Lentheric Shanghai ad 1930s, Creative Commons

The marketing story of Lentheric Shanghai is almost as intriguing as the scent itself. Packaged in a glamorous Chinese urn bottle, it was, according to its ads, intended to embody the “haunting mystery of the East” that was au courant at the time. But Shanghai was in fact an older Lentheric perfume originally titled Coeur au Paris and launched in 1911. Revamped and released in a brilliant yellow box under its new Chinese-inflected alias in 1936, Shanghai joined a coterie of Asian-inspired, ambery floral fragrances such as Coty A’Suma and Guerlain Shalimar. Shanghai was given a huge media blitz that included Chinese American movie star Anna May Wong as its official spokesperson. But it didn’t stop there. Glamorous press materials were created for retailers and the public complete with yellow tassels studded with Chinese coins, and major retailers put on extravagant, Chinese-themed window displays. All this right in the middle of the Great Depression.

Anna May Wong,  promo for Shanghai Express 1932

 

I first came across Lentheric Shanghai through a reference by Luca Turin in the Secret of Scent, where he described it as the gingery floral fragrance of a gentleman in France. Anything ginger immediately piques my interest, since the scent of that knotty brown root has a duality I cannot resist: warm-cool, spicy-sweet, fresh-dusty, sharp-grassy and lilyish. I never tire of it. Curious about this hitherto unknown ginger floral, I hunted down a nearly full splash bottle of Shanghai. I believe mine comes from the 1950s – the bottle and packaging have changed, the urn shape replaced by a more streamlined, architectural design. I got it for a song on eBay when it was still possible to find a bargain there.

The first dab of Lentheric Shanghai brings a rush of fresh spice riding in a crest of aldehydes: ginger, cinnamon, clove all tumbling over each other and pinging off the aldehydes and some brilliantly bitter, cocktail-like bergamot. The soapiness in the opening strikes me as quintessentially vintage (In modern perfumes, soapy notes, usually from synthetic musks, often turn up in the base). Despite its central place in Shanghai, ginger is not specifically listed, though I am quite certain it is there, its sparkle and spiky tickle apparent right from the start. The best ginger fragrances in my view use both the dried and fresh aspects of the root. Here, smelling each of my wrists, I get that bounce between sharp, dry, almost peppery ground ginger and its stemmy, juicy, zingy twin.

Lentheric Shanghai ad, 1958

Just as the ginger fills out, peppery flowers – carnation, lavender and geranium – move in. Soon, there is quite a lot going on – it’s a ginger fiesta and everyone’s invited: a strange but magnetizing citronella note takes the lead, dotting the perfume with its biting poison green citric smell. It is followed by some plush pink rose and generous handfuls of vetiver and myrrh. Late to the party is oakmoss, as you might expect, which balances out the spice and rich florals which some needed bitterness now that the bergamot has fallen asleep. Peeking in towards the dry-down is some sweet, milky tonka bean. Some while later, it all comes to a low hum on a bed of thick amber and smooth woods. I wish I knew who the nose behind this fragrance was – all those assertive and dense supporting players could have led to one big free-for-all. But instead, the notes tumble and leap around each other like circus performers, each taking its little bow while the ginger-floral accord of the heart remains spotlit in the center of the ring.

 

I often think of Lentheric Shanghai as a crepe de chine fragrance; it has a silky, drapey quality that reminds me of that textile, and it is as easy and elegant to wear. While Shanghai’s opening and amber-vanillic base may signal vintage, its lively, zippy spice and off-sweet florals make it wearable today without any trace of fust or must.

Notes: Aldehydes, bergamot, cinnamon, hyacinth, clove, citronella, carnation, jasmine, Bulgarian rose, geranium, lavender, spices, frankincense, cedarwood, tonka, vetiver, oakmoss, myrrh, benzoin, amber, musk, sandalwood.

Bottle of Lentheric Shanghai, photo by Lauryn

Lauryn is offering a 1 ml sample of 1940s Shanghai from her own collection to one registered reader in the U.S. To be eligible, please leave a comment saying what appeals to about Lentheric Shanghai based on Lauryn’s review and if you are familiar with any of the old Lentheric fragrances. Draw closes 11/24/2021.

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