HERMES
UN JARDIN EN MEDITERRANEE

2003

PERFUMER
Jean-Claude Ellena

Bergamot
Lemon
Mandarin

Orange Blossom
White Nerium Oleander

Fig Leaf
Cypress
Red Cedarwood
Juniper
Pistachio
Musk

I had to review this one, as it’s been one of the few fragances that my mother loves and it was her SOTD for a while, before expanding her collection with some of my leftovers.

The opening is a good mix of bright citrus and a green fig. Un Jardin En Mediterrannee utilizes fig leaf and perhaps that’s why it doesn’t go as smooth or creamy as many fig scents do. Instead it’s more of a dry, transparent wind of green fig and watery citrus and florals.

The star of the show for me is this almost salty, sea breeze or beach-skin scent that gives the scent it’s Mediterranean character.

Before you expect a bright citrus scent; note that after a few minutes this goes very woody. It has the fresh, almost minty cypress and cedar combination. If there’s been a fig chewing gum, this is how I imagine it to smell. Somehow it smells like a mix of a sunny coastal setting and Christmas at the same time for me. In that sense, the name is apt; it’s definitely a garden.

Pine fragrances can be tricky for me, but here you don’t get much of the depth and more of the fresher tones from them, which a. suits my taste more and b. keeps it bright and fresh enough for warm weather.

Un Jardin En Mediterranee is perfectly unisex, versatile and unless you’re looking for a strong performer, I can’t seem any people disliking this.