Ivoire

Wikiparfum classifies the 2012 Ivoire among the green chypres, Osmoz among the green florals. Victoria Frolova and John Reasinger both read it as a chypre, more floral than the 1979 one. Twelve materials make it up, far fewer than in the original formula.

Top

Mandarin, galbanum and violet leaf open the perfume. For John Reasinger, this opening keeps the original’s green start alive, and the violet leaf adds a juicy, more modern touch. Osmoz also reads orange in it, blended with the powdery side of violet.

Heart

Rose, jasmine, iris and ylang-ylang draw a floral heart that John Reasinger finds cool and far more restrained than in 1979. Osmoz places galbanum at this level. Victoria Frolova also perceives orange blossom in it, carried by a green note she finds delicious.

Base

The base brings together vetiver, cedar, patchouli and vanilla. John Reasinger sees in the vetiver the earthy, cool successor to the original’s oakmoss. Victoria Frolova describes a polished base of cedar and mossy accents, with a softened patchouli.

The 1979 Ivoire

The original formula was far denser. John Reasinger describes it as dominated by aldehydes, galbanum and herbs, with citrus, asafoetida and a heart of jonquil, lily of the valley, neroli and iris, drying down on oakmoss, patchouli, woods and an ambery musk.

Victoria Frolova likens that Ivoire to Chanel’s No. 19, only cozier: a white soap, a jasmine and a sandalwood carried by aldehydes. To her, the 2012 version stripped away the aldehydes and the peppery stems.