Vanilla is arguably the most popular scent and flavour in the world. Universally appreciated as a global delicacy, it is warm, uplifting and synonymous with generosity and pleasure – how could it not be popular?
Popular, yes. But simple? Not necessarily. Vanilla – or, more specifically Bourbon vanilla – makes the heart of the newly launched Althaïr scent from the refined Haute Parfumerie, Parfums de Marly.
Founded by Julien Sprecher, the maison has made a name for itself by respecting French savoir-faire, but also pushing its audacious compositions to go against the grain. Althaïr was created by Sprecher in close collaboration with the perfumers Hamid Merati-Kashani and Ilias Ermenidis, pushing the limits of what a gourmand vanilla-based scent could be.
The scent is a pronounced contrast between warm ingredients and a sensation of freshness; an interplay of affinities and dissimilarities; a blend of high perfumery’s traditional notes and disruptive molecules – in essence it is quintessentially a Parfums de Marly fragrance, and it is glorious.