuir de Russie

Honestly, from all Le Jardin Retrouve perfumes, I expected the least from Cuir de Russie. I imagined powdery flowers mixed with overpowering leather and patchouli, heavy and dated smell that's definitely not something to my taste. How wrong I was. To be honest, it wasn't love at first sight. When I sprayed it for the first time, I found it odd. Not necessarily bad, just odd. Violet comes forward first as vibrant and fresh, thanks to well balanced citruses and aldehydes. After the first burst, you can already smell hint of smokiness and leather coming through. Perfume keeps developing on the skin and takes you on the amazing olfactory journey, without ever being boring, predictable or linear. After about 6 hours, it faded away from my skin and I still wasn't sure that I liked it. But, I couldn't stop thinking about it and decided to take a plunge and buy the whole bottle. For me, this perfume is a masterpiece. Not only that is perfectly balancing the impossible, but it's incredibly smart without being too heavy or draining. When I wear it, I can't stop smelling my wrists. With that said, this is not a perfume for someone who has a nose focused on mainstream popular gourmands. This perfume is for someone who enjoys being the most interesting person in the room. Last but not least, I found the perfume more autumnal/wintery, truly unisex and can easily be worn day and night.

Le Jardin Retrouve has been re-born by Michel Gutsatz, the son of the founder Yuri Gutsatz. I couldn't wait to try their Cuir de Russie, which had been a favourite of mine, when Yuri was still alive. I read the card, with beautiful artwork designed by Michel's wife, Clara Feder, who is an accomplished artist, that the sample came in. I noticed immediately that the notes were a bit different from what I could remember were in the original. I remembered a touch of lemon, but it wasn't present here. I was a bit worried that I wasn't going to like it, but I can honestly say, it has improved upon the original formula. This is a Cuir de Russie, totally different to other Cuir de Russie's that I've had, my favourite now being vintage Chanel. It's one of those scents that you spray on your hand, and you have to keep smelling your hand, because it's so beautiful. Suitable for both men and women. I was stunned at the beauty of it. The floral notes, including violet, are amazing. If it wasn't celebrating the famed Diaghilev, Nijinsky and the Ballet Russe, you would have thought that you were sat in the Opera, 20 years earlier smelling Oscar Wilde's Canterbury Wood Violet and the smell of highly polished leather boots. Here are the notes, ylang ylang, violet, cinnamon, cade wood and styrax.

This stuff is fabulous, and I want to thank the Fragrantica reviewer who covered this perfume (Sergei maybe?) around June 23rd. (I haven't figured out how to find reviews of this type that are no longer listed in the homepage, or I would know exactly who reviewed it.) Until I read that review, I was totally unfamiliar with this brand, and a little hesitant to order. But they shipped immediately apparently (they didn't email me when they shipped) and it arrived today June 29, which is excellent Paris-US. It's wonderful. Cuir de Russie has plenty of the deep woodsy violet I always look for, with absolutely nothing cloying here. Those violets are in a deep forest and within maybe an hour are taken over by the leather and patchouli, in nearly equal measure. More for men than for women, and probably best in fall and winter, but I loved it today in 70 degree heat anyway. It disappeared after maybe 4 hours, but I really need to test it better. I got really busy and lost track of what I was smelling for awhile. And this label has a good price range too. You don't have to commit yourself to a big bottle, but you don't have to settle for a 1ml sample either.

I sigh every time I spray this! So beautiful and cold, like a spring morning. A bright opening with the aldehydes and lime, but I really like the citrus notes here, more elegant than loud. And when the violets take the stage... genuinely dreamy. I sigh. Fresh cut violets, subtle but steadfast! I wish they lasted longer than they do, my only complaint. Cuir de Russie reminds me of my favorite book, a retelling of one of my favorite fairy tales, where cursed princesses wander the palace gardens and sharp-witted crones make deals with kind-hearted soldiers. This is not a dark fragrance to me, not at all. It's chilly, yes. But full of the watery morning sun and fog, the cold dew on grass, soft leather dancing slippers.

A cool, brisk and aldehydic violet opens Cuir de Russie that stuns me as it blooms on my skin, and not very long thereafter, a chewy, smoky styrax and powdery cade leather. It's ravishing, and I just want to repeat the experience like one would take the needle on their turntable and bring back to the beginning of their favorite 45. A delicate green mossiness caresses the nose as the leather grows muted and the violet accord grows woodier. There's such an understated elegance to it that seems absent from much of modern perfumery, and I am optimistic of a renaissance of this style in a marketplace destined to fatigue everyone's noses. There is a high snuggly factor here, too.