Paris*L.A.

This is a great new gourmand offering from A Lab on Fire. It opens with a spicy top that smells like a combination of Red Hots cinnamon candy and Coke. At first it seems layered over a light vanilla note, but then a deliciously rich, buttery almond accord appears and takes the vanilla along with it. I had a hard time believing the perfumer was going to pull this off successfully, but the "macaroon" in Paris*L.A. is fantastic. I actually get a little hungry smelling this. It takes you right to the heart of the dessert, and you can easily imagine all the ingredients as they're being prepared together in a bowl. Almonds, butter, sugar, and egg whites presented in small, chewy little cakes--they're all there in just the right proportions and seem composed by a skilled, graceful hand. What I really enjoy about Paris*L.A. besides the fun, unique notes that are presented, is the fact that it's smooth and wearable. There's nothing clumsy or "blob-like" about this. It doesn't become overbearing, as gourmands often do. Uncompromisingly sweet in what it presents--Coca-Cola and Macaroons--Paris*L.A. manages to avoid becoming cloying because it is never too heavy. In fact there's a fresh, fizzy quality to the entire fragrance that keeps it afloat and buoyant. I suppose this is the Coca Cola in play, and it does a wonderful job of balancing the macaroon. As far as masculine vs. feminine, this seems very much unisex to my nose and I'd have a hard time labeling it one or the other. I consider this a casual, day or nighttime fragrance. It's fun and has a playful, carefree nature. Projection is solid--it gets out there, but it's not crazy. Longevity is around 6 hours. Overall, Paris*L.A. feels like a very modern take on an unabashed gourmand, and it should find plenty of happy fans as word about it starts to spread. Hats off to the perfumer, Laurent Le Guernec, who did an excellent job with this, and to A Lab On Fire, a company that's created quite a diverse lineup by releasing unique fragrances with a stylistically modern appeal. Paris*L.A. sits right at the top of that list.

This is a gorgeous fragrance! The opening is clearly dominated by a zesty and crisp lime note. I would say that this lime note is dominant for an hour or so, until the scent of cola truly appears. To me the cola scent reminds me a bit more of cola candy than Coca Cola, but the lime not balances out the sweetness and makes it beautiful! Paris LA is a true mouthwatering gourmand. Perfect it the heat of summer! I certainly smell the ginger and can also detect a light scent of macaron, but to me this fragrance is more LA than Paris, When I spray this fragrance my mind creates an image of myself pouring cola into a glass of ice cubes as I squeeze in some drops of lime. I really love it! Thankfully I'm at home because it would be weird to smell my cleavage all the time in public. The sillage is moderate and longevity on my skin is about 4 hours. My skin eats perfume so I believe this would last much longer on others. Edit: 4 hours longevity in the heat, much longer (10+ hours) in cooler environments.

At first spritz this gives me a shock of fizzy ginger and strong cloves as well as something lemony. The ginger and cloves are the main players throughout. I agree the coriander is present as well, it further supports the fizzy zippy spicy effect. A bit of almond in the background, as well as something like half baked dough and a certain lived in feel that I cannot place. Almost like an elevator full of people. This is certainly a unique perfume, a bit harshly spicy gourmand. Try it and you will see for yourself. Regarding this being close to La Danza delle Libellule, they share this lived in intimate background feel but that's all according to me. I think it's more like 20% Mandorlo di Sicilia and 70% Kenzo Jungle L'Elephant... and 10% their own.

I have a similar feeling toward this perfume as cake n' cuddles -- this feels made for me. I love the fizzy gingery opening and on me, the thyme and coriander are very apparent along with the almondy macaron accord. The thyme in particular cuts through the sweet macaron, bringing total balance and interest in the drydown. When I wear this, my husband snuggles in really close, breathes in deeply, and says "Mmmmmmmm." Based on reviews I've read, the thyme must not be apparent on everyone, and I believe it is a key element in the composition. I'd say this is definitely a try before you buy scent.

I have the old bottle (the house was called A Lab on Fire) and absolutely love it. The drydown has a distinctly lactonic note on my skin that makes this unique and sensual, much more than the sum of its parts. I hope the new version has kept that quality. The citrus here is very subdued, this is a sweet and somewhat spicy perfume. To me it smells like Coke with ginger and a hint of cinnamon milk. I blind bought Mancera’s Tonka Cola based on my love for this, but they’re only very faintly similar in the opening. This is a far more delicate and complex scent, Mancera’s is unwearable for me.

