La Belle et l'Ocelot

I’m going to try to leave a short review as I don’t have much time. This fragrance is beautiful! This is probably the most stunning bottle I have in my collection, besides my antique perfume bottles (my small antique bottle collection includes two stunning malachite glass Kurt Schlevoght bottles, so that’s really tough competition). The comparisons to coco mademoiselle and coco noir are true, but not for the top. The top bears similarities to Mauboussin Histoire d’Eau. They share a similar syrupy boozy mandarin orange note. It’s very sticky note (no pun intended), like dried up orange juice or actually in this case dried up orange liquor. It’s sweet, but not like hard candy as it’s more boozy than that. The top is not as spicy as Histoire though, although it is spicy. It’s bit more sweet and fruity in the top, which reminds me of Fruit de La creativité by Grès and there’s a freshness that’s reminiscent of Maja. The top really smells exactly as if someone layered Histoire d’Eau with Fruit de La Creativité and Maja. I imagine that would smell pretty much exactly the same. In the heart the similarities to both Chanel fragrances become apparent. It’s also very similar to Madame Grès, but the top is very different. I prefer the top notes, as I feel the heart is a bit more sweet and feminine than my general preference. It is very classy and beautiful though. The perfect fragrance to feel beautiful and elegant. Inoffensive enough for the office. I do really enjoy this. It’s described as a chypre, but imo only the top displays chypre qualities. The heart and base lean much more towards floral fruitchoulies. I really wish the top notes would last longer to have that somewhat masculine, oriental chypre vibe Larry all the way to the dry down. The heart and base could just use a tad more spiciness. Silage and longevity aren’t amazing on me, but maybe the performance will improve in warmer weather, so I’ll update if I find that to be true later. Update: upon reapplication the top is quite different and more similar to Mauboussin Elixir pour Elle. Probably because the heart and base notes mix more with the top this way. What an interesting and versatile fragrance!

Well hello Lover! This perfume, (thank you tireless Fragrantica reviewers) has come into my possession - and delightfully summons an ovation in my heart: Spectacular! One of my first 'Wow' moments in perfumery, was attending supper in a posh enough establishment, that there was perfume in the public bathroom. This amazed me; such a creature as I, living for a moment above my means. There was an assortment sparkling, clad on mirror and crystal, but only one called to me. It was a tall, rectangular bottle housing Chanel Coco EDT. I remember thinking that only something exception would choose to remain so plain, and I was right. Elegance misted over me and sunk into my heart. A few years ago, I had a house fire, and lost almost everything - including my precious collection of perfume. It has taken a lot of hard work, but I'm rebuilding. I jumped on a sale and bought Coco EDP. Although divine in its own right, is different enough to leave me feeling a little deflated, both in bank and in ego. Concurrently promoting a Salvador Dali obsession, I purchased La Belle EDP. It is so close to the nature of Coco EDT, you'd think them clones. La Belle is a bit sharper herbaceously, and the notes of benzoin slightly more pronounced, but still, wonder and refinement all the way through the dry down. Mandarin sweetens in just the proper portions, added gently with Osmanthus, whose scent smells ancient and magical - smoothly lactonic with a subtle honeyed-fruit underbelly. Artemisia's bitter chords holding toes with baratone bravados of jasmine and rose. Tonka and incense create this depth to it all, with shiny reflections of benzoin and patchouli - as if one were staring into a well, and barely catching refracted light on the surface below. It is bewitching, summoning ancient pleasures, and lucky are we to hold such power!

I’ve been wearing this perfume today and I came to the conclusion that something quite silly really bothers me. The fact that it smells entirely different than what the bottle suggests (at least what I think it suggests). I pick my perfume of the day based on my mood and what I’m wearing, and this bottle always attracts me when I feel like I want to smell like.. well.. a wild cat.. Ocelots live in tropical rain forests and prairie like environments, so with the shape of the bottle and the colour of the fluid, my brain just tells me that *that* is what this fragrance will smell like, even though I consciously know It’s a very rose heavy, perfume-y and sophisticated scent. Don’t get me wrong it’s a lovely scent. I adore the opening, I just wish they put this in a different bottle, and used this bottle for a fragrance that smelled more wild and natural. I don’t understand the choice, it makes zero sense. A bottle in the shape of a wild cat makes you long to smell like jungle or prairie. It could’ve been carnal, or mossy.. orchid heavy could work well or jasmine.. animalic musk or civet.. woody.. spicy.. herbal.. so many options.. just anything but rose.. I don’t know if this is something that would bother anyone else. It’s obviously a bit of a non-issue as in the end the fragrance matters, but I tend to reach for this when I want to feel wild, exotic and sensual and end up smelling sophisticated and pretty instead, whilst on days I do want to smell pretty and classy, I reach for other fragrances, because my subconscious tells me this is a fragrance for tiger days. Anyway I hope this is useful for someone somewhere

