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Perfume Q & A Archive
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 As announced earlier, the nose of The Scented Salamander is keen on following African fragrance trails in the coming months. The idea originated in the streets of Paris - well a supermarket really, where a cashier was wafting off deliciously and repeatedly of a very exotic and mysterious concoction - echoed on the skin and clothing of a few other members of the French-African community in Paris strolling by. On search of that scent and its meaning, it led on to new insights into a cultural sphere where fragrance is all-important and ritualized. More on that later on.
We are kick starting the series The Scents of Africa with an interview with Regional Manager Nicholas Evans of International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc (IFF). In the interview, we learn more about Africa's number one bestseller, Bint el Sudan. Its scent is pervasive on the African continent where its institutional weight and cultural influence can be compared to that of Chanel No.5 in the West...
Continue reading "Bint el Sudan, The Other, African Chanel No.5: Interview with Nick Evans of International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc. {Perfume Q & A - The Scents of Africa}" »
 Jean François Laporte, one of the thinkers-in-action of a perfumery which takes inspiration first and foremost in its creative capacity - as opposed to the lifestyle approach - has left us on November 7th, 2011. He was 73 years old. Known for his discretion, we turned to one of his close relatives in perfumery, Jean Paul Millet Lage, who took over from him when he purchased a perfume house he created, Maître Parfumeur et Gantier. He was also his disciple. Millet Lage recounts some key moments of the itinerary of Jean François Laporte and pays homage to the higher synthesis of chemist and "gardener-perfumer" which he embodied.
TSS - How did you first meet Jean François Laporte or became acquainted with his work?
Jean Paul Millet Lage : I met Jean François Laporte in two times.
First of all, at the beginning of the 1980s, I was a customer of L'Artisan Parfumeur's. Subsequently I became a patron (1989) of Maître Parfumeur et Gantier when following a trip to the the Reunion Island, I was on the lookout for a vetiver perfume which would be faithful to the aromatic depth of that plant discovered on the island. It was "Route du Vétiver", a masculine fragrance which still exists in our catalog. Regarding the Maître Gantier et Parfumeur chapter, in 1996 I met Jean François Laporte through the intermediary of Roland de Saint Vincent (a friend of the family), with whom he had already carried out many beautiful projects and in particular, the creation of Sisley...
Continue reading "Jean Paul Millet Lage Evokes the Memory of Jean François Laporte, the Gardener-Perfumer and One of the Founding Fathers of Authorial Perfumery (1938-2011)" »
Jean François Laporte, l'un des maîtres à penser en action de la parfumerie d'auteur, celle s'inspirant avant tout de la démarche de création - plutôt que du style de vie - vient de s'éteindre le 7 novembre 2011. Il avait 73 ans. Connu pour sa discrétion, nous nous sommes tournés vers l'un de ses proches en parfumerie, Jean Paul Millet Lage, qui reprit Maître Parfumeur et Gantier des mains de son fondateur. Il fut aussi son disciple. Millet Lage retrace quelques moments clés du parcours de Jean François Laporte et rend hommage à la synthèse haute qu'il incarnait entre le chimiste et le "jardinier-parfumeur". TSS - Comment avez-vous fait la connaissance de Jean-François Laporte, de ses oeuvres? Jean Paul Millet Lage : J’ai connu Jean François Laporte en 2 temps.
Tout d’abord, dans le début des années 1980, j’étais un client de L’Artisan Parfumeur. Ensuite, je suis devenu client (1989) de Maître Parfumeur et Gantier lorsque, suite à un voyage à l’Ile de La Réunion, je cherchais un parfum Vétiver fidèle à la senteur de profondeur de cette plante découverte dans cette Ile. Ce fut Route du Vétiver, parfum masculin qui existe toujours chez nous.
Pour le dossier Maître Parfumeur et Gantier, en 1996, j’ai rencontré Jean François Laporte par l’entremise de Roland de Saint Vincent (ami de famille) avec lequel il avait déjà réalisé beaucoup de belles choses et plus particulièrement la création de Sisley....
