Note Pyramid
Varens Sweet Vanille Caramel
Varens Sweet Vanille Caramel Eau de Parfum 50ml, from Ulric de Varens, is about as subtle as its name and that is plainly the point of it. Vanilla and sugar open the bottle, which is unusual in itself, since most sweet fragrances at least pretend to start with citrus. Here the sweetness is there from the first second, thick and creamy, and the only question is what arrives to keep it company.
The answer is toffee, coconut and brown sugar. Toffee brings the slightly burnt edge of boiled sugar, coconut a soft milky roundness rather than a suncream effect, and brown sugar a darker, treacly depth. The combination is rich and very close to edible, and it is not trying to be anything else. Vanilla then returns in the base with musk and tonka bean, the last of these adding a faintly bitter, powdery quality that stops the finish being entirely confectionery.
In eau de parfum strength it has real staying power on skin and more again on clothing, so one spray is usually enough unless you want to be noticed from across a room. That strength is worth knowing about, because a fragrance this sweet applied heavily becomes difficult to be near, while a single spray of it is genuinely comforting. It is also the reason the bottle will last far longer than its size suggests. Cold weather and evenings suit it, it reads young and feminine, and the 50ml size is sensible for something this emphatic: a larger bottle would outlast anybody's enthusiasm.
Released in 2023 by a Paris house that has sold accessible perfume since 1981, on the stated principle that enjoying a scent should not depend on what you can afford to spend on one.
Please note: images are a guide only. Packaging and bottle design may occasionally differ from those shown due to manufacturer updates or promotions.
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