L'Interdit Absolu
L'Interdit is the fragrance Givenchy is known for, made in 1957 for Audrey Hepburn, and Givenchy L'Interdit Absolu Eau de Parfum Intense is the darkest reading of that idea the house currently sells.
The opening is deceptive. Neroli gives a flash of clean, honeyed brightness, lavender adds a herbal, almost grey coolness and cardamom a dry green spice, and for a few minutes the whole thing could pass for a smart, quiet floral. Then it turns. Orange blossom and jasmine fill the middle, the jasmine especially, with that thick, slightly narcotic white flower depth that only works at high concentration. Underneath sits the part that earns the name. Tobacco reads as cured leaf rather than smoke, sweetish and faintly bitter at the same time, with patchouli for earth and vetiver for a cool, rooty dryness that stops the base going soft or sticky.
An intense eau de parfum carries more oil than a standard one, and that shows up in two places. It lasts, comfortably ten hours on skin and longer again on a coat collar, and it travels, so one or two sprays is the sensible limit unless you want to be noticed from the doorway.
This is cold weather and after dark, and it suits anyone who finds the standard version of this scent too well behaved. Within the family it sits at the heavy end. The original is the brighter, more polite floral, and the Absolu is where the same composition gets pushed down into leaf and root.
It is sold as a women's fragrance and worn by a fair number of men. Hubert de Givenchy founded the house in Paris in 1952 and it now sits inside LVMH, with the couture and the fragrance operations kept apart. The same maison produces Gentleman Society and the Irresistible range.
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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