Continue reading "Jean Paul Millet Lage Evoque La Mémoire de Jean François Laporte, Jardinier-Parfumeur et l'Une des Figures Fondatrices de la Parfumerie d'Auteur (1938 - 2011)" »
 Madison Perfumery est. 2007, is a particularly sleek rendez-vous for perfume lovers in Bucharest, Romania. They have just opened a second perfumery in Budapest, Hungary. Like for the first one, Madison Perfumery on Andrassy Ut aims to offer an atmosphere of privilege and luxury. The design mixing old-world Central European charm and a modern, polished, urban sensitivity caught our attention.
We asked owner and founder Madeleine Florescu a few questions about the new place...
Continue reading "Interview with Madeleine Florescu of Madison Perfumery Now in Budapest {Perfume Q & A} {Scented Paths & Fragrant Addresses}" »
 Girl in Green and Red by Balthus
Among the press materials for the upcoming launch of Jeux de Peau (see review) was an in-house interview with designer Serge Lutens. 1°) You often describe your fragrances in terms of memories. What memory is involved this time?
If it’s a memory... A memory is so... A part of my life... A life that is part of me... A throwback to childhood...
Childhood coming back at you... At present, a ball bounces... A present, a ball that bounces...
It is seized with both hands... Both hands seizing it... Every time, the hands let it go... The hands let it
go, every time... Quickly misses us... Quickly missed by us... If it goes away, it’s the better to find you,
my child... If it’s my child, it’s better to find you if it goes away....
Continue reading "Q & A with Serge Lutens: Around the Launch of Jeux de Peau {Perfume Q & A}" »
In the Around-the-Launch-of Series... Portrait of a Lady is the latest fragrance to be launched by French niche perfume house Editions de Parfums which was founded by Frédéric Malle in 2000. We asked the éditeur de parfums how the perfume composed by perfumer Dominique Ropion came about and what creative thought processes had gone into it. Malle's answers point consistently to the importance of thinking in terms of raw materials first and foremost while reminding us that a perfume is simply something that has to reach this state of grace - smelling good - and provoke an aesthetic emotion in us - to be beautiful. He also invites us indirectly to think about the genre of perfume-writing by making us realize better that it might very well be a genre much more independent from the original art form it purports to cover than one might expect it to be. Poetical licence may be the necessary ingredient to be added to the literary and critical renderings of fragrances, what Rousseau preferred to dub "imagination."
TSS - Did you read The Diary of a Man of Fifty by Henry James, the version one might consider as being the masculine version of The Portrait of a Lady, written a year before the latter yet much less well-known even from aficionados, or is it simply a coincidence? (the fact that the perfume Portrait of a Lady comes after Géranium pour Monsieur and is derived from it) Frédéric Malle - My job is to work with perfumers on projects that they feel desire for. We take as a point of departure raw materials or other types of olfactory inspiration, but never literary concepts. This is why it is out of the question to create a series of perfumes around and inspired from the work of Henry James... 
Continue reading "10 Questions to Frédéric Malle Around the Launch of Portrait of a Lady by Editions de Parfums {Perfume Q & A}" »
Dans la série Autour du Lancement de... Portrait of a Lady est le dernier-né des parfums lancés par la maison française Editions de Parfums fondée en l'an 2000 par Fédéric Malle. Nous avons demandé à l'éditeur de parfums quel fut le processus de création autour du nouveau parfum signé par Dominique Ropion. Les réponses de Frédéric Malle pointent de manière consistente vers la nécessité de partir des ingrédients eux-mêmes tout en nous rappelant des vérités simples et inaliénables: créer un parfum qui mérite ce nom c'est atteindre à un certain état de grâce qui est tout simplement, et de manière exigente dans le même temps, de sentir bon et d'être beau. Malle nous invite également indirectement à nous interroger sur le champ de la littérature olfactive en nous faisant prendre mieux conscience qu'il se pourrait fort bien que celle-ci soit un genre bien plus indépendant des parfums dont elle pense rendre compte que ce à quoi l'on pourrait logiquement s'attendre. Un grand soupçon de licence poétique pourrait bien être l'ingrédient nécessaire toujours inclus dans les transpositions littéraires et les critiques de fragrances, ce que Rousseau appelait l'imagination. TSS -Avez-vous lu The Diary of a Man of Fifty de Henry James, la version que l’on pourrait être dite masculine de The Portrait of a Lady, un ouvrage bien moins connu même des aficionados, écrit un an avant ce dernier ou est-ce une simple coïncidence (le fait que Portrait of a Lady soit issu de Géranium pour Monsieur)? Frédéric Malle - Mon métier est de travailler avec des parfumeurs sur les projets dont ils ont envie. Nous partons de matières premières ou d'autres inspirations olfactives, mais jamais d'idées littéraires. Aussi, il n'est pas question de faire une série de parfums autour de et tirés de l'oeuvre d'Henry James...
