Launched in 1998 by French niche line Nicolaï Parfumeur Createur, formerly known as Parfums de Nicolaï, Rose Pivoine is, according to their website  “A rose and peony explosion in a green June garden!” any time of year.

 
It opens with soft, citrusy bergamot balanced with a gentle, sweet, fruity note of apricot. Right off the top, it’s light, elegant and feminine. A sweet, tart red fruit accord is here too. It’s a smell I always associate with spring/summer scents, and I'm happy when I find it here. Roman chamomile, a member of the daisy family, adds an herbaceous green dimension to the fragrance. It also has sweet and fruity aspects that bridge the opening to a fresh, fragrant heart of Bulgarian rose and Bourbon geranium that dominate the fragrance and create a rose/peony effect. The surprise here is how light the rose is. It’s not a deep, heavy, diva rose – but a light, wafting rose that's casual and elegant. At the base, ambrette seeds make it musky and vegetal as black pepper warms it up.

The drydown is floral, fresh and a little spicy. Rose Pivoine is pretty much a soliflore – it doesn’t evolve much and feels like the rose/peony accord is surrounded by other notes as opposed to being transformed by them. In many ways, that’s one of the things I like most about it.

Notes: bergamot, apricot, red fruits, Roman chamomile, Bulgarian rose, Bourbon geranium, ambrette seeds, black pepper.