Terrasse à St-Germain – elegant and chic and personal

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The story goes like this…

Julien Blanchard, globe-trotting biologist, inventor, and entrepreneur, meets Madalina Stoica, a graduate of the Cosmetics and Fragrances Marketing program at the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC and traveler in Paris, on the terrace of a café in St-Germain. It is a true "coup de foudre" that has changed both their lives, and mine, too, since they launched their perfume house Jul et Mad in 2012.

There has been a lot of buzz around this line – on blogs, in perfume shops in Paris and NYC – but hype can sometimes be just that…hype. In the case of Jul et Mad Paris, the buzz is warranted. My current favourite in the line is Terrasse à St-Germain. It's part of their  “Histoire d’Amour” collection, where each fragrance was inspired by a different aspect of Jul et Mad’s love story. 

Terrasse à St-Germain is the scent expression of their first meeting. The Jul et Mad website describes it as: "A perfume as elegant as it is sophisticated. The composition amazes by the complexity of the splendid wood and musk accord, which gracefully embraces its initial freshness.  This perfume incarnates the portrait of a perfect duality: classical and modern at the same time, masculine and feminine, strangely familiar but, nevertheless, of a rare originality… A veritable “coup de foudre” between two souls on the terrace of a Parisian café…

It opens with sour grapefruit and tart rhubarb sweetened by tangerine. It’s not a citrus fruity blast so much as a fresh and sparkling opening that makes you take notice. Now that it has your attention, Terrasse à St-Germain moves to a floral heart of freesia, lotus flower and rose - soft, gentle and alluring. At the base, warm, skin-like musk is suede-soft and feels like a lover's warm embrace. Creamy sandalwood adds woodiness while patchouli adds depth. It's the perfect counterpoint to the floral heart so that neither the ‘feminine’ flowers nor the ‘masculine’ base dominate, making one new love out of two souls.

A “coup de foudre,” for all the drama of a bolt of lightning suggests, happens quietly between two people and can grow into a deep, long-lasting love. This is the arc that Terrasse à St-Germain takes. It is an exciting, unexpected, fresh start to a fragrance that evolves into a sensuous, unisex skin scent that's elegant, chic and personal. 

Check out Terrasse à St-Germain in our Shop.