Continue reading "10 Questions à Frédéric Malle autour du Lancement de Portrait of a Lady par Editions de Parfums {Perfume Q & A} " »
 
Around-the-Launch Series
Womanity by Thierry Mugler, with Pierre Aulas and Christophe de Lataillade
Part 1: Angel-and-Alien Rewind
TSS - Could we rewind a little bit with you and go back to the success stories
of Angel, and also Alien? What is the nature of Angel's success today? Can we
know how much its popularity relies on a loyal customers base and if the
perfume continues to find new devotees? Are there countries where Angel is
particularly appreciated and others where it is less so?
Pierre Aulas: Angel can be considered to be a great global success
because it is in the Top 5 bestsellers in the world! We have observed that
Angel due to its originality and powerfulness operates on a Love-and-Hate mode
and that when people love it, they adore it and remain faithful to it. And this
is how it has been working for 18 years, even with the generation which is
discovering Angel now. Angel is in the Top 5 in practically all the countries
of Europe (except for Germany and the UK) and in the Top 15 in the US (which is
a very good ranking when one knows that Angel is sold in 4 to 5 times fewer
doors than on average!)
Alien follows a little bit the same model, and like Angel, it has taken
time for it to take off. Here again its success is due in great part to the
juice itself, which has its adepts and loyal fans. There is also a lot of word
of mouth going on. Alien has entered, after 5 years of existence, the French
TOP 12 and the European Top 15. It does very well also in Russia and the Middle
East. Results are a bit more mixed in the US (perhaps because of the name) but
in 2009 there was a very clear progression...
Continue reading "Interview with Pierre Aulas Artistic Olfactory Director of Thierry Mugler; Creative Director Christophe de Lataillade Butts in {Perfume Q & A}" »
Dans la Série Autour du Lancement de:Womanity de Thierry Mugler, avec Pierre Aulas et Christophe de Lataillade
1ère Partie: Retour vers Angel et Alien
TSS- Pourrions-nous revenir quelque peu avec vous sur les succès d'Angel
et également d'Alien? De quelle nature est le succès d'Angel aujourd'hui?
Peut-on savoir dans quelle proportion sa popularité repose-t-elle sur une
clientèle de fidèles et le parfum trouve-t-il toujours de nouvelles adeptes?
Y-a-t-il des pays où Angel est particulèrement apprécié, des pays où il l'est
moins?
Pierre Aulas: Angel peut être considéré comme un grand succès mondial
car il appartient au top 5 monde ! Nous avons observé qu'Angel, de par son
originalité et sa puissance fonctionnait sur un mode Love or Hate et que quand
les gens l'aimaient, ils l'adoraient et y restaient fidèles. Et cela fonctionne
depuis 18 ans, même sur la génération qui découvre Angel maintenant. Angel fait
partie du top 5 de quasi tous les pays d'Europe (hormis l'Allemagne et le UK)
et du top 15 US ( ce qui est un très bon ranking quand on sait qu'Angel est
vendu dans 4 à 5 fois moins de points de vente que la moyenne!)
Alien suit un peu le même modèle et, comme Angel, a pris du temps pour
décoller. Là aussi le succès est en grosse partie dû au jus qui a ses adeptes
et ses fidèles. Egalement beaucoup de bouche a oreille. Alien est rentré, après
5 ans d'existence dans le top 12 français et le top 15 europe. Il performe également
très bien en Russie et au Moyen Orient. Les résultats sont un peu
plus longs à venir aux US ( à cause du nom peut-être) mais en
nette progression également sur 2009...
