No.1 The Feminine Original Collection

Scent Profile

Top notes: Amalfi Lemon, Apricot, Bergamot, Cardamom, Paprika, Peach, Pineapple, Plum

Heart notes: Carnation, Iris, Jasmine, Orchid, Rose, Ylang-Ylang

Base notes: Amber, Benzoin, Musk, Sandalwood, Tonka Bean, Vanilla, Virginia Cedar

Why We Carry This

This is the perfume Schoen has spoken about publicly with more ambivalence than anything else in his catalog, which makes it more interesting, not less. It remains one of the most technically accomplished oriental florals of the early 2000s, and the concentration available through Clive Christian's Original Collection holds up against far newer releases.

Character

Accords: Powdery, Woody, Sweet, Warm Spicy, Fruity, Floral, Yellow Floral, Vanilla, Amber, Iris

Perfumer: Geza Schoen

Launched: 2001

248 ingredients, and Geza Schoen makes them behave like one. The fruit in the opening, plum and peach and apricot, reads ripe rather than sweet, cardamom and paprika adding an almost edible heat before the floral heart takes over with ylang-ylang and vintage iris. The base is Madagascan vanilla and musk, and by the time it arrives it feels less like a fragrance finishing and more like it finally settling into itself.