CHANEL Gabrielle (Olivier Polge) 2017~New Perfume Review

Gabrielle Chanel reading the newspaper Chateau de Royallieu – c. 1910 – Collection Edmonde Charles-Roux©

Any news of the CHANEL Gabrielle release sends me into an apoplectic frenzy of joy and desire, and I am usually one of the first to book a seat on the CHANEL train. The newest CHANEL, is a sparkling white floral Eau De Parfum composed by Olivier Polge (named Gabrielle in honor of Coco CHANEL’s younger-self) arrived today and I  could not be happier.

via  Instagram @chanelofficial

 Announced as CHANEL’s first “pillar” fragrance release since CHANEL Chance in 2002, if Gabrielle catches on with millennial (and all) buyers, then I suspect,  it,  and future flankers that pillar fragrances give rise to, will be part of the CHANEL canon for years to come. It will be divisive undoubtedly; there will be haters and lovers as with any perfume, it will be touted as either the complete destruction or heaven-sent redemption of the Maison CHANEL. I leave it to you to make up your own mind. I disliked CHANEL Boy when it was first released, and that ultimately proved to be merely my lavender aversion. It took me a least a week to warm up to and now I love Boy with all my heart.

Kristen Stewart Gabrielle Chanel via  Instagram @chanelofficial

Described accurately as an “abstract floral”, Olivier Polge presents a modern white floral for a brand new generation, flirty, flighty, Jeunesse, and a whole lot of fun. Fronted by celebrity and ubër-Emo poster child Kristen Stewart, Gabrielle is a lovely scent that would surely bring a smile to even her lips.

Chanel, Vogue, 1935. Photo by Cecil Beaton©

Creating this perfume as an imaginary flower, M. Polge gives us a radiant and sparkling perfume that somehow feels like both a classic CHANEL and something much more contemporary. Based on four white flowers; a rich, exotic Jasmine, fruity green notes of Ylang, fresh and sparkling Orange Blossom, and Tuberose from Grasse, Gabrielle is a perfect foil to the heat of summer. A wear-it-to-the-wedding perfume.

Robert's CHANEL Gabrielle perfume unpacked

And then there’s that bottle….. said to have been five years in development, the stunning Deco bottle with its faceted four-corner front and back and matching cap arrives with a gold and shot-through silver Lamé bag for storage.  The fragrance absolutely shines through the four transparent sides of the bottle, whose sides fade into the background to let the light shine through. The result is a flacon that literally shimmers and glows with a resplendent metallic-like feeling.

Robert 's Digital art: Portrait of Gabrielle

Opening with the champagne-rush frothy bubbles of something like aldehydes, a more floral-centric or tropical CHANEL 5 comes to mind, but Gabrielle quickly settles down to let the buttery and slightly indolic ylang-ylang and tuberose shine through. It is a fairly linear scent, with some woody notes as support which manage to uplift and engage. It is neither ground-breaking or earth-shattering, but at the end of the day Gabrielle is a fine floral and a great choice for both younger and older perfume lovers who are ready to amp up (or move back into) the next sophistication level.

Notes: Orange blossom, jasmine, ylang-ylang, Grasse tuberose

Disclaimer-both the bottle and the opinions are my own. I preordered on Chanel.com 

–Robert Herrmann, Contributing Editor

–Art Direction, Michelyn Camen, Editor-In-Chief

Let us know if you think Gabrielle will be for you!!! Do you plan to buy it? Try it? Tell

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22 comments

  • fazalcheema says:

    Initially I was intrigued but not anymore. It seems Chanel has kind of released a female version of Bleu. Something that will be a moneymaker and appeal to as many people as possible.

  • Anthony says:

    This is on my definite Buy list. A perfume for my wife and daughters. It sounds beautiful and I loved your description that there’s a champagne rush and tropical feel

  • Judy says:

    I love Chanel. Will try it and see. I like that Robert says that like any perfume it will be liked or not
    Thanks for a great review. I want to know more about the bottle. Why it took so long!

  • ringthing says:

    Thanks for the review! I always want to try whatever Chanel puts out there and this is no exception.

  • Amy M. says:

    I’ll absolutely try it. Unless it’s mad love, like I have for so many of the Exclusifs edts, I won’t invest. But it sounds lovely!

  • SandiL says:

    I’m with Amy M. will try this for sure then see how it likes my skin. I to have a love for many of the Exclusifs. Great review Robert

  • Dawn Crawford says:

    I still love my Bois Des Iles. My long time favorite before the rest of the Exclusifs.

  • Erica says:

    It sounds so pretty. Maybe not earth-shattering but it sounds like something that would make me smile. Looking forward to the mainstream release so I can try it!

  • Claudia says:

    I have high hopes for this one, seems this is one gets mixed reviews, however so did Beige and I adore that one. Would love to sample this one 🙂

  • Steve Johnson says:

    Will try it but not expecting much after reading this. Intrigued by the green, fruity, indolic AND buttery ylang note. For a perfume with only four notes, one of them sure sounds like it’s filling in a lot of gaps here.

    But I agree with what someone said in a previous comment: Chanel may have a sexy new bottle, but they’re not breaking any new ground recently in perfume. i suspect this will be pleasing and forgettable in a few minutes.

  • tiffanie says:

    Marvelous! I will definitely try on Gabrielle. The bottle, the notes, the excitement, this is a fun moment in perfumeland.

  • Clothilde says:

    I have it! I’ve been wearing it for about a week. No, it’s not earth-shattering, and it’s not the sort of thing I’d normally buy, but I like it. For reference, I’ve been devoted to 19 for over 25 years, wear and love Gardenia and No 5 L’Eau, too. I figured, well, I enjoy Chanel scents in general, so bought this unsniffed, and find it pleasant and easy to wear. My husband and teenage sons like it, too.

  • Shaye says:

    Chanel sent me the most adorable TINY sample of this in a 1.5 ml miniature bottle with fantastic presentation – I tried a tiny bit, and it was definitely one for the younger crowd. It is not bad – in fact, if I were searching for a gift for a female in the 20-30 something group, this would make the top five!

  • Gvillecreative says:

    Over the years, Chanel has grown into my favorite house. I can’t wait to try this. That bottle is beautiful!

  • femmelady says:

    My bottle arrived, without the gold bag I might add. I feel ripped off now. Anyway, yes the bottle is interesting and very pretty with light passing through, especially at the corners. My first whiff was fruity to me, almost peachy, like many things one might encounter passing through a department store. A half hour later, I’m getting tropical, which I like. One of my favorite tropical perfumes is Lancome’s Tropiques, which smells of Hawaii. But I digress. Aldehydes?? Not a lot. Number 22 is the standard bearer for aldehydes, and one of my all time favorite perfumes. I guess my take is the big houses aren’t daring anymore. This is nowhere near the wow factor of 5 or 22, although I acknowledge those were from a different era of style. It’s developing into a light soft and buttery floral with tropical overtones. I’d spritz it on for these hot summer days, or for a wedding or a garden walk. It’s actually very nice, but I would not call it captivating.

  • Kathleen Smith says:

    Overall I am not disappointed and I like it. It smells very Chanel-like. Not earth shattering, but expected Chanel quality. The bottle is gorgeous I was afraid of the tuberose, which I have difficulty with in general, but this is not too heady and the florals are blended beautifully. I like the initial top notes the best and it has a beautiful dry down. Of course I bought a bottle with the Chanel release, proud to have it in my collection.