Shalimar (a brief overview) (Guerlain)

By Dane

I was surprised to find that the grand-dame of perfume, Shalimar, had yet to be reviewed here on Pere de Pierre, especially considering it's a personal favourite of both myself and Mark. Alas, it's a very difficult thing to describe, because most perfume lovers already have a picture painted in their mind of this fine-art perfumery, be it good, or merely appreciation.

The complications in reviewing Shalimar start with the concentrations, and the various (re)formulations therein. Of course, I'll expect a "stern" email from Guerlain saying that nothing has changed, but some of beg to differ. My personal views are based on the current EDT and EDP formulations, as well as vintage bottles of the parfum and EDT found at a local flea market (lucky me!)

I'll start by saying that the current EDT is flat, pale, and not worth smelling. It's still Shalimar, but my fear would be that someone new to the game would sniff it and not understand the beauty the rest of us see. The current EDP is a different story - richer, smokier, and in my opinion, just as beautiful as ever. I happen to prefer it over the vintage EDT that I have, which, while still better than the current formulation, lacks some of the necessary grandeur.

The vintage parfum is an entirely different affair. This is what made me fall in love - a decadent accord of bergamot and citrus, a rich floral heart of jasmine and rose, and a huge bucket of buttery, luxurious iris, all floating above Shalimar's true star, an animalic vanilla like no other.

One could say that most of Guerlain's parfum-concentrations would blow the others out of the water, but we all have our preferences. I happen to agree when it comes to Shalimar, but would argue that others (Mitsouko, Jicky) shine brightest in the EDP.

For those of you that haven't tried it - please, hurry! For the rest of you skimming this because you've read anything and everything about her assuming there couldn't be any more to say - well, enjoy.

Year: 1925
Perfumer: Jacques Guerlain
Notes: Bergamot, Lemon, Iris, Jasmine, Rose, Oppoponax, Vanilla, Civet (sources vary on advertised notes - this is a compilation of the notes I believe are accurate)