Azzedine Alaïa joins a long list of designers (and other entities) who entered my radar only via perfume. I know close to nothing about his fashion, and given how rarely the fashion really turns out to inform the juice, I did not bother to investigate before smelling the new Alaïa Paris. Despite the gorgeous bottle, my expectations were low; as I said when I announced the launch, the notes (pink pepper, freesia, peony, animalic notes and musk) sounded pretty meh, although there is a nice romantic ring to the childhood memory that reportedly inspired the fragrance's development: his grandmother throwing cold water on sun-scorched walls in Tunisia, where Alaïa lived until he went off to Paris as a teenager (he is now 75).
You'll find that steaming blend of water and chalk mostly in the top notes, which read as a special effect more than as individual notes — on skin, it's fresh, airy, mineral, peppery, warm, all at once. On paper, a chilled watery citrus aspect is more noticeable than on skin, and the pepper seems even more dominant. Mr. Alaïa reportedly did not want to smell any ingredients individually, and in particular, he didn't want to recognize any flowers, and he wanted nothing 'oriental'.1 For the most part, he got his wish. The heart has a transparent floral character but doesn't smell like any flower in nature,2 and the base is a likewise abstract musky ambery woods, warmish but not at all heavy, with a slight but lingering mineral undertone. There's something vaguely sour and fruity in the mix, and it bothered me on some wearings but I hardly noticed it on others. Anyway, it's all reasonably close to the PR description of "animal and musky notes...like a second skin".3
Verdict: An impressive debut, and quite nicely done by perfumer Marie Salamagne. It's decisively modern, but not at all outré or hard to wear, and it has a kind of gravitas that sets it apart from your average youth-oriented designer launch. It did not quite melt my heart, but I predict many perfumistas will find it attractive, and it would make a great no-brainer scent for those days when you want to smell good but don't necessarily want to make any big statement with your perfume (or even to think too hard about what to wear). Very much worth a try.
Bonus: good lasting power, and the bottle is even better looking in person than it is in pictures. Please, for the first flanker, can we have that same opaque bottle in another color?
Advance notice: I have a 100 ml bottle to give away, so look for a contest later in the week.
Alaïa Paris by Azzedine Alaïa is available in 30, 50 ($115) and 100 ($150) ml Eau de Parfum and in matching body products.
1. See Alaia Paris: The Review at Vogue UK, and 5 minutes with: Alaïa perfumer Marie Salamagne at Harrods.
2. Although I think that's usually true of freesia and peony in perfume: they are identifiable only if you've smelled them in perfume over and over.
3. Old school perfumistas won't find it even slightly animalic in the traditional sense, but still, it's musky and ambery, so close enough. Quote via Saks Fifth Avenue.
This is all I know about Azzedine Alaia….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znsg-ysSAX8
A totally important designer!! Excellent.
That’s what pops in my mind every time I see Alaïa mentioned!
And since I had no idea who Alaia was in ’95, I did not even remember that!
Wasn’t Cher (Alicia Silverstone in Clueless) wearing an Alaia when she got mugged? Or maybe it was CK, but all I can remember is her whining about “my DRESS”… 🙂
Yes…see Youtube link above.
Yes! I was hoping someone would find that video!
It sounds better than I have heard. Someone told me it smelled like a cross between L’eau D’issey and Narciso Rodriguez..which I don’t read here..pew 😛
Ack. I’d say better than that, but bear in mind that I can’t smell NR so only reacting to the L’Eau d’Issey.
AND, should say, there are definitely synthetic air/water notes in the opening, and a musky base, so I get the reference. But agree w/ Tania Sanchez that Issey in particular is now reminiscent of Windex, and I found this much nicer than Windex, if that helps 🙂
Haha…that is very helpfull indeed. I use to wear Issey Miyake all the time and I still enjoy the scent on others..but on myself now, it smells like cat pee 😀
I will see if this scent will be released in Denmark..not really sure tho 🙂
Piping up belatedly to say… this comparison smells pretty right on to me…if maybe too generous?? Oof.
Very famous for his black fitted dresses and possibly the most low profile designer ever. The Dover street market here in London carries his collection and sometimes I like to pop in and check them up close and personal.
Now the juice.. I like it alright but there is this animalic presence which persists on my skin, feels like a warmed up wet fur and makes me a bit uncomfortable just like the “animal” in Vierges and Toreros. Definitely deserves a second try.
Interesting. I don’t find it that animalic, so either there’s something I cannot smell, or my tolerance is much higher than yours? It’s pretty rare that any modern fragrance (in other words, a fragrance without real animal notes) is too skanky for me — in fact, offhand can’t think of one.
