L de Loewe

L de Loewe belongs in the pantheon of forgotten 70’s chypres. The ones that memory and time have faded to obscurity, that little place where Azzaro, Vu, Loewe II and many more haunt me. Coming out in 1971 or 72 as the debut fragrance of the house, L smells like an expensive perfume spilled inside a good leather bag. The opening lacks the typical aldehyde slap of the era. Instead, it diffuses neroli with citrus freshness, highlighted by the green notes to come and a touch of aldehydic sparkle. My personal pixie dust! The heart though is where the magic starts to shine! Green in all variations; verdant, emerald, mossy and inky slopes filled with the bitter bracing touch of galbanum, the rooty feel of vetiver, the forest floor canopy of oakmoss all laced with powdery hyacinth and iris, leathery and animalic narcissus, and a touch of sparkle provided by magnolia! Lily, with its indolic beauty, provides the highlight of floral notes, adding a cast of white shimmer. I’m sure there are more, but the flowers are blended in such a way that they enhance the greenness and avoid becoming the star of the show. The fragrance echoes the idea of luxury, but more city and less countryside. Fidji did it for exotic islands, Aliage made country chic and L simply spilled itself inside the finest leather handbag. And the basenotes enhance it even more. Rich musks, glimpses of leathery castoreum, powdery civet and salty ambergris provide lasting tenacity and ample sillage all the while maintaining the opening freshness. Elegant on all sides, L could go from shopping, to work, to a dinner party or the opera. Just like Aromatics, another chameleon of a fragrance, L didn’t limit itself to a certain mood or social setting, but it adapted to its wearer making itself at home in every situation. The hallmark of elegance. Along the way, L fell out of style, although it remained popular in Europe, Scherrer came with a darker and sexier sillage, and slowly the doors of 80’s excess opened welcoming big white florals and animalic orientals. Power scents like Opium, that mystified the forbidden, remained popular, new is always more shiny, and the green floral chypres of the previous decade, with their hopes and dreams, ethereal but fierce, became too ‘country girl’ for the city execs that strutted the dark streets of a neon metropolis inhabited by the big bad wolf. Danger was du jour, and L was not that animal. Today, easily found on eBay, the vintage edt shines like the brightest emerald. Mostly forgotten, it can shine anew, becoming once again a radiant and elegant signature for the man or woman that loves the likes of Scherrer, Aliage, Y, Givenchy III, Futur. After all, it defies time, gender and settings; elegance is far above that. Review based on early 70’s original formula edt.

The premiere fragrance of the revered Spanish luxury fashion house, L de Loewe is not merely their contribution to the zeitgeist of the time, riding on the coattails of Chanel No. 19 and Givenchy III. It certainly shares attributes, displaying a prism of green from hesperidic-bright and bitter to inky and mossy. However, L is suffused with even more of forest pageantry than the others only imply, where the galbanum and hyacinth seem more accented, slanting toward glades and foothills rather than manicured gardens. I smell the sketched outlines of white lilies and jonquil in the heart, teased with loam and salty vetiver. L de Loewe really wows me in that its herbal flair, bitter tannins, and its astringent, mouth-puckering verdant deliciousness evolves into a plush castoreum-tinged leather, reminding me of a countryside saddlery. Hours in, and a musky, mossy, woody skin scent has me repeatedly nuzzling my wrist. It makes me want to spend an afternoon in the library looking at old microfiche and microfilm, losing myself in echoes of the past. The overall feel when wearing L is that of vigor and optimism, just the prescription for me during these challenging times. It is a certified classic that ranks among the best of its era.

The kind of full-on, bitter green chypre that is absolutely not made any more. Initially the narcissus is prominent as well as the galbanum, giving the feel of a blast of cold, invigorating spring air. Then the other notes creep in, tempering the bracing quality of the opening. Spring flowers give way gradually to leather and mossy woods. The comparison that comes to my mind is with Azuree. To me, stunningly lovely, but I should think it would be hard to understand by those who have grown up without smelling this kind of non-sweet herbal perfume. This reminds me that in the mid-20th century, women were expected to be capable adults, not candy-coated kittens. Review is for vintage EdT.

This was a beautiful green chypre, in the league of Givenchy III with which it had in common the same elegance. Alas, both have been sadly discontinued, they embodied the image of an elegant woman, classy and discreet and in a few years from the appearance of these two masterpieces very loud fragrances would have taken their place. I remember I had a huge bottle of L de Loewe and enjoyed every drop of it. It is certainly by far the best scent in the Loewe line (I tried to find a hint of this in the Loewe other perfumes, no way any are similar to this one). Wish they would bring it back even though I am aware it would smell differently.

L is an old-fashioned spring floral, with aldehydes in the opening and a surprisingly rich, liquored floral heart. It’s “darker” and a touch warmer than your Madame Rochas/Y/Futur-type spring florals, and it’s surprisingly multifaceted, coming out different every time I wear it. Sometimes it’s mostly red rose and leafy greens and what feels almost like a mixed-fruits effect. Sometimes I get a lot of civet and a spicy narcissus. Sometimes I get a floaty white-floral veil. I don’t find it overly formal, just fresh and graceful.

Very similar to Chanel 19 edt.Only thing I hate about this is that it's not persistent enough.It's nice and soft ,but the longevity is important as well in perfumery. This is for the edt. Bought another one and the bottle is little bit different,the fume inside is different ,this time it is smoky.Was disappointed when it arrived,now am in love with it.Summer heat always gives a helping hand.

This one is indeed discontinued. A perfume quite similar is Shiseido Koto. Koto is just a little more bitter. Actually I even prefer it. Koto is still in production, the problem is that is not been sold outside Japan very often. Hard to find.

Problem solved : if it doesn't last very long on the skin , in my hair it does and it is really wonderful.On hair it turns to be more aromatic ,while on skin ,it's more powdery. This one is a real beauty.