Estee Lauder: Jasmine White Moss

Tuberose Gardenia was the first of Aerin Lauder’s recent line of higher-priced and more exclusive fragrances for the Estee Lauder brand, and it is now the signature scent of and recurring birthday gift for my best friend, Becky, a revolutionary recruiter and human resources specialist in Orlando, Florida. The hot sun and southern heat bring out the glorious floral tones of the first entry in the Private Collection and keep Becky’s nose constantly glued to her wrist.

Next, 2008 witnessed the launch of the sweet, powdery Amber Ylang Ylang – when a bottle finally arrived at my doorstep, it instantly knocked my socks off. As a lover of all things sweet, oriental and powdery, I thought I had gone straight to heaven. Some say it’s too sweet, I just feel as if I’m being enveloped in exotic incense. When I heard there would be a 3rd launch, a fragrance both built around not one, but two different jasmine notes, and that had originally been conceived by Estee herself but never completed, I thought “this is just too much – my poor credit card!” 

You see, a trip to Cambodia a few years ago introduced me to jasmine in a way I had never really experienced it before. When I entered my hotel, the incredible Hotel de la Paix in Siem Reap, I was met with a bracelet of fresh jasmine petals. When I entered the elevator that took me to my 2nd floor room, there was a large sculptural bouquet of jasmine blossoms of all varieties perched on a table opposite the doors. As I walked down the deco-modern hallways past black and white photos of Angkor Wat, there were oil burners from which the aroma of jasmine emanated. And what do you think was gently placed on my pillow just moments before I entered my room? I enjoyed this luxury for five days in a row and now jasmine is my favorite floral aroma.

Before I continue, a quick word about the chypre family. I generally think of fragrances like Miss Dior, Ivoire de Balmain, or Chanel No 19 – sometimes green, sometimes earthy, sometimes completely not me. I like the sparkle and the verdant freshness of certain chypre aromas, but overall they feel like a thing of the past, retro, and not in an entirely good way.
When I received my bottle of Jasmine White Moss, the only idea in my head was jasmine blossoms combined with Acca Kappa’s White Moss Eau de Cologne. Boy was I off.

After spraying the fragrance for the first time onto my skin wile on vacation in Boca Raton, I was immediately transported back to the late 1970’s, early 1980’s a time when American stores like Burdines and A&S still existed. In short, I thought of Azuree, Anais Anais, Chanel No 19… Halston dresses, shoulder pads, and Aaron Spelling’s Dynasty. I was immediately disappointed. Where’s my bright, sweet, sometimes slightly dirty jasmine? This was no Acca Kappa sniffalike, it was, rather, a chypre!

I immediately dismissed the fragrance and decided to revisit it when in a different climate and when resigned to dismissing dangerous expectations of what I hoped a fragrance would be rather than getting to know it for what it actually is. Last week I pulled the bottle back out while at home in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and gave myself a full blast to the chest. Much to my surprise, I was enamored. The familiar associations did return, but this time I thought of those tiny galbanum blossoms, crushed and giving off their creamy, silky aroma, like a rush of cold air across a body on a hot afternoon.

I could detect the sunny bergamot, like drops of ice crystal water. I could enjoy the patchouli warming the scent from its depths. But it was not until hour #2 of its development that I actually found the jasmine in Jasmine White Moss. You see, the focus here is not so much to produce a jasmine scent as it is to build a fragrance around a jasmine accord. Once I understood this, I began to fall in love.

At a time when so many fragrances are quick launches pushed by celebrity names and gifts with purchase, I had forgotten what classic parfumerie was. I’m so used to a fragrance developing within 60 minutes and then drifiting off to forgotten-forever-land, I hadn’t taken the time to just let the fragrance develop on my skin.

Now I sit here, deep into hour #3 of today’s testing and I think I may have forgotten about all of those scents I earlier mentioned the fragrance reminding me of. Could the quality of this fragrance really be remarkable? Or could it be that in parfum version, a fragrance really does reveal its best assets? Or maybe, just maybe, it’s that Jasmine White Moss has me rethinking what I thought I knew about chypre and willing to step back into the ‘80’s.

Images: EsteeLauder, Kpjas

Author: Marlen Harrison
Guest writer

Creator and Editor of PerfumeCritic.com, Marlen Harrison was also author of Basenotes.com's ADDICTED column and one of the community's moderators. Marlen has been a regular contributor to NowSmellThis blog, BeautyAddictMag, and The Washington Blade. He is currently completing his PhD in English Composition and TESOL and teaches at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.