L’Heure Bleue

Nose: Jacques Guerlain

Notes according to Fragrantica: “Top notes are Anise, Neroli, Coriander, Bergamot and Lemon; middle notes are Heliotrope, Carnation, Violet, Cloves, Neroli, Ylang-Ylang, Bulgarian Rose, Jasmine, Orchid and Tuberose; base notes are Iris, Vanilla, Benzoin, Sandalwood, Tonka Bean, Musk and Vetiver.”

Year: 1912

How does one describe Mozart to those who have never been blessed enough to hear Mozart? It’s very difficult! And that’s what it like trying to describe L’Heure Bleue. It’s super genius, rare fragrance. Thanks to masterpieces like Shaliamar, L’Heure Bleue, Après L’Ondee and Mitsouko Guerlain is irretrievably important. One cannot learn anything of real value or note about the history of perfumery easily without taking note of these fragrances and paying them their just due. To ignore Guerlain is to ignore reality.

And so we analyze L’Heure Bleue with trepidation.

In my opinion the vintage is better. It’s lasted remarkably well in most cases. Some vintage perfumes do not .

The parfum is the best, but all versions are sublime, of course.

Actually…thankfully…most I can personally vouch for bottles that are well preserved from even within the last 10 years. I finished off a new bottle I bought from Sephora when Sephora still sold it. It’s astounding to me now to recall that Sephora sold L’Heure Bleue within the last ten years as I write this, by the way.

Anyway….almond, sweet..buttery…decadent French pastry-like almond is the effect of L’Heure Bleue. And of course that’s thanks to the carnation in large part. Musky, rosy spices. Exotic, mysterious spices? It’s sad and lovely and contemplative and foreboding and glorious. Which of course as many of us know is supposed to be evocative, seemingly, of the “blue hour” near sunset. A time when one reflects back on the day and feels some sadness and regret and disappointment but also perhaps experiences a sense of sweetness as the day relaxes beautifully into night. Fires in the fireplace. Books. Cigars and brandy. Coffee and dessert.

The poignant longings are amplified into the drydown with the sandalwood, musky benzoin, and rich vanillic currents. It’s a haunting, but hopeful fragrance. And even though it’s of a time when the world was edging on the brink of dark worldwide war it’s perfectly relevant and thoughtful today in 2024.