Weekly Waftings: Sampler Set Review – Vilhelm Parfumerie Best Sellers

Guys, it’s that magical time that makes my heart sing every two years: The Olympics! Gosh, I just love them and have an especial affinity for the winter games. Growing up, my family and I were very blessed to be able to spend the holidays at my kind and generous aunt and uncle’s condo located in Mt. Hood, OR. We would ski, sled, play in the outdoor pool in the snow, laugh and sing songs in the sauna, and eat truckloads of my Grandmother’s homemade Chex Mix (we always called it ‘Merry Mix’). Those special memories were not only a total blast, they ingrained a deep appreciation and love of winter sports into my soul.

I’ve been swept up in watching the Olympics faithfully every night while simultaneously playing the Wordle archives with my husband and testing out all sorts of wonderful perfume samplers I plan to share with you all. I have a wonderful one to share today that I’ve been sampling all winter. It’s my pleasure to introduce the decadent house of Vilhelm Parfumerie.

This luxurious niche perfume house was created by Jan Vilhelm Ahlgren, a modern renaissance man with many passions and a love for the finer things in life. The brand is lovingly named for Ahlgren’s grandfather, whom he has many special and fond memories of. The packaging and marketing of these opulent fragrances is impeccable. The full size bottles are made of gorgeous, thick, textured glass with saffron yellow caps and packaging meant to be reminiscent of Bakelite pieces found in a French flea market.

Sweden-born Ahlgren’s (who now calls Paris home) fragrances are developed by one of my favorite perfumers, Jérôme Epinette, and all have an intriguing description/backstory behind them, which I will include below. This house reminds me a touch of another favorite Swedish fragrance house of mine, Byredo, where Epinette also creates many of his masterpieces.

Today, I’ll share the house’s Best Sellers sampler set, which includes 6 of their most popular fragrances. You can also hand pick and choose your own 6 (which I have also done and will review those for you in a separate, upcoming post!) I also have a bonus fragrance I will share today that I had previously purchased through a decant site.

Find it here:

Vilhelm Parfumerie Eau de Parfum Discovery Set (at Vilhelm)

Vilhelm Parfumerie Create Your Own 3 Sample Set (at Vilhelm)

Without further ado, please enjoy my reviews of Vilhelm Parfumerie!

125th & Bloom

• Top Notes: angelica seeds, saffron
• Middle Notes: violet, Damascena Rose
• Base Notes: ebony woods, wild leather
• Description from Vilhelm: GARDENS OF HARLEM: Arching above the entrance of formidable brownstones or flourishing in secret backyard oases, here are the flowers of Harlem. Follow the intriguing whiff of angelica seeds and saffron to the intoxicating beauty of damascene roses and violet, that reveals a heart of ebon wood and leather.
• Jan’s Personal Quote/Vision for This Fragrance: “Capture the feeling and essence of Harlem: a raw, deep place with a supplement of soul, like visiting a jazz club.”

The first note that grabs me is the leather, it is immediately evident. The woods and rose also stand out. It’s pretty much mainly about those three notes though there are also some lush, green touches. Very high-quality fragrance and I can detect all of the notes. The longer it dries down, rose emerges as the star of the show. It’s a very realistic rose where you can smell the stems and leaves along with the flower. It’s also a more ‘masculine’ rose but not in a musky or aftershave way. This feels perfectly unisex to me.

This is one of those fragrances that can quickly go ‘beast mode’ so I would caution to go easy on the sprays; the projection and sillage are powerful here. It is also extremely long-lasting. Each time I’ve tested this fragrance, it lasted well over 5+ hours and even through a shower! It also lasts FOREVER on clothes and I could even smell it the next day around the couch where I had sprayed it on myself. A highly recommended fragrance for rose/woodsy/leather lovers. The Delina fans will probably dig this, too, it’s definitely in that wheelhouse. A good year-round, anytime fragrance.

