Hermèssence Muguet Porcelain
Hermès (2016)

A fantastic green white floral, with some fruity touches and slight sharp edges. It delivers the typical Hermessence quality. I wish it lasted longer, but i guess nothing good lasts forever, so is the case here...Also, how can you forget the airy transparent JCE thing. He also does it here, and its perfect.

We have to face the facts - Diorissimo is no more. Hydroxycitronellal is no longer a viable use for muguet accords. A few other floral materials have surfaced but none can compare.

Until this. Jean Claude Ellena has used his trickery (if you read his short diary, he has a list of simple accords using only a few ingredients) to create a durable, top-down muguet accord of beauty, realism, and is a master class in making use of what you have. Perfection.

The lilies of the valley are about to bloom here in Massachusetts. Their white, frilled bells emit one of the most beloved perfumes to come from nature. I have a strong connection with them as they grew in my backyard as a child and they were my mother's favorite flower. They are steeped with much symbolism as well, representing rebirth, humility, joy, and chastity. There is a purity to its complex fragrance as well, feeling crisp, watery, lush, yet ethereal.

Lily of the Valley is what is called a mute flower: one that smells in-situ but cannot produce aromatic materials. These mute flowers either produce no or so little aromatic compounds that it can’t be coalesced into an essential oil (through distillation) or absolute (through solvent extraction). Therefore, all muguet (lily of the valley) accords must be constructed using a composite of synthetics and naturals to approximate its scent as closely as possible. With Muguet Porcelain, Jean Claude Ellena brings into relief the sensation of experiencing the flowers up close and personal. In the face of restrictions to muguet materials such as lilial and lyral, he manages to really bring to life the spirit of this flower perhaps by incorporating newer materials or purely by his stroke of genius.

Those who detect musk melon and cucumber notes may or may not be familiar to the scent of fresh lily of the valley, as its aqueous quality does indeed have these facets to it, especially when freshly picked. Also, those who are well acquainted with the flowers know that their fresh, crisp quality has a short lifespan, even when in water, so we find that it evolves a tender decay as the blooms wilt and discolor. While Muguet Porcelaine may seem linear, it's as if it actually follows this timeline of withering and receding. The note of pear is the first suggestion of this, only minutes in, only slightly sweet but hinting at ripeness.

It is, however, in the dry down that I experience a civet-like note that enhances the ripening, withering quality beautifully, which is remarkable given the sheer quality of the composition overall. Therein lies the truth of the flower and a testament of its inevitable terminus, ready to return to the earth that is animal, vegetable, and mineral. This one for true lovers of the real-life flower rather than just the abstract lily of the valley perfume accord.

100% unisex.

The opening is a muguet all right. Bright and light, is bears the characteristics of pointillistic elegance.

Soon an green undertone develops, and over time both merge, Witze a fruity component also present that reminds me of a green honeydew melon.

I get moderate sillage, adequate projection and seven hours of longevity on my skin.

A lovely summery scent that is light and airy in its impressionistic depiction of the muguet with some skillful brushstrokes, but gradually becomes more generic and flat in its later development. Overall 2.75/5.

I've had mixed feeling with Muguet Porcelaine until recently. I found it a transparent, watery, melon-infused lily of the valley very much in line with the general aesthetics of Hermessence. But there is also a strange fuzzy warmth that makes it surprisingly not as fresh and crisp as other green, aqueous lily of the valley.

It's not until I read the astute and poetic review from Patrice Revillard, the perfumer behind the blog Musque-Moi, that I finally realised : yes, it's the civet (or something with a similar effect)! From then on, everything just clicked and fell quickly into place.

Even though Mr. Ellena himself doesn't specifically affirm, it's now impossible for me to smell Muguet Porcelaine without referencing Roudnitska and Diorissimo. The iodine-infused melon can be found in quite a few Roudnitska's creations, especially Diorella and Le Parfum de Thérèse, while civet-laden lily of the valley is one of the most intriguing characters of Diorissimo (although I perceive it more like an indolic jasmine, despite the intention of its creator).

That being said, the smell, the texture and the mood of Muguet Porcelaine are entirely different, notably because Ellena incorporates these tropes into his haiku “writing” style, contrary to the short story of Diorissimo. Arguably, Muguet Porcelaine doesn't have much significant evolution. The fairly transparent and watery lily of the valley and melon can be perceived right away, with the civet purring in the background with its furry warmth and a touch of saltiness to complement with the melon. However, the tension between the animalic dirtiness and the floral and fruity innocence persists deep into the dry down, where the fragrance eventually manages to unify these two aspects into a sensual skin scent.

I got a 10-hour longevity and a soft sillage.

I have to admit that I'm not among the biggest fans of Ellena. I admire his vision and commitment to perfumery, and many of them are very enjoyable, but I was rarely awed or emotionally touched by his compositions, even though it must not be easy to transform heavy materials into feather-like airiness. But his latest creations for Hermessence, first Cuir d'Ange, and now Muguet Porcelaine, challenged my preconceptions that perfumes can't be airy, watery or transparent, and sensual animalic at the same time. And the results are fantastic, even though they sometimes don't seem apparent at first glance. Therefore, I would highly recommend giving Muguet Porcelaine a try, especially if you happened to be looking for a modern airy animalic floral.

Smelled without the label, you would probably think this was a fairly bog standard lily of the valley, the formulation of which has been perfected by various companies. For something more original and distinctly greener you have to go to Tauer's Carillon pour un Ange, for example.

Knowing the pedigree however, it would be churlish not to admit that this is about as impeccable as you can get in terms of the traditional and well loved scent, and you can be sure there has been no skimping in terms of quality of ingredients.The lilac aspect which forms part of the lily of the valley complex is clearly evident.