The Three Neela Vermeire Creations Perfumes You Should be Wearing +Trayee (2012), Mohur (2012) and Pichola (2016) Draw

Flower Seller, Dal Lake, Srinagar, Kashmir, 1996, National Geographic ©Steve McCurry

When Creative Director Neela Vermeire’s line of India-inflected perfumes launched in 2012, it was as if a gate, long hidden, had suddenly swung open on an undiscovered, but much imagined, paradisal world.  

Bertrand Duchaufour and Neela Vermeire

From Technicolor Bombay Bling to the yearning Rahele, sumptuous Trayee to sensuous Mohur, Neela Vermeire Creations have a unique signature, developed in partnership with renowned “King of Niche”, perfumer Bertrand Duchaufour. Inflected with the spices, flowers and scent memories of her Indian childhood and beyond, Neela Vermeire’s perfumes bring old magic to modern perfumery.

Hindu devotee's face covered in multicolored powder during a Holi celebration, photo National Geographic©

Trayee (2012): Trayee, meaning “triad” in Sanskrit, is inspired by the first three Vedas, the oldest, most sacred books of India, (its formula contains a high percentage of natural ingredients used in Vedic ceremonies). A gorgeous, complex blend of spices, resins and flowers, Trayee is a time traveler very much at home in the modern world. It is one of those kaleidoscopic fragrances that changes with the light, the time of day and the heat. In the cool of morning, it was a gingery floral, cousin to Lentheric’s elegant, lost Shanghai; tonight, it is cinnamon, blackcurrant and jasmine dancing a dramatic but restrained Paso Doble.  Reapplying it a third time, cola-rooty vetiver swings into the forefront ahead of smoky, sooty oud.

Veda, photo Odisha State Museum©

Trayee, like all of Vermeire’s fragrances, walks a tightrope between lightness and heft. It is astonishing how many notes come out in procession: the fresh green and loamy Javanese and Haitian vetivers, each gaining the upper hand momentarily; dusty saffron, myrrh, rich sandalwood, vanilla … and yet, somehow, Duchaufour stirs this jumble of aromas into an intoxicating medley, as intricate and harmonious as a Mahler symphony.  My favorite of Neela Vermeire’s perfumes. Notes: Blue ginger, elemi, cinnamon, ganja accord, blackcurrant absolute, basil, jasmine sambac, Egyptian jasmine, cardamom, absolute, clove, saffron Javanese and Haitian vetiver, incense, Mysore sandalwood oil, patchouli, myrrh, vanilla, cedar, amber notes, oud palao from Laos, oak moss.

Photo via xiphiasstudios.com©

Mohur (2012): Mohur is a rose unlike any other. Its opening is a swirl of floral and edible notes that at first blur like the oils in a pointillist canvas. Its first seconds are puzzling: the distinctive milky sap of a broken stem of Queen Anne’s lace overlapping a wet, smudgy rose, while a sweet, fresh carrot note whistles in the background. But within minutes, the rose and milky notes expand: the rose becomes voluptuous; a sweet almond note joins the green milky accord, and warm cardamom rises to the surface like scented steam. In the dry-down, myriad notes of woods, resins and leather come forward and retreat, and act as bold counterpoints to the sensual, blown rose petals. Lovers of rose notes, lovers of the exotic, and well, lovers, should try Mohur – preferably while lying on a cloud of silken cushions. Notes: Cardamom, coriander, ambrette, carrot, black pepper, elemi, Turkish rose oil, jasmine, orris, hawthorn, almond milk accord, leather, sandalwood, amber, patchouli, oudh palao from Laos, benzoin, vanilla, tonka bean.

