Calvin Klein Euphoria for women was launched in 2005, and won this year's Fifi Award for best luxe fragrance. The fragrance was created by perfumers Dominique Ropion, Carlos Benaim and Loc Dong, and has notes of pomegranate, persimmon, lush green accord, lotus blossom, champaca flower, black orchid, liquid amber, black violet, cream accord and mahogany wood.
Euphoria starts with sweet fruits; the pomegranate and persimmon are liberally sugared, and the "lush green accord" adds a kind of synthetic freshness that floats above but does nothing to temper the syrupy sweetness. It moves quickly into the dry down, which is blended floral notes mingling with now-indistinct fruits, the whole doused with a warm vanilla cream laced with patchouli, amber and a hefty dose of musk.
It is a deep, voluptuous fragrance, vaguely edible, and rather dark although not overly so — it smells decidedly modern, and there are none of the "musty bits" of a classic oriental. Although it is far too sweet to suit me personally, it has a sultry edge that many find appealing. The sillage and lasting power are extraordinary; in fact, it is no easy thing to remove it from the skin. Whatever else it is, it is not a fragrance for a hot summer day, and it is far too heavy to appeal to the burgeoning Asian market...which leads us to Euphoria Blossom.
Calvin Klein launched Euphoria Blossom earlier this year. It is formulated specifically to suit Asian preferences for lighter fragrances, although it will eventually be marketed worldwide. The fragrance notes feature kumquat, dewy green accord, pomegranate, orchid blossom, lotus blossom, pink peony, blond wood, white amber and frosted sheer musk.
Euphoria Blossom, like the original Euphoria, starts with sweet fruits, but the sweetness is considerably toned down and accented here with sparkling citrus notes. The "dewy green accord" is more noticeable simply because it has less competition for attention, and it smells more like a simple (and very fresh) floral and less like a sexy oriental fragrance for the same reason — the base here is relatively quiet, with none of the creamy richness of Euphoria, just a mild little blur of woody musk and amber. The sillage is slight, and the lasting power is so-so.
Euphoria was well-done if not groundbreaking, and I would say the same of Euphoria Blossom, but more so than the original, it has the kind of smells-like-everything-else, been-through-more-than-one-focus-group pleasantness that would make it hard to pick out of a blind smell test at Sephora. If you adore Euphoria and want a lighter version for summer, it might be just the ticket, but I would not be surprised if many Euphoria fans find it a bit more innocuous than they were hoping for.
Euphoria can be found most anywhere. Parfum1 has a 30 ml bottle of the Eau de Parfum can be located for $36. Euphoria Blossom is not yet so widely distributed, but scentiments has a 50 ml bottle of the Eau de Toilette for $44.
Image of Calvin Klein Euphoria for women via Parfum de Pub.
Euphoria BLossom sounds nice. I really didn't care for Euphoria.
“The “lush green accord” adds a kind of synthetic freshness that floats above but does nothing to temper the syrupy sweetness.” Hee hee hee.
I haven't tried Euphoria Blossom and, like you, I though Euphoria was well done but nothing extraordinary. It was alos too sweet for me, in a syrupy-fruity-sweet kind of way, for which I have much less tolerance that, say, for vanilla-sweet or ambery-sweet.
I like Euphoria, but yes, I also wish it were more daring. Euphoria Blossom was just as I expected it to be.
I loathe Euphoria, although I've never quite been able to put my finger on why this is so. It smells … artificial to me, which I realize is a ridiculous word to apply to fragrance, given all the artifice involved, but their you have it. It baffles me. I mean, I am not a big fan of Angel either, but I totally get why it's so popular. But this stuff? Make it go away.
my cousin got married nearly two weeks ago
and the bride had this on, I thought it was J’adore Dior at first until she told me.
I didn’t anything atrificial about it, but there’s nothing that suggests the feeling of euphoria. I don’t mind it.
Eh, I didn't care for Euphoria when I tried it. But the blossom version sounds quite nice and I'd be willing to give it a shot.
EB reminds me of something, but I can't think of what. I have a feeling actually that it is more likely to appeal to someone who didn't care for Euphoria, maybe.
It is really pretty darned sweet M. Dont' think you would like the Blossom either.
