Chypre Mousse by Maison Oriza L. Legrand

January 13, 2014 by The Scented Hound 18 Comments

WHAT I SMELL: Chypre Mousse opens with a moistened mushroomed note mixed with dirt and earth. There’s an undercurrent of mint, but overall the earthiness reigns as it smells like you just unearthed the fresh moss from the forest. After around five minutes the greener aspects of Chypre Mousse move aside for a dryer sage and oak moss, yet there still remains an undercurrent of mint and it’s moving more towards spearmint. The fragrance starts to dull (when I mean dull, I don’t mean that it’s boring, I mean that it begins to flatten) and moves toward a layer of minty earth that is being dried by peaks of the sun. After around 20 minute or so, a slight tobacco note comes into play adding to the drying effect. Moving along, the tobacco note seems to become a bit sweeter and a bit more balmy and at this point the fragrance begins to hug your skin. In the end Chypre Mousse becomes a faintly mintish and rather herbaceous earthy fragrance that has some surprising longevity and projection.

From the Maison Oriza L. Legrand website:

After the first rainfall in September nature exude scents of humus, peat and wetland.

This is the time for a promenade in the woods to enjoy the freshness after the heat of summer.

Autumn encourages us to contemplate, to observate nature that gently prepares us for the coming winter and its frostbite.

The mossy paths, precious jewels of the undergrowth, are brightened by the last rays of sun.

Cyprus-Moss evokes in us our surrounding nature which soon will be covered by the first fall of snow.

Smell of damp undergrowth of scorched leaves and the scent of moss before picking mushrooms and chestnuts.

Chypre-Mousse, a Fragrance of the House Oriza L. Legrand launched in 1914 for the dandies of this world!

Top Notes tonic & balsamic: Wild mint, clary sage, wild fennel & green shoots.

Heart notes aromatic & flowing properties: Oakmoss, Galbanum, Angelica, fern, wild clover, Mastic & Violet leaves.

Backgrounds Notes mossy & leathery: Vetiver, Pine Needles, Oak Moss, Mushroom fresh Humus, Roasted Chestnut Leather, labdanum & Balms.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: What I envision a medieval perfume would smell like from the local apothecary; herbaceous and earthy.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE CHYPRE MOUSSE: ancient, earthy, medicinal

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT CHYPRE MOUSSE: Kafkaseque, The Silver Fox, The Alembicated Genie

BOTTOM LINE: I could not wait to get my hands on this when the wonderful Kafkaseque sent me a sample. I am a sucker for a chypre and I knew that I would love this too. How surprised I was when I found this to be interesting, but not something that I would ever wear. In fact, after putting some on and starting my review, I went to the gym and found that the fragrance mixed my body heat magnified the medicinal qualities of the fragrance almost making me nauseous. I was trying to figure out what was in the composition that was bothering me the most and I found that here is a tinge of a “Ben Gay” in Chypre Mousse that really is off-putting. I will say thought that I LOVE that bottle!

Bone Rating: 2.5 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Chypre
Nose: Hugh Spencer
Classification: Unisex
Expense: 120 Euros for 100ml EdP from the Maison Oriza L. Legrand website