This perfume is just pure happiness for me. I smelled it and immediately smiled. It's cheerful and warm, yet not heavy. It's a very modern gourmand fragrance that garners compliment. I find it to be quite unique and complex. After testing numerous perfumes to wear as my wedding day fragrance--and thinking I had already settled on Angel Sucree--once I smelled Paris*LA, I knew it was exactly what I was looking for and fit everything I wanted for my October brunch wedding in Tennessee. It was made for me for that day. I still wear it now mostly on special dates with my husband. :)

Magical and dreamy perfume... transports the unconscious into a sweet world where there is a sweet melody and a Parisian landscape. Really interesting the beginning with the coca-cola/lime agreement is something extraordinary that I had never heard... it's really unusual and modern. Ginger participates in a sustained way, a wonderful sweet but well balanced fragrance. In the bottom it is soft and comfortable, really beautiful! Extraordinary perfume in my opinion. Sillage: 8./10 Longevity: 10./10 Scent: 10./10 Overall: 10./10

Drydown smells so lovely. This is where this shines. Yet for $195 it is only 50ml. They should make it 100ml for that price. Still a lovely light Gourmand scent. The macarons give it this vanilla scent i think. There is a slight soda vibe here. Macarons and soda mixed. If you want something for the summer then try this. Especially if you are sensitive to strong scents. If you think Dua Brand Zesty Cola, Kola Tabac,Snif Soda Snob or Outremer Cola was too strong for you then this scent is for you.

Sometimes you feel like a fragrance was just made for you. That's the kind of strong connection I have to this fragrance. Paris LA is IMHO an ingenious combination with so many odd angles on some of my favorite sweets and spices. I couldn't tell you what I love more, the fizzy spicy limey coca cola or that awesome and unapologetic macaron note. This fragrance is FUN. Sweet and sassy. Great lasting power and moderate projection and silage. Perfect for what it is. Brava, brava.

From what I was reading here I expected coca cola. Well, on me the macaron dominate closely followed by the citrus. I have a job picking out the distinctive coca cola note. Who on this planet doesn't know what that smells like?!! It settles down to basically the smell of macaron on me. I can't say it bowles me over. Sweet powdery almonds. Pleasant but a bit meh. It's getting too close to all the cheap girly scents already out there. Moderate longevity and sillage at best.

A Lab on Fire can really do no wrong. (however I hate that they jacked the prices of all their fragrances up and they’re virtually impossible to find) On my skin, Paris * LA is Vanilla Coke without being too sweet. You can definitely pick up the lime note in the initial spray however it’s not very detectable after about 20 minutes. This is a fun and youthful fragrance that I think all ages could wear and appreciate.

I literally get cocoa cola, lime, and what I am happy to call macarons (sweet, almond powder). It's odd, that should not make for good perfume, but you know what? It's delicious in a playful sort of way. There's something undeniably fun and carefree about it. It's summer wander around downtown with a girlfriend. It's an afternoon sipping a coke in the sun. It's fun, and summery and I find I keep coming back to it.

I have hundreds of perfumes and this has to be one of my favourites, it's sweet, complex and high quality gourmand. I have a new bottle and am old bottle. The old is sweeter, ambery. The new bottle is very powdery. But both are gorgeous how they have so many facets. This makes a new genre of perfumes noone talks about - day time date perfume. I'm not the only one who does that surely??

At the intersection of wearable but unique. I don't usually enjoy fragrances with vanilla in them because I think it overpowers and makes them all smell the same, but this is the one exception that is full bottle worthy because of the lime/spice that knocks it into its place and keeps the whole party interesting.

Az egyik legkülönlegesebb illat,amivel valaha találkoztam.Nagyon tartós..édes gourmand illat...istenien coca colas. Masok is dicsérik rajtam.Olyan,mint egy süti...amibe beleharapnál...Imadom!Már várom,hogy megvásárolhassam Madisonban.❤

What is this stupid comment about white people and spicy food ?! Go away and take that passive aggressive racist crap with you. You’re so desperate to be oppressed it’s embarrassing.

