Perfume Diary: Laura Mercier Eau Gourmande Almond Coconut Eau de Toilette

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

You know, I'm not usually a gourmand fan, I'm quite wary when it comes to fragrances that even have a whiff of food like notes. The only gourmand I've really liked in recent memory was Jo Malone Lemon Tart from the Sugar and Spice Collection and it still pains me a bit that I was foolish enough to pass on that. Let's not speak of that. When I recently acquired Laura Mercier Eau Gourmande Almond Coconut EdT, I had high hopes because I quite like both almond and coconut quite a bit. It was a risky "blind" buy and I'm a bit ashamed of myself for not sniffing it first.

The opening of Almond Coconut was peculiar indeed, my nose twitched at the unexpected note of fresh rosemary; that sort of slightly mentholated green smell that you'd be familiar with if you've grown this herb. I was hit with quite a bit of vanilla, in fact, I was blindsided by the amount of vanilla present. For a perfume called Almond Coconut, one would think that almond and coconut would present themselves quite readily in the composition, but alas they do not. At least, not for me. Eventually, my nose picked up light musk, a bit of something woody and a pinch of floral; all very pleasant notes that helped mingle with the sweet vanilla and slightly harsher tonka bean.

Notes, as per the Laura Mercier website:

Almond, Coconut milk, Jasmine, Rosewood, Ylang ylang, Vanilla, Tonka, Heliotrope, Musk

It isn't until the dry down that I start to sense a bit of coconut and the slightest hint of almond. I frequently use almonds in baking and use almond oil to mix into my hand creams, I'm quite familiar with the scent but was barely able to discern any of it in this fragrance. Every time I catch the faintest whiff of almond, I breathe in more deeply, hoping in vain for more.

You know what this perfume really puts to my mind? During one of my classes in college, a young woman sat one seat over and down a row. Day after day, she would overdose on the some ubiquitous vanilla and warm sugar scent. It wafted over to me daily and became somewhat unbearable, mostly due to the concentration of the scent. I imagine Laura Mercier Eau Gourmande Almond Coconut Eau de Toilette is something this girl would have graduated to wearing in her 30s; a bit more refined, not completely unpleasant just overwhelmingly potent vanilla.

Longevity: 6/10
Nothing to write home about. Six hours of wear.
Projection: 9/10
My husband said that the single spritz on my wrist was quite potent, despite it being an EdT.

I noticed that while reading the reviews, a few reviews dated in 2013 mentioned that there was a complete formula change. Alas, I bought mine earlier this year in 2014 so I'm guessing my bottle contains the newer formulation. Based on the reviews, it sounds like I could have really enjoyed the older formulation.

Laura Mercier Eau Gourmande Almond Coconut Eau de Toilette is $55 for 1.7 fl. oz., purchasable through Nordstrom and the like.

If this is how Almond Coconut smells, I can't imagine how the Eau Gourmande Vanille must smell!

Do you have a favorite gourmand scent? Have you tried any of the Laura Mercier Eau Gourmande series?

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