"Voeu de Noël is rich and somber as dark velvet, and despite its name, it's more a scent of memories than dreams."
That was going to be my One Sentence Review for Caron's long lost beauty, but I decided it deserved a whole paragraph. Voeu de Noël--an Ernest Daltroff creation--was introduced in 1939, and according to several sources I've seen, was also marketed as Rose de Noël. By any name, it's a Caron's Caron, with those unmistakable notes of musty rose and Mousse de Saxe that perfume connoisseurs either love or hate. I love them, of course, and it's hard to imagine a Caron I could love more than this one. I don't know the age of the stuff I sampled, but if the fresh juice had any fleeting top notes, they fled long ago. There was no suggestion of turned or "crushed" flowers to get past--just a rush of deep red rose, followed by hints of violet and carnation. The heart of Voeu de Noël echoes N'Aimez que Moi one moment, En Avion the next. Slowly but surely the flowers give way to a base that suggests Nuit de Noël grown more demure. The drydown has the same irresistible combination of Mousse de Saxe, sweet woods and spice, but the effect is lighter and smoother. I can imagine a very serious young girl wearing wearing Voeu de Noël.
If you are a Caron lover and have never tried Voeu de Noël, I'd say it's worth what they're charging for a sample at The Perfumed Court. Or you could just pray for a generous perfume friend to gift you with a drop. (Many thanks!)
Magdalene, Caravaggio, 1596-97
6 comments:
Rush of deep red rose was my first reaction too. I see VdN as a love child of Or et Noir and Tabac Blond, though. And now that you mentioned it, I get the violet. What a shame this beauty isn't around anymore...although it would be so out of place today.
N
Oh, what an intriguing creature you present. Perhaps someday I will have a chance to make its acquaintance; until then, I'm glad to have glimpsed it here.
It's a dream of a scent, and doesn't belong in our hard-edged world, I agree.
I don't know about you, ScentScelf, but one of my favorite things is reading about vintage greats I'll never sniff--although in this case, the real thing was as lovely as the dream.
Wonderful review - it leaves me feeling sad that perfumes like this are a thing of the past.
Nothing about scent; I just wanted to thank you for posting this wonderful Caravaggio. I've rather laid off posting "old art", and so I'm enjoying the fact that you do. Cheers!
Glad you like it, Julie. WhenI was doing the post, I rejected this painting 2 or 3 times, but I just kept coming back to it.
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