Thursday, April 12, 2007

Menard L'eau de Kasaneka


The bottle, designed by the famous painter Shozo Shimada, beckoned me initially. I thought to myself, “How could a scent with such a gorgeous bottle be anything less than gorgeous?” So into my shopping cart a sample went as I tried to get my hands on something new to review. This scent accompanied me through my arduous day today. And when I needed a diversion, I sniffed my wrist. The juice did not disappoint.

Similar to Chanel No. 18, this fragrance contains ambrette seed. However, with the addition of many other notes, the ambrette in this one becomes somewhat faint and distant. I must say I strongly dislike this scent for the first full five minutes. On my skin, basil creates a fragrance that I simply abhor and I am sure you would also. I could not distinguish exactly what it was, so I kept thinking of it as “eau de body odor.” However, this is easy to get around with a little faith and trust that it will pass, because it does. Like a flower blooming into beauty, this fragrance unfolds slowly and delicately, and at full bloom it becomes soft, mysterious, and sexy. Rose plays a prominent role, with citrus, carnation and jasmine a close second. The spices remain in the distant background. Sandalwood, vanilla and musk provide that mysterious, furtive quality that renders this scent a bombshell. Beauty is sometimes fleeting, flowers die and youth fades. So does this scent, but it does so softly, to a musky, woodsy base for the remainder of the day. L'eau de Kasaneka is a unique floriental and quite different from most I have tried.

At its price point, I would purchase L'eau de Kasaneka in a New York minute for opulent evenings, provocative candlelit dinners and long, slow dances. And that bottle! It definitely matches the liquid within.

Notes: Hamanasu (Japanese Rose), Basil, Ginger, Nutmeg, Cardamom, Bergamot, Orange, Carnation, Heliotrope, Jasmine, Ambrette Seed (Hibiscus Family), Sandalwood, Vetiver, Cedar, Vanilla, Musk

Menard L'eau de Kasaneka can be purchased at www.luckyscent.com. A 50mL bottle retails for $54.
Image source: luckyscent.com

2 comments:

chayaruchama said...

A great price for the jus !

And fabulous jus it is, for the price.

Hope you and the mater familias are well, and had a good Easter.
MWAH !

ForTheLoveOfPerfume said...

:-) Mater familias are much better and we had a wonderful holiday. I hope you're well also.

L'eau de Kasaneka is a rarity for sure. Very interesting, provocative scent.

xo,
T.