I hope someone writes a book about perfumer Christine Nagel someday. I would really like to hear how she approached her time as in-house perfumer for Hermes. What I would be particularly interested in is how she came to creating the Twilly d’Hermes collection. In the beginning it seemed like a fragrance designed to be a young girl’s first bottle. The first flanker Twilly d’Hermes Eau Poivree felt like taking the line towards a slightly older demographic. The latest flanker Twilly d’Hermes Eau Ginger has me wondering who this is for.
Christine Nagel
All three Twilly d’Hermes releases are three ingredient compositions. The original had that slightly bubblegum aspect of tuberose. Eau Poivree upped the intensity by choosing three entirely different ingredients while giving them more presence. Eau Ginger is more in keeping with the original fresh-faced young girl aesthetic because it is a clean and fresh trio of ingredients. Except the one on the bottle is a little more forward in keeping with the style of the first flanker.
The floral at the heart of Eau Ginger is peony. She has a very fresh version of this “rose light” note. It dances uncomplicatedly as the ginger begins to appear. In the early moments, the ginger adds that fresh zingy kinetic aspect it is most often used for. It sharpens the floral while adding some energy. But then the ginger continues to increase in presence. Almost as if it is crystallizing on the peony. There comes a point where it was nothing but ginger. Cedar comes along to break the peony back out as it modulates the ginger. Now there seems to be room for all three. At this point it is a very fresh floral fragrance.
Twilly d’Hermes Eau Ginger has 6-8 hour longevity and average sillage.
Eau Ginger is a perfume for fans of ginger. There is a not insignificant space of time where it was all I could smell. I happen to like ginger, but this felt like it was holding that note a little longer than I preferred. When all three ingredients do find their balance, this is a flanker more similar to the original. I thought I understood where Mme Nagel was headed with this collection. Eau Ginger makes me wonder if I do.
Disclosure: This review is based on a sample provided by Hermes.
–Mark Behnke
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