Continue reading "Interview de Pierre Aulas, Directeur Artistique Olfactif chez Thierry Mugler; Christophe de Lataillade, Directeur Artistique, Répond Aussi {Perfume Q & A}" »
 Preamble
There have been many concerns expressed in the
world of fragrance consumers - of fine fragrances in particular - about
the regulatory
activities of the International Fragrance Association or IFRA.
I
don't think I am too far from the truth when I say that this acronym
has taken on a punitive connotation for many perfume lovers, including
professional perfumers...
Continue reading "Interview with Stephen Weller, Director of Communications for IFRA: Fragrance Safety vs. Perfume Craftsmanship & Creation? {Perfume Q & A)" »
 Around-The-Launch Series
Mona di Orio is one of the best-known names in alternative, independent perfumery from Europe. On the occasion of the launch of her latest opus, Chamarré (richly ornate, brightly colored), we thought it would be a propos to ask her about her visual tastes and ask her to help us better understand her new perfume, an iris-laden composition.
 TSS: It is not easy to decipher your perfumes because you are not exactly where one expects you to be: why does a perfume called Chamarré starts with such dark, velvety and resinous notes in the initial stage?
Mona di Orio: Chamarré begins with a bunch of lavender followed by the clary sage and one aldehyde... It's a warm and deep departure, to give instantaneously a feeling of well-being and warmth...With a little touch of mystery at the same time ! The "real" essential oil of lavender is wonderful and has a lot of virtues too. In the symbolic language of the flowers it means "good luck"... And it's certainly not an old-fashioned note !
Hygiene by Gustav Klimt
TSS: Was L'Heure Bleue a source of inspiration or a subject of study for you?
MdO: Absolutely ! When I smelt "L'Heure Bleue" for the first time, I was 15 years old, I had a real emotional shock ! I was so fascinated, so touched... I discovered a beautiful story under my nose, a mysterious travel to follow and such an intense emotion... I will always remember it, I don't have to smell it again, I have it my mind...  Femmes au tombeau by Maurice Denis
Continue reading "Q & A with Perfumer Mona di Orio around the Launch of Chamarre" »
 The Vienna Court Opera in 1902
WienerBlut is a new perfume label that was founded by Alexander Lauber and launched with a first fragrance called Klubwasser (Club Water) . My early contact with the brand is through the website. Its welcoming image is striking with its shadowy black and white hues as it immediately puts the accent on the notion of impermanence: we are offered the sight of a multitude of by-now dead people; the music is slightly lugubrious. The texture of the image is that of an old movie frame left on pause indefinetly. You have not arrived at your standard fragrance website. For someone like me who is fascinated by old pictures of cities, I experience the reverse of what you most often see in antique pictures, the half-empty streets here are filled anew with an exhaustive list of ancestors. The brand aims to capture the soul and spirit of Vienna in a rather
single-minded manner and through it experience a certain set of values.
I was intrigued initially most by this sense of roots and anchoring. Perhaps I asked myself more questions in this case simply because Vienna is not as much today of a global city as London, New York or even Paris, the latter which hovers more on the side of local identity yet is culturally stuck in the minds of people as an international reference. An insistence on Paris and "made in Paris" for a perfume feels completely of-course. The same stress put on perfume and Vienna requires further clarification. To me, after having smelled and written a review of Klubwasser, it can feel like it is more than about Vienna, but I don't think that I could place it as being outside of Europe unless we started thinking of it as an eau that would have been made in Vienna, a fact Lauber likes to insist upon, and then traveled to exotic countries. Klubwasser was made by a fascinating Viennese perfumer specializing in emotional communication called Yogesh Kumar who asks you to bring an oft-worn garment to a private consultation when you ask him to create your own unique personal scent. He will smell your scarf or shirt, analyze and understand your personal olfactory imprint and create a composition around that non-replicable personal body scent component. Kumar has also a commercial line of fragrances I had never heard of which looks like a territory to be explored. But back to WienerBlut. When fragrances are issued that come accompanied with an historic background it tends to trigger the reaction of wanting to elucidate some of the tradition that stands behind those scents. But as we know, "tradition" may be quite an illusory concept and in some instances it may just be a specific type of springboard to creation involving the historical imagination supported by some information and a good dose of retro sensitivity. Klubwasser is undeniably retro -- but see where "retro" leads us to: an all or mostly natural perfume that is like the past encapsulated in the present-day preoccupation for greenness and eco-friendly products. It is like a movement to go back to a perfumery that is closer to 19th century perfumery than ever...Will the 20th century be just an intermission?