Hey-ho! I've been waiting for the whole YEAR to get hold of this beauty from ebay and to wear it! As a huge fan of Salvador Dali's surrealism and been in love with his black and white photo, where he is portrayed together with his dwarf leopard (ocelot) Babou, I wanted THAT BOTTLE, as many others and I Am very pleasantly surprised by richness, intensity and glamour of the scent. Will describe the bottle at first. Mine is 100 ml one - from frosted glass, like from the fog, emerging the figure of the ocelot. The juice is golden, so the ocelot. The lid is made looking like a hat. I suppose it meant to show us that in every woman there is a wild cat hidden somewhere) The fragrance starts as a heady and intoxicating one - it is an Eastern sweet floral, smells like honeyed peachy osmanthus from the start, also you can smell soft rose petals with herbal touch of artemisia. The heart is definitely patchouli, very tasteful mix with incense and tonka, the base is benzoin and jasmine. Very feminine juice, triumphant. I would say its perfectly made and suits to the bottle very much. To me its somewhat similar by vibe with Coco Chanel, Organza Indecence Givenchy, I agree with passionata here regarding Dolce Vita as well, reminds all great feminine classics, yet its different from them of course. Love from me. Right type of fragrance to wear in golden sunny autumn days.

Oh my, how deliciously decadent this fragrance is! I found it reasonably cheap on an online store and I am very glad I bought it as it exceeds my expectations abundantly. It is identified as a floral chypre, but l'Ocelot is so much more than that. The amber drips itself over the entire pyramid like a chocolate fountain and sets l'Ocelot apart from all other chypres; especially those of the earlier 20th century like Mitsouko. In many ways this perfume is classic, but still very modern in that it so closely resembles current popular high end fragrances like La Nuit Tresor by Lancome or even Si by Armani; though I could not tell you if it does indeed mimic Coco by Coco Chanel as it is not a fragrance I am familiar with, but I can assure that the quality is there. A big thumbs up from me, or at least I would but up my thumbs if I weren't so busy sniffing my wrists.

Whoever said that they can really only see this on women over 55... Why? This amber is gorgeous for any age that can appreciate beauty. Definitely one that has garnered compliments for me from all ages. This warms beautifully on skin and radiates blissful ambery heat that wafts around you like a glowing aura. I certainly won’t be depriving myself by such narrow and misguided standards and truthfully bought 3 bottles... What other perfumes are like this? I can’t think of any that are such a warm, sensuous, enveloping amber with rose but also an uplifting and bright element ...Obsessed. I keep this at my bedside table and will open the cap to microdose a whiff from time to time. Definitely has a very similar feel to Coco by Chanel (EDT) which is another one that is absolutely addictive for me.

Spectacular! The fragrance itself begins with a burst of ripe peach, followed by a gradual emergence of supporting notes, the most prominent of which are benzoin and patchouli, with a tinge of musk and powder as well. a fresh spin on strong, powerful scents. Richness, intensity, and glitter of the perfume completely shocked me. incredibly feminine juice, victorious. It is really well crafted, in my opinion, and fits the bottle properly. It recalls me of all the great feminine classics, but it's obviously different from them. To me, it has a mood that is somewhat reminiscent of Coco Chanel, Organza Incense Givenchy, and Dolce Vita. I also agree with impassioned here regarding Dolce Vita. Exceptional performance!

I really like this one Its a soft modern oriental. Hear me out. It has a fresh green-citrus mandarin opening, opening up into a peachy rose jasmine heart. Inscense adds exoticness and the tonka, patch and myrrh add the modern base. If you take out the spiciness of the modern formulation of COCO, and Route Mandarine..this is the genre of the scent. Id buy this over the modern version of COCO since I love the peach, rose, jasmine aspect of it. Yes it can have a vintage ish feel but perfect for fall and for those that loved the older style frags. A love from me. Update: try Coco body lotion of creme under it...magic.

I bought this because it was mentioned as an inexpensive alternative to Coco Chanel, and it is! I've loved Coco for a long time but find it a little formal for some occasions. I can't really describe why, but somehow LBelO is a little more casual and I would feel more comfortable wearing it as a daytime scent. I think the top note is slightly different than Coco, not as sharp and sweet, but the two scents start to merge as you get to the heart and base. I find the sillage and longevity good, about the same as Coco. I think the theme and the bottle are cute too!

