Habit Rouge L'Eau
Guerlain (2011)

Habit Rouge L'Eau by Guerlain (2011) was the longer-lasting of the "light" flankers made for Habit Rouge by Guerlain (1965) in the post-2000 era. The previous one was the last Habit Rouge iteration Jean-Paul Guerlain ever worked on, and was a limited distribution release called Habit Rouge Eau de Toilette Légere by Guerlain (2005), pulled from a rejected submission for his 80's eau de toilette upgrade of the original 60's cologne in favor of one that smelled closer to the structure of that original cologne. Jean-Paul hated the original work and wanted to improve it, but when it was decided to do concentration bumps, the formula becoming "Légere" in later years was rejected by then-evaluator Anne-Marie Saget. Fast forward to 2011, and Sylvaine Delacourt was the evaluator, and gave perfumer Thierry Wasser a clean sheet to do his own "light" version of Habit Rouge.

In response, Wasser tied in Habit Rouge L'Eau somewhat to the structure of his previous Habit Rouge Sport by Guerlain (2009), although without as extreme of a deviation from the original Habit Rouge structure. Like Sport, L'Eau uses a more-modern mix of bitter orange and lime, but dispenses with any rhubarb or sharp woody notes in favor of the original Habit Rouge's oriental-leaning softness. The heart of jasmine and neroli is mostly unique to L'Eau, and no rose or the usual fusty combinations of carnation, cinnamon, and basil that really "date" Habit Rouge for contemporary noses not used to classic French perfumery. In their place, we see a gourmand touch of hazelnut, and added vanilla like what was found in Jean-Paul's "Légere". Performance is middling, but what did you expect for a "L'Eau"? Don't answer that.

So as a truly lighter and more modern interpretation of the classic Habit Rouge structure, this succeeds better than the past-regret that was Jean-Paul's "Légere"; that alongside several "La Parisiennes" were his unfinished business as the last Guerlain perfumer before LVMH fully dispensed with heredity, and is more for collectors. L'Eau by contrast is very much functional in the sense it understands the assignment because it was built for it, rather than being fashioned from aborted past work. As a fragrance on its own, Habit Rouge L'Eau exists in an uncanny valley between old and new schools of perfume thought, so it lasted longer on the market, but also ended production with the "woodcap" phase ending in the 2020's. A pleasant, light oriental-spiced citrus is this, with wisps of Guerlinade. Thumbs up.

I love Guerlain fragrances and their Frenchness...this one however suffers from a blending issue. On the positive side, the heart and base enjoy the classic soft Guerlainess but the Orange top is at complete odds with the rest of the notes. It's sharp, too sharp and does not blend seamlessly with the formulation. I still enjoy it but wish that they had paid more attention to the blending...

I have smelled so many fragrances, including a few from Guerlain, and I consider Habit Rouge L'eau to be a masterpiece of exceptional quality. I was incredibly pleased with it as a "blind buy." It's as though Thierry Wasser kept and even built on what was pleasant about the original Habit Rouge, and fixed what smelled weird and discordant about it. It smells like a floral orange cream soda, but somehow still leans on the masculine side. It is elegant and refreshing, and while I guess I could see why some people wouldn't love it like I do, I don't know why anyone would dislike it (other than that they loved the original Habit Rouge and were stuck on it). I gave this five stars and a Thumbs Up with no reservation!

I had been curious about Habit Rouge L'eau for a few years, because of a few reasons. I love Habit Rouge, and L'eau is rated highly by many who love the original. Secondly, I love jasmine in perfumes, and L'eau purportedly contains a prominent dose. Lastly, I'm always on the lookout for a quality fresh fragrance (there aren't many), and what's not to like about a fresh twist on Habit Rouge?

Well, it turns out that L'eau is rather underwhelming. L'eau leaves out the wonderful lemon of Habit Rouge and uses orange - somewhat synthetic, and at odds with the rest of the structure. There is the jasmine, but its combination with the orange results in an accord that is jarring. I feel that it smells quite different from Habit Rouge, and the motif (or at least the key features of the Habit Rouge motif) is largely absent. There's no leather here. Instead, what I smell is a musky vanilla, semi-sweet, that combines with the jasmine and the orange to create a sickly, synthetic accord. I detect a similar accord in the dry down of Cologne du 68, with the major difference being the iris in 68 is replaced by the jasmine in L'eau. While sillage is low-key, L'eau drones on for hours and becomes increasingly grating.

L'eau emerges as yet another example of the difference between the Guerlain of then and the Guerlain of now, Jean Paul Guerlain and Thierry Wasser, and perfumery artistry vs. corporatocracy driven mediocrity. Sure, it's better than all the L'Homme Ideal nonsense, but that is not saying much.

Stick to Habit Rouge, or Le 3me Homme de Caron for your jasmine fix in a similar context, or L'eau Boisee if you crave freshness.


2/5

Guerlain has created a beautiful off spring from the original classic! The opening is a beautiful citrus opening with a delicious hazel nut accord that is creamy & blends nicely with the orange.

Soon it is joined by the jasmine which brings a little bit of a fem vibe but rest assured, the composition remains fairly unisex/Manly for those that are concerned. It all ends with some nice woods & vanilla which creates a nice elegant touch!

This is best worn in spring & fall, daytime wear as it is not heavy enough for evening wear for my taste. One would be pressed to find a similar fragrance that does what this does & for the price & quality? It probably won't be matched.

A MUST have for your collection! `

What if I told you
That Shalimar Light Pour Homme
Was Habit Rouge L'Eau?