#903705

Chanel Paris – Édimbourg — Have You Ever Smelled Herbal Ointment?

★★★
The quality of Chanel’s fragrances is hard to pin down. Olivier Polge is… well, a bit of a mad genius.

Fragrance Type: Woody Fougere
Top Notes: Lemon, bergamot
Middle Notes: Juniper, cypress
Base Notes: Cedar, vetiver
Gender: Unisex
Perfumer: Olivier Polge

This year, the Chanel Eau de Toilette series introduced a new addition: Paris–Édimbourg. Before reviewing the scent, here’s the background of Édimbourg and Gabrielle Chanel (excerpted from the official site):
In 1924, Gabrielle Chanel met and fell in love with the Duke of Westminster, a relationship that lasted until 1930. Unlike the extravagance and noise of high society, Chanel was more drawn to his Scottish Highlands estate, with its lakes, rolling hills, and majestic landscapes.

Paris–Édimbourg smells noticeably different from the previous four releases. Upon application, you are immediately enveloped by wood. Was the Duke’s estate built in a forest? Perhaps this is what aristocracy smells like. The faint citrus of lemon is quickly overshadowed as the scent shifts to dense woods, specifically cypress and cedar. The cypress brings a slightly spicy, commanding aura, while cedar gives a soft, sweet, familiar woodiness. However, the addition of juniper cools the fragrance sharply, giving it a scent reminiscent of Thai herbal ointment…

Longevity is around 5–7 hours, average. Honestly, Olivier Polge may have never actually smelled herbal ointment, but to someone recently bitten by mosquitoes, this note is overwhelming and distracting. Vetiver is also affected; the juniper’s influence, like continuous snow, cools and dulls the normally warm and rich woodiness of vetiver. Overall, this fragrance barely maintains Chanel’s standard. It seems tailored more toward men—both in the choice of ingredients and the scent’s character, leaning toward a masculine profile.