Naturelle Classique

I picked this up on holiday in the south of France well over 15 years ago. A lovely citrusy slap in the face. Years later, I acquired Monsieur Balmain, which very much brought to mind this gem from Mon St Michel, featuring a good dose of lemon, cedar and bitter orange. I remember walking the streets of southern France with my mother, and smelled a cologne that really appealed to me, being a child at the time, I asked my mother to investigate. She came back with Mon St Michel and another called “Eau de Cédrat” by a brand called Flora. It evokes perfectly an afternoon in the South of France post shower, when you just want to feel clean and “French”. Really weak sillage on this one, splash on liberally. I only use it when I want to rekindle those memories of Southern France, I have no idea if you can still get it, but if you should come across it on your travels, it’s a must buy to add to your citrus collection. Ok, it's not Eau Sauvage, but still packs a really authentic blast of Southern France. Scent: 8,5. Sillage: 3. overall: 10! (for the nostalgia).

I wanted to buy Mont Saint Michel edc.naturelle classique, given that summer is quickly approaching in Italy and it's hot. I love colognes in the summer, and at this time of year I'm trying to forget about various perfumes that can alter and distort my sense of smell. I bought it on a perfume website and was attracted by the ridiculous price of just under 9 euros for 500 ml. I thought to myself why not try it. It arrived yesterday and I was immediately enchanted and immediately reminded me of O de Lancome, Eau Sauvage, Eau d'Hermes, confirmed here on the Fragrantica website. Obviously, it needs to be used very generously because it has extremely weak hold. Guys, it's good, good, fresh and elegant and doesn't smell synthetic or chemical. Bergamot, bitter orange and rosemary... try it!

Rappelle tour à tour Eau sauvage, Cologne du coq et d'autres : classique, efficace; parfait pour le job.

Yay, I’m so glad this has made it into the database! Alas, that is where my excitement ends, unfortunately. I love this cologne, and the opening is delightful. But it becomes a skin scent in no time at all, and after five minutes there is absolutely no sillage to speak of. What a pity. I have read that mothers in France use this as an antiseptic for their kids’ scrapes and bumps. That’s probably a more suitable use than as a fragrance.

7/10 Odeur très agréable, mais la performance est tout simplement inexistante, je ne comprendrai jamais les gens qui achètent de la Cologne, pourquoi mettre un parfum à la projection si faible et à la tenue si courte que vous ne le sentez plus au bout de 30 minutes ?

It's nice but I have better splash colognes in this genre. I'd certainly be happy to splash some on if I found it in a guest bedroom. It's the correct price in French supermarkets, but not anywhere else.