Chevalier Vert

Olympic Orchids is a Washington state niche house based in a Seattle suburb about 15 miles from where I live—and I only recently ordered one of their discovery box sets. Of the 16 samples, I like or love about six....which I think is a high number. My first purchase will be this perfume, Chevalier Vert. I consider myself a “green” fan. A walk through a garden or orchard is something I want to experience on a regular basis: Beach Hut Man, Annick Goutal's Nuit Etoile and Ninfeo Mio to watery, thinner interpretations in Guerlain’s Aqua Allegoria Herba Fresca and one of my all time favorites, Balenciaga’s L’Essence. Notes like violet, tomato and fig leaf, galbanum, mint, ivy, and angelica are all loved by me. If Beach Hut Man is the King of masculine green scents, then Chevalier Vert is the Queen of feminine green scents with the best dominant rhubarb note that I’ve ever smelled (although I consider both unisex). CV opens with a uber strong tomato leaf and rhubarb, morphs 20 minutes later into a beautiful, bitter, aromatic galbanum with violet leaf — I pick them up in the same order as voted above. Those initial notes never leave the garden party. Only after several hours do I detect a small amount of wood. Is it a masterpiece? In my opinion, yes. There are lots of green scents out there, but none like this one. I’m in “Green” heaven. If you are a green fan, this must be on your list to try.

I learned recently, because of this perfume and one other (OG Aura by Mugler)- that I LOVE rhubarb in perfume! If you have tried a rhubarb perfume before and liked it, this is probably going to impress you. I do however have a fragrance friend who HATES rhubarb, so he can't stand this one. Its Green without being fresh, and yes, it does seem to have a bit of a "stinky" vibe at times. I would wear it in winter so as not to overwhelm people. However, it is quickly becoming a favorite of mine! Polarizing for sure, DO NOT BLIND BUY, get a sample! But I am myself going to get a full-size soon. (The 5ml for $18 is a great deal, but I need more!) Grassy, a bit musky, a bit woody, and yeah a bit weed-y. I don't know exactly why it makes my brain go "WOW" every time I smell it, but because I also love Aura by Mugler so much, I must deduce it's the strong rhubarb in this that has me head-over heels. I recommend it, but please, only a sample to test!

I agree with TheFragrantPrince. "Painfully beautiful". I am getting obsessed with this perfume and i have to get a whole bottle. I seriously feel it is going to be my signature scent. Green , sharp, deep, dangerous, odd, sexy, intoxicating. It reminds me of my childhood garden - now destroyed. Full of weeds, wet soil, rhubarb. For me this scent is the essence of Spring, the essence of vegetal life. Green blood. For anyone who loved to climb trees, to get one's hands dirty, who used to eat flower heads (violets in my case). It is so touching I want to cry when i smell it. Like overwhelming power of Nature. Uncompromising, powerful, dangerous, soothing, full of hope and thrills.

You have to know how to recognize a masterpiece when you meet one. A unique and never smelled blend, a magnificent opening, an enchanting evolution, a perfect sillage and finally the irresistible urge to return in the perfume every hour and every day. Ellen Covey opened the doors of an enchanted garden in a forgotten monastery. A garden now becoming wild where grew rhubarb, citrus fruits, tomatoes but also flowers such as iris, violet, ... the general effect is encompassing, we plunge into an intense green but relaxing light with a very nostalgic side. A memory of childhood that is likely to escape at any time and that must be kept preciously. To discover absolutely!

I am really a fan of this scent- the tomato leaf is the most salient scent for me. It is exactly the smell of going into a vegetable garden in the springtime- so much green and vibrant vegetation. The downside to this scent is that others have told me it smells strongly of weed. While I don’t get that at all, it was a rude awakening to have a coworker in my old office ask me if I “smelled weed” in my cubicle, and I’m not sure they would have bought that it was my perfume, so be aware of where you wear this scent and maybe save it for the weekend in case someone gets the wrong idea.