Le Jardin Retrouve: Australian Premiere with Gabriella

/ australianperfumejunkiescom

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Gabriella

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Hello perfumed friends!

Today, I want to share something quite exciting with you. Last month, I was honoured to host the first ever Australian event for the perfume house, Le Jardin Retrouve. A few friends gathered at my home and we connected live to the brand’s Paris boutique where the now owners of the line, Michel Gutsatz and his wife Clara Feder took us through the brand’s history and recent relaunch before a live sniff of the brand’s seven scents.

Le Jardin Retrouve: Australian Premiere with Gabriella

Originally established in 1975 by Michel’s father, Yuri Gutsatz, Le Jardin Retrouve was arguably the first “niche” perfume line, coming a year before Jean Laporte established L’Artisan Parfumeur. The ethos behind it was to create perfume as art at a time when mass production was becoming all too common. Yuri wanted to produce perfumes that were created by perfumers and not marketing departments.

Fast forward to today and those words couldn’t ring more true at a time when niche lines are being gobbled up by the likes of Estee Lauder et al.

Indeed, Michel and Clara have stayed true to the brand’s spirit: the company sources all of its own materials and the scents are composed in-house at the boutique’s lab by Givaudian perfumer, Maxence Moutte.

Interestingly, we also learnt on the night that only three ingredients had to be changed from the original formulas to comply with IFRA restrictions: verbena and two molecules. Clara has also painstakingly and lovingly made unique visuals and stories for the perfumes, giving each scent a distinct visual identity and personality to complement the olfactory experience.

In the line, there are three citruses, two florals, a wood and a floral leather. On the night, we smelt the fragrances from lightest to heaviest and my quick take is as follows:

Eau de Delices:

A classic “eau fraiche” with lemon, bergamot, petitgrain and mossy woods.

Verveine d’Ete:

A citrus that starts with the sharp tang of lemon and basil with a base of vetiver and woods.

Citron Boboli:

A cool warm scent with a tart lemon opening before transitioning to a spicy orange pepper accord.

Rose Trocadero.

A lush verdant rose with a hefty splash of juicy blackcurrant, tempered by the warmth of clove and musk.

Tubereuse Trianon:

A very pretty and buttery tuberose soliflore with a touch of green spice thanks to coriander.

Sandalwood Sacre:

A beautiful sandalwood scent that’s earthy and spicy thanks to patchouli and peru balsam.

Cuir de Russie:

A leather with a striking violet note and the floral character enhanced by the addition of ylang ylang.

The winners on the night for the group were Citron Boboli and Cuir de Russie, but it was Tubereuse Trianon that captured my heart as it’s such a pretty take on tuberose.

The night was a great success and I think everyone enjoyed the unique experience. It was lovely to be able to listen to the story of the brand live from Paris and to hear of Michel’s and Clara’s passion for bringing the line back onto the market for us all to enjoy.

Le Jardin Retrouve

Have you tried any Le Jardin Retrouve scents? Which one was your favourite?

With much love till next time!

G x

 

 

(Ed: Gabriella received commissions on perfume sales from the event)

12 thoughts on “Le Jardin Retrouve: Australian Premiere with Gabriella”

  1. I’ve actually tried them all, at a very charming presentation at the Le Jardin Retrouvé boutique last autumn.
    Michel and Clara have obtained the perfect ratio of knowledge, personality, true culture, professionalism and genuine friendliness in their presentations of their scents, as well as of the history of Michel’s father, historic perfume creator Yuri Gutsatz.
    They also took the time to answer all my questions, with a non-pretentiousness and real knowledge that should teach a few lessons to “professional spokespeople” in Paris.
    I only wish that presentation was accompanied by a few souvenir samples 🙂
    I look forward to my first bottle, which will either be the Citron Boboli (as close as any perfume has come to smelling like limoncello!) or the Cuir De Russie (lovely leather floral, and a beautiful unisex choice).

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  2. When I was in Paris last August I contacted Michel, he was such a gentleman…he was closed for the holidays but opened up so we could have a full presentation!
    The shop is gorgeous and, like most of you, we bought Citron Boboli and Cuir de Russie. It sounds like you had a wonderful evening!

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  4. I have tried the line through a sampler set, ordered all with the exception of the tuberose scent, and my favorite is also Citron Boboli. The packaging is also so beautiful.

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  6. I haven’t tried any of these, but your description of the house’s history certainly makes me want to seek them out. Citron Boboli looks like a great place to start; citrus and orange pepper, sounds right down my alley.

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  7. Oh, Gabriella! So glad you were able to introduce LJR to a wider audience. I first tried most of the range over a year ago. I fell hard for Tubereuse Trianon, Cuor de Russie, Rose Troc and Sandalwood Sacre. I ended up getting the full presentation of Tubereuse (an upcoming review) and Sandalwood. Next are Cuir and Rose.

    I am completely bowled over by Clara’s art work. Her use of loneliness in the solitary figures and colour bring the inner depths of people out to the fore. She makes the soul sing in ways that bring happiness and a joy in simply being alive.

    I just looked at the level of Tubereuse I have left. It has to be my most used scent of 2017. I hadn’t realised!

    A lovely quality perfume house with two very passionate owners!

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