Soleil Vibrant Eau de Parfum

Lalique had long been a house of dark woods and classicism: the smoky vetiver of Encre Noire, the powdery sillage of Perles de Lalique. In 2019, Soleil broke with this line to embrace a fruity, sun-drenched gourmand character. Soleil Vibrant, launched in 2022, is its second chapter. The house did not conceive it as a summer variation on the original formula, but as an entirely new composition, one that captures the sun at its zenith where the first took it at sunrise.

The fragrance is placed under the patronage of Marie-Claude Lalique, granddaughter of René Lalique, and of the Zeila panther, the best-known crystal piece in his body of work. This is the origin of the stated approach: starting from animal prints to develop a woody theme, and to portray a woman both self-assured and joyful. The narrative is conventional, but it has the merit of explaining why a fragrance from the solar line ends on wood rather than on sugar.

The duo brought together to write it is no coincidence. Nathalie Lorson has worked for Lalique since 2006, the year of Encre Noire and Perles de Lalique, and has helped establish the house's olfactory signature across more than a dozen fragrances. Alexandra Monet joined in 2017 with Mon Premier Cristal Lumière, then co-signed the 2019 Soleil. Entrusting the follow-up to these two hands meant holding both threads together: the house's historical grammar and the memory of the original fragrance.

The result leans toward the luminous and sensual side rather than the fresh one. The house claims a scent of skin warmed by the sun, and that is indeed the impression left by the vanilla and woody base once the fruity opening has settled. Reviews from wearers are in fact split on this point: while some describe a creamy, fruity summer skin scent, others find the whole thing too dense and too sweet.

Soleil Vibrant has been released in 30, 50 and 100 ml. The Soleil line also includes a hair mist and a Cristal edition in Extrait de Parfum, and has since continued with a third installment, Soleil Lunar, entrusted to the same two perfumers.