This is such an elegant and exquisite fragrance! It opens up pretty strong, but once it settles down- it's just beautiful oriental scent. Perfect for cold weather. I also have Chanel Coco Noir so I sprayed it on my other hand and tried to compare, and I do believe they are quite similar even though La Belle et l'Ocelot is definitely a stronger one. And do I even need to talk about the bottle? Beautiful design, quite heavy glass with frosted details on the sides. Very pretty inside and out.

La belle et L'ocelot is gorgeous. Fruity (dried fruits), sweet, rich and aromatic. Artemesia smells a little sour, and a little licoricey, adding both warmth and coolness. I think that's what others are describing when they say it's light and airy despite the other BIG and rich notes. Absolutely smells vintage, the comparison from another reviewer to Dali's own Roy Soleil is spot-on. Sisters not twins, though. If you like 90s peachy-amber-florals, you'll probably like this, too.

This is very beautiful, it is a very fresh and sophisticated 'floriential'. The osmanthus and mandarin orange are blended excellently, and the benzoin and patchouli provide a solid foundation for them to bloom.It gives you the impression of a pampered, luxurious wildcat that spends its days prowling around in a garden. This is very wearable for day and night in the autumn/winter, and I think would wear fantastically in the night during the summer.

WOW!!! I wonder why this one isn't more widely known and loved - it has all the necessary elements. Exquisite bottle, gorgeous perfume, and it's VERY reasonably priced!! The negative reviews on here are puzzling - maybe they didn't have the edp strength. If you love the notes and wear bold perfumes, then try this one.

Me gusta. No le encuentro ningún parecido con COCO y no tiene de felino, domesticado o salvaje, más que el nombre y el frasco, pero me gusta. Este invierno será una buena opción para el día a día: no invasivo, no intenso, no muy dulce; agradable y sin complicaciones.

Just purchased La Belle et l`Ocelot from a Russian eBay seller verveseya. $29 +9.50 shipping to the USA. Due to arrive Tue. Apr. 12 and Thu. Apr. 28. I'll leave an update to confirm the transaction.I AM SO ESSSSCITED.

My friend had this and I was so impressed of this fragrance, so I had to get one bottle for my self. So happy with this purchase🥰

Strongly reminding me of Ungaro Desnuda today.

I reviewed this perfume at the end of December and wasn't particularly flattering about it. I am giving it another chance this evening. It's still cold in SE Essex; in fact, we had snow and hail here today. I would say that's strange for (nearly) May, but this is the UK and the reason Brits are renowned for being obsessed with and talking about the weather all the time is because we get an awful LOT of it. It's changeable, unpredictable and our weather forecasters often get it completely wrong. The area I live is on the coast and has the lowest rainfall in the whole country; immediately to the west and north the land is a little higher and - despite rain being forecast, the clouds usually dump their load before reaching us, so the rain often doesn't get here. Sorry for mithering, but I wanted to explain that it's no warmer or drier than it was in December (when I last reviewed it) so the difference in La Belle et L'Ocelot's performance can't be weather related. Although sillage is still soft/moderate, I CAN actually smell something rather lovely this evening. Predominant notes - to me - are artemisia, incense, rose, jasmine and a dry almost-vanilla (presumably from the benzoin) with hay. I am not getting much patchouli, BUT I have been wearing Christian LaCroix C'est la Fete Patchouli today, so my nose may be all patchouli-ed out for the day. I am definitely reminded of something, but I can't work out what it is. I'll update if it comes back. What a pleasant surprise this has been. Now I can take this out of my swap box.

25. September 2015 This mystery fragranc has finally arrived to my country!!! And i like it very much! It has indeed that early 90's heady floral touch and strongly reminds me of something else very familiar and classy!! I smell sweet patchouli-orange-benzoin-osmanthus mix. It has bit of Dolce Vita, something of Feminite de bois, bit of Coco by Chanel, bit of everything. It transferres me instantly to the teenage years and makes me feel comfortable. I agree this is an autumn winter scent and they did right thing not releasing it earlier here in Europe. This pachouli rose combo wouldn't be as appealing in the springtime or summer as it is now. Im definitely getting a bottle!!! However the sillage is not the best one i ́ve been expecting but lasts on my skin up to 5hrs. 50Ml around 50 euros, 30ml around 40euros.

At first this smells more manly, like shaving cream. And then it starts to develops into an interesting sexy skin scent. I haven’t spent time with Chanel Coco, but I do love Coco Noir. There is something similar here in Dali’s Belle Ocelot but it doesn’t have the posh Chanel dna. It’s still smells very classy, but has more green notes of a Chypre, almost like Paloma Picasso. There is a note that is almost minty here and the florals make it very lovely too. And the bottle is super! My husband’s initial impression was that it smelled more like a men’s cologne, maybe he will enjoy wearing it too. I think it needs time to develop for the florals to come out. I’m very happy with this blind buy and look forward to getting to know this perfume better.