Pour Un Homme L'Eau
Caron (2018)

I had misjudged this one because the first half hour exhibits much of the original’s DNA but the lime opening, the geranium mid and ambergris dry down are each stunning.

Others have done an excellent job of describing Pour Un Homme L’Eau, so I’ll just say this: I *almost* pulled the trigger on a full bottle years ago when you could get 100ml for under $40. What held me back was performance. I enjoy intimate fragrances, and even for me L’Eau was a bit lacking. Perhaps that’s unsurprising given the name, but I would have liked *just* a bit more oomph.

As of this review, you can’t even find 2.5oz bottles for under $50, so unless you’re in love with this, have the disposable income, or are simply trying to complete your Caron collection, I’d suggest looking for an alternative.

That said, it’s a lovely little fragrance and would make an excellent choice for a summer evening after a shower.

Thumbs up.

Pour Un Homme L'Eau by Caron (2018) would be the third and last men's fragrance William Fraysse made as the brief house perfumer for Caron, before his ouster at the end of 2018 in favor of Jean Jacques under new owners Cattleya Finance. I feel overall that perhaps former owners Alès Groupe didn't know what to do with Caron, so they really left Richard Fraysse and eventually son William Fraysse to be "stewards of Gondor" in the absence of the Númenor King, and they were also left mostly to their own devices to create whatever they wanted that they thought would sell. Sure, Richard had more or less been curator of the back catalog since 1988, a few years after he first got involved with perfuming for the house (among several others since the 70's) and was asked to be sole house perfumer by Alès, but his original contributions to the Caron canon tend to be overlooked as too weird outside of The Third Man (1985) or Montagne (1986), both early perfumes from before he even took the job. William Fraysee fares only slightly better really, and mostly as assistant to his father before he took over as house perfumer for all of a year before being replaced, something Cattleya initially announced they wouldn't do. Oh well. here with Pour Un Homme L'Eau, we see William tug on the original structure of the classic Caron Pour Un Homme (1934) once more, like he had with his first official outing Pour Un Homme Sport (2015). After releasing the limited edition Caron Pour Un Homme Parfum (2017), I guess there was nowhere left to go but a lighter cologne-like direction for the DNA, which William delivers here. Were they trying in vain to hook a new generation of fans on the Pour Un Homme vibe? Who can say...

The opening of Pour Un Homme L'Eau delivers a mix of the classic lavender accord (supposedly composed mostly of lavandin and not true lavender), and sharp dry citruses with a puff of ozonic aldehydes. This combination recalls both 90's fresh classics like L'Eau D'Issey pour Homme by Issey Miyake (1994), and William's father's own Yuzu Man (2011), the last standalone masculine pillar Richard would work on for the house. Of course, the lavender ultimately wins the day over the dry citruses (mostly lime), but it is then folded into some geranium, making more of a true fougère accord for a brief moment than in the whole of the original Pour Un Homme, which itself notably lacks geranium. From there however, things take a turn away from fougère and head once more back into aquatic territory, via use of a very noticeable and salty ambergris accord, coupled with vetiver and a subtle, dry vanilla. Those who've smelled Pour Un Homme Sport already know this vivid ambergris accord, itself a Creed-like combination of the real thing and a much-larger helping of ambroxan to pad it out. The extra marine-like saltiness I'm sure is faked out in some sort of way, even if it is a nice touch that helps balance the lavender. Pour Un Homme L'Eau is a rather simple creation compared both to Pour Un Homme Sport and Pour Un Homme Parfum, being the truest flanker in spirit to the original Ernest Daltroff composition. I think for fans of the original, this may end up the best flanker of them all, as it is the most like the original beyond the limited edition ones, and offers a hot weather option. Performance takes a small hit in the projection, but wear time is nice and long. best use here is going to be summer, or after a shower, you know the deal.

For as much as I love the Sport flanker as a true modernization of the Pour Un Homme DNA, it was that very modernization that made it stand apart from fans of the classic Caron lineup, guys who didn't want anything remotely blue or "fresh" in their Caron collections. Conversely, L"Eau is much more focused on just being a lighter Pour Un Homme that swaps tonka for ambergris, and downplays vanilla for geranium, using only a sliver of modern aromachemical trickery (mostly in the top notes) to keep things light and airy. Since most fans of classic Pour Un Homme are not likely to find much offense in a bit of 90's freshness mixed in, the fanbase may embrace L'Eau, even if the larger buying public that needs to float Caron's bills might see this as a weirdly dated combination. Caron is supposed to be France's second-oldest continually-operating niche perfume house anyway, so they're not looking for that basic FragBro money, or are they? Well, evidently the new stewards of Gondor are doing much more in the vein of appeasing more mainstream scent profiles with the limited edition Caron Nuit Fraiche (2019) and the major pillar release of Aimez-Moi Comme Je Suis (2020), both Jean Jacques creations that distance themselves from the more traditionally-minded or bizarrely experimental work of the Fraysse family for the brand. In any case, this light and fresh marine interpretation will make happy the people who thought Sport was too weird, but if you had me smell this without knowing what year it came out, I would have never guessed 2018. Depending on where you sit, that can be either a very good thing, or a very bad thing. Whatever it is, I like it, even if L'Eau may feel redundant to some. Thumbs up

An improved, modernized version of the original but there is still plenty of soft, powdery lavender. Nice citrus in the opening that quickly gives way to the overwhelming Pour un Homme smell that serves as a reference lavender. Not sure why but it feels kinda cheap at this stage. Later, the lavender fades and it's just a pleasant, light scent that is actually way better than the middle. Actually feels nice and refined in the deep drydown.

