Guerlain launched the Aqua Allegoria line in 1999 with 5 fragrances: Herba Fresca, Pamplelune, Rosa Magnifica, Lavande Velours and Ylang & Vanille. There are currently 9 in the range, although 3, Anisia Bella, Mentafollia, and Foliflora, are slated to be discontinued.
The fragrances are meant to "showcase nature", and they tend to be lighter and less complicated than the regular line. They are also cheaper. Today I am trying the latest releases: Orange Magnifica and Pivoine Magnifica.
Orange Magnifica has notes of blood orange, bergamot, jasmine, neroli, cedar wood, amber and almond. It starts with sweet citrus notes; once the top notes fade, this has more of a floral than a citrus character. The heart is a blend of jasmine and amber, and do bear in mind that I don't care for amber, but I find this rather flat and dull.
The dry down smells like neroli, cedar, amber and light almond. It is not a heavy scent, but it is warm, and not at all the light, sparkling summer citrus scent I expected. The lasting power was reasonable. I will be interested to hear if this has any fans, as it did nothing for me at all.
Pivoine Magnifica is by perfumer Karine Dubreuil, and has notes of peony, bergamot, pink grapefruit, violet, iris and woody notes. Pivoine also starts with citrus, but here it is very subtle, and is soon joined by lightly sweet peony. As the citrus fades, the violet vies with the peony for prominence. It is very mild and soft and summery.
The dry down adds a slightly powdery, woody iris with subtle hints of pepper, and while the peony and violet are short lived, the iris lasted for at least 3 hours on me. This is a pretty, rather demure fragrance, and nicely done, but it is not something I will need to own.
If Guerlain wants my vote, and I am quite sure they don't, I would say keep Anisia Bella over either of these two. I believe these are currently exclusive to Sephora in the United States, where they are $45 for 4.2 oz.
Hello R! Thank you for the reviews – fab as always.
Not a fan of the AA range but I must say that Orange Magnifica smells wonderful on a paper strip and it is strong. Have not tried either on my skin yet – must dig up samples. I always get sidetracked in any Guerlain boutique. Will catch up next week.
xoxo
HA HA, N, like I would waste my time on the AAs if I was in the flagship boutique, HA HA!!! Yes, I am sure you get sidetracked. I don't have the same problem in Sephora 😉
Hi R! I have wanted to try these two for a while. Perhaps I will take a trip to Sephora today to try since I cannot find them anywhere else here. Will let you know what I think but from your review I have the feeling that the Pivoine will be the preferred fragrance – I will keep you posted. xoxo
F, Wondering what you will think of them, do come back & comment!
New to this site. It's so superb! Dear R (do I have that initial correct?)
Wondering about the Must de Cartier Eau de Toilette and Parfum. In Perfume Legends, Michael Edwards writes that in 1981, the parfum (Parfum Must) was released with an eau de toilette (Eau de Toilette Must) that was actually a different fragrance (by a different perfumer than the parfum creator). He writes that this eau de toilette, different to the parfum, was then discontinued. I assume that the current Must de Cartier Eau de Toilette is actually an 'eau' interpretation of the original parfum.
Do you know whether this is the case? Do you know whether the perfumer who did the original parfum, did the current eau de toilette? Sorry to start with such a technical question!!! Must de Cartier has all the atmospherics of the movie: American Gigilo!
Hi NST! I love the Pivoine one–it is my current new summer scent. It IS light, though, but I don't seem to mind that. I just reapply. I havee a feeling that someone somewhere is sending me a sample of the other, so I'll report back when that happens ;D.
Hi R, I love your site–always the first thing I check out after logging in at work! (So much for my priorities…)
It so happens that I am wearing the AA scent Gentiana today. I'm curious if you've tried it and if so, what your thoughts are.
I agree with your reviews…I find the orange one very bland and a little gross (something in it reminded me of the dreaded Pamplelune). The peony one was light and pretty, but ultimately not interesting enough for me. Although I'm not a fan of anise scents, I agree that Anisia Bella is far nicer than either of these two new additions to the line.
Next time I'm at Sephora, I'll have to remember to sniff these.
