Fragrance Review:  BLOCKI Perfumes “For Walks” (Kevin Verspoor) + The Very Breath of Spring Draw

Lady with a Spring Landscape - Konstantin Somov

Lady with a Spring Landscape – Konstantin Somov

The notes in a fine perfume all tell stories to our senses.  Some are bright and chatty, while others are dark and mysterious

Konstantin Korovin violets

Konstantin Korovin 

For me, there is a story that all violet-based perfumes tell, and that is one of vulnerability.  At the center of that powdery, candied softness is a reminder of how fragile we are.  I think this is why some people might shy away from violets in perfume, not because they are too “grandmotherly”, but it’s actually because violet is a tender, fragile, and vulnerable note.  And our society isn’t about tender fragility – it’s about getting on with it and who cares what gets in your way. 

 

John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) The Artist's Sister Violet Sargent Violet Sleeping 1908

John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) The Artist’s Sister Violet Sargent Violet Sleeping 1908

But this is also why perfume matters as an art form.  We need those fragile reminders to point us to a safe place where we can confront our soft spots without feeling like we are weak or too exposed.  Perfume is a perfect, quiet and secret way to do this.

blocki perfumes for walks 

 For Walks  collage Courtesy of BLOCKI

And there is a new release out entitled For Walks, by a wonderfully old American house known as BLOCKI, which captures this wonderfully empathetic moment that violets impart in a scent.  

JohnBlocki_lowres

John Blocki. Image courtesy Chicago Veteran Druggists’ Association records, University of Illinois at Chicago Library, Special Collections and Archives

The original house dates from 1865, started by John Blocki,  a chemist by trade and who then went on to launch perfumes and tonics.  He participated in Worlds Fairs and hosted German scientists who were just beginning to isolate the fragrant compounds that would revolutionize the perfume industry. 

Vintage John Blocki & Son Empress Rose Toilet Water circa 1900

Vintage John Blocki & Son Empress Rose Toilet Water circa 1900

By 1903, he had opened his own perfumery in Chicago, with its own novel touches in presentation (natural flowers preserved within the perfume bottles he sold.)  John Blocki died in 1934, and was universally lionized as one of the most-respected and innovative American perfumers of his time.   

Tyler &Tammy DeLaBar Kraemer 1996

Wedding Painting of Tyler & Tammy Kraemer 1996

But as with many older perfumeries, BLOCKI, disappeared until John Blocki’s great-great grandson Tyler DeLeBar Kramer and his wife Tammy decided to breathe new life into the venerable American house. 

blocki perfumes for walks in very season  the grand affair cafleurebon

BLOCKI Perfumes For Walks, In Every Season and This Grand Affair

And by 2015, 150 years after the first scent was bottled,  they had done so, with a trio of releases, For Walks, This Grand Affair (a voluptuous Oriental), and In Every Season (a sensuous musky floral).  And, judging by these three fragrances alone, the newly-rebooted Blocki line has an enormously bright future to match its illustrious past. 

 

John Singer Sargent A Morning-Walk

John Singer Sargent A Morning Walk

The perfume For Walks could not have been more aptly titled.   It begins with a radiantly dewy fir needle, mint and violet leaf opening that begs you to go for a deep and relaxing spring stroll  outdoors.  This opening is the closest facsimile to breathing in pure, clean air I’ve ever come across in perfume.  It is both tremendously exhilarating and quietly intimate at the same time.  It’s as if a perfume were standing beside you and whispering, “Breathe – just breathe”, which is EXACTLY what one needs to manage our vulnerable interior world. 

Laurel on the Ledges - Childe Hassam

Laurel on the Ledges – Childe Hassam

The heart notes echo the opening softness, with more violets and Boronia flower, which adds more of that woodsy exhilaration behind the powdery lightness the violets are draping your senses in. The drydown is earthy, sweet and bright with cedar, vetiver and sandalwood.  There is also a touch of iris to bring a slightly flinty edge to the drier notes.  You are deep in the woods now with your lungs fully expanded, to allow your body to surrender to the welcoming, supporting stillness around you. 

 

John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) - The Lesson (detail), 1911

John Singer Sargent The Lesson (detail), 1911

Fragrance Foundation Award Winning Perfumer Kevin Verspoor  (and former CaFleureBon Contributor) has done a marvelous job under Tyler DeLaBar Kraemer’s direction in recreating the heritage and wonder of this august American line – For Walks is a tender, empathetic gem that should be a must-have for anyone who truly loves violets in perfume.  The only thing “grandmotherly” about this scent is the calming welcome it provides at every stage of its development to grant us a sacred, quiet place to restore ourselves and face the day again. 

