Krasnaya Moskva Novaya Zarya for women

I don't agree with the previous comment! This perfume is rather tender and comfortable! Very gentle!

It seems to me that krasnaya moskva is chanel n. 5 grandmother. The same feminine touch, the same floral intoxication, the same allure. But old style. I have a vintage bottle of it from russia and I love it. But it needs time to warm up and give its best. The first sniff can be disgusting. Wear it and wait. It will speak of fur collars, old shops, beauty.

My oh my..
This is truly unique, even the cheaper reformulated new version.
I actually feel guilty for liking it, I like to dab a a tiny drop on my temples as aromatherapy before going to sleep, this way I can shake my head and I'm enveloped in this spicy (I guess it's very potent coriander), creamy and dusty sweetness. It does smell expensive to me. But not as expensive as chanels I love to be able to pull it off in the public.
Living in a post-soviet country I know that this fragance is a synonim of a stinky granny perfume to everyone. (with non offence to granny perfumes, I'm a fan of most of them that are considered granny) So I'm just having it for the collection to sniff it now and then. But I guess I'd never be able to wear it in public, oh god I'd better wear ELDO Secretions Magnifiques :)

I know this fragrance from my grandma; she brought some from Russia in the seventies.
It had a strong smell of sour cherry preserve, a generous load of REAL ambergris and some carnation thrown in. It sure had not even the slightest hint of the other notes shown in the Perfume Pyramid.
Nice, but heavy. Absolutely oldfashioned even in the '70.

I sampled a tiny decant of what I assumed a vintage edition from the Soviet era. Thanks Matusha! It is nothing short of brilliant and as masterful as one may imagine. It was commissioned around 1915 for the Czarina Alexandra by Maison Guerlain in France. I am sure it had been changed over the years, yet how can you go wrong with something so special? Gaging from the passionate emotion it causes, it carries all the dreams of so many ladies who wore it and all of those who remembered it.

It seems rather bold with lots ylang, carnation, red rose and jasmine. Its is a chypre floral. Where has I smelled this before? Its no fault of its own, yet the current Paloma Picasso EDP is a dead ringer for this now lost classic. The old version wasnt so obvious. It happened by accident, really. The current regulation against oakmoss allows PPs floral heart to surface accidentally paying tribute to KM! Yes, it lives on. Thankfully. I wonder if anyone else has noticed the similarities?

I know this perfume very well. This scent comes from my childhood. My grandmother used it all the time and my father just hated this perfume. I can't say I like it, it was too heavy for me that time.
Now trying to restore in my memory this perfume I can say that dominating notes are carnation for sure, plus also very strong note of iris and a bit less of vanilla.
Association - my grandmother!
In the Soviet Union a carnation was a symbol of revolution. You could always see people with mostly red carnations on May and November demostrations. There was even a song: "Red carantion - anxiety companion..." As for me "Krasnaya Moskva" is nothing but a "Red Moscow", never beatiful. Something revolutionary and heavy.
But I can't exclude a possibility that one may like it. A lot of people liked this perfume in Russia. I could have never imagined there are so many people who like the perfume now beyond the Russian borders.

I’ve never thought I would love very cheap Russian fragrance. I heard about Krasnaya Moskva in my childhood, but I’ve forgot it. Not long ago I bought it and was shocked. Krasnaya Moskva is truly gorgeous! Yes, it has cologne base and it’s old-fashioned, but very dear to my heart! I can’t analyze all the notes, to me Krasnaya Moskva is a complete composition. I smell carnations and iris powder, strong and soft at the same time. The scent is impressive, long-lasting and it went down in history of my country!

WOW. I didn't realize that this is quite known in the US! My mom always had it in her arsenal of perfumes during the Soviet Union times. I guess they didn't make that many fragrances, especially good ones at that time, so it was considered the top of the line. I really cant remember how it smells....but we still call today's stinkers " Red Moscow". It must be very memorable to Russians and Ukrainians for its outrageous power. LOL

My dear Mum gave it to me.. I never use it, but often i do open the bottle to smell the fragrance.. So many memories..
Mum, i miss you so much

The new Miss Dior should bow in front
of the old Krasnaya Moskva.
Truck it down!
Chypre as it should be loud
bald intoxicating.

