Valkyrie

I adore this fragrance. I’m halfway through my second bottle and will be savoring it as long as I can. The opening citrus of bitter orange and lime reminds me of squeezing freshly peeled rinds, tart and a bit sharp but on the drier side. The mint and basil are delicate and tea like, a fresh herbaceous aura. The star of the show is a buttery, almost suede like vanilla— intertwined with a slightly dusty sandalwood reminiscent of the nag champa incense my mom burned in the 90s. There’s a dreamy quality to this fragrance, cheery but gentle, warm like afternoon sunshine. Valkyrie makes me think of the apothecary scene in The Craft, I think this is what the woman that owns the shop would smell like; sweet, fresh but with a slightly dusty undertone that makes you think of hidden grimoires and forbidden knowledge. 🌾✨🍋🍊🔮🌱🧁🕯️🫖

It's such a great one, my fave from Sylvaine Delacourte. It's in the same DNA family as: Tendre Madeleine Les Senteurs Gourmandes, Lira Xerjoff and Devotion Dolce&Gabbana, but way smoother, more mature and sofisticated. The basil and mint notes make it more unisex, fresher and the perfect layer it needed for this type of warm gourmand. I do feel a smooth underlayer of smoke in a earthy way, it may be the galbanum note, but it's exquisite. My initial bottle is pretty old now - 6-7 years, and it macerated into something very rounded and spicy, the green notes are more subsided now, like dry basil instead of fresh basil, with base notes leaning more in the Kenzo Jungle direction. Hope they will restock in the autumn as announced and I'll definitely grab a new fresh bottle.

I think I fall into the group SailorV mentions in her review below- I can't get enough of these citrusy-vanilla fragrances! I'm absolutely loving this! After reading the descriptions of Delacourte's vanillas, I was positive I'd like the spicy Vangelis best, but the sweet orange in Vahina and Valkyrie won me over. The mint note is what makes Valkyrie special for me and full bottle worthy; it's so fresh and compliments the orange without overshadowing it. I'm happy to have this in my collection! EDIT: After you buy your first SD fragrance (30% off if you had bought the discovery set), they make you a VIP member so that ALL future purchases are 30% off with a special code they send you! Makes a big difference in the price!)

I am a sucker for vanilla, there I said it; granted, I love Sylvaine's Vanilla collection and splurged on 3 of the fragrances shorty after I got the tester kit. This fragrance, on my skin, transformed into a very manly perfume therefore I passed it on to my boyfriend who gladly accepted it and wears it quite often. Great longevity and I will want to try it again during summer months to see if there will be a change.

This is the first sample from the Vanille collection (4 more to go). I like it a lot, possibly full bottle worthy and that’s saying something as I have close to 150 in my collection. I love mint and I love the natural vibe and overall composition. Vanilla and citrus are prominent. Good longevity and soft projection. Valkyrie is on my short list.