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Post by ElizaD
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Holiday Greetings from the Emerald Valley! Here in Eugene, Oregon we have had the most extraordinary weather: it was sunny and bracingly cold, and then it started to snow. Snow in this valley is rare. When the weather gets like this, I always turn to one perfume, which I am wearing today. In fact, it will probably remain my scent of choice through Christmas. And here’s why.
Eau des Merveilles by Hermès 2004
Ralf Schwieger and Nathalie Feisthauer
Photo Stolen Fragrantica
Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Orange, lemon, elemi
Heart: Amber, pink pepper, violet, pepper
Base: Fir, oakmoss, cedar, vetiver
Eau des Merveilles reminds me of fir trees, rum toddies and those chocolate oranges you can only find around here during the holidays. You know the kind–their yumminess is enjoyed by smacking the foil package against a table and eating the “sections”. The tradition in our family is to receive one in our stocking from “Santa”, and to enjoy it a bit at a time.
Photo Stolen Wikipedia
Eau des Merveilles opens with that amazing squirt of orange, which never fades throughout the wearing, it just gets warmer and saltier, like the smell of someone who has just come inside after playing outside in the cold. After a half hour or so, the wood notes start to appear, and while I often find wood notes to be screeching, they are again softened, this time by the oakmoss. To me the vetiver and violet are barely detectable, but perhaps they are what also give Eau des Merveilles its saltiness. I am just beginning to learn how different notes play off each other to make another completely different smell. There has been some discussion about whether this fragrance contains ambergris, a waxy substance produced inside of sperm whales as a response to irritants in their digestive tract, and as precious as pearls, but since I have never smelled ambergris, I couldn’t say. With or without it, I love this perfume for its veritable lack of flowers: the salt highlights the sweetness of the other notes the way a few grains sprinkled on an orange bring out its juicy sparkle.
Photo Stolen WikiMedia
The whole package conspires to transport me into the snowy mountains, where I have spent many happy hours cross country skiing through the glistening snow amongst the same evergreens that are used in this perfume.
Eau des Merveilles has decent sillage and longevity and fades away to soft woods and amber after a few hours. I find that this scent is best enjoyed when I wear it on the back of my neck or behind my knees–I am able to wear many fragrances this way, even though I work in a public office where strong fragrances are not always welcomed. And until the weather warms and it starts to rain and the holiday festivities are over, I’ll be sprinkled with drops of marvelous water.
Further reading: Olfactoria’s Travels and The Non-Blonde
Beauty Encounter has $20/15ml
My Perfume Samples start at $3/ml
Have you tried and did you like Eau des Merveilles or is it something that doesn’t interest you?
ElizaD xx
Australian Perfume Junkies 