As I wrote on PST Yesterday, one of the interesting aspects of moving after 20-odd years is rediscovering things you’ve let sit idle. Some of them were books- how could I have let Mapp & Lucia sit there gathering dust without a re-read? Some of them were things and a few of them were scents. I discovered that I had a nearly full bottle of Annick Goutal Eau de Lavande sitting around being sadly unloved.
I used to use this primarily as a sleep aid- one spritz on my pillow and I was out faster than if I’s downed an Ambien smoothie. (this was back in the heady days when I could do this- mostly because of the buy-one-get-a-smaller-one-free deal Neiman Marcus did back in the day. When the Beauty Event was an Event, not a bag full of samples I should be getting for the asking, much less with a $100 purchase)
It’s a really lovely lavender, starting off tart with a touch of citrus and going creamy with vanilla. It’s one that they always packaged as a masculine, but the almost immortelle-like sweetness of the vanilla I always though made it completely unisex. Lasting power was excellent on me, easily 14-16 hours.
I am not sure that Eau de Lavande is even sold anymore- I certainly can’t find it on the AG website (which is a bit of a mess for searching, especially if your French is limited to “bonjour” “bonsoir” and “soufflé”. A world without it is a sadder place indeed. One bottle is $150 for 3.4oz at Amazon. I’ll be appreciating mine a lot more.
Image AnnickGoutal.NL
Great post.Nice.Good Luck! http://www.chrisadamsperfumes.com
I loaned my Lucia and Mapp omnibus to someone years ago and never got it back. Should’ve known better. Enjoy reading and sniffing.
Hi! I cannot say I don’t begrudge you your bottle of Goutal’s lavender. As far as I remember, it smells as if it’s packed with herbs of all kinds, both edible and inedible. Just delicious! Have you ever worn it?
This sounds heavenly and I must admit, I’ve not heard of it. With you on the website, my French may be a bit more than yours, but I still find it annoying. Thanks for sharing this potential gem.
I love lavender – can’t understand why it’s so underappreciated. No other scent has this dual nature of charmingly demur vs. roll-in-the hay wild. And the Goutal lavender is one of the best, it never fails to bring on compliments when I wear it. It comes right after Andy Tauer’s Reverie dans le jardin and just before Guerlain Lavande Velours on my personal lavender hitlist (then there’s Pour un Homme de Caron, of course, Jicky, and Anat Fritz, to name but a few….)
Mapp & Lucia! Oh, such memories of wonderful, lazy weekends, reading those! I, too, shall revisit, I think. Right now I’m in so much pain (sacro/sciatic) that I can’t even watch TV, let alone read. This comment will be my last sit-down endeavor, until the pain meds kick in. I love lavender as a sleep aid, not so much to wear. I spritz Jicky on the pillows – the AG sounds like it might be even mo’ betta!
xoxoxoA
Musette, I’m not a lavender fan but I’m glad to hear about anything that helps you feel better right now. I hoped your pain would start to improve. Sounds like not yet, but we will all keep hoping that you get some relief soon.
My nasty sciatic pain improved greatly after I got some awful GI thing and had to spend about 21 hours a day lying down for three solid months to keep the nausea manageable. I certainly don’t recommend the nausea, but spending some time on the couch might not hurt.
Tom, I’ve never been a big fan of lavender (it tends to annoy me, rather than relax me). But I’ve come around a teensy bit on the note, thanks to Vero’s scent Kiki and Chanel’s Jersey. Is this one at all close to Jersey? Because that vanilla in there really helps smooth it out, as FeralJasmine mentioned above. Thanks!
BTW, I am not moving, but in doing some cleaning/rearranging, I unearthed a long-lost pack of Tom Ford Private Blend samples. Got Japon Noir and Noir de Noir on dueling wrists and seeing what I think about them after all this time, ha!
Ann, let us know what you think! I have never tried Japon Noir, would love to hear an opinion.
Lavender is such a nice sleep aid. I often find myself reaching for Caron Pour Un Homme (also lavender and vanilla) at bedtime, particularly if I am feeling stressed. Since I have a big bottle of my beloved Caron, I don’t feel too sad at never having had a chance to try the Goutal!
How could I have forgotten the Benson books? As soon as you brought them back to my mind, I could recall the War of the Chintz Roses in delicious detail. I find that overall I prefer reading about lavender perfumes to actually smelling them, although a lavender smoothed out with vanilla and a touch of immortelle does sound yummy. Wearing it while reading E.F. Benson sounds like a good plan for a winter evening.
Gosh, Tom, this one sounds like a gem! I so wish that it was still readily available. I’m going to seek out a sample because it sounds really nice. And I’m in complete agreement with you on how stingy department stores have gotten with their giveaways. Thanks for sharing!
Aha, an alternative sleep scent to Jersey, I must seek out a sample.
The books sound interesting too, off to research now. Thank you!
Heya Tom,
I think this is just one of the many treasures hidden in your cupboards. Thanks for sharing about a frag I never met, when I’m in LA next you must let me sniff please.
Portia xx
I just finished re-reading a collection of all of the Lucia books. The wit and social venom is hysterically funny, particularly loved the seagoing adventures on the floating kitchen table (along with the discovery about Mapps much too perfect smile) 🙂
Speaking of old friends,Tom, are you going to the vintage event at ScentBar this weekend?