Humid Air, Hermes Un Jardin sur la Lagune

If you observe my writing for quite a while you probably know that my relationship with Hermes is like a sinusoid. One moment it goes up – like when I fell in love with Le Jardin de Monsieur Li or Agar Ebene from Hermessence collection. Other time it goes down – for example when I smelled Eau de Citron Noir. Despite such opposite thoughts I continue to be curious when Hermes releases something new. Their newly introduced addition to Le Jardin collection had a wonderful sound to it.

Un Jardin sur la Lagune has a fantastic opening in which a lot is going on at the same time. First whiff brings forward a gorgeous magnolia note – it’s lemony, watery and silky at once with the addition of shy green leaves rustling in the background. The scent is warm & solar from the beginning but becomes slightly more creamy when lily joins the composition. After a couple of minutes this floral aspect becomes less defined and blurred. I smell dusty sweetness, maybe that’s the pittosporum? Later on a salty breeze from the sea arrives, surrounding the wearer with a marine breath.
Un Jardin sur la Lagune felt fresh at first but with the arrival of sea note things started to fall apart. The fragrance was getting more and more soapy, like a cheap bar of grey soap that is stale on top of that. Woody notes smell very artificial here, making this new Hermes kind of mushy, musty and suggestive of body odour. I wonder if it’s the same aromachemical as in Eau de Citron Noir.

The beautiful inspiration of a hidden garden behind stone walls somewhere in Venice is, in my opinion, completely mismatched with the perfume Christine Nagel created. Un Jardin sur la Lagune doesn’t have a charm or anything magical about itself. To me it’s just one more fragrance that I will not remember in a couple of months. It’s a shame because there was a potential to compose something that would be super wearable in the spring and summer season. But not this time…

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Into the Blue, Hermes Eau de Citron Noir

As I was debating in my head about what perfume I should put up next on the blog. In my online musings I stumbled upon a weather forecast predicting a small heatwave in my area. Well, 29ºC is not a real ‘hot’ yet, but it is considering the fact that average temperature for this time of the year is 19ºC where I live. Those 10 degrees make a difference. Therefore I made a quick conclusion that it should be a perfume ideal for this type of weather. Something light, styled like a cologne but more interesting – with a twist. That lead me to grab my sample of new release from Hermes.

At the beginning Eau de Citron Noir is harsh and alcoholic, it takes a moment before fragrant molecules are released. Once they start to evaporate from your freshly sprayed skin the first thing you’ll notice is a citrus accord that packs a punch straight in your face. It’s a lively concoction with lemon being most prominent out there, but lime and mandaryn are present in considerable amount as well. The citrus part feels oily on my skin, as if you cut a fruit with just one move of a sharp knife & the rind would start oozing sticky juice. The citrus accord is quite warm and it doesn’t sparkle.

After 15 minutes the scent is infused with a little bit of herbal aromas that bring the idea of rosemary or tarragon. It feels slightly sweet now, fresh as well (although I detect a talcum-like element in the back). Not many more minutes pass until tannins appear in Eau de Citron Noir and flavor this fragrance with black tea accord. It smells alright but quite flat and the smoky aspect is missing. In fact there’s nothing noir about this new Hermes cologne, which is a bit ironic knowing that black lime (loomi, a dried lime used as a spice in Middle eastern cuisine) was Nagel’s inspiration.

It should smell earthy, smoky, sour and sweet but there’s not even a hint of that. Final element of Eau de Citron Noir is Paraguayan wood (think agar wood) and it just doesn’t smell nice. It’s somewhat bland and ‘stale’ as Kevin accurately pointed in his review. All in all their latest cologne is far from being spectacular. It’s mediocre at best. I’d better stick to my Eau de Neroli Dore or Agar Ebene when I decide to reach for a lovable Hermes. Eau de Citron Noir is lauched in eau de toilette concentration in 50, 100 & 200 ml size. A deep blue glass bottle is the nicest thing about this scent.