Perfume Review : Ebruns d’Ylang – Guerlain

I was trepidatious when my favourite sales assistant at my local Guerlain counter placed a sample of Embruns d’Ylang* into my hand. Most of the offerings from Guerlain in recent years have, for the most part, been a series of disappointments (albeit with a few wonderful exceptions). So, when the latest L’Art et la Matière release was handed to me I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about it.

And I’m still not sure.

It took a few days for me to gather up the courage to try it and I confess at first sniff; I wasn’t blown away. It wasn’t a bad opening, in fact, quite the opposite. It was bright, and airy and citrusy and floral. I liked it, it felt sophisticated. However I had that niggling sensation that I had experienced this combination of notes before, which perfume exactly I couldn’t tell you, and that in itself is part of the problem. It smelled a bit…. dare I say it…. generic (I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!!!).

So, there it was, a very lovely perfume, just not super interesting *sadface*. And then I went on with my day, occasionally catching whiffs of jasmine and spicy clove and a hint of ylang-ylang, and I didn’t think much more of it.

Until I did.

Suddenly, a couple of hours later, I could smell the ylang-ylang. Really smell it. That lovely bitey, minerally, floral balanced with just enough vanilla to give it a sweetness but not cloyingly so, and a hint of soapy aromatic that I have come to associate with patchouli.

I was a little bit interested.  It still smelled familiar, but my curiosity was piqued.

I liked it. I like it. Do I circa AUD300 for 75ml like it? 

Undecided, still on the fence. It is a lovely fragrance, but it seems like the kind of thing I would only wear on lazy warm sunny holidays. Realistically there are probably others that I would prefer to spend the $$$ on. But I do have 2/3 of the sample left to play with so I will continue investigating.

Do I think it is worth having a sniff? Yes. Especially if you want something that actually smells like ylang-ylang, just don’t expect it to be overcomplicated and mysterious.

*From time to time I may use affiliate links in my posts where I may earn a small commission if you should choose to make a purchase. This is at no extra cost to you and it enables me to fund more items to review. I never recommend something that I haven’t actually tried or used myself. However, please don’t use the link if you don’t feel comfortable doing so.