I'm disappointed that I've fallen out of love with AA Ylang et Vanille. Now I smell a plastic note upon initial spritz. It's short-lived, but it bugs me. Aarrrgh!
Hi Nicky, Welcome! I read that chapter too, but I know nothing about Must de Cartier. If someone else doesn't happen along with an answer, I'll take a look at the reviews on MakeupAlley and see if I can find any clues.
And yes, my name is Robin, and R is fine 😉
I wish they would hurry up, LOL! Some people just procrastinate too much.
Hi luvsillage, Gentiana did not work for me at all, but to be honest I cannot remember why and I no longer have a sample. I love yuzu so would think this would have suited me. Is it very sweet or heavy?
Hi L, I adore anise so no surprise that Anisia Bella is my favorite AA. It had barely hit the shelves in the US before they discontinued it. Now it will just figure if Orange Magnifica stays in the line for years to come.
S, I think Herba Fresca is a great scent, but it does sort of smell like chewing gum, so you have to like mint. My local Sephora still had Anisia Bella & Mentafollia too.
I, that might be the only AA I haven't tried yet, although I think I have a sample floating around here somewhere. Not exactly tempted to go looking for it now that I've read your comment, LOL!
I don't find Gentiana to be heavy at all, however, I can never use more than 1 or 2 spritzes at a time and I never feel the need to reapply throughout the day. On the whole I find the scent to be refreshing and very feminine. It is powdery on the dry down–which–from reading past reviews–I think you're not a big fan of. The scent definitely is very much a Guerlain one and has elements which remind me of Shalimar Light.
Ah, the powder might be the reason then. There are a few powdery scents I really love, but no more than a handful.
Anyway, sorry they discontinued one of your favorites too!
Hello,
Found this blog a month ago and Heavens to Betsy, thankfully, a blog about perfume! Yay! A propos of Pivoine, I was ambushed in Nordstrom yesterday with the business end of a bottle of Thierry Mugler Angel-Pivoine. After one breathy whiff, the word that appeared somewhere in my left lobe was “armpit”! French armpit grown in the shades of the Metro, with a flourish of cig smoke and soupcon of diesel, I swear! Would you please on your next Field Expedition compare these two Pivoine to see if there's ANYTHING in common.
(Ok perhaps I exaggerate just a tad; and I never knew peonies to smell like anything.)
Peonies not smell like anything??? They are very fragrant, very roselike—yum. I've never smelled the perf you got attacked with, but if it is anything like the original Angel, I don't wonder at your reaction ;D.
Hi Third Shift, Welcome!
Have smelled the Peony Angel. I admire Angel in a theoretical sense, but don't like the smell exactly, and Peony Angel smelled like Angel with some peony. No surprise there. I get hints of gasoline from the original Angel, but didn't really hang around the Peony version long enough to tell.
And no, absolutely NOTHING in common with the AA Pivoine.
Agree with L below, peonies smell lovely, but of course there are tons of varieties and I know some have no fragrance at all.
So typical of Guerlain/LVMH to discontinue the one you like best. :(:(
Hi R! Isn't that the way, LOL!
What a coincidence! I stopped by Sephora today and tested Orange Magnifica and Pivoine Magnifica.
Orange was at first a burst of fresh orange, as if squeezing an orange peel. Then it quickly got warmed up by amber, ending up as rather plain dime-a-dozen orange scent.
Pivoine was more interesting, with the iris and violet being prominent. It reminds me of vintage style powder, or maybe a much softer Chanel lipstick formulas. It is as pretty and precious as 19th c portraits of young aristocratic debutants. It just does not seem to grab my attention in any way. If I received a bottle of it as a gift, I would wear it. However, I do not think I would splurge on it myself.
Hmmm, haven't found much helpful. Jan Moran says:
The eau de toilette is also a rich fragrance, but registers more floral and citrus notes than the perfume. The two may be worn together or alone.
Nigel Groom says:
More recently Cartier have launched Must de Cartier Eau de Toilette, which is a new version of the original Must fragrance….
notice he doesn't say which original Must fragrance!
I have sent an email to Cartier and we shall see what (if anything) they say.
