I had to bide my time creating this, because it contains pure orris butter, which is so expensive...Then the rest of the perfume had to match the grandeur of this beautiful orris butter, so we worked with absolutes, using Madagascan vanilla, anything creamy, anything soft that would make it deep, rich and opulent. To make it really special, we created our own molecule. We created a part of the vanilla pod that you can’t buy, the smell of the soft brown sugary bit when you scrape down the seed pod. — Linda Pilkington of Ormonde Jayne1
Ormonde Jayne and I used to be great friends, but we parted ways around the time they started doing what I call upscale luxury — it was already a luxury brand, now it's just more so. A little comparison shopping, which of course you can skip if niche fragrance prices don't interest you: Champaca, one of my favorites from the early days of the brand (it came out in 2002), is now $240 for the large bottle (120 ml), rather steep but given niche prices these days, not necessarily out of the question.2 But the prices for the Four Corners of the World quartet (2012) range from $415 to $536, and Black Gold (2014) is an eye-popping $720. Perhaps they are all beyond category, I couldn't say since I haven't smelled them and I probably never will.
So I was happy to see a new fragrance in the "regular line" — something for us plebians! — last year, Vanille d'Iris. Like most (or all?) of the line, it was developed by perfumer Geza Schoen, and while I did not unreservedly adore his first iris for the brand, Orris Noir, I did think it was well done and an interesting scent. The notes for Vanille d'Iris sounded lovely (coriander, bergamot, carrot seed, pink pepper, orris, jasmine, magnolia, osmanthus, vanilla, cedar, vetiver, amber and musk), and I resolved to get my hands on some.
But, as these things go, I didn't. Five hundred other fragrance launches intervened, and I sort of forgot about it until I started doing my year of iris (now finished; see winter, spring, summer and fall), and then a very kind reader sent me some.3 I smelled it, did not fall in love, and into the purgatory basket it went.
I brought it out again last week, and I've been wearing it off and on. The opening is lovely, and does seem to reflect the Linda Pilkington quote above: after a bright citrus note quickly fades, it's a deep, rich iris, creamy as advertised, with mild hints of caramelized sugar underneath. The peppery notes are strong early on, and you'll make out the carrot seed as well. It has something of an 'iris pudding' aura, but without ever quite reaching what I'd call gourmand status; instead, the overall effect is cool and elegant, more pale than dark, but with considerably more depth than the darker (but not dark enough to rate its name) Orris Noir. It's more directly focused on the iris than that one, too.
In the heart, things get a little fruity, but not in any way I would have expected from the notes. Something almost like cherry jam, or even cough syrup, mingles with strands of sheer but persistent florals. It's far more feminine than the opening, and for a few minutes I thought it might evolve into something more like a cosmetic powder / lipstick accord sort of thing. A woody-ambery base with a dollop of vetiver takes over before that happens, and there we stay for the duration. For me, that's too bad, because while I wasn't really looking for more powder or lipstick, nothing in the dry down holds my interest: the gorgeous creamy iris of the opening now smells muddied and indistinct, and the vanilla is just a thin thread. After an hour, the whole thing smells flat on my skin (it does somewhat better on fabric).
Verdict: The top notes are fantastic, and if it stayed that fantastic, even for a couple hours, I'd buy it, but really the only part of the fragrance I'm in love with is the first 20 minutes. After that, despite the reportedly more costly materials, it doesn't smell all that compelling. In the end, I'd rather wear Orris Noir, and that one never even made my buy list. So Vanille d'Iris is a no, for me. If you're a huge iris fan, it is certainly worth a shot. If you're a vanilla fiend looking for a fix, I don't think it will do the trick, unless you like your vanillas on the sheer side.
Do comment if you tried it! And as always, do feel free to tell me how wrong I am.
Ormonde Jayne Vanille d'Iris is available in 50 ($176) and 100 120 ($240) ml Eau de Parfum. The set of three four 10 ml travel sprays is $125, or you can buy it in the "made to measure" format, concentrations of 35%, 40% or 50%, 50 ml for $330-$360. For buying information, see the listing for Ormonde Jayne under Perfume Houses.