Find it here:

125th & Bloom 20ml, 50ml, 100ml (at Vilhelm)

Dear Polly

• Top Notes: bergamot, apple
• Middle Note: Ceylon black tea
• Base Notes: oakmoss, musk, black amber
• Description from Vilhelm: TEA FOR TWO IN THE MORNING: Distance is nothing to the heart: The scent of black tea, brewed just how she likes it, and the crispiness of morning light, slowly easing away the night that still clings to the senses. Ceylon black tea immediately warms the skin while sensuous musk simmers below.
• Jan’s Personal Quote/Vision for This Fragrance: “A love letter to love itself, this is a scent that says distance is nothing.”

I definitely had some trepidation about the notes in this fragrance. Regular readers here know my feelings about musk 🙃 and to be honest, tea is also not a huge fave of mine. I enjoy drinking tea from time to time and find the scent of it brewing to be very pleasant but have just never fallen in love with it as a perfume note. The initial spray did, indeed, reveal the expected tea note with musk as the second most prominent impression. There’s also a bit of a bitter aromatic feel in the opening. As the fragrance dries down, the amber joins in, lending a warmth and ever-so-slight sweetness to the scent. Tea persists as the main stand-out note for the remaining wearing of the fragrance.

Though I would definitely categorize this as a unisex fragrance, it did tend to pull a little masculine for my personal tastes. So much so, that I had my husband try the fragrance as overall I liked the scent but just not on myself and wondered how it would present on him. And it really smelled fabulous on him! The musk level was appropriate and the tea and amber combined with it to create such a unique fragrance compared to most of the other popular scents currently marketed to men. Another long-lasting scent with great projection and sillage. As with 125th & Bloom, I think this is appropriate to wear pretty much anytime, anywhere. If you enjoy a tea note in a fragrance, I think there’s a strong chance this might just be your ‘cup of tea.’ 😉

Find it here:

Dear Polly 20ml, 50ml, 100ml (at Vilhelm)

Dear Polly 50ml (at Anthropologie)

Dear Polly 100ml (at Anthropologie)

Mango Skin

• Top Notes: blackberries, mango, black pepper
• Middle Notes: wild orris, black lotus, jasmine
• Base Notes: patchouli, vanilla, pink sugar
• Description from Vilhelm: HAVE YOU EVER REALLY TASTED ONE? With a single bite, you can feel the mango in your veins. Wild colors, endless skies and untamed happiness: breathtaking South Africa becomes the backdrop for this expressionist burst of blackberries, mango and black pepper. A ripe fruit that reveals its complex flavors — a cocktail of wild orris, black lotus and jasmine that leaves behind patchouli, vanilla and a hint of pink sugar.
• Jan’s Personal Quote/Vision for This Fragrance: “Feel the mango running in your veins, the raw power of nature that saturates every pore and your soul.”

Mmmm… yummy and REALISTIC mango! This fragrance begins with a huge burst of mango from the get-go, quickly followed by the pink sugar to start this out as a very sweet gourmand. The black pepper quickly also joins the party and I’m in love! I adore sweet gourmands with pepper and I just love this opening. The slightly sour lotus note joins about 3-5 minutes into the fragrance. That sour note kinda weaves in and out of the fragrance from here on out. Sometimes it smells like a really sweet mango, sometimes it smells like one that isn’t quite ripe yet. There’s a touch of an almond/marzipan/pistachio feel here, too, which enters about 10 minutes in. I also noted a powdery impression courtesy of the orris note.

This starts off with very strong, good projection but by about the hour mark, calms down to become a more intimate skin scent. Not quite as long-lasting as some of the fragrances by this house but you should get a good 3-4 hours at least. You’ll need to love sweet, fruity fragrances with a twist to enjoy this one, I think. I can see this being too sweet for some. If you know you’re a person who doesn’t care for sweet scents, this won’t be for you. Same with the fruitiness factor, if you don’t like fruity scents, this will not be your jam. I think this fragrance will truly sing on a summer evening but would probably avoid in really hot weather as it might get a bit sickly. If you love mango or sweet, tropical fruit scents in general, this will be a must-try!