These scents sound so unexciting that I fell asleep at my work desk. I would love it if Guerlain made an Aqua Melancholia line and maybe they can re-release Apres L'Ondee in it. Other eaux can smell like burnt manuscripts and autumn, or buttery, peaty, malt whiskey, or a Catholic confession booth. They would all have that irisy Guerlinade in the background. I don't underestand why Guerlain has foisted upon the world another so-so neroli /bergamot based eau, especially if Imperial and Du Coq are the great granddaddies of the genre. zzzz…
Agree completely: if a bottle of Pivoine falls in my lap, I'll wear it. Won't pay for it though. There are a lot of scents in that category for me, and strangely enough the bottles rarely fall in my lap 😉
Anything else fun at Sephora today?
LOL — Aqua Melancholia — that is priceless!!
And so sorry not to provide a worthwhile diversion from your work day! Meaning to do Guerlain Vetiver & Vetiver Pour Elle tomorrow, hopefully that will be a more perky review.
I sniffed 24, Faubourg again, and found it quite great–rich in orange blossom glittering against amber backdrop. Not sure if I would wear it, but I definitely appreciated the beauty of the composition. All of Roucel's perfumes have a glow, and it is just fantastic.
Oh! I tested Beyond Paradise especially for you. First impression was that it is better than I thought it would be. It is a true floral bouquet, with a note that mimics the way leaves smell when you crush them in your hands. It starts out effervescent and slighly sweet, with a jasminey notes in full blast (minus any animalic aspects of jasmine). It definitely does recall J'Adore, with its juicy, succulent leaves and petals feel. A well-composed floral, but… I just do not like this modern category of florals as they are too sweet and too pretty. I like powder or rubber or earth in my florals. There is a hint of something ozonic in the composition, and it bothers me. This was a reaction after the first try, and I am not sure what repeated attempts would produce.
I also tested Rochas Poupee and really liked it–such a beautiful tuberose scent with unexpected orange, violet and nutty notes.
Oh, the last sniff of the day was Cristalle EDT, reminding me how much I like it. It is just a beautiful floral, with the slightly earthy notes providing a great counterpoint to all of that jasmine.
It's not your fault they're boring! : ) I'm looking forward to the Guerlain Vetiver and Vetiver pour Elle reviews. I smelled the Dominique Ropion Vetivert Extraordinaire on Sunday, and I was weirded out by its strong pungency. An indiscreet vetivert is like a pimp in a Savile row suit. Some of the FM scents sure are not scared to offend. The soap is really nice, though.
V, Thanks for the detailed report!
I am so surprised they had Cristalle EdT instead of EdP. One of my favorite summer scents.
Agree that 24 Faubourg is well done, but I don't wear it either. Poupee didn't grab me at all, but I've never tried on skin, only on a test strip.
I almost always detest an ozonic note, but will try to keep an open mind.
I was simply blown away by the soap, it was so fabulous. I have a sample of the EdT but it is still waiting in line to be tried. Now I am frightened, LOL!
C, you make me want to grab my FM kit and test Vetivert Extraordinaire right away! I also really liked the soap, but I am not sure I would spend $65 on it.
Sorry , darling NST, but peonies are KNOWN for their fragrance. Some are lighter in perfume than others, of course, but they are still…fragrant. It would be as well to say that roses, lilacs, gardenias have no fragrance.
Signed,
Gertrude Gardener
Dear Gert,
You don't mind if I call you Gert, do you? I have never seen (smelled?) a peony that didn't have a fragrance, but according to paeonia.com:
“Peonies are renowned for their fragrance. Some were actually used in perfumes at the beginning of the twentieth century and still are to some extent today.
Not all peonies have a fragrance and of those that do, some can be actually disagreeable.”
I have no idea if this is true or not. Certainly it is very dangerous to believe everything you read on the internet.
Oh my Lord! Please rename this day Coincident Day, because I just bought 24, Faubourg; and Chanel Cristalle happens to be the scent I've yearned for and eventually bought and keep, since I was like, 14, and that's not an exaggeration.
The older I get, the more I appreciate 24, Faubourg. I finally got to an age where I bought it. 🙂 It (nearly) made a Hermes girl out of me. I always keep a bottle of Cristalle, and although I don't wear it quite as often, when I do wear it, I always end up sniffing my wrists and thinking, “wow, this smells good”, sometime later in the day.