1. Via Today I’m Wearing: Vanille d’Iris by Ormonde Jayne at We Wear Perfume.
2. Plus, most of the other "regular" fragrances are also available in 50 ml, or in travel purse spray sets, and so can be had for less.
3. Perfume people really are the nicest people.
Note: image is “Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy.” ― Anne Frank [cropped; and according to the photographer, that is an orchid] by Steve Wilson at flickr; some rights reserved.
“If you’re a huge iris fan, it is certainly worth a shot. If you’re a vanilla fiend looking for a fix, I don’t think it will do the trick, unless you like your vanillas on the sheer side.”
That pretty much sealed the deal for me. Iris doesn’t agree with me and I love vanilla. Problem solved! LOL!
The vanilla is definitely not the star of the show here, so yes, you’re probably safe skipping this one 🙂
Awwww, sorry to hear this just didn’t do it for you. Do you know that feeling when something really rings your bell and you secretly hope it will be the same for everyone else too, then the sinking feeling that comes when it just doesn’t turn out that way? (It never does)
I have that going right now.
I adore this one, as you might have guessed 🙂
Oh, so glad you commented then — I hear about it so rarely that I have no idea if tons of people love it, or if most people haven’t tried it, or ?
Good to hear it has fans.
Have a sample of this I’ve tried a few times. It’s missing the sparkle and liveliness I want in a frangrace. Agree that the first 20 minutes is the best, but I’m not a big iris lover, so even that isn’t quite what I want. It’s a definite NO for me. Sad, because I think of myself as an OJ fangirl.
And the earlier OJ fragrances, to me, are all about sparkle and liveliness. I probably don’t smell enough of Geza Schoen’s work to really know his style, but this is certainly not like his early work for OJ.
I tried this and Montabaco a couple of months back. Neither one moved me even a millimeter closer to my wallet, but I like Vanille d’Iris much better than Montabaco which smelled like a middling Montale oud mixed with a bucket of Iso E Super and two sprays of Chergui.
Love your description of Montabaco 🙂
Last year at Pitti in Florence it was one of the perfumes that was on my must-try list.
Like you, I pretty much enjoyed the opening with a buttery iris hued with some caramelized sugar but after not much longer I couldn’t even smell much…
Not being a fan of Geza Schoen I have forgotten about Vanille d’Iris. At this price level and at my overal experience with this fragrance, I’d rather buy 2-3 other irises I would love. Which I actually did recently (Hello, Prada Purple Rain)
I do like Geza Schoen, though — and Ta’if, Champaca and Frangipani are still very much on my list of favorites! So this was a disappointment.
Enjoy your Purple Rain, such a great name for an iris.
Thanks for this review, Robin! I’m definitely a huge iris fan, and like my vanillas on the sheer side, and the idea of an iris pudding effect is downright thrilling, but the goes-fruity-in-the-middle aspect sounds off-putting, and since we tend to have very similar tastes I’m betting I can sit this one out.
And I agree, perfume people are definitely the nicest people!
Well, do try it if you see it. But I realize most people will never see it.
I felt the same when sampling this! After 20 minutes it lost its glimmer.
Today I’m in another iris I never hear anyone mention anymore – MPG Iris Bleu Gris. Nice for a cool day.
I hardly ever hear anyone mention MPG at all these days — they seem to have dropped off of perfumista radar or something. Sadly I cannot remember Bleu Gris so have nothing intelligent to say about it. Couldn’t even swear I’d tried it but seems odd if I didn’t.
Come to think of it, you’re right. The only one I ever hear mentioned is Ambre Precieux when people talk of their favorite ambers…
It’s been a while since I’ve tried 28 La Pausa, but I want to say it’s closer to that than any other iris I’ve tried. Though still not too similar.
The only one I own is Jeune Homme. Still love it, rarely remember to wear it.
I couldn’t smell Iris Bleu Gris very well, and I gave it away to someone else who loves it. I also have Racine, which I like in the fall when I want a vetiver that matches the season. I think it’s the outlandish bottle design that has kept people from appreciating this line.
I’d lost track of recent OJ releases and I sort of gasped out loud when I saw those prices you listed. Whoa!