Q & A with Alexander Lauber around the Launch of Klubwasser
TSS: Do you remember when you first became interested in the world of aromas and perfume?
Alexander Lauber: As a child, I lived in several different parts of the world. The scents of these places have always belonged to the most powerful memories: a food market in Bologna, the subway in Paris, the Atlantic ocean at Cape Cod, the carpet of my grandparents house. I often tried to conserve these scents in jars, books or clothes and take them with me. The first perfume I perceived as a brand and not merely as the scent of a certain person was Poison [by Dior]....
Continue reading "Q & A with Alexander Lauber Founder of WienerBlut around the Launch of Klubwasser {Perfume Q & A}" »
 Last year a rumor started circulating on the Internet that a classic perfume by couturier Jacques Fath, the mythical Iris Gris (Gray Iris), was going to be resurrected. It is nearly impossible to find it nowadays, although it surfaces on very rare occasions; a set of Jacques Fath fragrances including the very elusive Iris Gris just recently sold on eBay (picture below).  The perfume has not been lost to historic amnesia however thanks in part to perfumer Guy Robert who in the now out-of-print book Les Sens du Parfum counts it as one of the masterpieces of perfumery, one which was composed by nose Vincent Roubert. Guy Robert is quick to add though that his list is not exhaustive and presents a few of the best creations of a few of the best creators in perfumery. Vincent Roubert is thus included as the author of both Iris Gris and L'Aimant by Coty, the latter a much more readily available scent nowadays. L'Aimant was a spin-off version on Chanel No.5. For those interested in just smelling and not owning necessarily a perfume, a historically reconstituted version of iris Gris can be smelt at L'Osmothèque today thanks to the efforts of perfumer-curators. Needless to say it is now considered a museum piece. The sheer fact that the fragrance is nearly extinct in its original state has of course not lessened the levels of admiration for it but rather increased them. As it has become by historical accident even more exclusive and rare, we get the last ingredient needed for a perfume to become the stuff of legend: extreme exclusivity. Sometimes you have to wonder about that ultimate psychological element when perfectly wonderful fragrances can be had at drugstore prices and are not for that reason put on a pedestal, like L'Aimant for instance, the other masterpiece listed by Guy Robert.  An original bottle of Iris Gris
I first learned about the project thanks to a reader who was wondering
if I had heard about it and if one could give any credence to the
rumor. After inquiring further and getting some helpful advice from
Haarman & Reimer as well as Symrise later on, the company Panouge
confirmed to me last summer that they were working on a reconstitution
of the celebrated iris perfume which first appeared in 1946...
