Eau de Gentiane Blanche

Ellena, celebrating the 30th anniversary of the now cult Eau d'Orange Verte, offers his modern version of the eau de Cologne with Eau de Gentiane Blanche and Eau de Pamplemousse Rose. Eau de Gentiane Blanche, or the powerful and intoxicating eau de Cologne of the new century...

Eau de Gentiane Blanche, the modern Eau de Cologne as a counterpoint to tradition

Ellena, who is often criticized for the lack of longevity of his watercolor compositions, found in the creation of new Eaux de Cologne for Hermès an obvious olfactory voice for his creations. Moreover, as the venerable house Guerlain had established, every perfumer is expected to create their own signature Eau de Cologne. How could one imagine Ellena composing an Eau without bringing his touch of fantasy to it?

Thus the two fragrances Eau de Pamplemousse Rose and Eau de Gentiane Blanche fall within the traditional values of perfumery. But each, in its own way, offers brilliant and original modernities that will delight fans of the “Ellenades”. For Eau de Gentiane Blanche, it is above all about the use of gentian absolute, which takes the wearer away from the usual Mediterranean citrus of Cologne toward the high peaks of the Alps, for a raw material rarely appreciated in perfumery.

But I also wanted to shake up the codes of eau de Cologne a little more, and since I had been introduced to a brand new product, gentian absolute, I thought the bitterness of this plant could renew the exercise. The second cologne is therefore called Eau de Gentiane Blanche. Jean-Claude Ellena for Eau de Gentiane Blanche.

Gentian and iris: when fine raw materials become the sophistications of Eau de Gentiane Blanche

Presented as a colorful patchwork with the taste of summer, the collection of Hermès Colognes, enriched with Ellena's two brilliant novelties, displays in its glass the beauty of tradition mixed with the sparkling modernity of vivid colors. Thus Eau de Gentiane Blanche retains the opulent lantern bottle of its ancestor Eau d'Orange Verte. However, the glass has taken on dark green tints that give this Eau de Gentiane Blanche a certain character.

A true ode to the many faces, or rather facets, of gentian, the queen flower of the mountains, Eau de Gentiane Blanche opens with a dynamic, citrus cocktail of bergamot and petitgrain. The green note brings to this brisk opening the composition's first vegetal touch. Then the beautiful gentian finally reveals itself, sometimes smooth on contact with orange blossom, sometimes deliciously bitter as its petals meet the earthy, powerful galbanum. Finally, iris brings to this mountain flower its powdery, sophisticated softness. The mysterious incense delights in plunging the wearer into the woody, earthy depths of oakmoss. But white musks and violet wrap the wearer in the velvety softness of their muted sillage.

Imagined by Jean-Claude Ellena as an interpretation that runs counter to the Cologne style, Eau de Gentiane Blanche revisits freshness with as much character as delicacy. Hermès for Eau de Gentiane Blanche.