Perfumes: The Guide

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Perfumes: The Guide is part of a series of books cataloguing major perfumes, written by Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez.

Contents

Authors

Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez co-authored The Guide. The couple are married; he is a biophysicist and she is a perfume critic. [1]

Perfumes: The Guide and Perfumes: The A-Z Guide

In 2008 Turin and Sanchez published Perfumes: The Guide. [2] It began with introductory chapters on the basics of perfumery and then reviewed more than a thousand perfumes, giving a rating of one to five stars and a brief critical review, signed either LT or TS. These ranged from a single word (Sanchez on Lanvin Rumeur: "Baseless") to a few paragraphs. [1] [3]

In 2009, they published a paperback edition, titled Perfumes: The A-Z Guide, that made some expansions, adding 451 new reviews and new Top 10 lists. [4]

Perfumes: The Guide 2018 and reissue of The A-Z Guide

In 2018, Turin and Sanchez released a new volume, Perfumes: The Guide 2018, covering 1200 fragrances that had been released in the 10 years since the first book. [2] In 2019, they reissued Perfumes: The A-Z Guide.

Reception

The Guide received a starred review in Publishers Weekly , which said, “The book brings [the authors'] exquisite connoisseurship to life in a contagious manner. Their passion for a few scents and their outrage at the others' failings make for entry after entry of hilarious, catty comments interspersed with occasional erudite, eloquent disquisitions." [5] Other reviewers echoed the praise for the book’s prose. In The Guardian , Hermione Hoby wrote, “Convincing the reader that perfume-making is an art form is easy for these authors: the real joy of this husband and wife's dazzlingly comprehensive compendium is in its case for perfume criticism as the even greater art." [6] Likewise in Maclean's , Anne Kingston wrote, "Perfumes' metaphorically brilliant descriptors often qualify as art themselves." [3] In The New Yorker , John Lancaster wrote that the authors "offer vivid, funny, evocative descriptions of the smells they write about…To enjoy "Perfumes," you don't need to know, or even to like, perfumes, such is the brio of Turin's and Sanchez's prose." [1]

See also

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

Luca Turin is a biophysicist and writer with a long-standing interest in bioelectronics, the sense of smell, perfumery, and the fragrance industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edmond Roudnitska</span> French master perfumer and author (1905–1996)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olivia Giacobetti</span> French perfumer

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Bertrand Duchaufour is a French perfumer. He has had a prolific career, beginning in Grasse at Lautier Florasynth and continuing for a number of fragragrance firms as well as working independently and as the house perfumer for L'Artisan Parfumeur. He has drawn praise for niche perfume creations as well as mainstream hits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">JOY (perfume)</span>

Joy is a perfume created for Parisian couturier Jean Patou by perfumer Henri Alméras in 1929. It is considered to be one of the greatest fragrances created and is a landmark example of the floral genre in perfumery. It is still produced in France by Designer Parfums, Ltd., in an Eau de Parfum and Eau de Toilette version.

Avery Gilbert is a self-described "smell scientist" and "sensory psychologist".

Calice Asancheyev-Becker is a French master perfumer and director of Givaudan Perfumery School. As of 2018 she was president of the International Society of Perfume Creators.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Osmothèque</span>

The Osmothèque is the world's largest scent archive, a leading international research institution tracing the history of perfumery, based in Versailles with conference centers in New York City and Paris. Founded in 1990 by Jean Kerléo and other senior perfumers including Jean-Claude Ellena and Guy Robert, the Osmothèque is internationally responsible for the authentication, registration, preservation, documentation and reproduction of thousands of perfumes gathered from the past two millennia, archived at the Osmothèque repository and consultable by the public.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J'adore (fragrance)</span> Perfume by Christian Dior

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Rive Gauche is a women's perfume launched by Yves Saint Laurent in 1971.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jicky</span> Guerlain perfume

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Art and Olfaction Awards</span>

The Art and Olfaction Awards are a non-profit award mechanism designed to celebrate excellence in international artisan, experimental and independent perfumery and olfactory art through a yearly blind-judged competition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lovely (perfume)</span> 2005 perfume by Sarah Jessica Parker

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Alberto Morillas is a Spanish perfumer. He is a master perfumer at Swiss fragrance and flavor firm dsm-firmenich, where his notable creations have included Calvin Klein CK One, Giorgio Armani Acqua di Giò and Marc Jacobs Daisy. He has an independent line called Mizensir.

Niche perfume is an alternative to mass perfume production. Niche is limited by the clientele and therefore with a limited sale range, thus the goal of niche houses is not to sell as much as possible.

Aedes de Venustas is a niche perfume store and fragrance line. Aedes has operated in Manhattan since 1995. The house perfume line launched in 2012, although there was an earlier collaboration with L'Artisan Parfumeur creating a home fragrance (2005) and perfume (2008) also named Aedes de Venustas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fracas (perfume)</span> 1948 tuberose perfume by Germaine Cellier for Robert Piguet

Fracas is a 1948 perfume created by French perfumer Germaine Cellier for French fashion designer Robert Piguet. It is based on the scent of tuberose, a pungent small white flower. A landmark fragrance, it has spawned many imitators and as of 2021 has been in production for more than 70 years later.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Lancaster, John (2008-03-03). "Scents and Sensibility". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2022-06-11.
  2. 1 2 Ilchi, Layla (2018-08-16). "'Perfumes: The Guide' Highlights Fragrances of the Last Decade". WWD. Retrieved 2022-06-11.
  3. 1 2 Kingston, Anne. "Do you smell like one star or five?" Maclean's. 6/9/2008, Vol. 121 Issue 22, p63-63. Via EBSCO.
  4. Hirst, Christopher (2009-10-30). "Perfumes: the A-Z Guide, By Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez". The Independent. Retrieved 2022-06-11.
  5. "Nonfiction Book Review: Perfumes: The Guide by Luca Turin, Tania Sanchez". Publishers Weekly. 2008-04-01. Retrieved 2022-06-11.
  6. Hoby, Hermione (2009-11-15). "Perfumes: the A-Z Guide by Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez". the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-06-11.