Here Comes the Rain Again

Imagine yourself waking in an attic room, a light rain falling outside the rickety old window and lilac bushes swaying gently in the breeze. Olivia Giacobetti’s En Passant, created in 2000 for Frédéric Malle’s Editions de Parfums, was conceived, je pense, with such a scene in mind. Giacobetti, creator of such perfumes as Diptyque’s cult-classic Philosykos, L’Artisan’s Safran Troublant, Hermès Hiris, and, most recently, Lubin’s Idole de Lubin, is a perfumer of two minds. On the one hand, she succeeds at yummy scents which blend intriguing spice components with a certain gourmand appeal. On the other hand, she has an attraction toward rawness in nature. Hiris and Philosykos prove her the mistress of the uncooked. It’s “raw perfumery,” if you will. Figs torn from the branch before they’ve even plumped to ripeness, an iris rhizome yanked from the dew-soaked earth. En Passant contains notes of white lilac, rain, orange tree leaves, cucumber and wheat. On my skin it registers moisture and early morning freshness. It is clean and comforting, and takes pride of place on a man’s or woman’s vanity.