IMHO, modern Krasnaya Moskva quit similar to Cuir Mauresque Serge Lutens.

waw i didn't realise I had this bottle. I underestimated it as an old vintage, cologne smelling fragrance. And now I understand it's a great fragrance, so high couture and similar to a guerlain of the best times. Round and strong, with an acid note that makes it strange and intriguing. Lovely discovery!

Fit for an Empress, for sure, Moscow Red is absolutely amazing! I have no idea what Russia smells like, but if this is any indication; it's severe and beautiful! Red is definitely the color of this scent with tinges of golden shimmer...

This begins with a bitter bergamot and dry corriander alongside a powdery neroli. Some say medicinal, I say sharp and strong. The heart is just splendid with the oily carnation and its spicy floralcy beside lush ylang and its soft sexy scent; as the heart opens the top quiets and blends into the middle not unlike the spoonful of sugar to make the "medicine" go down. The rose and jasmine twine together to make something romantic, but still serious and down to earth. The finish on this is warm as well. I always thought Moscow would be cold; but, I guess that is Siberia! Ultimately, it is smoother than the opening and less flowery than the heart. Iris adds a powderiness and the vanilla is smooth but not sweet or overly gourmand, and the tonka is slightly oriental; though this is very much a chypre. Elegant, strong and proud this is no fainting frilly thing, but a beautiful classic vintage and may be worn by babushkas, but don't let those old ladies fool you! They live longer than their men and it's for a reason-they are hard, but loving, and they perservere just like Krasnaya Moskva has...for over 75 years!

Sillage: great
Longevity: awesome
Overall: 4.25/5

When I was a little boy and the cousins and other grandkids were playing, I was always on my Gunda's knee. I have always felt more at ease, even as a child, around the older adults. This may be a granny scent, but you can learn a lot from a grandmother. They should be treasured, and not pushed aside or forgotten because they are old! You can never really be sure how long you will have them in your life. Remember that age=wisdom, Moscow Red is beautiful just as it is...and I wouldn't change a single thing!

*Eva: thank you so much for this very wonderful piece of history. I will (and do) treasure it!!!*

Think about the children
Telepathic sprouts
Think about the girls
Blind, inexact
Think about the women
Changed routes
Think about the hurts
How warm roses
But oh, don't forget
Rose, rose
Soviet rose
The hereditary rose
The radioactive rose
Stupid and invalid
The rose with cirrhosis
The anti-atomic rose
No color, no perfume
No rose, no nothing.

(Adapted from Vinicíus de Moraes poem).

*VickaLena: thx u for all my life. A unique experience! Without you, I would never know how is walk through the Soviet's past lane.

It isn't like Opium at all, being more of a big powerful floral scent, with much less incense or vanilla. It does have a strong powdery vanilla base. (see reviews here for good examples of how it smells on other people.) You can find it on russ-sell.com or markys.com. Good luck!

To sfonativeboy: yes, "krasnaya" means not only "red", it means "beautiful" or "nice" too.
As "Krasnaya ploshad" is not only "Red Square".
In russian language there is the expression "krasna devitsa", that is have to be translated not as "red girl" but as "beautiful girl".
So you right - it may be "Beautiful Moscow". But as we know - this name to scent was given not faraway off revolution 1917, so in this case, I suppose, it means namely "Red Moscow".

Well..
I'm not Russian ... but I do love Fragrances with History ...
this one caught my attention ...
Krasnaya Moskva also known as RED MOSCOW

a friend told me that Krasnaya has a dble meaning .. "Beautiful"
which makes more sense to me
..."Beautiful Moscow"

This is
a gentle, fleshy, quiet, luxurious fragrance that one can wear any day, anywhere.
It reminds me alot of Caron's Bellodgia
but without the Clove.
A spicy Carnation with a woody vanilla base

I read that the reviews that this Fragrance is out of Fashion ..
that it's a Grandma scent.blah blah blah...
hey it was good for an Empress.at one time
those Babushkas had great taste...!!!

Red Moscow what do people picture of
the 1917 Revolution Vladimir Lenin Dr
Zhivago Leon Trotsky Stalin Khrushchev.

But i'm not speaking of Politics this is
all about perfumes. let me start on my
descrption what makes this perfume powdery mmmmm? i think it's the carnation adding with the rose' zest of
Bergamot and Coriander. Blends in a bottle of Political Zeigeist that Collasped in 1991.

