Shalimar: The Taj Mahal in the base note of the precious oriental fragrance. Carnal temptation, desire, mystery, otherworldliness... this is how the beautiful Shalimar is described by Guerlain at its release, in 1925. Created by Jacques Guerlain around an original and originating accord of vanillin molecules, the mysterious and enchanting Shalimar would become the very first fragrance dubbed oriental in history.
It is impossible for perfume lovers to have escaped the unsettling sillage of the magnificent Shalimar, considered the best-seller of Jacques Guerlain. Created to pay tribute to the magnificent love story that gave rise to the Taj Mahal, Shalimar quickly established itself as the fragrance of every woman of the 1920s. From Paris to New York, Shalimar was acclaimed and its success has never been denied: even nearly a century after its creation, it remains the greatest fragrance of the house of Guerlain.
Olfastory’s review
Shalimar by Jacques Guerlain, the very first oriental fragrance in history
Far more than an absolutely sublime fragrance, Shalimar managed to upend the codes of perfumery by offering for the first time an oriental fragrance, but also the codes of the house of Guerlain by meticulously crafting the famous Guerlinade, which would later become the basis of every Guerlain fragrance.
Many legends have been told about the creation of Shalimar by Jacques Guerlain. The most widespread is that of the accident: Jacques Guerlain would have accidentally dropped a few drops of the brand-new ethylvanillin molecule into the Jicky of his famous ancestor. From this manipulation error, Shalimar and its divine oriental fragrances would have been born. Needless to say, while the legend is a beautiful one, the reality could simply be that Jacques Guerlain sought so much to rework the composition of Jicky that he ended up modernizing it by composing Shalimar.
Regardless, Jacques Guerlain created with Shalimar the very first oriental fragrance in history. Given the success achieved by the precious bottle, both at the Exposition des Arts Décoratifs and having crossed the Atlantic aboard the Normandie around the neck of Madame Guerlain, Jacques Guerlain's oriental composition seemed destined for a brilliant future. Moreover, nearly a century after its release, Shalimar is still among the ten best-selling fragrances in the world!
Shalimar by Jacques Guerlain and its legendary Guerlinade
According to perfumery specialists, Jacques Guerlain, with Shalimar, would have offered not only the very first oriental fragrance in history but also the foundations of what would become the birth of all Guerlain fragrances, the famous Guerlinade.
So what would be the magic ingredients of Shalimar's Guerlinade? Sicilian bergamot, Bulgarian rose, jasmine, iris, vanilla, tonka bean and animalic notes. But careful, it is not enough to use these beautiful raw materials to obtain the famous Guerlinade; one must know how to select the finest qualities, craft the most beautiful blends of varieties and combine them with other raw materials that will bring out their best.
Sylvaine Delacourte, a great nose of French perfumery, defines it thus: the Guerlinade is not made up solely of signature and recurring raw materials. The Guerlinade is a state of mind, which gives fragrances style, presence, great sensuality. They are adored, idolized, or sometimes overlooked, but a Guerlain fragrance leaves a lasting mark in the memories of others!
Shalimar, the clearly defined first representative of oriental fragrances and of the Guerlinade, thus remains among the greatest masterpieces of modern perfumery and certainly THE greatest masterpiece of Jacques Guerlain, if indeed there is only one...
Ernest Beaux, the famous creator of N°5 for Chanel, moreover acclaimed the work of his colleague for Shalimar by stating that with that package of vanilla, he himself would only have been capable of creating a custard, whereas Jacques Guerlain created Shalimar.