When Now Smell This first announced the release of Armani Privé Eclat de Jasmin, the blog quoted the Giorgio Armani website, saying “Eclat de Jasmin was created to represent dawn - the particular time of the day when jasmine flowers are warmed by the sun, releasing their deep, rich scent.” From this description I imagined a dew-like, non-indolic jasmine: fresh, liquid, and quiet.
Maybe because I don’t live where dawn is ever warm enough to draw the scent from jasmine, but Eclat de Jasmin feels like the late afternoon of a summer day to me. I imagine sitting outside, next to a stone wall with jasmine climbing up it. I can smell the lush but surprisingly clean-scented jasmine, and maybe the flowers on the potted Meyer lemon tree nearby. Although the afternoon is warm enough to feel heat reflected from the wall, the flower beds are still damp. It’s still just slightly too hot to nap in the sun.
Some jasmine fragrances are real divas, but Eclat de Jasmin, while definitely all about jasmine, is friendly and relatively easy to wear. Its top notes are bergamot, plum, and lemon; its heart is jasmine, osmathus, and rose; and its base is patchouli, amber, and vetiver. I can smell the citrus sparkle of the topnotes, and Eclat de Jasmin’s rose is barely perceptible but adds some fruitiness to balance the jasmine. Armani bills Eclat de Jasmin as a chypre, but it isn’t mossy at all like Yves Saint Laurent Y or other heavy duty chypres. Eclat’s patchouli has never been to a Grateful Dead concert, and the amber is not creamy or overly sweet. After eight hours, the fragrance is still going strong.
All in all, I’d compare Eclat de Jasmin to a well-made T-shirt. It might be an Armani T-shirt, in fact, woven from Egyptian cotton in Italy and having a deliriously silky hand and a flattering cut. In the end, though, it’s still a T-shirt. If money were no object, maybe I’d have a drawer full of $300 T-shirts and a — get ready for this — $185 bottle of Eclat de Jasmin Eau de Parfum. Yes, $185. And that’s for only 50 ml. As pretty as Eclat de Jasmin is, it is still a T-shirt of a scent, and $185 will buy a bell jar of Serge Lutens with money left for an armload of Hanes T-shirt value-packs.
Like the other Armani Privé scents, Eclat de Jasmin comes in a wooden chunk of a bottle with a polished stone on its lid. (I know I’m in the minority, but I’m not wild about the bottle. I think it looks like something you could pick up at the import shop for $3.99, and although the bottle might suit Privé Bois d’Incens, it doesn’t fit the character of Eclat de Jasmin at all.) After Christmas, stores stocking the Armani Privé scents will start selling Eau de Parfum refills for $135. A 6.35-ounce Eclat de Jasmin candle is also available in a wooden holder for $95, with refills that can be used alone for $65.
For buying information, see the listing for Giorgio Armani under Perfume Houses.
I agree with you about the bottle – it does not match your description of this at all. I am not even sure the pink stopper works with this bottle. The whole thing looks/sounds sort of mismatched, especially knowing that it is made of wood. I sort of assumed it was opaque glass. Nice review, though!
What a beautiful review, R.!!! I was right there in the garden. hmm, though — as you say, that's a lotta dough for a t-shirt of a fragrance. Can you think of a similar jasmine experience that is a little more affordable? I'm currently a fan of Marc Jacobs Blush; I love the way the honeysuckle weaves in and out of the scent along with the jasmine, so supple and fresh. . .
With the exception of Bois d'Encens, this is a line I admire without feeling the need to have around. (That BdE is stellar.) I like the Amethyste a lot, though, and Jade has grown on me. I think Pierre de Lune's white cap would have been a better choice for this one.
Skin chemistry is fascinating stuff — this was an intensely stinky thing on me, so much so that my sister-in-law (who was with me) told me it smelled like the jasmine combined with the barn-smell from where she rides horses. For the record, we liked it. 🙂 I'd much rather have that ripeness than the jammy aspect you get with some jasmines. I was wearing it on some very hot days this summer, though (95 degees), and I wonder if that helps it bloom more? If the line weren't so expensive, I'd probably own all the ones I like.
hi angela,
i´m posting very seldom on this blog, but i really appreciate your reviews & am always very happy when i read one posted by you.
(your review on rumba & talisman was great, you found the perfect words to describe both frags!)
since a while i´m debating whether to order a sample of eclat de jasmin or not. i´m not very fond of the armani privé frags in general as i didn´t like one any of them so much that i found it to be FBW. cuir amethyste is very nice, but reminded me somehow of malle´s lipstick rose which i already own. the others were nicely done, but not “earthshaking” as they should be – at that price!
i don´t like jasmine scents when they are too fresh (like e.g. pink jasmine). i don´t know, but fresh jasmine scents tend to smell “ordinary” to my nose – sorry, i don´t know a better word to describe it.
by the way, i like the bottle design, but now you made me thinking about it…;)
Thank you! I like seeing the fragrance, too. Housing it in a wooden bottle is like drinking wine from an opaque glass. Some of the fun is gone for me.
R, thanks for the compliment, but it's Angela and not Robin this time. I like Blush, too, although I tend to like some of the more decayed smelling jasmines when I do wear jasmine. $185 is just plain too much money for 50 ml of a very nice but not knockout scent.
Boi d'Encens is my favorite, too, but is it worth three times the cost of a CdG incense? I wish I got more “barn” from Eclat. I really did like it, though, just not enough to shell out for it.
Jasmine is great in the heat.
