The Little Black Dress by Renee Reeser Zelnick at www.fineartamerica.com  

 

One of the more frustrating things I hear when I am asked to recommend a fragrance to a younger woman is that it smells “old lady” to me. It usually takes me a fair amount of digging to find out that in the eyes of this particular beholder what doesn’t feel “old lady” is a fruity floral of some kind. This has to be particularly vexing for Guerlain as two of the fragrances that unfairly, in my opinion, frequently get the “old lady” tag are Mitsouko and Shalimar. I think they are emblematic of style and sophistication but to young women they think Early Bird Specials at Denny’s. For Guerlain to thrive in the future they have had to begin to think about how to appeal to that demographic currently uninterested in Guerlain.

 

 

I believe Thierry Wasser has been cognizant of this need for Guerlain to try and skew a little younger and last year saw the release of La Petite Robe Noire. I was not a fan of this fragrance as it started off with a very aggressive berry and rose barrage. La Petite Robe Noire would be slightly better in the drydown as the tea and licorice accords kept this from being only berry and rose but barely and too fleetingly. It was a fruity floral written in all caps. From all accounts this was a big seller in the desired demographic but I would hardly call it an artistic success.

 

Little Black Dress by Damian Klaczkiewicz at www.pl.touchofart.eu

 

With that success the sequel was sure to follow and it has arrived in search of the same audience. Unlike movies where the sequel  is almost always worse than the original; La Petite Robe Noire Modele no.2 turns out to be much better and have much more development to it while still being a fruity floral without being only that. To accomplish that M Wasser chose to plumb territory I first encountered in Calice Becker’s By Kilian Love. It is that peculiarly French version of marshmallow. Those of you who grew-up making S’Mores or roasting marshmallows over a campfire, we are not talking about marshmallows that come in a plastic bag. We are talking marshmallows from a patisserie which is made using orange water and when you try one of these you immediately are reminded of neroli. M Wasser chose to use this refined marshmallow as the central accord of La Petite Robe Noire Modele no.2. It is surrounded by discernable top and base notes which allow Modele no.2 something the original never really achieved, a real development over time.

 

 

The departure from the first model comes right from the start as Modele no.2 opens with lemon and galbanum which impart a tart greenness to the opening phases. The lemon allows for the transition to orange blossom to take this fragrance from citrus to floral quite naturally. The sweet marshmallow accord arrives next and the sweetness is cut with a measure of iris which helps pick up the galbanum remaining from the top notes. The base turns leathery and it is combined with a sheer white musk; this is all kept light and provides a sturdy foundation for Modele no.2 to come to rest on.

La Petite Robe Noire Modele no. 2 has above average longevity and above average sillage.

I really hope La Petite Robe Noire Modele no.2 is as much or more of a success than the inaugural model because I believe this time M Wasser has created something that will appeal to young women and, hopefully, turn them into Guerlain fans as they move through all of the phases of their life.

Disclosure: This review was based on a sample provided by Guerlain.

–Mark Behnke, Managing Editor