Guerlain – L’Instant de Guerlain

Perfume: L’Instant de Guerlain
House: Guerlain
Perfumer: Maurice Roucel
Source: Beauty Encounter
Size: 1.4 mL spray

OsMoz Notes:
Top note : mandarin, bergamot
Middle note : magnolia, sambac jasmine, ylang-ylang, iris
Base note : vanilla, benzoin, musk, amber

Date: 3/17/08 Weather: 36 degrees, sunny

Comments: Starts very green and bitter. 5 minutes in, gets slightly woody and quite sour. The wrist sniff is unpleasant. The sillage, on the other hand, smells like a green, woody floral – heavy on clean white florals. Another one of those Guerlains that smell much nicer from a distance than up close. The vanilla begins to make an appearance in the sillage about 15 minutes in. 30 minutes in – get the woods and iris in the wrist sniff. The vanilla disappears in the sillage. 1 hour in – the wrist = iris and woods with a hint of vanilla, the sillage = Guerlinade + iris. 2.5 hours in – guerlinade and a slightly dusty sour note. More apparent on the sillage than on the wrist. There is just something in this one that does not want to cooperate with me.

Date: 7/23/08 Weather: 87 degrees, about to storm

Comments: The spray – greens, woods, jasmine. Then becomes green and woody sans flowers. My nose feels scoured. For some reason, I WANT to like this one, but just can’t bring myself to do so. After 30 minutes, amber, woods, a bit of vanilla, dusty flowers. The sour note when sniffed up close. Much much better after an hour. Iris, vanilla, sandalwood, amber. The Guerlainade. This is a wait out the top and heart scent.

Bois de Jasmin
Basenotes
Grace Finds Beauty
Makeup Alley
Ayala SmellyBlog
A Minx by Any Other Name
Pink Manhattan

~ by Wendy Wickham on March 17, 2008.