Ode à l’amour Yves Rocher
Ode à l’amour by Yves Rocher is a Oriental Vanilla fragrance for women. Ode à l’amour was launched in 2001. Top notes are Plum, Black Currant and Apple; middle notes are Plum, Rock rose and Ylang-Ylang; base notes are Sandalwood, Amber and Vanilla.
An ode is a poem or prose piece that praises someone or something. In the early twenty-first century, Yves Rocher launched four perfumes (and a few flankers) that truly surpassed the quality and style of most direct marketing companies and attempted to embody these four very elusive ideals. The man started his company in 1956 by selling homemade celandine cream door-to-door and giving away a free gift to anyone who bought something from him. He turned this grassroots business into an empire that is still thriving today. YR is one of (if not the) most popular natural cosmetics companies in Europe, and customers are still given gifts of varying degrees with every purchase. Comme une Evidence is the second-best-selling perfume in France, behind only Chanel No. 5. Mr. Rocher died in 2008, but he left behind a remarkable legacy. This line, like many others, is now discontinued, but it’s worth seeking out…
Ode au Reve (or “Ode to Dreams”) is my favorite of the four. The hypnotic top notes of sandalwood and cedar envelop you from the first spray, while the whisper of night jasmine teases and enchants. The heart of gurjun balsam (an East Indian tree resin) and labdanum (a mountain rose resin) adds a truly fairy-tale mystical feel, very incense-rich and exotic, and the gorgeous jasmine unfolds. The final base of smoky yet transparent vanilla and musk creates something infinitely unique and sensual. It was released as an eau de toilette; however, my personal favorite is the concentrated Elixir de Parfum. This limited edition (available for a short time in 2005) combines sandalwood and rose leaves in the top notes with moss absolute and vanilla in the heart, resulting in something stronger and softer, but also more pungent. The base of Elxir is simply white jasmine sambac, more floral than the Eau de Toilette, but infinitely deeper. Both perfumes are dreamlike, where even the construction of the fragrance is turned upside down and made surreal. Reve is definitely the most “masculine” of the four, but this perfume smells great on both men and women!
Ode a La Vie (or “Ode to Life”) is a celebration of growing greenery and a hymn to Nature herself. The opening notes, combining rich galbanum resin and the ethereal aquatic note of bamboo, illustrate how nature is both strong and powerful, yet refined and elegant. Heart notes of violet leaf, cyclamen (Persian violet), and water lily evoke the feeling of being in a wooded clearing by a quiet pond, surrounded by delicate flowers, aquatic plants, and lush vegetation. This scent is green and transparent, but not too aquatic or watery. A subtle finish of Virginia cedar and sandalwood with a hint of pure musk enhances the “forest feeling” without becoming too woody or harsh. La Vie is definitely the most Zen-like of the four scents, and will appeal to those who love fresh, floral scents, and for me it reminds me of a quiet bamboo forest, babbling streams, and quiet, contemplative walks in nature. Despite its floral heart, this fragrance is a completely unisex fragrance and elegant in its simplicity. A perfume image of nature, embodying its grandeur and power, without ever becoming “too much” or unobtrusive.
Ode to Joy (or Ode to Joy) could be described as a “fruity floral,” but it’s so much more. It combines citrus (bergamot, mandarin, and lime) with tangy pineapple and juicy peach nectar, creating something juicy, delicious, and refreshing at the same time. Bright and sparkling, yet juicy and rich, it gracefully dances on the fine line between fruity sweetness and sharp lemon, giving it a light… even cheerful feel. As the heart notes unfold, ethereal (almost transparent) jasmine and delicate Casablanca lily intertwine hand in hand, adding a pure floral aspect to the fruit and creating the feeling of the sun shining on your face. If the sun had a “scent,” this would be it for me. Warm, sweet, bright and energetic, “Joie” makes me want to take off my shoes and run barefoot on the grass, eat summer fruits and let the juice run down my chin. The finale here is a rather powdery (dry) musk, cedar and what YR calls a “sunny note”. I don’t know what they used here, but they managed, at least for me, to convey the “feel” of summer and sun in a bottle. This scent is indeed sweet, but never becomes cloying or sugary. Soon the flowers fade, all the fruits are eaten and the sun sets on another day. The cedar still holds that warmth, close to the skin, when all is said and done. For me it is a real pleasure to wear it in eau de toilette form. In the spring of 2006, YR released an Eau d’Ete version with the same notes in a more “transparent” formula (and matte bottle) without the alcohol. It is not as sweet as the Eau de Toilette, but it is just as wonderful, and it will appeal to those who like lighter and less harsh perfumes of this type.
And last but not least: Ode a L’Amour (“Ode to Love”). Amour is the most feminine of the four; it consists of initial notes of crisp apple seasoned with Sichuan pepper. It combines the wonderful feeling of being in love with fresh fruits with hints of intriguing spices, reflecting emotions, partly innocent, partly “naughty”. When the heart beats faster (as it does when a person is in love), warmer, fuller, fleshy fruits such as prunes and Mirabelle plums emit a juicy and seductive aroma. Without using real “floral” notes (in the Eau de Parfum), this perfume evokes a feeling of romance, walking on air and the perfect “head-to-head” love. A perfume dedicated to love and its splendor, without roses, but still truly defining its essence?? Incredible! It finishes with warm notes of golden amber and sweet musk.
Also released was Elixir de Parfum (in 2005), which removed the apple in favor of black cherry blossoms and pepper in the top notes, leaving the innocent Mirabelle plum in favor of a darker damson and adding in the heady luxury of ylang-ylang. The amber still lingered in the aftertaste, but this time with a bergamot resin as opposed to musk. Elixir, at least to me, was what a geisha smells like. It was oriental, luxurious and full of mystery and mysticism. Two other flankers for the same composition were also released.
“Tenderment” was more gourmand and focused more on the sweet innocence of love and how it blossoms.
“Passionement” is more focused on the spice of love, its secret pleasures and its consummation. Both were released for Valentine’s Day and were only available as 30ml EDT bottles. Love has inspired more than anything else throughout human history, so it’s perhaps fitting that L’Amour has the most flankers and has lasted longer than any other ode.
All the bottles in this line are gorgeous. They resemble pebbles or stones and lie quite ergonomically in the hand. Each one is perfectly matched in color: pink for love, blue for dreams, yellow for joy and green for life. The sprays are capless, and each has “shoulders” on the bottle (in the sprays) a darker shade than the juice. Each has a thumb rest on the front of the glass. They all have a silver nameplate on the front and sit on flat backs. The elixirs come in metallic iridescent opaque bottles. The splashes are clear glass with tight-fitting plastic stoppers. This is the most prominent line of perfumes. Almost niche in the way they are presented and “feel”, eloquent in the way they embody inspiration, and aesthetically pleasing on every level.
