Perfume Review: Caron N'Aimez Que Moi and Alpona

Review by Tom Two more in the four-part Caron fest: N'Aimez Que Moi I can almost see how someone casually sniffing this one might actually drop the dreaded "Old Lady" bomb-that is if the roses and violets didn't smell so heartwrenchingly true to the flowers. For me, the violets take a backseat to the cabbage-rose accord, rounding it nicely out. There's also a tiny whiff of citrus: this is a sunny summer in an English garden. Does Caron have a patent on this rose? Or et Noir had it as well in it's demure drydown, this one starts with it. As it moves on, the violets and lilacs start coming in, as the scent becomes more of a classic chypre, with a woody and surprisingly carnal finish. I can see why it's a classic, and I can also see why some modern noses would dismiss it. I guess I'm not a modern nose. Alpona What a difference 20 years makes! Unlike the graceful N'Aimez Que Moi, Alpona starts off with a surge of candied and liquored citrus worthy of any niche house open today. I also smell quite a bit of musk among the hesperides as well as bergamot. Thyme and Myrrh join into the middle, reminding me very much of Yatagan (now how bad could that be?) before finally settling down to that rich Caron base. Yatagan is still in there: muted and refined but still with a touch of the savage. I'd buy this in a heartbeat Next time: the last of my Caron samples, ones from my lifetime, Montaigne and Eau de Réglisse. Image source, okadi.com.