I actually feel like the projection is impressive during the first few hours. I could really smell it jumping off my skin. When it settles, it's not nearly as powerful but you can still easily smell it when leaning in for a sniff. Lasts most of the day.

The good thing about Caron Pour Un Homme L'Eau is that it's the true-to-the-original, lighter L'Eau we've all been waiting for. While I enjoy Sport and think that it's well made, it was quite a departure from CPUH and probably not what most people were expecting. L'Eau remains true to form, comprised mainly of the same sort of lavender/vanilla combination as the original, only made much lighter and with some additional citrus notes that make it more of a warm weather option. Indeed, this is a lighter, airier, more watery version of the original, with soft citrus notes infused throughout and a cooling, partly mineralic/earthy geranium twist laid over the same green, herbal lavender of the original As it develops, L'eau takes on something of a more dry, ozonic air with a warm, salty accent, most likely a result of the ambergris that's listed in its pyramid. There are times when this dry saltiness almost comes across smoky, and it's a unique quality to L'Eau--one aspect which helps give it distinction and personality. In fact the entire scent, despite its lightness and airy structure, is quite distinct. The embellishments that have been added while creating L'Eau do enough to give it its own profile and personality while never straying to far from the theme of the original. And just like the original, everything concludes in a base of soft vanilla, a smooth, easy landing that's comforting and relaxing.

I think real fans of the original and die-hard fragrance enthusiasts are going to appreciate this, though I could see there being one main issue with the more mainstream crowd---it's very light. There will no doubt be some complaints about both projection and longevity, as this is a very airy, and at times subtle fragrance. At its peak, L'Eau projects about 1 foot off the skin, though it does create a pleasant sillage when it catches the air. It's all but a skin scent in about 5 hours. For some, this will not be enough, but as a lighter option to CPUH, at least to me, this really seems like the perfect execution of the concept.

Just to review, L'Eau is an airier, citrus-infused, salty-ambergris-tinged, dry-ozonic and at times even waterier version of the original, with a cooling/earthy geranium accent and overall a much lighter, diffusive density. It's very well done although it may be too light for those expecting something with more power and presence. For true fans of the original who like the idea of a lighter, l'eau option, I recommend this as a blind buy--it will most likely satisfy your expectations and maintain the essence of the original. For others, who are just casual fans of CPUH, I recommend sampling this first. While it's very good, it may be perceived as "weak" by some. Thumbs up, and a final solid rating of 8/10.

First the bad news. Instead of striking out in a new direction for their masculine range Caron have just launched their fourth flanker of Pour un Homme.

On the other hand, the good news is: 1) it's better then the last two efforts and 2) composed by a new perfumer William Fraysse (no doubt the son of the last incumbent).

L'eau is a contemporary makeover of the old lavender / amber. The lavender a juicy twist of lime and a peppery aquatic note, and the amber has been paired with ambergris which - with its salty and fatty aspects ties in with the changes in the head. There's a geranium note in the middle that hints at fougère, but the most interesting part is an all-new burnt caramel, dusty vetiver and sweet powdery base. This fits nicely into the old formula. There's also woody amber in the dry down - which is more predictable...

L'Eau is Pour un Homme for the 21st century. It's aimed at young men who are fed up with lamentable teen frags and want something grown up but not Fogeyish. It feels like Caron are trying to position L'Eau as an entry point to a more sophisticated style of masculine. A weaner frag, if you like.

Another thing about l'Eau is it feels overstated. Perhaps this is due to the structure being bent out of shape, but at the same time, it feels like a demonstration piece designed to show off the rookie's talent.

But - credit where it's due. The new base fits the profile nicely, showing that William Fraysse has learnt the structure inside out. This is no cut and paste job with a few novelties thrown in but a fully reworked composition that (with the caveat that it's been touched up with a grab bag of different motifs) doesn't offend the spirit of the original.

In the long term l'Eau may turn out to be just another flash in the pan flanker, but if it acts as a gateway to the original (which seems to be Caron's strategy) then so much the better.

In the short term however, its significance is more positive. With a new perfumer at the controls the worst of Caron's problems may be coming to an end. It's too early to say right now but l'Eau does give grounds for cautious optimism.

Update : December 2022
The younger Fraysse has since been replaced by Jean Jacques.