Sabine Poncet Hernandez

I encountered Sabine Poncet Hernandez’s first perfume for her S Poncet line,  Eau Eternelle in 2011, and it struck me how simply beautiful it was. It was a perfect summer perfume that would make you feel elegant and light; it was rounded and made with such ease, that it seemed like something out of a history of fragrances, not a first release from a new brand.

In Denmark there are hardly any niche brands and in malls you’re lucky to find a few non mainstreams of interest. So imagine my surprise to stumble upon a wonderful little shop called Essence and Groom just opposite one of the most beautiful places in Copenhagen, the renaissance palace Rosenborg and the adjourning garden. The shop had a beautiful window display and in it, a bottle of S Poncet’s Eau Eternelle ( I had won a sample on CaFleureBon). I stopped in my tracks and went straight in to discover two very dedicated, young shop owners starting up a perfume shop. And, as you will imagine, one of their brands was S Poncet. I was very surprised to find that there had been a new release from this brand. The new perfume was called Pleasant Promenade.

Pleasant Promenade by Claudie Poncet (Sabine's Mother)

Let me start of by saying that Pleasant Promenade is every bit as beautiful as  Eau Eternelle. This particular Promenade indeed opens pleasantly with a sense of moist leaves and a touch of cloves and berries to bring a ray of sunshine to the composition. It draws you in with an instant feel of the sun warming the damp earth on a day of clear blue skies and chill in the air. Throughout the development of the fragrance you sense a dewiness and moist humus, but although it seems a true image, it’s never photorealistic, but rather a perfume-poetic version of a forest. The fragrance softens somewhat towards a warmer and a bit dryer heart, where you’ll find a very well behaved and cosy patchouli, enwrapped in violet leaf and galbanum, which, slowly as the autumnal tree sheds it’s leaves, falls into a bed of woods and soft calming notes- always, ever so carefully balancing the sweet of musky honey and sandalwood against the mossy greens.

Sabine Poncet wanted this new perfume to capture the woods of the Loire valley in fall. And it’s true; the first thing that springs to mind is that walk in the autumn forest or perhaps a walk through the still cold and snow-covered parks, still dressed for winter, but sensing, by the light and the sweet waft of moist earth that spring is on its way. The cold is the perfect excuse to snuggle up to each other, and in the embrace smell the delicate softness of spice and petals and a warm and earthy drydown of S Poncet perfume Pleasant Promenade. In an email exchange with Editor in Chief Michelyn Camen,  Sabine said "When I saw my mother's water color, it immediately reminded me of the promenades in the beautiful oak tree forest we took as a family. Her artwork shows the forest at the end of the Fall, and that season is full of olfactory memories: the wet earth, the fragrance of the pears in the neigborhood, the last roses before winter starts, the moss on the trees, the falling leaves. I tried to gather all these notes to share my wonderful promenades, some very precious moments that I will always cherish".

Now, I have never been to the Loire Vally in fall, but if I ever go, I’ll be wearing Pleasant Promenade there.

The sample for this review was kindly given to me by the owners of Essence and Groom in Copenhagen.

Thanks to S. Poncet we have a draw of 10 Samples for ten winners. To be eligible leave a comment on your favourite small perfume shop (brick and mortar) you’ve discovered. The draw will end on March 19, 2013.

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.

–Jasia Julia Nielson, Contributor