One of the joys of house-sharing with a fellow perfumista is sampling all sorts of fragrances I haven’t tried and didn’t expect to like (which is often why I hadn’t tried it.) This is a quick post about one of those scents.
Anyone remember Parfumerie Generale? They released some stuff around 2006 – 2008 and I tried them and well, they just weren’t me, whoever that person was. Then life got in the way and Parfumerie Generale rebranded as Pierre Guillaume at some point, and I still haven’t tried most of them.
One of Carolyn’s all-time favorite fragrances is PG’s Arabian Horse which … even if I’d run across it in a boutique doesn’t sound at all like something I’d enjoy. Released in 2016, the (somewhat vague and generic) notes are leather, green notes, wildflowers, narcissus, musk, cypriol, woods, amber.
I never fell in love with horses except for ones mounted on a carousel and I wouldn’t know an Arabian if it came up and bit me, which it might. Regarding the fragrance: leather + green notes? Ehhhhhhhh. I’m not that gal. But hey, Carolyn loves it, so I dutifully gave it a chance.
And I’m glad I did, because oh my goodness, it is gorgeous. I would have been happy if I could find something nice to say about it beyond “wow, that’s certainly a perfume!” but I was too busy sniffing myself and reapplying.
For something called Arabian Horse, it’s not at all that horse-y, barnyard thing. It’s … both strange and wild yet elegant? Again, did not see that combo happening. It’s trampled grass and wildflowers, a warm, buffed leather saddle, maybe a suede riding coat, some bespoke dressage boots, and … whoa, whoa, whoa, it’s also sexy, because there’s definitely something animalic going on as it unfolds. If I smelled this on a passerby (and I might, it’s polished but not polite) I’d follow them down the road and ask questions.
So, that’s all I’ve got to say on this one, except: if those notes sound like something you’d like, maybe hunt down a sample, which you can get from Lucky Scent and some decanters, I think. Full bottle’s $215 for 50ml at Lucky Scent. Online mentions are sparse; have you tried it? Any other PG favorites? The fact that I had to add a Pierre Guillaume tag to our brand list tells me we haven’t given them a ton of attention either.
Images via Pexels
My favorite horse is, of course, my beloved drafts ( especially Percherons) and I love how they smell after a hitch- damb shame I’m so desperately allergic to them…
Best horse perfume, IMO:: Mme Laurent’s L’heure Fougeuse, with those glorious hay/ horse notes
Hey I liked that Fougeuse too! So maybe I like horsey scents more than I realized.
PG’s L’Eau Rare Matale 06 started me on the perfumista path the better part of 20 years ago. It was a beautiful, slightly smoky tea that I didn’t know I wanted to wear, and happily worked through probably a 100ml bottle.
I then bought a replacement, which was probably half the size for almost the same price, and it turned out to be much fainter, not that it was originally a powerhouse. An early perfume example of “things aren’t what they used to be”, and I never found another of the line I loved, but I am still grateful.
Oh, I remember Matale! It was beautiful! I had a fairly generous decant I worked through, but never got around to buying a bottle. Oh those heady days ca. 2005 when everything was bright and new and cheaper 😀
I do like many PG’s but his output is prodigious & not cheap, so I haven’t kept up.
If you wanted to describe Arab horses strange, elegant & wild would be perfect! They are the most beautiful horses on earth, highly strung, fast & love endurance rides. https://in.pinterest.com/pin/451908143830282095/
I have Epona that I prefer to Arabian Horse. The PG is gorgeous though
An exquisite horse!
I googled Arabian horse to see if I could learn to recognize some features. I know they are admired and coveted. I had a friend years ago who taught dressage and that was the most time I ever spent around horses. “Prodigious and not cheap” = accurate.
March,
That sounds like a nice scent. I have two PG full bottles. I can’t remember where I heard of them, but I’m sure it was back around that 2008 to 2012 time frame. PG Iris Oriental, which used to be named Iris Taizo or something like that. It’s very rich, long-lasting. I like it during cold weather. The other is Papyrus de Ciane which is very green, very galbanum forward.
That Papyrus would be one area in which we are not scent twins. I wish I saw PG around somewhere (anywhere!) so they’d be more on my radar.
We have an elderly (29 years old) pony penned in a field in the village. I visit her during my evening walks. Sometimes she comes over for a pet even though I show my hands with no food.
Anyway, she gets bored with me quickly but I do get in a muzzle rub and some strokes to her shoulders. She smells like this perfume: a bit dank and animatic, hay, flowers and whatever other bits are in the grass, sunshine, and a bit of attitude.
Oh that would be lovely, I 100% percent would stop by on a walk to pet a pony’s nose on an evening walk … just don’t make me ride it.
I am a fan of Pierre Guillaume and have sampled a lot of his perfumes and own a bunch of 9ml decants and a few bottles. Your post made me smile because I do keep lists and my newest update on samples has 3 PG perfumes – Arabian Horse, L’Air & L’Eros, and La Nuit de L’Orchidee. Now I’m even more interested in trying them. Also, many of his bottles are $125.
PG is coming in second right now to Daniel Josier. I want to further check out his Tuberose, which is a lovely light tuberose that you can wear anytime, anywhere. And try Golden Tuberose, Under the Fig Tree, and Black Widow (because name and notes sound good too).
Well that’s a whole list of things I should browse! I love the name Black Widow, I’ve always been a sucker for those Poison-esque fragrance names.
Me too!
I do like PG and Pierre Guillaume but haven’t tried this one. Problem for me is that they seem to have a huge number of scents that go in and out of stock. Aomassai comes to mind- should have been a hell no, loved it, and I think it’s gone.
Aomassai 10 is not gone. I know ZGO and ScentSplit have bottles and samples.
You’re right. I can get that one at the PG website.
There does seem to be a stocking issue … I don’t think I loved Aomassai but I definitely tried it. I hope the current version is as good as you remember.