Angel

Today’s notes

The house breaks Angel down into three stages: Calabrian bergamot in the top, praline as the heart note, patchouli and vanilla in the base. Around the praline, it cites caramel and red fruits; its American page adds an accord of caramelized cotton candy and honey.

The patchouli and ethyl maltol accord

Angel’s signature lies in the pairing of an overdosed patchouli with ethyl maltol, a material that smells of vanilla caramel and cotton candy. Victoria Frolova observes that these two materials, in the right balance, are enough to evoke Angel; the rest of the formula embellishes and contrasts it.

This duo explains the fragrance’s dual character: the confectionery sweetness of ethyl maltol, the earth and dry wood of patchouli. The vanilla, which the house presents as an absolute, rounds out the base, while the bergamot brightens the opening.

Notes left aside

Older descriptions credit Angel with mandarin, passion fruit, peach, apricot or cocoa, all absent from the formula the house describes today. Bitter chocolate remains a perception: Victoria Frolova smells it in the base, alongside patchouli and an almond praline.