Overall, a playful and surprisingly wearable fragrance — once you hit the drydown. The initial blast is unpleasant. I love the zippy, zingy quality of cola, which is what drew me to Paris*LA in the first place. But on my skin at least (and as always, your mileage may vary), the top notes here are terribly unbalanced — way too much cinnamon! The opening is like Big Red chewing gum. The effect is hot and harsh, rather than being refreshing and lightly medicinal. I don’t get a cola vibe, just cinnamon jawbreaker. That said, as it settles in, it turns into a lovely creamy vanilla, marzipan, spice, lime, and ginger situation. I get a bit of strawberry, too, though it’s not listed in the official notes. It reminds me of a Coke float, or drinking a Slurpee on the beach + creamy suntan lotion. This is a youthful fragrance, which isn’t to say it’s young or immature — I’m 29, and I think it’s perfect for a daytime date, brunch with friends, poking around a flea market, etc. UPDATE: I’ve since sampled L’Artisan Mon Numero 10, and it’s everything I wished Paris*LA had been. Also has a strong cola effect, but is less intensely sweet and less harsh. If you aren’t a gourmand lover but are looking for a cola effect, I recommend giving it a sniff. (Hardcore gourmand types likely won’t prefer it, as it contains leather and incense.)

On my skin, I get a caramellic, sugary note that could be at home in both the Coca-Cola and macaron accords. However, due to the eggy and creamy/milky notes in combination with the sweetness, it hews more closely to the macaron side instead. What a pity, for I was looking forward to trying a "Coke fragrance" too! I do detect some hints of spices - cinnamon and cilantro - which could have steered the fragrance towards the Coke, but I feel that the fragrance wasn't sufficiently transparent or effervescent to make it feel more like an ice-cold glass of good ol' Coca-Cola. Nevertheless, this is a pretty good fragrance - a word of warning though, Paris*L.A. is a rather saccharine scent, so it can easily get cloying in hot weather! I think this could be a fall scent.

My review is based on a little dabber sample, so the longevity and sillage I experienced from my sample may not be accurate to an atomizer version. This is quite gingery and softly sweet. I got this hoping for a Coke Float vibe (cola and vanilla ice cream). While Paris LA isn’t that, it’s surprisingly wearable in that it isn’t overpoweringly gourmand. It’s still juuust this side of abstractly sweet that it doesn’t get on my nerves the same way my niece drenching herself in BBW’s Strawberry Poundcake does. FB worthy at this point for me, though I may start with a decant first I also wanna add to be cautious because the second time I tested this fragrance I got a mild skin rash on the application area. Hasn’t happened since though

Soda notes make me skeptical about a perfume's wearability, but to my surprise, Paris * LA is quite pleasant. I have a small luckyscent dabber of this and immediately I could detect cola and some ginger to mellow out the citrusy sweetness. I think the macaron note, though really unique, is kind of unnecessary because it ends up making the perfume a big sugar-fest that is borderline cloying. The way ALOF captured the crackly, sugar-almond shell of a macaron is pretty photorealistic though, I have to say. Unlike the ratings below, I don't think this is a great summer perfume, but it would be a perfect pick-me-up scent in the fall and winter. A sweet reminder of summer.

This a very unique fragrance to me since I don’t know many with a Coca Cola note. It’s sweet, sparkly, light, a bit spicy and very cheerfull. The Coca Cola, ginger and lime are the most prominent notes to me. Sillage is moderate and longevity is good (8 hours easily). The fragrance shines best in slightly cold or slightly warm weather and could be worn by both men or women. I own a full bottle but don’t wear it to often, just because I like other fragrances more. Sometimes I find it a little bit too sweet and it smells like you haven’t finished drinking your Coca Cola and it turns luke warm and has lost it sparkles. 😉

Right out of bottle this fragrance is reminiscent of cherry chapstick - it's fruity, but somehow also waxy. It isn't abrasive, overpowering, or sickeningly sweet. It's airy and pleasant - it breathes - and develops more complexity as it sets. Initially, I was indecisive about this fragrance. The waxy notes, to me, made it seem more manufactured - like something that just sits on the skin and smells nice rather than something that is more of an extension of myself and blends with my chemistry. In the end, I've decided I do like this fragrance because of the way it developed and intrigued me throughout the day.

Ummmmm....ok.... At first all I could smell was LIME then I got some coke. Now its settling down and turning into something very wearable and delicious. For some reason its making me think of the 70's and an old record shop I used to beg my mom to take me into, full of hippies and a black light room behind a curtain of beads I found pretty fascinating. Its a little spicy and very soft in a good way. I'm not sure I would buy a full bottle. But its a super fun tester!!! I really like this perfume house and would like to try more of their stuff!!!

A sweet confectionary scent, I don’t smell cola or macarons, instead Paris L.A. smells like a candy shop. A good quality candy shop—nothing saccharin or overly processed. Dry down is a smoother gourmand, less sweet with more pronounced spices and some powder. I’m surprised at how much I like this, especially after the initial 10-15 minutes burns off. I own a couple of others from this brand and was not expecting much performance, and Paris L.A. is better than average. A surprisingly easy to wear, casual and fun scent.

