Aqua Allegoria Mandarine Basilic (Guerlain) - a morning picker-upper.

I am, perhaps, strange in that I do not enjoy orange juice in the morning. I am a straight-to-coffee kind of gal. Even at more formal breakfasts than I usually have , I take a pass. (the average day finds me in pj's on the couch, sucking back coffee and checking Facebook) When I was growing up, orange juice did not come in a "pulp-free" option and, to be frank, the pulp skeeves me out. Or, as my toddler has taken to saying, "that really freaks me up!"

What I do love, though, is spritzing on a glass of juice refreshing citrus perfume to wake me up.

Citrus oils are usually used as top notes in perfumery. Their scent is short-lived. Some sort of citrus - bergamot, mandarin/clementine, orange, lime, neroli, grapefruit, lemon, tangerine,  bitter orange, pettigrain - is used in almost every scent. These oils add sparkle, brightness, and what perfumers describe as "lift". The use of citrus goes back nearly as far as perfumery itself and is, these days, perhaps most commonly identified with colognes and men's scents.

I love a perfume with a big old dose of almost any citrus. They are usually refreshing, invigorating, and happy. Spritzing on a citrus-heavy scent in the early hours is like drinking in the sun and getting a cheerful kick in the pants to get ya going. It's also a delicious way to cool off and feel clean and fresh in hot weather!

One of my favorite morning jump-starts is grabbing one of my Guerlain Aqua Allegorias. These lightweight, fairly straightforward compositions are a great choice in the morning. They're short-lived, at least the ones I've tried and on my skin. As always, your mileage may vary. I like that brevity sometimes - I can wear something that creates or captures a certain mood but not have to commit to it for 12+ hours. And if I put it on before I shower, I don't feel too guilty washing it off after only having it on my skin for awhile. Yes, I have Perfume Guilt. Don't judge me.

I really enjoy Mandarine-Basilic, which gives a bright, intense, happy hose-down of mandarin balanced perfectly with the herbal bite of basil, one of my favorite herbs to sniff.

On me, Mandarine-Basilic shares its orange effervescence for about 45 minutes or so. During that time, the mandarin fades slightly and the basil starts to slip in the back door. Eventually,  florals join in, but softly, with the orange/mandarin scent still sticking around. The entire development takes about 3 hours on my skin - if I've used a citrus-y bath product or body lotion it goes a bit longer.

Mandarin-Basilic's drydown is a soft, slightly ambered woods -not the typical vanillic Guerlain base. It's a perfect set-up for a latter application of a sandalwood or amber-based scent. Note that both of those base notes, amber and sandalwood, are widely considered to be soothing and calming. This perfume is gorgeous aromatherapy!

By the time Mandarine-Basilic has faded, my mood has usually solidified somewhere in the happy range. If I need a bit more tweaking or am starting to feel hot or sticky, it's a complete delight to re-spritz and start the happy mandarin waterfall all over again!

Aqua Allegoria Mandarine-Basilic by Guerlain is a Citrus Aromatic fragrance for women. Aqua Allegoria Mandarine Basilic was launched in 2007. The nose behind this fragrance is Marie Salamagne.
Top notes are clementine, orange blossom, ivy, green tea and bitter orange
Middle notes are peony, chamomile, mandarin orange and basil
Base notes are sandalwood and amber.
 -Fragrantica





Do you enjoy the Aqua Allegoria line, or are those scents too wimpy, simple, or just "wrong" for you? If you like them, which is your favorite? And can you suggest any other citrus-predominant scents I might like try? I'm a huge mandarin, lime, and blood orange fan.