Shalimar EDP – exotic and opulent and enduring

My husband and I were invited to a formal dinner party this past weekend. It was a mix of business and pleasure - a chance to catch up with old colleagues and an opportunity to get to know new ones better. This was definitely a pearls and LBD affair, which made me think hard about what fragrance to wear. I wanted something elegant, refined and feminine – something unforgettable. It didn’t take me long to decide on Shalimar Eau de Parfum by Guerlain.

A Guerlain masterpiece, Shalimar has a long history and a great story. Shalimar was created by Jacques Guerlain in 1921 and was inspired by the legendary love story of Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan’s love for Mumtaz-Mahal, his third and favourite wife.

They were a real love match and had a very happy marriage that ended when Mumtaz-Mahal died in child birth with their fourteenth child. Shah Jahan was inconsolable with grief after her death. 

As a symbol of his love and devotion for Mumtaz-Mahal, Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal in her memory. He also built the Garden of Shalimar in Lahore, Pakistan in her honour. It is the garden, with its canals, fountains, trees and fragrant plants that gives its name to the scent.

And what a scent it is. A sparkling opening of lemon and bergamot lead to a floral heart of exotic jasmine and opulent rose made irresistibly seductive by rooty iris. Creamy vanilla at the base is warmed by Peru balsam and resinous opoponax – they curb the sweetness too so that it is never gets cloying, but instead becomes a dark, rich sweetness that counterbalances the sparkling citrus at the top. This is what makes it so enduring. The drydown is sweetly smoky, resinous, unctuous, long-wearing; it may be indelible in your memory already.

The dinner party was good fun and as my husband and I lay in bed going over the evening - talking about the food, the wine, the gossip - he leaned in and told me I smelled terrific. To wear Shalimar is to feel beloved.

Check out Shalimar EDP in our Shop.