Patchouli Blanc, a new soft and enveloping fragrance joins the Collection Extraordinaire by Van Cleef & Arpels. It all began with a wonderful love story between Alfred Van Cleef and Estelle Arpels. Together, they decided to create one of the greatest French jewelry houses. A symbol of luxury since 1906, the house Van Cleef & Arpels designs exceptional jewelry.
The Van Cleef & Arpels house was founded in 1906. Since then, it has proudly stood on the prestigious Place Vendôme in Paris, always delivering exceptional creations, both in jewelry and perfumery. It is in this context that the Collection Extraordinaire by Van Cleef & Arpels was imagined, in 2009. It brings together fragrances all inspired by a particular raw material and elevating it as never before. Patchouli Blanc, meanwhile, is a creation that came to life in 2022 and, as its name indicates, exalts patchouli.
The fresh and incisive top notes of Patchouli Blanc
Patchouli Blanc by Van Cleef & Arpels is a fragrance imbued with extreme purity. It thus proves airy and highly refreshing from its top notes onward. These contain aldehydes, known for their metallic odor, which some compare to the scent of a hot iron. From the outset, this ingredient gives Patchouli Blanc by Van Cleef & Arpels tremendous power as well as a certain volume. To this are also added pink pepper, whose breath is as spicy as it is delicate. Generally, in perfumery, this raw material is used by perfumers to enhance a floral accord that is too heady or too discreet. It is thus in this initial breath that Patchouli Blanc by Van Cleef & Arpels draws all its energy.
White patchouli, the central element of the Van Cleef & Arpels composition
Naturally, patchouli is also omnipresent in this formula. As the centerpiece of this composition, it here evokes a silky, comforting sensation. I wanted to recreate the sensation of a soft, enveloping cashmere, explains Jérôme Epinette, the perfumer behind this creation. I wanted the fragrance to convey the idea of a tender, cottony white, with a literally irresistible clean scent. That is why I began by selecting a very particular fraction of patchouli, transparent and floral. Here, white patchouli is imbued with a pure, crystalline freshness. For added elegance and refinement, it is also paired with one of perfumers' favorite raw materials: rose essence. This lends the whole a more floral, infinitely poetic breath.
The musky, woody base of Patchouli Blanc
At its base, Patchouli Blanc by Van Cleef & Arpels concludes with the presence of cashmere wood, also known as cashmeran. Woody, warm and balsamic, it develops here a voluptuous sillage that does not really exist in nature. It brings this fragrance a sensation of absolute sensuality and softness. Moreover, it is also paired with white musks. Derived from organic synthesis, these are elements that bring remarkable tenacity to the fragrance. Frequently used in fine perfumery, they leave a clean sensation behind.