Created in 1912 by perfumer, Jacques Guerlain, L’Heure Bleue takes its name from the French expression for the distinctive blue quality of the light at twilight – that time of day just before nightfall or dawn, when one part of the day ends but before another begins. This was Guerlain’s favourite time of day and a mood he wanted to capture in L’Heure Bleue Eau de Parfum.

L’Heure Bleue is a true perfume masterpiece, especially the eau de parfum concentraion - plush, lush, warm and powdery and succeeds at capturing the mood of twilight that many reviewers refer to the frag as “sad” or “melancholy”.

But time marches on and L’Heure Bleue has been reformulated. Truth is, I prefer the newer model. Somehow they seem to have taken some of the sadness, but none of the beauty, out of this mood evoking scent.

It opens with fresh, citrusy bergamot and the licorice sweetness of aniseed. Sigh. I feel happy already! At the heart, carnation gives it a floral note, along with a warm spiciness from the clove aspect of the flower. It also rounds out the neroli by taming its harsh bitterness. Iris and violet heighten the floral aspects and also add a powderiness, that adds it depth but doesn’t age the fragrance. It’s the drydown that makes me reach for the defibrillator – all of this rests on a base of sweet, exotic vanilla, resinous, balsamy benzoin and Tonka bean with its chocolate/vanilla duality.

The result is a rich, refined, romantic fragrance with a warm sensuality which still evokes that tender time of day, that hush, when the world trembles on the brink of a new dawn or a new night, only this version seems less weighed down by the past without that heavy mood of melancholy.

Notes: bergamot, aniseed, carnation, neroli, iris, violet, vanilla, benzoin and tonka bean.