And the drydown is surprising with a scent of Frankincense & Myrrh make you think of a Russian Orthodox Church with Bronze icons with black robbed Priests
swinging censers frankincense filling
the Church with Incense on Christmas Eve

Krasnaya Moskva is a Romantic Perfume
in a Turbulent Time.

Fetelor va spun eu care am o iubita de-ti vine sa-i mirosi floarea dimineata si seara ,stilata ,frrumoasa ,eleganta ,tot ce vrei si care foloseste acest parfum cu succes ..........stiu ce zic !!!!

I fell expensive myrrh fragrance (may be asociation from diffusion in composition)

Perhaps this perfume was invented by one of Guerlian's disciple, but after 1917 the smell was simplified

To Persephone.
"if-you-don't-carry-a-balenciaga-bag-i'm-not-even-talking-to-ya!" Moscow type of people"
Not only Moscow type. Some students and people in other cities are the same. When I bought the perfume, my friends said that I would smell like my grandmother, but I like it.

I grew up in the Soviet Union without grannies and for me this smell is our history of the tragic death of Empress of Russia.

I have bought it all the same; and let they speak what they want :) (previous comment was mine)

I love this parfum, but unfortunately I not dare to use it. The matter is that I am russian and live in Moscow, and there is an opinion that this aroma reminds old soviet times, when there was a deficiency of all. "Krasnaya Moskva" was a dream of every soviet woman in those days. And nobody wants to feel itself in that time (though at that time my friends were children and сould not remember). If you will smell as "Krasnaya Moskva", it will apprehend as folly, strangeness, bad form. Everyone will be look askance at you and will chuckle at you.. (sorry for my english, I don't now exactly how to say). In general, it will seem strange to surrounding people. So I don't use "KM", in spite of the fact that it is pleasant to me. :(

I got a bottle of this in a swap with the lovely Fiesta!

It's not quite what I expected. It's much more floral and sweet than the other chypre florals I have tried. I get a lot of carnation and ylang-ylang. It is lovely, though. It has a very traditional aroma, but at the same time, perfumes that smell like this are not really being made anymore, so I feel like I'm wearing something special and unique when I put it on.

It strikes me as a good scent for this time of year (summer in Nebraska right now), and I'm curious to see how it will smell in wintertime.

My one complaint is that it doesn't stick around for very long. It lasts about three hours, even on skin that is not exposed or on clothing.

Overall, it's worth a try and I'm pleased to have a scent with such an amazing history that inspires such passionate responses. :-)

I have no childhood affiliation with this perfume, and no Russian relatives, so this is purely a review of the perfume and not the politics. It's lovely. First on, I get a strange candied floral aldehyde, just very old style perfume with a sweet tart edge that smells almost innocent. Dry down produces an edge commonly referred to as the 'play-doh' note, which I believe comes from tonka or sometimes from powdery vanillas. Strangely it works very well here. I end up with a floral blend with candy and slightly salty vanilla notes. It's fun and oddly pretty. Pleasant and enjoyable. I really like this and plan to look for it. It must be worn in small doses or it does indeed become overwhelming. UPDATE: I have bought the whole 3.3oz bottle and am loving it.

Maybe we should start a discussion about perfume and politics in the forum instead, and leave this space for what it´s for; reviews.

Belle, you should read with more attention. Juliette was referring to a liberal socialism - not a totalitarian on that was in former USSR. Many European countries enjoy benefits of such socialism without the horrors you are writing about (I wouldn`t mind affordable medical care, btw...).You are talking about very different things!

Eros,take it easy.There are many things in the world that remind us of horrible things.If this perfume is so tightly connected in your mind with socialism - I really feel sorry for you, you must be having panic attacks seeing BMWs on the streets just cause it was financed by Nazi.For many people this perfume is connected with pleasant memories - our loved ones, mothers, childhood. I would not want anyone to go ahead and spoil it for me.Live and let live, will you.

Eros,nobody with a brain inside of his/her head would want socialism back.But this doctrine IS part of modern history,noone could ever deny it,nor you.It is good that Krasnaya Moskva is still produced,so this time could be remembered by us- with it's good and mostly bad parts.
It's about the air,the time,the memories that come in your mind when you feel this fragrance.
Whether it was socialism,nazism or whatever else,this is history and this fragrance is a part of it.
I really don't get why would you hate so fragrance this much...