It does have a very synthetic feel, but so do many fragrances that I like, so that isn't why I don't like it either. And agree about Angel, although I'd rather wear Euphoria all the same.
I thought I would like EB more than I do, V.
It'll be at Sephora eventually, I'm sure!
*Sigh*…I'm more than a little tired of the syrupy, fruity, “safe” orientals popping up everywhere. I can understand the appeal of Euphoria, but haven't we smelled this a million times over? I'm sooo ready for something really different and cutting edge for women.
Guys,
Don't you think Euphoria is just another offspring of the now classic Angel? (Vanilla cream + patchouli + amber + musk, isn't the sort of the same drydown …)
I didn't care much about this one when I smelled it months ago, and definitvely, it's not the best CK ever came accross.
LOL, R.
Well, I suppose, but it is less of a direct copy than many so I won't hold that against it 😉
Quite so, but safe certainly seems to be the “thing” this year!
has anyone seen euphoria blossom in stores here in the US? i have yet to see it. i'd hate to order it before sampling. i loved euphoria on everyone else except me.. very dark and deep, close enough to musty.
It has not officially launched here yet, although the online discounters do have it.
Love them both!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Glad you've found favorites, then 🙂
I love Blossom… original Euphoria is way to heavy for me but Blossom has just the right hint of sheer sweetness and although not a classical sexy fragrance I wear it for romantic evenings.
Good idea — wear what you like best for romantic evenings 🙂
I just have to say that I adore Euphoria and will definitely check out Euphoria Blossom ASAP. Also I wanted to say that my late aunt Dolly, who died of lung cancer last June, adored Euphoria as well. Like me, she loved tried various scents and had a vast perfume collection yet Euphoria became a huge favorite of hers, so much so she went through the bottle I gave her originally for Christmas in one year so I got it for her again the next, sadly her last Christmas. When I wear Euphoria I think of her and of course enjoy it for its sensual unique scent.
Jenny
Hi Jenny, what a nice way to remember your aunt! Hope you will like the Euphoria Blossom.
I will definitely write a review here once I get Euphoria blossom! Meantime I love Euphoria. When I first bought it for my aunt I smelled the tester bottle and loved it so much I went back a month later and got my own bottle. I like that it is sexy yet subtle in a way. For some reason I like wearing it with jeans-is that CK or just because they go well together lol? Jenny
Hi everyone!
I finally got Euphoria Blossom yesterday and I am in rapture of it already. I already adored the subtle sexiness of Euphoria and naturally I knew I had to get Euphoria Blossom. So I got it yesterday as a belated birthday present to myself and it smells great!
While Euphoria is a smoldering soft sexy scent, Euphoria Blossom has those elements in a lighter way mixed with a clean fresh scent that hints not too strongly of floral scents. It's a great scent for feeling like spring is in the air and I am glad I got it at last.
BTW on side note I just won Truly Pink by Vera Wang on Ebay at bargain price. It's over $80 in stores and I won this 3.4 oz bottle for only $27 plus $10 shipping which saves me over $40. I should be getting it by mail in a week or so. Once it arrives look for a review!
Jenny
Happy belated birthday, and enjoy your Euphoria Blossom 🙂
I've gotta say, I'm not one to care much for packaging, but i think this bottle is so cool, and the advertisement is very Salvador Dali (which is good).
Agree!
Euphoria is a great fragrance, but I saw firsthand how ubiquity can trump quality when my roommate and her ex-significant other both wore Euphoria by coincidence and not by sharing. That strikes me as a little incestuous, and I've never been able to appreciate Euphoria the same way since.
LOL — it also increases the sillage, assuming they're in the same room. That might be too much Euphoria.
i really like Euphoria. i didn't like Euphoria Blossom. I'd get Euphoria if it were cheap, probably
Most of the discounters have it, but I guess it still isn't quite “cheap”.
Euphoria was the first fragrance I bought and I loved it back then. Lovely bottle, appealing smell, decently priced, what’s not to love?
However, ater finishing the bottle, the love is gone.Not sure why but I find it irritating when I smell it on others.
