Byzance
Pear is an unexpected way to begin a fragrance with a name this grand, and Rochas Byzance Eau de Parfum is the better for it.
The opening is clean and fruity. Pear is green and juicy rather than syrupy, bergamot sharpens it up with a bitter citrus edge, and neroli adds a white citrus flower, clean and faintly green, which lifts the whole thing and sets a tone that is clean and bright without being sporty.
The middle is soft and powdery. Heliotrope is the material that defines it, sweet and soft with a dusty, slightly medicinal quality close to the smell of face powder, which always reads as old fashioned in the best way. Freesia is clean and peppery beside it, and rose fills it out with weight and depth. It is a gentle heart rather than a dramatic one. Vanilla and musk finish it, and that is the whole base: smooth sweetness and a warm skin quality, nothing earthy and nothing dark. The result is comfortable and close, and it lasts a long time at eau de parfum strength without ever once shouting about it.
Eight materials, conventionally arranged, and the appeal is in the balance rather than in any single surprise. It is feminine, it suits daytime and the cooler months, and it is a great deal easier to wear in company than the richer things sold alongside it.
Rochas is a Paris house, opened in 1925 by Marcel Rochas, a couturier nicknamed for dressing the young, which began making perfume in 1936. His wife Helene took over the company after his death in 1955 and expanded Parfums Rochas considerably. The brand and its trademarks passed to Interparfums, which bought them from Procter and Gamble in 2015.
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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