Continue reading "Jacques Fath Irissime (2009): From Iris Gris to Irissime: A Contemporary Version of Iris Gris {New Perfume} - Q & A with Fabrice Biré of Panouge around the Launch of Irissime {Perfume Q & A}" »
 Interview with David Pybus Around Scents of Time & The New MayaDavid Pybus, by his own admission, is a chemist turned "aromancer" in order to satisfy the more artistic streak in his personality. He is also an author and has written three books: The Chemistry of Fragrances (with Charles Sell), Kodo, The Way of Incense, and Transports of Delights, an anthology of poetic texts following an aromatic thematic, excerpted from world literature. He now hunts for ancient archaeological odoriferous remnants or manuscript records of fragrances in order to recreate them as wearable scents for today's perfume aficionados under his business label, Scents of Time (soon to become an e-commerce site too). His passion for bringing out long lost scents out of the vaults of history has earned him the nickname of "Indiana Jones of the perfume industry". Pybus released three perfumes last year, as previously announced, while a new one called Maya just launched this fall. Next year people will have the opportunity of experiencing two more intriguing perfumes based on phials salvaged from the infamous shipwreck of the Titanic, a floral scent for women and a woody one for men, both called Night Star. We wanted to understand better his venture, the reception it has received, and so asked him for his thoughts. TSS: I was wondering what kind of interest have you seen manifested for your "Indiana-Jones" fragrances?David Pybus: Early days yet as really only launched 3 weeks ago at major UK retailer and it's still 7 weeks to Xmas, but sales steadily rising. Hardest thing is still public awareness. I won £80,000 to create Scents of Time. A major fragrance House probably spends that on one magazine ad or TV placement so I am up against it in terms of creating a presence. - Have you felt that the specialized scope of your venture spoke best to the usual suspects (history buffs, academics, museum-goers...) or have you experienced some surprises there?First launch was at the British Museum which of course is serious archeological stuff! The range was a sell out on day one and has been steadily selling since. With 5 million visitors a year this is a great outlet for me. Wish I could get the Metropolitan Museum in New York interested!... David Pybus setting up a head-space analysis session for the blue lotus. Perfumer Montserrat Moline of Givaudan taking down some notes. Nenufar incorporates the reconstituted scent of the blue lotus.
  
Continue reading "Interview with David Pybus around Scents of Time: Invitation To Smell Like Divine Divas {Fragrance Interview}" »
When Ralph Wild by Ralph Lauren first discreetly launched in late 2007, we immediately became aware of its existence as we got an email a few days before New Year revealing a certain sense of urgency from a young reader named Terra, "I'm looking for a new perfume by Ralph Lauren that a friend said she found
in Macy's called Ralph Wild, and I can't seem to find anything about it
anywhere. Have you heard of it? I don't see it anywhere on your blog."
We were able to provide her with a link to Dillard's, where it was already in store, and to make an announcement illustrated with an early preview of the ad found on Sephora with model Amanda Charlwood but without any further details given about the new Ralph. Later we were able to do a brief review of the perfume which we thought was better than expected, offering a nice strawberry jammy quality, like a more laid-back and younger version of Miss Dior Chérie.
This time, Ralph Lauren has decided to launch an internet-only communication campaign, including a contest to win a Vespa, and this is why The Scented Salamander got the opportunity to interview assistant vice-president for Ralph Lauren Fragrances Linda Kramer who developed the fragrance together with Olivier Gilotin and Jim Krivda. It is not easy to break the reserve of a corporate officer working for the mainstream fragrance industry, but Linda Kramer graciously accepted to answer some of our questions. We think this Q & A gives you some insights into how a prestige, more mass-marketed fragrance comes about and how it is conceived. For example, the design and packaging inspire the scent composition. If any young people are interested in becoming fragrance developers, you know what to expect. And by the way, Lauren, which is mentioned in the interview, used to be a great perfume. Bring it back! Pauline adds "Ralph Lauren Blue is a great office scent!" Perfume Q & A with Linda Kramer
1 - How did the creative team decide to express the idea of “wildness” in Ralph Wild?
The first step is to identify the key elements of the brand – This fragrance was designed to represent a girl who is spontaneous, fearless and confident. We also look at the imagery and the color of the packaging. Based on all of these elements of Ralph Wild, it was clear to us that we needed to create a fragrance that would make a bold statement but would also tie in the Ralph Wild Girl’s personality and the color of the packaging.
2- Juicy candied nuances and fruity-floral perfumes seem to be very popular nowadays, why do you think that is?
Fruity floral fragrances with candy-like and edible nuances are indeed very popular right now. The reason being is the comforting, familiarity of these notes as well as the nostalgic effect they have on us. These types of notes have the amazing ability to olfactively transport us back to the happy memories of our youth......
Continue reading "Interview with Linda Kramer, Assistant Vice-President for Ralph Lauren Fragrances {Perfume Q & A}" »
Perfume Q & A Archive
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