Eau de Courrèges

Eau de Courrèges comes in both feminine and masculine versions for a breath of fresh, tonic air in the middle of nature. A timeless fragrance that made the glory days of Courrèges perfumery in the late 1970s… only to be reborn in 2012!

Eau de Courrèges, “fresh and scented like the open air”

How to repeat a success as significant as that of Courrèges’ very first fragrance, Empreinte? It seems the futuristic haute-couture house, and, since Empreinte in 1971, perfume house, found the miracle formula with its second fragrance, Eau de Courrèges.

Fresh, chic and ultra-sporty, Eau de Courrèges fits within the green trend and the new cologne movement of major perfumery in the late 1970s. Eau de Courrèges belongs to that light and innovative style of perfumery aimed particularly at a young, sporty and free audience rejecting the very ostentatious Chanel and Guerlain, still seen as belonging to another generation.

Naturally, the “lively and tonic character” of Eau de Courrèges captivated at least as much as Empreinte had in its time. So much so that today Eau de Courrèges stands as emblematic of Courrèges perfumery and of the fragrances from the end of that hippy era.
Eau de Courrèges, a legend among legends, would moreover be reissued alongside Empreinte in 2012.

Eau de Courrèges, a citrus fragrance like an ode to lightness

For the lovely floral citrus Eau de Courrèges, the same emblematic bottle designed for Empreinte was chosen. Quite logically, the bottle of Eau de Courrèges, deeply imbued with the codes of the Courrèges haute-couture house, borrowed Empreinte’s glory to make it its own. The curved, gracefully rounded lines as well as the spherical cap are now tinted a spring-like tender green to welcome the “independent and free” Eau de Courrèges.

This second scented ode signed Courrèges carries us, from the top notes, into sparkling citrus notes of bergamot, petitgrain and lime. To reinforce this invigorating cocktail, coriander brings its deep and distinctive scent to a very herbaceous heart of absinthe and mint. Lily of the valley and its lovely bucolic bells soften this explosive and intense aromatic blend. Moreover, this woodland flower announces the coming arrival of the great woods, fresh vetiver and the powerful and so mysterious oakmoss. Finally, patchouli, Courrèges’ star scent, transforms this intense woody freshness into gentle sensuality.

Empreinte and Eau de Courrèges share the same perfumer: Robert Gonnon. Yet both had to go through the mandatory reformulation at the turn of the new millennium in order to once again make their boldness sparkle for those who love these fragrances, true idols of chic hippies. It seems that Eau de Courrèges, just like Empreinte for that matter, did not suffer from this forced facelift orchestrated by Vincent Schaller. Forty years later, Eau de Courrèges remains a star fragrance!