The opening is a fizzy cola scent, the fizz coming from the citrus & ginger. It dries down is more like a cola gummy sweet. It’s spicy, warm & cozy. It’s quite young, fun & definitely not for someone who takes themselves too seriously. I think it would be great for staying in and watching movies with your significant other, however, it’s a bit expensive for that. Lovely scent but not one I’d want to keep wearing. I enjoyed my sample but don’t need a whole bottle.

This fragrance is perfect for a carefree spring day outdoors because it just smells like having a good time. Admittedly, it smells very synthetic, but this is part of the fun. The fizzier notes of lime, coca-cola and ginger blend well with the sweetness of the macaroons. I also perceive a distinct strawberry note along with some freshly baked bread. So far, I have not smelled anything like it and I suggest that lovers of playful fragrances try this as well.

This smells like gingerbreads to me. One of the most edible scents I can think of. I like the name of the brand, it's really cool and I also like the green liquid of the perfume. It doesn't smell masculine at all, just edible. Reminds me of Christmas. The scent itself is lovely, but I'm not sure how often would I actually wear it. So very specific. I think it would be perfect for colder times when it's crispy cold and snow is on the ground.

The macaron note in this fragrance came to me more like a grainy, cloying, raw dough. I have sampled both this and What We Do In Paris Is Secret and both have an odd Play-Doh note, like a synthetic almond gone rancid. The fizzy spice at the top dissipated within the hour, leaving the entire composition half-baked. I wanted a delicious effervescent perfume to wear in the boudior but instead I got a pastiche gourmand. This is a pass for me.

Sunny, fizzy, gingery coca-cola; light as laughter on a warm summer day. A scent purely for fun that's uplifting when it's cold, and irresistibly sexy in hot weather. This is has a stronger ginger note throughout (on my skin) that keeps it from being sweet. Instead it's fresh, and definitely unisex. An amazing couple's scent for memorable times. Memories of Nandebary Pink sneak in throughout wear. Probably the powdery ginger.

I actualy quit like this. Its less sweet then some others of this house. I don't get any macaroon at all. It opens with a spicy gingery cola note and then slowly goes in to a slightly hot ginger with a hint of aromatic time. Very unisex to me if it is leaning anywhere, then more masculine... Very wearable but incredebly unic. There actualy is a plant that we used to cal "Cola plant" as kids, a d it smells very much like this.

effervescent citrus zest at the outset that dries into a clove-studded orange at a christmas party. while i definitely understand the perception of coca-cola, i'm getting more coca-cola *gummy*. i am also getting mulled wine that maintains a bounciness thanks to that spike of citrus. at once cozy and party-ready. i think all signs point to "christmas party"

The first bite is delicious sugar cookie made with vanilla and almonds, the center filled with lemon drop hard candy. There's a sudden hit of seltzer-water fizz, a loud ginger finger-bang, and then it settles down to D&G's Light Blue amber musk... And stays there. For two days. It's kind of amazing.

So weird but so good Coriander and ginger are strong and spicy while the syrupy coke and lime balance it out. Its fresh, sweet, spicy and a wrist crack. Makes me think of a tropical holiday, local food, cocktails, the hot sun and ocean. Very unique.

Effervescent sugariness in combination with lime makes for photorealistic coca-cola. Sweet, fun and playful but not especially long-lasting.

Lana del Rey as a perfume. Bimbo coded

One can't fault this perfume for doing exactly what it promises in the notes, and I admire that it's true to it's delivery from top to base notes, but unfortunately it's just not what I'm looking for. Macaroon is one of those notes that looks like it would be heavenly and delicious, and while I enjoy eating them I've yet to find a perfume that I like that contains the note. Upon opening I smell the fizzy coke with a lime. It's delicious, sparkling and zesty enough that I could almost drink my skin. If these notes stuck around it'd be full bottle worthy and perhaps the best in the genre. Unfortunately these notes don't stick around for long, and as the fragrance transitions to it's dry down the sweet bready macarron comes through and provides that almond paste like playdoh note that many people chase and love, but I just can't seem to stomach. It reminds me of the note in Alkemia's Temptation. If I sniff a few times back to back I can almost sense the coke note but now it's a muddled and sweet mess. I don't get much in the way of the middle notes it seems to go from top to base without much of a transitionary period. If you love bakery confections I'd say this one is worth checking out even if a coke fragrance doesn't sound that appealing to you, as it's really only there for the first 15-30 minutes and quickly begins to transform. I like this one, but I have other soda like scents that I enjoy much more and stick around for longer. I can't imagine ever paying $200 to smell like this but I'm glad I purchased the decant to try it for myself.