Find it here:

Mango Skin 20ml, 50ml, 100ml (at Vilhelm)

Mango Skin 50ml (at Anthropologie)

Mango Skin 100ml (at Anthropologie)

Morning Chess

• Top Notes: bergamot
• Middle Notes: Tuscan leather, galbanum
• Base Notes: patchouli, black amber
• Description from Vilhelm: MY SWEDISH SUMMERS: Bright endless mornings in a cottage, minds battling in wit over a chessboard: the memories of Jan’s summers shared with his grandfather. The ripe, green lushness of summer on the Swedish coast, where grassy notes are light enough to hint at the evergreen sharpness of the distant winter air.
• Jan’s Personal Quote/Vision for This Fragrance: “The purest memory of a child: I am forever grateful to have had an childhood so warm and full of life.”

One look at the notes for this one and I knew it was going to be waaaaay too masculine for my personal tastes. I went ahead and spritzed this onto a tester strip and the opening notes were reminiscent of a slightly fruity aftershave. Very, VERY green. Clean, fresh, herbal, and slightly aquatic smelling. The leather note builds and becomes stronger as it dries down. It also gets more smoky. I asked my husband, Scott, to once again step in as my fragrance guinea pig for this one as I really like to be able to tell you guys how a fragrance works on actual skin vs. just a tester strip. It really smelled great on him! Very green and like a fresh forest. LOTS of galbanum (strong/bitter/green). And again, that smoky leather came out more in the dry down but the galbanum was definitely the stand-out note on Scott.

This is definitely a potent scent, go easy on the sprays with this one, it’s STRONG! Lasted well throughout the night, at least 5 hours before we went to sleep for the night. Overall it’s earthy, green, herbal, and a very classy masculine fragrance. Appropriate for anytime wear.

Find it here:

Morning Chess 20ml, 50ml, 100ml (at Vilhelm)

Morning Chess 50ml (at Anthropologie)

Morning Chess 100ml (at Anthropologie)

Opus Kore

• Top Notes: Sicilian lemon, acai
• Middle Notes: raspberry, magnolia, violet
• Base Notes: sandalwood, skin musks, amber
• Description from Vilhelm: THE RITES OF SPRING: Persephone had been warned there was a price to pay for her otherworldly love, so when she returns to the living, she brings a gift: springtime, a bracing gust of Sicilian lemon and acai that blossoms into raspberry blossom, pink magnolia and violet leaf followed by the sensuality of sandalwood, skin musks and crisp amber.
• Jan’s Personal Quote/Vision for This Fragrance: “At the end of winter, you can read the spring on the face of people: the joy of the first day of a new season, and in nature, that early blossoming.”

Initial impression is yummy, sweet fruit, I get the raspberry note right away. I also sense the musk, but it is not a ‘skanky’ or animalic musk, it smells like freshly showered skin. I get more of the violets and magnolia as it dries down, followed by a honeyed amber feel. This settles on my skin as a slightly fruity floral with some light woods and green touches. Pleasant and easy to wear, it’s a nicely-crafted fragrance that I think will work well for a large variety of folks. Violet and that clean musk are the stand-out notes for me. I’d probably sum this up as ‘lightly honeyed violets.’

This is a great fragrance for regular, every day wear and definitely office-safe. Projection starts out moderate but settles pretty quickly into a more intimate skin scent, making it a great choice for folks that prefer a lighter fragrance. I only got about 3 hours wear from this lighter scent so keeping the smaller travel spray on hand might be a good idea if you want the scent to last all day.

