Launched in 1981, Eau d'Hadrien by Annick Goutal has become the quintessential summer fragrance.

Inspired by Belgian writer Marguerite Yourcenar's 1951 novel, "Les Mémoires d'Hadrien" about the about the life and death of Roman Emperor Hadrian. The novel was a huge success, and Annick Goutal, a fan of the book, wanted to create a fragrance that evoked the timeless freshness of a Mediterranean citrus grove.

Eau d’Hadrien EDP 2007, opens with a zesty, effervescent note of juicy fresh lemon. The freshness and trueness of the lemon note here are mouthwatering and speak to the quality of the ingredients used here. A note of fragrant, bitter citron appears. Cultivated since ancient times, citron was the first of the citrus fruits to appear in the Mediterranean basin, its appearance here is a nod to the ancient world of Emperor Hadrian. Grapefruit, fruitier than the citron, extends the bitterness, but softens it too as it blends into a gentle floral sweetness – I smell ylang-ylang – that counterbalances the bitterness so that the citrus freshness shines. It’s here that I get Goutal’s signature rose note, like a valentine hidden in the citrus grove, it adds another floral facet to the fragrance. As it develops, Tuscan cypress, woody, earthy and camphorous, comes forward and gives Eau d’Hadrien the smell of warm skin - male or female.

The drydown is refined and graceful, an olfactory expression of walking through a citrus grove on a sunny day – the citrus fruits, some flowers, the smell of sun-warmed skin. But it is the lemon! Vibrant at the start, it fades but never disappears.

My love for this fragrance and the pleasure it gives me has never waned.

Notes: Sicilian lemon, citron, grapefruit, ylang-ylang, rose, Tuscan cypress.