Monday 27 March 2017

BELLE - The New Fragrance From Worth

When a fragrance company launches a new perfume it is always met with interest from the press and the public, but when it's the first new release for eleven years then the expectations are even higher. To coincide with the smash hit film Beauty and the Beast, Parfums Worth have released BELLE, a fresh floral which they describe as "effortlessly feminine, romantic, playful and chic". Could this be the company's chance to re-establish itself in the minds of a new generation of customers and add a new fragrance to the stable of Dans La Nuit and Je Reviens? Let's see if this fairytale has a happy ending.

When Pierre Bourdon created Courtesan for Parfums Worth in 2006 it was a follow up to his wonderful recreation of Je Reviens in 2004. For too long Je Reviens had existed in a highly adulterated form but the company's new owner, Dilesh Mehta, wanted the formula restored. Je Revien Couture was the result and is said to be as close to the original as possible. His next creation, Courtesan, was meant to build upon this success but unfortunately it failed to ignite the public's imagination. A beautiful gourmand, similar to Guerlain's Coquin, it is still available and well worth hunting out.

Dilesh Mehta also owns Jean Patou and so the assumption had always been that Thomas Fontaine would be responsible for Parfum Worth's future output, but in the case of BELLE it has gone to Firmenich's Honorine Blanc. Honorine's credits are wide and varied with creations for YSL, Diesel and Estée Lauder, but she summed up her love of fragrance by saying "perfume creates a world where your senses can float". Taking inspiration from the story's magical rose, Honorine wanted to give the new fragrance a slightly wilder quality as a nod towards the "headstrong" character of Belle. Let's see if she succeeds.

The fragrance opens with a fruity citrus mix of grapefruit and redcurrant. There is freshness in there from the bergamot but it doesn’t go into the territory of sharpness. The heart of the fragrance though is where Honorine’s “rose sauvage” appears. The rose blends perfectly with the pink pepper to give an edginess, and stop it becoming twee, but the peony and lily of the valley notes are what really seem to elevate it. This lively mix of florals sits beautifully on the skin and creates something that is, at the same time, both feminine and “headstrong”. The support in BELLE comes from one of Honorine’s favourite ingredients, ambrette seed. It provides a skin-soft musk quality and, in this creation, really showcases the delicate woodiness that you also get from ambrette.

BELLE is a beautiful creation and deserves to be a success because its "simplicity" hides a carefully constructed perfume that will appeal to all ages. With packaging designed to look like a hollowed out book it launches on April 1st 2017 as an Eau de Parfum and is priced at £72 for 60ml. For more information you can visit the Parfums Worth website at worthparis.com/belle

If you would like to know more about Les Parfums Worth then you can also click here to read the article I wrote back in June 2015 called LA MAISON WORTH EST DE RETOUR.

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