I see that Robin's first perfume was L'air du Temps, it was my first “real” perfume, too, like my first “real” job, after a bunch of “sorta” jobs. I think Robin should start a thread where people can post what their first perfume is. I think it'll be quite enlightening and entertaining.
Oh well, if you're going to bother me with FACTS—. Still, Third (you don't mind if I call you Third do you?) I say peonies are, in the main, the grand main, fragrant flowers and the main is what I live by.
Signed,
Mainly Nongrudging Gert
MNG: You crack me up 😉
Third Shift, that is a great idea, and another I'll save for a day when I can't come up with a perfume review.
24 Faubourg was too much for me the first time I tried it, but that was awhile back and I should give it another try.
Heard back from Chanel this morning. They are “unable to advise”, LOL!
It's $70 for three soaps, and it's too bad Barneys can't just sell one. I think one bar of Chanel no. 5 soap is $17.50. However, the box is also nice and so is the Atenerea (sp?) soap, which smelled like mint and verbena from the wrapper. That's one I would love to have in edT form.
What a coincidence – I just tried both of these fragrances today! I was very excited to see them on display as they have not been available in my local dept. stores until now.
I tried the Peony first, because I absolutely love their fragrance. I was disappointed to smell grapefruit in the top notes (not what I was hoping for in a floral & the Pamplune Aqua Allegoria smells ghastly on my skin). The grapefruit dissipated quickly and left behind a soft floral with an undercurrent of Guerlinade. I think the guerlinade put me off a bit – I like my florals more fresh and I found these other notes distracting. I didn't pick up on any violet notes, but maybe I'll have another sniff. Overall, I thought it was an “OK” scent, but I'm not sure that I would purchase it for myself.
Next I tried the Orange Magnifica. I LOVED the initial topnotes which smelled like freshly sliced orange. Unfortunately these lovely notes vanished quickly and left behind a flat, musty afterscent. I was hoping for a sparkling citrus, so this one was a big disappointment. Of the two, I think I prefer the Pivoine, but really neither of them blew me away.
My favorite Allegoria is still Lillia Bella. I also like Foliflora, so maybe I should stock up on that while its still around.
Hey cheez, it sounds like our reactions were in the same ballpark. Agree about Pamplelune too, I just cannot wear it.
Curiously, alot of people seem to adore Pamplune (it gets absolute raves on sites like Perfume Emporium).
For me, it is hands down THE most godawful perfume I've ever sampled – both on paper & on my skin. It just smells absolutely vile & feral to me: no tangy sparkly citrus, just pure overpowering B.O mixed with a dash of cat urine. Someone gave me a tiny sample bottle as a gift and I had to immediately throw it out – couldn't even stand a whiff from the bottle.
This kind of extreme reaction to a scent is very rare for me. Normally if I dislike something my response is something like “eh not my cup of tea, but might be nice on someone else”. Pamplune makes me wonder how my wiring is different from everyone else's!
Feral is a perfect description of how it smells on me too. Wish I could find a link, but there was a thread on MakeupAlley recently from someone who loves Pamplelune, and was told by others that she smelled “unwashed” or something. So, you are not alone!
I suppose I am like 4 years too late for this thread? Actually, Third Shift, I know what you are talking when you said Peony Angel reminded you of armpit! LOL I get that BO smell too with many of the Angel flankers. Peony Angel starts off light and spicy, but 30 minutes later on my skin, starts to morph into an unmistakable stale clothes and unwashed skin kind of smell. Urgh.
The Pivoine Magnifica is still around which means that it has outlived most of its competition from the AA line. Guerlain axes any of the AAs that do not sell so I suppose this Pivoine is popular. Shame – I would liked it in 2005 – the only Guerlain I bought back then was the Lilia Bella (now discontinued). But there are now WAY too many peony (or pseudo peony) scents and that kind of spoils it for me cos I don't like to smell generic.
That said, I am intrigued by the grapefruit start reported in the Pivoine. I wonder how this compares with the Pamplelume?
Better late than never 🙂
Pivoine must be popular, it's outlasted several others. Either that, or it's sold so slowly that they haven't sold out the initial production run!