Disclosure:  I received my sample from Twisted Lily Fragrance Boutique and Apothecary

Notes: violet leaf, mint, fir needle, violet and boronia flower, orris, vetiver, sandalwood and cedar

Pam Barr, Senior Contributor

Art Direction: Michelyn Camen The title of the draw is from  the beautiful quote by author Neltje Blanchan “Can words describe the fragrance of the very breath of spring?”  It seems Pam has done so.

BLOCKI_ForWalks_withFlowers_v1FLAT

Thanks to BLOCKI Perfumes we have a draw for in the US for a registered reader of 50 ml of For Walks. To be eligible, please leave a comment with what you enjoyed about Pam’s review, and your favorite place to stroll when the weather is warm or to find peace of mind. Draw closes 3/14/2016

We announce the winners only on site and on our Facebook page, so Like Cafleurebon and use our RSS option…or your dream prize will be just spilled perfume

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

79 − 78 =

25 comments

  • Thank you for introducing me to an American House that I didn’t know about. As always, Pam’s writing uncannily captures and describes the true heart of each unfolding moment of a fragrance, in a way that never fails to speak to me personally. My favorite walking place here in Portland is The Grotto. Built by a Servite monk and blessed by Pope Pius XI, it is an extensive botanical garden conducive to peace, quiet, and spiritual inspiration.

  • I love the images that accompany the review–it suits the depiction of this fragrance well and makes the fragrance sound particularly enticing. It reminds me of a spot from childhood that had been part of a vacant lot where the trees cast shade over a damp carpet of violets that I loved to collect and bring home to put inside a fluted dark green vase. Fir needle with violets sounds lovely!!

  • Lillyhollowayblog says:

    I love violets. They’ve always been the first flower to pick by the handful in the spring and a welcomed sight on woodland trails where I grew up. We have a beautiful nature preserve close by…perfect for a stroll to calm the nerves. I heard about this house a couple of months ago and have looked forward to reviews on their new line. I hope I get to sample this one. I live in the YS.

  • Great sounding classic fragrance house brought back to life. Not much woods where I live so I take a stroll on the beach to relax and check out the ocean. Pam’s review and description of the woods after getting a full whiff of the fragrance make me want to find the closest forest around me and take a stroll. Thanks for the giveaway, I live in the US

  • fazalcheema says:

    Reading this review makes it seem like For Walks has tried to capture the experience one goes through while taking a stroll through a forest. When the weather is warm, I like strolls that allow me the luxury to observe people because you find all kinds of characters. Ideal strolls may take place in NY’s Central Park. thanks a lot for the generous draw. I am in the US

  • Struck a chord for me that he was a chemist and went to world’s fairs, my parents took me to Knoxville, TN world’s fair in 1980. Nice memory for me since my mother had passed away relatively recently. I like to walk behind my home in trails through the woods, very peaceful. I am from USA

  • It’s nice to hear of an American perfume house being revived. Pam captured my interest right in the beginning when she wrote of violet-based perfumes. I love violets and don’t think of them as grandmotherly. For Walks sounds wonderful. I am very very curious about the opening – “breathing in pure, clean air”. USA.

  • Diana Devlin says:

    Wow, this house has quite some history! I love violet fragrances. And I love taking walks along the beaches on the Jersey shore (where I grew up). I especially like doing it at night because I love how the moon illuminates the water and sand. The ocean is very tranquil and soothing to me.
    I live in the U.S.

  • I love violet in perfumes and Pam makes For Walks sound absolutely lovely! The notes and her descriptions of them are wonderful. I especially liked the line that reads…It’s as if a perfume were standing beside you and whispering, “Breathe – just breathe”, which is EXACTLY what one needs to manage our vulnerable interior world. It sure is! I live in Brooklyn, NY and only wish I had a calming, serene forest to walk through near by. I would love a perfume with the ability to take me there! Thank you for the chance. U.S.

  • BostonScentGuy says:

    Loved reading about the history and revival of BLOCKI…as well as the astute observation that fragrances with violet are the center are always, to some extent, about fragility in a way! I see that even in my favorite gutsy cedar-ey violet, Bois de Violette. I love violet notes of all kinds and love to see how natural florals (as in not flower shop florals) are offset by earthy notes. My favorite place to go for a hike is more coniferous–the White Mountains or the Adirondacks do for that, but honestly any place with a significant smattering of trees works for me! Would love to be entered to win this. I’m in the US.

  • Lellabelle says:

    A lovely review, and the quote is simply beautiful: Can words describe the fragrance of the very breath of spring?”. I love to walk outdoors and my favourite place to hike would be the Pacific Northwest (the air is incomparable), Coastal California, and the French and Italian Alps. Please enter me for the draw. Thank you!