Find it here:

Opus Kore 20ml, 50ml, 100ml (at Vilhelm)

Room Service

• Top Notes: mandarin nectar, blackberry
• Middle Notes: pink orchid, bamboo, violet
• Base Notes: black amber, musk, sandalwood
• Description from Vilhelm: GRETA GARBO’S ROSE BATH: Picture this: Greta Garbo at Carlyle – a superstar who chose herself above Hollywood’s siren song. Alone in her hotel room, attired in a drift of satin and poignant allure, waiting for her ultimate luxury: a bath of flower petals, the warm water releasing this collision of citrus and red fruits, bamboo, violet, black amber and sandalwood.
• Jan’s Personal Quote/Vision for This Fragrance: “This is a tribute to Greta Garbo, a woman who chose to be herself, critics be damned.”

Initial spray is very clean, very green, and slightly fruity with a base that’s very similar to JHAG’s Not a Perfume’s Cetalox note. And it oddly does, indeed, remind me of a hotel! I can only really sense the bamboo note for the first minute or so. The mandarin very lightly starts to join in but this fragrance does not read as strongly citrus on me. About 2 minutes in, I get a hint of the orchid and the violet, it takes a few more minutes before the powdery impression of the violet comes in. The rose petal vibe comes out a bit at the 10 minute mark. It remains a very clean scent, I can absolutely picture the flower petaled bath that’s been drawn for the old school movie siren. After her luxurious bath, she douses on some body powder to complete the ritual. Very pretty scent, Very, VERY feminine. Despite the mandarin and blackberry notes, this is not a fruity fragrance, in my opinion. You have to really look for the citrus and blackberry if you want to pick out those notes.

This fragrance is pleasant, easy to wear, and would make a wonderful daytime office scent as it’s very classy and very inoffensive. I also picture wearing this on a picnic lunch date with my Honey on a sunny day, it has a very springtime feel. I found the projection to be on the lighter side though I suppose that’s to be expected with this type of fragrance as it definitely has more of a skin scent vibe. Lasted at least 5+ hours for me. Bottom line: powdery, clean, slightly musky rose. As the description suggests, perfect for spritzing on after a bubble bath. They have definitely succeeded with the ‘freshly drawn bath’ vibe they were going for.

Find it here:

Room Service 20ml, 50ml, 100ml (at Vilhelm)

Room Service 20ml (at Anthropologie)

Room Service 50ml (at Anthropologie)

Room Service 100ml (at Anthropologie)

BONUS FRAGRANCE – Moon Carnival

• Top Notes: passionfruit, bergamot, pink freesia
• Middle Notes: tuberose, gardenia, orchid
• Base Notes: marshmallow, tonka bean, vanilla
• Description from Vilhelm: LOVE TO THE MOON AND BACK: His love was a dancer whose golden skin held the scent of passion who loved tuberose more than any other flower. So he travelled the world in search of all the tuberose to fill the moon. For seven days and seven nights, the moon scattered this enchanting scent – pears, patchouli, ambroxan, orris and musk – across the universe.
• Jan’s Personal Quote/Vision for This Fragrance: “A lover’s carnival on the moon – feelings worth reaching to the moon and back.”

GARDENIA! There she is. If you love gardenia, this is the fragrance for you. A few minutes in, I also get some of the vanilla and bubblegummy tuberose. As it continues to dry down, I sense a little more sweetness and the slightly powdery marshmallow comes out. This is a SUPER feminine fragrance. Very sophisticated and classy. And could there be a more beautiful name for a perfume? I just love it. A fitting and magical name for a fragrance that is simply enchanting.

This could easily be someone’s wedding day scent. Floral and sweet but not over-the-top sweet in a gourmand direction. The projection starts out moderate before fading to more of a skin scent after an hour or so. Lasted about 3-4 hours for me. Gardenia lovers will be over the moon (pun INTENDED!) with this one. Every gardenia lover should sample this lovely fragrance.

Find it here:

Moon Carnival 20ml, 50ml, 100ml (at Vilhelm)

So there you have my impressions of the wonderful house of Vilhelm. As aforementioned, I have a second sampler planned to share with you guys with 6 more exciting scents. Have you heard of this creative and sophisticated fragrance house before? What do you think of their lovely packaging and artistic fragrance descriptions? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below, I love hearing what you guys think! 🥰

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