Having never been much of a lavender fan, it was with some trepidation that I approached Lavandula. Reminding myself that I had been won over time and time again by Penhaligon’s other fragrances (Hammam Bouquet, Endymion, etc) I also faced the first sniff with a modicum of optimism: would this be yet another yawner, or something unique and surprising? The answer: Whoa! With notes of basil, canella, pepper, lavender, lily, clary sage, musk, vanilla, amberwood and tonka bean, Lavandula is like nothing I’ve experienced before.

Lavender. The word conjures images of satin eye pillows, Yardley soap, and bitter, buttery blossoms. Let’s face it, lavender hardly tops anyone’s list as most provocative note, especially as a main note. There are exceptions of course, most notably Caron’s Pour un Homme and Lutens Encens et Lavande, but lavender just seems so…well, dull to me. So you can imagine my shock when I tested Lavandula and found not another boring elixir, but a great, heady brew of herbs and musk that strikingly portrays this most mundane of notes…

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