And the raw materials Caroline used are irrelevant. The scent is the scent. If you need to know what’s in it, “You” is probably not for you.¹

That’s Chandler Burr, who is familiar to perfumistas as the author of Emperor of Scent and The Perfect Scent, as the New York Times’ perfume critic from 2006 through 2010, and as a “curator of olfactory art”. The “Caroline” is perfumer Caroline Sabas. The “You” is You or Someone Like You, Burr’s new fragrance under the auspices of French niche line Etat Libre d’Orange, and named for Burr’s first novel. Unbeknownst to Burr, Etat Libre d’Orange did post a few of the fragrance notes online (rose, mint, herbs), but they were removed shortly after, and I can vouch for the fact that they were not all that helpful…

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