This opens with a burst of fizzy citrus and no sweetness. The Coca Cola note quickly comes through with a ton of fizz and for a beautiful first few minutes you smell like a cold, icy coke with lime slice. There is only a hint of sweetness and the effect is refreshing, light, energetic and delicious. The drydown is where everything goes sideways for me as the fizzy, citrusy, coke freshness gives way to cloying pure sugar sweetness like supermarket macarons made with 50% more sugar to last on the shelf. It is simply nauseating. This sat in my collection for a solid 8 years now unused because the drydown was impossible to contend with. Now i've found that layering it with the similarly citrusy Salty body spray by Lush (you need to reapply every now and then) gives it the extra citrus, saltiness and woody complexity the drydown so desperately needs.

This is how I imagine I’ll remember the girl I had a crush on smelt like ...waaay back in the early 90s. Hazy made-up memories and roses tinted recollections of endlessly sunny days and boundless adventures all played along to a fizzy 90s pre-britpop Acid Jazz soundtrack. Of course none of that happened and this is my way of apologising Nancy for sliding into her DMs with the drunken texts. Sorry 6.8/10

This is very Americana. It’s what I imagine eating at an old diner in an small American town would smell like. It’s not something I’d wear but I appreciate the uniqueness of it

Surprised to see cola and lime listed as notes, and all this talk of key lime pie, it basically just smells like cinnamon to me. Pleasant enough but not worth the money.

no cola here. only mediocre rose and macaron. I like to think that Paris chose me. but I also like the idea that in colder months it would be more of a cola scent.

What a disappointment. I really like the LA - the Paris not so much. The fragrance opens with a really bright, sparkling tart lime note, which is all you can smell at first, but it's crisp and refreshing. Around 2 minutes in, I start getting the gingery, spicy, fizzy, coca-cola scent mixing in with the lime. It starts to get a bit sweeter, but still has a bite to it, like those Haribo Cola candy gummies. Definitely a candy-like gourmand, but with a sourness to it that's appealing. Then after about 20 minutes in, all the bite and sharpness dies down and you're left with a cheap-smelling, sickly sweet, custardy vanilla that lasts for hours, although you will wish it didn't - this must be the macaron note. I bought this blind and sprayed one arm about 5 hours ago and the other just now, and maybe because I spent a bunch of money on it I'm trying really hard to like it, but it just majorly under-delivers on the dry down. For a Coca Cola-inspired scent, I'll stick to Freebird from Regime des Fleurs.

I admit, I didn't really have any expectations other than 'the notes were intriguing, why not?'. At first sniff, this was well... intriguing. It made me 'oooOOoo & aahhhhhA' for the first few minutes, then on skin, it just turned south. The opening is fizzy w/ lime top notes. The cola note is there, but not forward and the aromatics overwhelm the composition, but provide a freshness. The sweet base is balancing the frag, but the coriander, thyme, and neroli disappoint me in here. To me, this is unisex leaning masculine, and this is a major pass for me. I gave the sample away to a male coworker.

WHY IS THIS SO SPICY??? did i get a bad batch? none of the other reviews highlighting that are making me feel like a white person who can't handle seasoned food bc this literally burns my nose lmao. the dry down is less harsh but still unpleasant :( there are much better cola fragrances (e.g. by killian's born to be unforgettable or pearfat's multiball) out there but maybe i'm just a hater overall rating: 🩷💔🖤🖤🖤 1.5/5

I was intrigued by the notes listed for Paris LA, and had no idea what to expect. I was very ready to enjoy it as I’m usually a fan of gourmands of all types. Unfortunately, on me, this does not work at all. I won’t harp too heavily on my negative associations since I’m sure it’s lovely on some people. But on my skin, this is a big, cloying no! Definitely not a safe blind buy from my experience.

I get the Coke and lime aspect, although it comes off to me as cinnamon and evergreen, with the faintest (unpleasant) whiff of 'big city'. I could go with a previous reviewer's assessment of 'Yankee Candle'.

I really like the whole idea about this fragrance. it smells nice. but something in it that makes me sick, the sweetness is like a sticky synthetic like. a pass.

Nope not for me unfortunately. The notes I can pick out but they don’t mesh for me and I love a cola note too! Going to stick with Multiball from Pearfat.

Ough. I found this one to be pretty cloying. Gave me a sick feeling in the back of my throat.

All I get is sweetness from the macaron, pretty lame tbh