Vanille des Rois by FOMOWA Paris

As I write this review, preparations are underway for our failing, hundred-year-old plumbing to be replaced. Fortunately, most of the work is happening under the house. Unfortunately, the sole access is a small trapdoor in the bottom of my bedroom closet. I had to empty the closet and move a bunch of other stuff out into our living/dining area so the plumbers can drag all the piping through the house and generally make a dusty mess of my bedroom and the kitchen. It’s going to take several days and I am not thrilled, but since I don’t have to pay for the work (we rent) or go down into that shallow, black-widow-infested crawlspace, I’m going to keep calm and carry on.

You know what’s helping me get through this? Perfume (shocker!). Today’s review is of a vanilla scent I’d never heard of, Carolyn ordered a sample – Vanille des Rois by FOMOWA Paris. My sample came from LuckyScent and I’m going to shamelessly grab their blurbage — it’s a journey “from the sun-drenched neroli fields of Tunisia, through the vanilla plantations of the Comoros and Tahiti, and finally to the indulgent sweetness of French pink and brown praline*,” here’s a link if you’d like to read the travel itinerary in full detail.

Also from Lucky: “Notes: Italian Bigarade Orange, Peruvian Balsam, Tunisian Neroli, Orange Blossom Water, Pink Pepper, Sri Lankan Cinnamon, CO2 Vanilla Extract from the Comoros, Tahitian Vanilla Absolute, Labdanum, Pink & Brown Praline, Brazilian Tonka Bean, Patchouli, Atlas Cedar, Amber Woods, Natural Vanillin. Fragrance Style:  Creamy, Floral – White, Fresh – Citrus, Gourmand, Resinous / Balsamic, Salty / Oceanic, Sweet.”

That sounds … bonkers, right? Well here’s the wild bit – it really is all of those things, sequentially! The top is surprising in that it manages to be orange (sweet flower and tart pith) along with a resinous note, and that is not a combination I expected to love this much. Then the cinnamon becomes stronger (again, love) and the middle stretch is more about the vanilla as the orange fades. It’s such an interesting vanilla, less gourmand and more … vegetal? Mineral? After 20 – 30 minutes, the fragrance assumes its final form. We’ve made it to the pralines … have you ever been in a praline shop in the southern U.S., or another place that makes vats of them while you watch? It’s a mouthwatering smell of caramelized sugar and toasted nuts. I only ever buy them one at a time because otherwise I’d eat a whole box and lapse into a coma, probably. So, anyway, these are French pralines (enrobed, caramelized individual nuts) rather than the American confection, but still: you’d think this would be a sugary sweet base, right? Nope! It’s just so different from what I’ve smelled in “praline” perfumes / room sprays which are overwhelmingly sweet. Instead it’s like you’re eating a praline while sitting in a sun-warmed patch of loblolly pines with a breeze blowing in from offshore.

Cribbing yet again from LuckyScent: FOMOWA is three brothers “driven by a shared passion for haute perfumery and famous desserts, have combined their talents to create a collection of never-before-seen fragrances. By infusing the delicate aromas of iconic pastries into exceptional fragrances, they offer a unique olfactory experience that awakens the senses and evokes gourmet memories.” (I’m going to hazard a guess that FOMOWA is the first two letters of their three names combined, but who knows.) This is a 2025 release, the bottle is 100ml for $212, and they have four other food-related scents, have you tried any? I’m going to need at least a larger decant of this when my sample’s gone. I have a feeling it’ll be even more delightful in cooler weather.

*If you’re interested in a deeper dive into the pralines: “French pink and brown pralines represent two styles of candied nuts. Pink pralines (pralines roses) are sugar-coated almonds dyed vibrant pink, famous in Lyon and used in brioche, while brown pralines feature naturally caramelized, amber-hued coats using regional nuts from areas like Provence.” From this French bakery’s website which I spent a full half-hour drooling over.

images: LuckyScent (bottle), pixabay (pink pralines)