This does NOT sound like my type of scent at all.
Did Schoen do almost all of the OJ scents? I wasn’t aware of this.
I think he has done all of them.
She has another, Rose Gold, coming out soon. I am assuming it will be priced like Black Gold.
I think he did all of them, but I leave it as a question mark because I’m not 100% positive. I am told he did all the earlier ones, the ones that I love, and that Linda Pilkington preferred not to publicize his name for whatever reason.
I love Ormonde Jayne, especially Woman and Champaca. But the only bottle I own is Champaca. With their new pricing, I think that will continue to be the only bottle for some time!
I have a sample of OJ woman..I haven’t tried it yet.
Hope I don’t fall in love..so I can save some $
I don’t think the prices on the early scents, including OJ Woman, are any better or worse than any other niche brand — I mean, 50 ml for under $200 is very nearly a bargain compared to some. So long as the travel trios are available, I have no real complaints on that score. It’s the pricing on the newer “luxury” scents that bugs me.
Even better, they’re travel quartets – you get four 10 ml sprays for £78. I’ve tried Man, Woman, Isfarkand, Ta’if and Frangipani. I liked Isfarkand best, though I know it’s considered’mainstream’ and not as good as the signature ones. I didn’t get on with Woman at all though – it turned sweet and weird on me. The others were fine but not for me.
You are so right, thank you — will correct the article now!
Just to be picky, the second time you mention the big bottle (in the section you’ve just corrected) you say it’s 100ml – in fact it’s 120 as you say earlier in the article. Sorry!
PLEASE be picky. There is nothing worse than seeing a simple mistake on here that I made 5 years ago and nobody mentioned. We need all the help we can get 🙂
WhatI love about Ormonde Jayne is their authenticity . Very lovely people and Linda Pilkington is a down to earth person .
I love OJ Woman , Frangipani , Ta’if , Tolu and Tsarina . Tsarina is really good but so expensive that I have not gotten around to dealing with buying a bottle and the shipping etc .
Orris Noir … I agree – was not dark enough imho.
I got the 120 ml EDP bottle of OJ woman and it is much more tenacious than even the extrait ! Very strong.
Vanille ‘d’iris is probably not up my street though.
Ormonde Woman is not me, but I do think of it as a masterpiece. We intersect on Ta’if and Frangipani. Tolu is out of my comfort zone entirely 🙂
Glad to hear Tsarina is good.
Robin .. I will admit I have not worn OJ Woman in a very long time ..so much for my 120 ml bottle ! The last time I sprayed it .. once.. I met a friend who said it was far too strong LOL .
Ya’if I went nuts for.
I love Dorin’s Ta’if which i tried in Fortnum … then I tried OJ Ta’if . Both are similar and very very gooood !
I wish Maison Dorin was available in the US .
And I have never tried anything by Maison Dorin! I guess it is sad but I am often secretly relieved when I hear something cannot be bought here — it’s one less thing to put on my list.
Very true words Robin !
I really do not need any more full bottles of perfume …..
I jumped in on a split of this last year. Orris butter! Vanilla! What’s not to love? Sadly, I found this to be anemic with a saccharine sweetness that even this sweet perfume lover cannot stand. There were no redeeming qualities to either the iris nor the vanilla. I’ve only worn it once and have given away a sample or two, but I am holding on to the travel spray for now and will give it a second chance.
That’s too bad you ended up with a whole spray, sorry!
I’m a fan of vanilla, iris, and several OJ scents, but I did not fall for this one.
Sounds like we had the same reaction.
Champaca is the only one I have, and I’ve not tried anything after Tiare. They all smell too much alike to me with so much Iso E Super. I would have been crazy about OJ Woman, but the most interesting notes fade too quickly.
GS likes his Iso E Super. So do I, but I know not everybody does 🙂
There are enough gourmand irises out there for me not to bother with this one.
I’m plenty happy with Frangipani and Woman. I also remember liking Tiaré when I tried it. Thanks for a good review and a giggle. I know your dislike of aspirational pricing.
I am the worst sort of middle-class snob, I’m afraid.