True story: I got my bottle of L’Heure Bleue (edt) in a swap for my D&G Light Blue. I liked Light Blue enough but it always smelled a bit generic to me and I found that I never really wanted to reach for it. L’Heure Bleue I wear all the time, I find it so easy to wear, but not like how sweatpants are easy, more like how my favourite dress is easy. It looks good AND it feels good on.

The anise note in the opening makes it perfect for hot sticky summer days. Anise seeds are cooling by nature and Indian people always have them lying on little dishes around their houses as breath fresheners, it’s in a little jar in our spice cabinets, and it flavors summer chai. Eating anise is as cooling as chewing a stick of peppermint gum, and the anise in L’Heure Bleue cuts through the heat. The middle is a Guerlain-esque blend of carnation, rose, neroli, and a soft cloud of powder envelopes it all. I always hear about the drydown of vanilla and tonka but the edt never gets there on me, or maybe the vanilla is so dry and almost imperceptible. The EDT is still my favourite way to wear this perfume.

My bottle is from the 80’s… but Guerlain has these in new modern bottles as part of the Legendaires collection and they’re at counters, easy enough to find online, and not that expensive (less than $100 when they’re on sale).

If you’re looking for a grown-up summer perfume that’s not Light Blue, it’s perfect.