Sometimes you just get sick of something, I guess. Hope you’ve found something new to replace it?
i just got euphoria for my birthday after falling in love with the tester in vogue. i just cant get enough of it ! i think it is the perfect perfume for young adults like me, but too sweet for older users. i love the sesitive, sexy sensuality of the smell, and although sweet, it is quite a mature fragrance.if that makes sense.
Glad you love it!
So i guess Euphoria has and eau de toilette now? Its not the blossom or spring temptation. Its on sephora.com. I really LOVE Euphoria so Im very excited about this one! It has a Baileys cream accord in it. Cant wait to try it!!
Yes! I haven’t tried it yet though.
Thanks for your honest review. I have to give a shout out to Euphoria. I get so many compliments when I where it! I know you’ve been able to access many different niche scents and, since I’ve been soo poor this past year, my fragrance sampling has been very limited. I mean, to me Euphoria smells very creative and different to me. I can understand why it won a Fifi. God I feel so boring because my risky fragrances that I enjoy are Euphoria and Bulgari Black..oh and also Dark Amber and Ginger Lily from Jo Malone. I really need to branch out from my *boring* florals. I’m finding it hard to be a perfumista in training. I feel inferior, cause it’s hard to be brave when you can only afford things you *think* you’ll like. I love scent, there has got to be something cheaper than TPC???? I guess you don’t hate Euphoria, because you’ve smelled the best. A lay person thinks your reviews are gonna be good or bad, but it’s gray to me sometimes. Anyways, this has been therapeutic. Thanks for listening. :0
Niche scents — really! — are not always better than mainstream. They do tend to be more unusual, but they’re not even always that. Of the 3 scents you mention, I own 2 of them, and Euphoria, as I said, was well-done. Beyond that, the purpose of perfume is to make you happy, right? Who cares what anyone else likes if what you have is making you happy.
https://nstperfume.com/2008/03/10/de-gustibus-non-est-disputandum-random-thoughts-on-perfume-snobbery/
Oh thanks for being so gracious Robin! If course you where what makes you happy, I sometimes forget that because, well, there are some perfume snobs, and that makes it hard to feel like you have anything to contribute. Thanks for the reminder 🙂
Is there anywhere I can get samples of single notes. I stay away from oud, labdamin, cardamon,leather, because I don’t know what they smell like. So I can’t judge or advance to something I love, or even appreciate, because, small town, lack of access, poor. I would invest in some pure/semi pure notes though. If you don’t know, maybe it could be asked or inspire a post. Like “Notes, good example, ones you like, ones you don’t, where they are.”
Any-who, what I wrote, I write while half asleep. I hoped I didn’t say anything offensive.
I’m a perfume snob, no doubt, but I love plenty of things that someone else would think was crap. It isn’t worth worrying about!
Do you mean single notes to wear, or for learning purposes?
Yes for learning and expanding purposes 🙂
And thanks for the link. It should be a prerequisite for this blog.
For learning, do a search through the “kit” tag:
https://nstperfume.com/tag/kit/
Dang, no do overs here. I didn’t proof my comments. I’m really not an idot. …idiot.
I first smelled Euphoria in a magazine the yr it wsa launched(2005)and i fell in love with it right away n thought i had to have this..then i 4got complelety about it since at that time I was switching between LAncome Tresor, Dior poeme,No 5 and estee lauder Pleasures(an saw no reason to waste money).Recently I smelled VIva la juicy n loved ..gave me a feeling of nostalgia….somethin very familiar but cant quite put a hand..the same day i stumbled upon euphoria LO after 5 years!!!! and Fell in love Again!!! I bought it straight way ,,the timing is also perfect ..its starting to get cooler and Euphoria feels like something warm n cosy wrapping me oh so sexy!!!
How nice to find it again!
A coworker of mine wears Euphoria, and it’s rather austere, dry, and peppery on her, with a crisp floral quality, a hint of smoke, and a surprising lack of sweetness (given her age – early ’20s – and the sorts of perfumes I tend to smell on her peers). I’m compelled to stand closer to her whenever she’s around, it’s that good. Yet your review makes Euphoria sound like the kind of sickening-sweet fruity mess that I’d hate! Skin chemistry, huh?
Perhaps!