  • This was one of my absolute favourite perfumes from my visit to Twisted Lily, and Pam’s review captures my personal experience of it super accurately! “This opening is the closest facsimile to breathing in pure, clean air I’ve ever come across in perfume” – I couldn’t have said it better myself. For Walks actually made me breath in deeply, to experience the full breadth of what it has to offer.

    My favourite place to stroll is through the temperate rainforests of the Pacific Northwest. Thanks!

  • DNEM, but what a fantastic review. This fragrance sounds amazing! I had never heard of this house and can’t wait to try some of their perfumes.

    That artwork is perfect, as usual.

  • Pam’s review and accompanying images were wonderful! She has introduced me to a new fragrance house and given me a new violet fragrance that I must try. I grew up in a very rural area and my favorite place to walk was a trail behind my house. I would follow it down to the creek and take in all of nature’s beauty and smells. It was a form of meditation for me! I live in the US and thanks for the draw! 🙂

  • The very breath of spring is such beautiful imagery.
    The history of Blocki was really an important touch and to know that the grandson carried on the tradition is great.
    The images of Sargent were perfect for the review. Perfume notes tell a story yes
    My favorite place to walk is near my home where their is a shady path

  • Thanks for the beautiful images that accompany this review. I love the phrase “breathing in pure clean air”. That sounds sublime.
    I am lucky enough to live near the Monterey Bay, and that is my favorite place to walk, and breathe in the fresh air.
    Thanks for the drawing.

  • I love Violet in perfumes. This is my favorite part about Pam’s great review.
    The perfume For Walks could not have been more aptly titled. It begins with a radiantly dewy fir needle, mint and violet leaf opening that begs you to go for a deep and relaxing spring stroll outdoors. This opening is the closest facsimile to breathing in pure, clean air I’ve ever come across in perfume. It is both tremendously exhilarating and quietly intimate at the same time. It’s as if a perfume were standing beside you and whispering, “Breathe – just breathe”, which is EXACTLY what one needs to manage our vulnerable interior world.
    My favorite place to stroll is on the beach. I live in the U.S. Thanks for the giveaway!

  • This sounds like a great perfume for spring. Violets evoke spring for me. I love the paintings chosen to represent this. I love to stroll through the nearby nature trail with my dog Thanks for the draw. USA

  • girasole638 says:

    I think Pam has gone right to the heart of what makes violet so interesting as a note – the impression of vulnerability it projects. Her assessment that ‘violet is a tender, fragile, and vulnerable note. And our society isn’t about tender fragility – it’s about getting on with it and who cares what gets in your way’ made me a little sad, but I’m glad there are still such fragrances and I always hope they do well. I’d love to try this one.

    My husband and I just moved to the city from the country, so I am still figuring out good places to walk. It’s not as restful, but I still love wandering city streets and getting a little lost at times! Thanks for the giveaway! (I’m in the US)

  • I enjoyed Pam’s review and her observation that “… this is also why perfume matters as an art form. We need those fragile reminders to point us to a safe place where we can confront our soft spots without feeling like we are weak or too exposed. Perfume is a perfect, quiet and secret way to do this” resonated with me. My favorite place to stroll to find peace of mind is my backyard with all the sounds and sights of nature.

  • Although daylight savings time put a real damper on my Monday, this review brightened it back up. 😉 Love the inclusion of the oil paintings… the images did as much as the lovely language to paint my impression of “For Walks.” A fresh breath of spring is exactly what I need. When the weather is nice, I do like to go hiking in the state parks a short drive away, but I’m more likely to walk or ride my bike to the local city park, or to wander down to the harbor to walk along the cobblestone in the historic waterfront neighborhood I live near. The state parks smell significantly better than the city park or the urban water! I’m in the US, thanks for the wonderful draw.

  • Pam’s description of the violet note makes me yearn for a violet perfume. It’s a perfect scent for spring and summer.

    I live in Northern California so my perfect stroll would be in the Redwoods. I love walking amongst the giants!

    I’m in the USA. Thank you!

  • I liked the quote “The only thing “grandmotherly” about this scent is the calming welcome it provides at every stage of its development to grant us a sacred, quiet place to restore ourselves and face the day again. ” I like to walk through the woods to clear my mind and this sounds like a perfect scent for that 🙂 I’m in the US

  • Paula Tejano says:

    Pam Great review as always! The notes seem even give fresh air to perfume. I loved the part ‘”Breathe – just breathe,” Which is EXACTLY what one needs to manage our vulnerable inner world’. I already heard very good things about Blockis Walks and Walks For sounds an amazing scent Especially in the opening. For me the best rides both to relax and for the warm days are deserted beaches where I can just admire nature and enjoy the sea.
    I’m from the U.S.
    Thank you 🙂