Created by Annick Goutal and Isabelle Doyen and launched in 1996, Grand Amour EDP is one of my favourite fragrances from Annick Goutal.

Inspired by the bouquets of white flowers her husband brought her each week when they were courting, Grand Amour was a tribute to her love for her husband and their happy life together.

On me, Grand Amour EDP opens with a fresh, vegetal note of floral hyacinth. It has a damp feel that makes me think of wet stems and a vase. The hyacinth is joined by a note of rich, spicy, sweet lily and nectarous honeysuckle. Together, this trio of heady white flowers creates the most gorgeous, intoxicating bouquet. As the white flowers settle, a lush, velvety Turkish rose comes forward. It brings romance to the mix and opens the gates to a heart of tart, honeyed broom that evokes the scent of orange blossom. It’s supported by a note of delicate, sweet mimosa, giving Grand Amour a powdery quality the French associate with sophistication. The jasmine aspect of honeysuckle at the opening links to a note of jasmine that’s sweet, narcotic, indolic and carnal. It adds passion to this love story. A note of leather balances the flowers and gives them depth. It all rests on a rich, sweet, and resinous base of amber, vanilla, and myrrh, warmed by sensual, smooth musk.

Grand Amour EDP progresses from green and floral to deep and warm, then dries down to a sultry, romantic, and sensual scent with a classic, vintage feel and that lovely Annick Goutal refinement.  

Grand Amour EDP has lasting power, just like all great loves, and while Annick Goutal’s love story isn’t my love story, her fragrance becomes my own when it blooms on my skin. 

Notes: Hyacinth lily, honeysuckle, Turkish rose, broom, mimosa, jasmine, leather, myrrh, vanilla, amber and white musks.