Ulric de Varens Varensia Eau de Parfum, Dames, 50 ml

I bought this fragrance after reading Fragrantica reviews while looking for something green and fresh, not overly fruity-floral or too sweet. So excited when it arrived, I absolutely HATED it upon first sprays. Getting hit in the face with 80s aldehydes reminded me of being plunked in front of MTV at my old babysitter’s house as a second grader, forced to watch age-inappropriate music videos while she chainsmoked and tried to cover it up with some awful soapy 80s perfume. This one was a macerator for me. I’d ignore it for the “good occasions” and instead put it on when I went places I didn’t care about, like to run errands. Much to my surprise, I’d get complimented on it everywhere I went. But when the aldehydes wear off, there was something intriguing about it… cinnamon-y and watery at the same time, with a touch of powdery musk but overall indefinable.Turns out, this is basically the chypre genre as a whole: complex. Chypres open with some sort of a fresh note, either citrus (like bergamot), green (like fir) or possibly even marine or ozonic; then open up to either a fruity or a floral (or both) heart; then dry down to a mossy, earthy base. The most complex ones, like Varensia, add in some spice and powder for good effect. It’s a classic “everything-but-the-kitchen-sink” type formulation where, when well-blended and well-balanced you end up with something that is delightfully some of all the things without being too much of any of them. Overall, a mystery in a bottle.What I grew to love about Varensia was that it keeps this watery freshness throughout and just smells CLEAN but not in a juvenile, boring or laundry detergent way. The fruits are there to warm it up but I don’t smell fruitiness… I don’t get a lot of floral notes either, they blend in so well. There is a spiciness that also stays with you and the contrast between the spice and the aquatic feel isn’t something I’ve ever experienced before in a fragrance. Varensia feels expensive and casual at the same time. Each note is indiscernible individually but blends perfectly into a fragrance that is worlds apart from almost everything in its class. It easily competes with chypres that are more than double its price. I’m halfway through my current bottle and ordering another.

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