Thank you for posting! Armani has two eau de toilettes coming out, too, and if you like Cuir Amethyste you might like the one called No. 2. (At least I remember the violet-scented one as No. 2 and the more traditional one as No. 1). They should be a lot less expensive than the Prive scents.
I agree, too, that for $185 the scent should definitely be earthshaking, and I like my jasmine a little dirty, too.
Oh, gosh, Angela, so sorry to not read the byline. I DO love your writing, and your descriptions really hit the bullseye. Yes, I like dirty jasmines, too, at least in theory, although I'm enough of a fragrance neophyte that nothing specific comes to mind. Would you enlighten us, please?? Thanks!
R, don't worry, I like being confused with Robin.
As for “dirty” jasmine, I think of the smell of slightly rotting flowers. Have you heard the term “indole”? An indole is a molecule given off when protein decomposes (chemists please correct me), and indolic jasmine smells a little funky, almost like it has a few grains of cumin tossed in. One fragrance I like with indolic jasmine is Annick Goutal Songes.
Oooh! Vancouver doesn't have many niche houses represented at retail, but AG is here, so I will have a sniff on my lunch hour. Much appreciated! I know that smell you speak of, and it intrigues me greatly.
Worth three times the cost of CdG? Well … yeah. 🙂 The CdGs (and I love them all except the spicy Whorzahortie, as I heard it called once) are great stuff. But none of them is the *same* as that magnificent, uncompromising austerity of Bois d'Encens — which I think was Armani's personal frag or something, and his favorite. There are days when nothing else will do. Having said that … mine was a partial bottle and was priced accordingly. 🙂
You have the Perfume Shoppe in Vancouver, though–reports are that it's a pretty great place. I doubt they have the Armani Prive scents, though.
It was the favorite of the Armani salesman at Saks, where I got my Eclat sample, too. It is a pretty darn fine incense, and a partial bottle is a great way to go! Did you get to keep the bottle?
Yes, the Perfume Shoppe is just wonderful, thanks to the unbelievably warm, passionate and helpful proprietress, Nasrin, although it doesn't have nearly the range of houses represented by all the posts on this site. I got a chance to smell Songes and I admire it, although it doesn't suit me especially well. On me/for me, it's almost stale-smelling. I'm so glad I tried it though, because I now have a few samples of other AG scents to try. We have the Armani Prive line here and I've always loved Encens, but gosh darn it, it's so discouragingly expensive: $235 Cdn for 50ml. Woe is me!!!
i was hoping to fall in love with this – because you just can't have too many jasmines in your life – but it didn't happen in two testings. now, i do like it a lot – and it is different than my jasmin de nuit, jasmal, a la nuit and other jasmines – but it wasn't special enough to make me part with that much cash. guess i wanted something to make me swoon.
Yikes! That's expensive!
I share your feelings exactly. It is a very nice, lovely jasmine, but not a to-die-for jasmine.
Angela, if I love Black Cashmere, is Encens so close that I should stop lusting after it? I seem to remember a similiarity. . .
R, I guess it would be worth try the Prive incense and maybe even comparing it with Black Cashmere side by side. I think Black Cashmere is spicier, though. Hmmm. Now I think I'll go find my decant of Black Cashmere and put some one!
Yep. Got it at the infamous C*Mart sale north of Baltimore a couple years ago; a Saks closed and dumped their merch at a resale warehouse, it was on MUA, and Patty placed a signficant order for me to fill. The catch as you've noted is I had *no idea* how much fragrance I was actually getting in my unboxed bottle, but I figured for $35 the risk was worth it…
PBI: I am STILL PISSED that I didn't drive down for that sale. Wish you'd not bring it up again, LOL…
$35!! Wow! Absolutely spectacular!
After a sniff to refresh my memory, Black Cashmere is much spicier and creamier than the incense. You can really smell the cardamom.
Hey there Angela!
Have a question concerning “indolic” jasmine. Would Carolina Herrera fit in this category? That's the only jasmine I own and I like it very much, but it's the sort of fragrance that you spritz in the air and pass under it very quickly, because of its power… Curious to know your opinion!
Gosh this sounds lovely, but at $235 CDN a pop, I don't think I'll be ordering this anytime soon! I actually tried a small spray sample of an Armani Prive (Pierre de Lune?) that a relative had gotten on a trip. I thought it was very different smelling at first and then I realized what the scent reminded me of… those fabric softener sheets you put in the dryer! Very luxurious fabric softener no doubt, but fabric softener just the same.
R, I should start this on a new line … if it makes you feel any better the whole thing's a bit urban legend at this pt. A lot of Bond, the Armanis, a lot of Caron EDTs, Etro. I'm still weeping I didn't get one of those fire-sale Gobin-Daudes at Tak, so we're even.
That was still my best bargain purchase EVER, so ok, we're even.
Thanks for the replies below vis-a-vis Black Cashmere v. Encens. Hmmm. Darn. Now I won't be able to get Armani's beautiful high-priced juice out of my mind!!! Must keep thinking about that exhorbitant price and not fuel my addiction/drain my bank account!!! So good of you to actually compare the two for me. Wow!!!!! thanks again, A.
T, I wish I could tell you! I haven't smelled Carolina Herrera in so long that I don't know how indolic it is or not. Can you smell a tiny bit of rot, almost like a flower is on the verge of turning? That's indole. It sounds gross, but it's really wonderful.
And you should be able to get the fabric softener for $2.35 instead of $235!
I found this one at Strawberrynet for appr. $5o the other day, and ordered it promptly! Now I’m so exited 😀
What a great deal! Enjoy it!