Quartz is the fragrance that carried Molyneux beyond couture, launched in 1977 and credited to Raymond Chaillan. The original formula is no longer the one in the bottle on the shelf: four citrus fruits open, iris and lily of the valley hold the heart, vetiver, sandalwood and patchouli close. A fruity floral the brand addresses to women who are not easily taken in.
Two readings circulate under this name, and they hardly overlap. The one the brand publishes for the bottle sold today opens on four citrus fruits: lemon, mandarin, bergamot, grapefruit, a forthright entry that the brand calls an enveloping freshness.
The heart and the base of the current version
Jasmine, lily of the valley, iris, honeysuckle and rose form the floral whole, and the brand gives honeysuckle as its bold stroke. The base brings together vetiver, sandalwood and patchouli, to which one product sheet adds a Tyrolean moss left outside our reference list.
The 1977 composition
The other reading, that of the encyclopedias and the databases, describes a different fragrance: cassie, hyacinth and peach in the opening, iris, melon, honeysuckle, carnation, jasmine and rose in the heart, oakmoss, sandalwood, musk, cedar, benzoin, amber and patchouli to finish.
It corresponds to the original formula, the one the retailers say has been revised. The two meet on iris, honeysuckle, jasmine, rose, sandalwood and patchouli; the rest has changed, beginning with a top that has lost its fruity notes for four citrus fruits.
What the name promises
Quartz gives its name to a fragrance the brand wants luminous and clean, without the opulence of the orientals of the same decade. The rendering described by the retailers goes the same way: a fresh eau, which some keep in the refrigerator for the summer.