Cuir de Russie

Cuir de Russie is therefore not a composition by Jacques Polge but one wanted by Gabrielle Chanel herself and her favorite perfumer. Powerful, distinguished, as floral as it is leathery, Cuir de Russie makes no compromise, exhaling in every facet the femme fatale!

A journey from Paris to Moscow in a Cuir de Russie with the scents of Chanel's most beautiful memories…

The Chanel Les Exclusifs collection does not only honor the magnificent creations of Jacques Polge; it has also allowed the rediscovery of a few forgotten beauties composed in the era of the Ernest Beaux–Gabrielle Chanel duo. Among these treasures from the past, we have the pleasure of finding Bois des Îles (which, incidentally, strongly inspired Jacques Polge in composing Egoïste), No. 22, and of course the brilliant and distinguished Cuir de Russie. Let us not forget that Ernest Beaux did not only achieve tremendous success with No. 5, and Cuir de Russie is proof of that!

Chanel's Cuir de Russie first fits into the strong trend of leathery fragrances from the early century, a powerful movement initiated by the house of Guerlain, which was itself the first to offer a Cuir de Russie in 1890. Regardless, the Cuir de Russie by Gabrielle Chanel and Ernest Beaux stands out markedly from other fragrances, as the designer poured all her passion for this country, which she loved for many reasons, into the construction of this fragrance.

Cuir de Russie therefore seeks above all to render perceptible the scent of leather from the boots of the Red Army dancers, blending it with powerful, luminous and highly feminine flowers, a power that of course cannot help but recall that of No. 5, released three years earlier in 1921.

Chanel Cuir de Russie, between the sweetness of precious flowers and wild power

As we have seen, whether through the Russian origins of its creator Ernest Beaux or the powerful memory of that country held by Gabrielle Chanel, Cuir de Russie is a fragrance of passions. A passion as delicate as it is torrid, offering multiple faces to the woman of this Cuir de Russie unlike any other…

Cuir de Russie opens with a breeze of fresh bergamot and mandarin before soaring toward the precious heart of the fragrance. The splendors of rose, jasmine and bare ylang-ylang notes flood it with light and radiance, drawing us further into the mysterious darkness of woody notes that already herald the intensity of the base notes. Between olibanum, hay, cade and tobacco, the leather note becomes a wild, carnal force enveloping the wearer in a halo of liberated, sensual femininity.

A leather infused with mandarin that subtly evokes the metallic floral bouquet of No. 5, then leaves on the skin a smoky veil of birch, cade and enchanting balsams. Le Monde on Chanel's Cuir de Russie.