I "met" this some days ago,at my grandmother's house.I knew almost nothing about this fragrance,except for the fact that was one of the most popular fragrances in the USSR.
My grandmother still uses it,though she has a lot of other perfumes bought recently.She told me this perfume was very hard to find those times,because it was a very expensive one.She got hers when she visited Moscow a long time ago.
I held the bottle in my hands for a couple of minutes,undecided whether I should try it or not.Honestly,I was afraid I might despise it.But my curiosity was stronger that any fear,so I opened it.
Strange but true,the first thing that came to my mind is that this fragrance is a VERY strong Chypre floral,though I never knew what was the olfactive group this belonged to.
Now,I realise that it is the coriander + a little of bergamot that make that strong first-sensation.The carnation is the "basic" ingredient for the middle notes and the base notes are very powdery and extremely long-lasting.
I am so glad I didn't hate this fragrance,because I really wouldn't want to.For me,this fragrance is a symbol and a statement of a period of time that women have passed through.
This fragrance is bold and it's a perfect match for the name - Red Moscow.Because Moscow is a unique city,because red is a provocative colour,because bold things deserve to make history,that's what Krasnaya Moskva states.
In my opinion,this fragrance is the Moscow's smell,the old,soviet Moscow,the city that made and still makes history and I'm so glad this fragrance is still produced and it's capable to pass on the air from an old generation to a future one!

Modern version of Krasnaya Moskva was reconstructed by Jacque Cavallier. So, composition for this parfum is manufacturing by Firmenich.

This is that kind of fragrance that I want to own, more for what it is than for how it smells. It´s kind of cult for me, living in western europe to have something that was so big and popular during the soviet-era. And now, thanks to dear F_A i have a whole bottle of my own. It feels really cool, but when I tried it one, I didn´t expect to like it so much. But guess what? I do! The topnotes is strong, sweet, fresh and lemony, almost to strong for me, but without causing headache. I guess it actually could when I am more sensitive. No problem, I was out walking with my dog and sniff once in a while and think it was good. When I come home the fragrance has settled and become very soft, sensual, powdery, a little sweet, very nice indeed. And the drydown lasted for so long. So to own the bottle is the big thing for me, but the fragrance is really worth trying and enjoying. Not maybe a big favourite, but when I am in the mood for something classic, yet a bit different and longlasting, I wouldn´t hesitate to chose this one.

I remember this perfume, my Granny used to wear it when I was a child.I still remember that spicy, old-fashioned and sooo pleasant smell.

This fragrance is a wind from the past when my mum was a young lady and I was a naughty child running around and pouring her Krasnaya Moskva on myself:D Indeed this fragrance was very popular in Soviet Union.

The old version of KM was more spicy, stronger and more rich. The new version is very similar, but I find less character in it. I still find it beautiful. It can be "a cousin" of Guerlain's famous Mitsouko for my nose. Krasnaya Moskva gives this elegant and classy feel. On my skin it smells of dusty rather than powdery flowers. The weather where those flowers grow is hot and the air is dry. Lovely chypre!

P.S. Novaya Zarya also exports its fragrances under the name "Nouvelle Etoile" and "Brocard".

I bought Red Moscow in pure perfume as they wrote on the label. It's still very chip, only 147 rubles (about 5 dollars), and beautiful, but less oily and less carnation (unfortunately), also I remember this perfume was very powdery, in the final notes, even dusty thanks to the base ingredients (orris, tonka and vanilla). I smell it now on my wrist, but the dustiness is not so oriental and so total as I remember it was. It's dusty warm in more wearable way.
The perfume became thinner.

I like it so.I like it despite of the fact that noone wears it anymore, and if one does, one does not admit it.Red Moscow`s reputation was spoiled for years, almost creating a nickname for a stinky perfume out of it...How sad! The scent is truly beautiful, yet very retro. It is also very recognizable, which is almost always a sign of a real masterpiece. I had pleasure of trying the old version - my grandma had it, though never used it, and it was bought in early 60s.Fantastic! Oily carnation (one of the best, imho), head turning jasmine, and those sensual notes of ylang ylang and rose.The heart opens with such exhilaration, that one can easily forget the reputation and age of this scent - it`s very, very young at heart! I like to wear it and get compliments too, though some of my Russian girlfriends refuse to believe it.Good for you if you`re not predigeous! Yo can widen your horizons so much more.

I've found it in their boutique this summer, in the perfume extract. I think now it's softer, less spicier, more floral and warm. But it's still Krasnaya Moskva.