Paco Rabanne
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The blast is immediately mineralised and austere—aldehydes buzz like electricity against cool bergamot, whilst that green leaf note creates an almost herbal, slightly grey-toned impression. It's bright but never sparkling in a joyful sense; instead, it feels cerebral and somewhat architectural.
As the composition settles into its middle act, the floral heart gradually asserts itself, the lily of the valley bringing a powder-sweet indolence that's immediately undercut by geranium's peppery bite and iris's cool, pencil-shaving character. Rose and jasmine emerge as supporting players rather than leads, contributing texture rather than drama to what becomes a delicately balanced green-floral tapestry.
The fragrance retreats considerably—and this is where its longevity score reveals itself as painfully honest. What remains is a whisper of sandalwood, dry oakmoss, and the faintest memory of that initial aldehydic snap, clinging close to the skin as a skin scent that rewards proximity but offers nothing to those standing at arm's length.
Calandre arrives as a paradox—a fragrance that announces itself with crisp aldehydic brightness yet refuses to perform. Michel Hy's 1990 composition is fundamentally a chypre in the classical tradition, but one that privileges luminosity over projection, making it feel more intimate than its positioning might suggest. The opening volley of aldehydes and bergamot collides with a distinctly green, almost leafy character that immediately grounds the composition in an earthy, slightly metallic territory—think crushed violet leaf rather than citrus candy.
What makes Calandre genuinely compelling is the tension between its sparkling top register and the voluptuous floral heart. Lily of the valley provides that telltale indolic sweetness, but it's tempered by a sharp geranium that cuts through like a blade, whilst the iris contributes a powdery, almost soapy minerality. This is where the scent reveals its true character: a green chypre with serious floral ambitions, but one that refuses sentimentality. The rose and jasmine don't bloom in the traditional romantic sense; instead, they exist in conversation with the green notes and geranium's peppery snap.
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4.0/5 (186)