Look forward to hearing more responses.
querelle, I also smell it. To me, it smells like the same thing that makes Sécrétions Magnifiques so repulsive to me, but very much diluted
I speed spritzed it once (it’s not yet on sale here, but the staff were playing with the testers) and I got a persistent mauve-ish violet note, not unpleasant at all, but not the sort of deep purple that might make my heart beat faster either. If it were an essay, I think I would find myself writing something like, “An interesting approach not fully realised in the body of your argument. You seem to have depended heavily on a limited range of sources, which accounts for the narrowness of the view you offer. You could have strengthened your work by …. C+/?B-“
LOL!
Hilarious, waterdragon! Tks for reviewing this, Robin. Certainly sounds worth a try.
Finally gotten around to smelling this and, very much agree–I see the idea and I could have been interested in it, but, it is not “fully realized” to my personal preferences!
But hey, Robin, they’re listening to you! It’s available in 30ml. ????
BUT, it probably won’t be for sale in the US in 30 ml, or at least, that frequently seems to be how it turns out.
The 30 ml is going to available here, but I’m not convinced I want a peely-wally mauve-ish-pink-ish perfume. The ones I do want come in barrels and vats! It’s some arcane law of the universe in operation, I think
Sorry to be off topic, Robin, but I just read lawyers have sent takedown notices about Dior Sauvage?
The fragrance world is getting crazier every day!
I did not get any notice from lawyers, but I did get contacted by LVMH, who say the info is embargo-ed til the 17th and Macy’s had it up by accident (which Macy’s does frequently, actually — they jump the gun). They asked politely. I’ve put the post on hold til the 17th.
I generally get something like 10-15 such requests a year, and have no problem complying if in fact they’re having the info removed everywhere (or if they’re trying — it doesn’t always work). I am offended when the first contact is from a lawyer (which has happened) or when they are asking me not to publish even though the info is going to stay available elsewhere on the internet (which has also happened) or both (and yes, that has happened too).
Thanks for the explanation. I seem to recall a similar removal I just can’t remember which ‘fume.
Well, there have been tons. Recent requests I can remember were for Givenchy Live Irresistible, Katy Perry Mad Potion, Calvin Klein Reveal, Burberry My Burberry, Kenzo Jeu d’Amour.
The last time I received a letter from a lawyer as a first contact was for Katy Perry Royal Revolution. Pissed me off especially because hey, talk about who cares.
HA so late to the game here but as I definitely just guffawed at my computer, I have to say, the lawyered-up Katy Perry Royal Revolution launch is the funniest thing I’ve heard all day! Thanks for sharing Robin, that’s brought a tear to my eye, I’m laughing so hard 😆
Why are they asking websites to take down the Info about Sauvage? That sounds a little Nuts!
Yes, and I don’t find it nuts — it’s pretty much how it works. It just doesn’t work very well in the internet age.
I’m sorry — I didn’t read carefully, you asked why. They did not want the name or bottle revealed until the 17th. They’re trying to do “teaser” publicity, among other things.
And you can see that teaser publicity today on Boots —
http://www.boots.com/en/Fragrance/New-fragrance/
Just says “the new fragrance is coming soon” and has a picture of a wolf on a car. That campaign is obviously useless if other websites have already posted the info.
Robin – thanks for fielding all this legal BS for us….!!! It’s amazing that the lawyers even still try these days with everything being available all over the place via the internets. Control is a very nebulous concept in our modern world. Gold star for you.
I do have some sympathy — these PR departments carefully plan huge teaser campaigns and then Macy’s just posts the fragrance, and then within days it’s all over the internets. It has to be frustrating.
But on the other hand, I inevitably find the teaser campaigns silly, and then of course you’re right, it’s nearly impossible now to keep things under wraps once you’ve sent out your materials.
This is not at all what I expected. Not one mention of it being sexy!! When I heard there was going to be an Alaia perfume I expected the first thing it would be would be SEXY – like his early 90’s heydays! I pictured It would smell rich, expensive, something a pampered Super Model would wear for her billionaire boyfriend! It would be what Linda Evangelista would be wearing when she made the comment about not getting out of bed for less than $10,000.00. Isn’t what these celebrity designer fragrences supposed to be? A way for the rest of us to share the dream? I will have to sniff it but so far, doesn’t sound like it is living up to my expectations!! ????
Really, please do report back when you try it — I want to know if you find it sexy! I did not.
It is done by BPI Group which always produces successful debut scents – Narciso Rodriguez, Elie Saab and now Alaia. So I had really high hopes for this, and, as I see in the review, the hopes have been justified.
They’ve done enough scents I don’t care for (I don’t think they’ve done well by Issey Miyake in modern times, for instance) that I was not that hopeful. But I do think they did a good job on this one. But we have to wait to see if it sells!
True – Pleats Please and Nuit d’Issey disappointed me a lot. It seems the new pillar is coming next year – who knows what they will do to save the brand.
I did not like “A Scent” either, although it was sure better than Pleats Please.