Launched in 2015 by Monsillage, perfumer Isabelle Michaud’s Montréal-based niche fragrance line, Eau de Céleri is a gorgeous fragrance. The surprise is that Ms. Michaud is allergic to celery. She wrote me saying that “a certain longing for something that I can't have may have heightened my sensitivity to the celery notes and kept it interesting to me as a subject of desire for a perfume creation.”

Eau de Céleri opens crisp and green from coriander leaf, galbanum and cut grass with a citrus vibrancy from bergamot, lemon and grapefruit. It’s fresh, bright and herbal – like celery. There actually isn’t any celery in the fragrance. The celery note comes from a molecule found in jasmine oil that smells a lot like celery. As it blooms, a heart of floral buds comes forward, adding a beautiful floral quality to the fragrance so that it doesn’t smell like a vegetable. On me, there are whiffs of anise that break through and add a perfect sweetness. Citrusy, verdant vetiver is at the base, right alongside sweet, dark patchouli. These two give it an earthiness and a woodiness that is accented with cedarwood.

The drydown is vibrant, elegant and light, with that celery effect lingering for hours. The surprise is how weightless it is, despite the heavy-sounding notes at the base. I can see myself going through bottles of this as the weather warms.

Notes: coriander leaf, Galbanum, cut grass, bergamot, lemon, grapefruit, flower buds, jasmine, vetiver, patchouli and cedarwood.