Lake Pichola, Rajasthan, photo Mithunonthe.net

Pichola (2016): A lake in which a white palace floats like a vast water lily, Pichola embraces the royal city of Udaipur. Its namesake captures the puffy flowers warmed by sunlight and wafts of distant spice of its banks. Orange citrus bursts onto the skin with a first dab of Pichola. But, as with the other Neela Vermeire Creations fragrances, these opening notes are quickly greeted but other, less expected scents. A strikingly lovely magnolia note – perhaps the most lifelike I’ve encountered in perfumery – surrounds and calms that bite of the bergamot as it curls up with neroli. Spices slink in and begin to add an aromatic contrast to the heady tree blossoms and fruit. Once again, distinctive notes each take a bow before retreating into their chorus: cinnamon, lush rose, creamy tuberose and a tickle of saffron weave in and out before Pichola dries down onto a bed of light woods. Pichola smells like the romantic late afternoons you see only in movies, where lovers tangle in boats drifting lazily along flowery banks. Notes:Cardamom, cinnamon, saffron, juniper, magnolia, neroli oil, clementine, bergamot, orange blossom absolute, rose absolute, tuberose absolute, jasmine sambac, ylang-ylang, benzoin absolute, sandalwood, driftwood, vetiver from Haiti.

India Street, photo by Marji©

Neela Vermeire has created an array of beautiful, thoughtfully crafted fragrances from a very personal point of view that is nonetheless completely accessible.  Wear them and be transported.

Take Two Flacons, photo Neela Vermeire©

Thanks to the generosity of Neela Vermeire Creations, we have two 15ml bottles of your choice of any Neela Vermeire eau de parfums in this review (Trayee, Mohur and Pichola) – for one registered reader  (you must register if you have not done so here) in the U.S., Europe or Canada. To be eligible, please leave a comment about what appeals to you about these three perfumes based on Lauryn’s review, where you live and if you have a personal favorite in the line. Please be sure to leave the two 15 mls you want to win in your comment . Draw ends 4/21/17.

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42 comments

  • I’m not entering since I’m a happy owner of both Mohur and Pichola but commenting since these are some of the loveliest perfumes I’ve come across. Mohur is hands down my favourite rose…so deep and rich, complimented beautifully by spices and woods. Pichola is a favourite for springtime and yet wears differently each time. Sometimes the citruses jump out, other times the skillfully used tuberose, and other times it is a joyful and playful orange blossom. Many congratulations to Neela Vermiere and my thanks for creating these gorgeous experiences!

  • Pichola is so beautiful, as I imagine all of Vermeire’s creations are. It’s the first perfume I’ve ever tried that actually transports me somewhere else, someplace like the palace with the water lily that Lauryn describes! To me it also smells like cherry blossoms, spring with the memory of ice crystals still lingering in early morning. If I won I would choose Mohur, Exotic cardamom and silk, yes please. I live in Canada, thank you for the draw.

  • NiceVULady says:

    Lauryn makes the fragrances come alive with this review. I would love Trayee and Pichola if I won. The magnolia note is especially appealing. Thank you so very much for the draw. I live in the USA

  • What appeals to me about both Trayee and Mohur is I have had some of both and they are personal favorites. I’d love to win the Trayee and Mohur. And Trayee is a fave from the line. 🙂
    USA

  • They all sound so lovely! The words and pictures give a tantalizing idea of what must be experienced by the nose. I would love to try Trayee and Mohur (rose and carrot). I’m in the US, and thank you!

  • Trayee appeals to me because is described as being multifaceted and changing over time, and that cola-rooty vetiver sounds especially good. Pichola appears interesting also.
    So I would love to win Trayee and Pichola.
    I never tried any of Neela Vermeire creations, so I cannot choose a favorite.
    I live in Romania.
    Thank you.

  • I am intrigued by Trayee, a fragrance that changes on you. That sounds delightful. I tried Mohur when it first came out and liked it but my nose was a lot dumber then. I think I would appreciate it a lot more now. Pichola is pretty and I am always surprised by the citrusy opening. I would love to try Trayee and retry Mohur. I live in the US.

  • BethMongold says:

    Oh how I love this line. I already own 15ml Trayee, Bombay Bling and Ashoka (not mentioned here). I have samples of Rahele and Pichola. I love how all the perfumes resonate with a different time period. I would love to win 1) Pichola and 2) Mohur. Thanks, I am in the USA!

  • I would love to wear these wonderful fragrances and be transported to South Asia. Scent memories of an Indian Childhood… WOW! Anyway I would like to enter this draw of the two fragrances of Trayee with its hymn to the idea of India and Mohur with its wooded almond rose accord. THANK YOU, I do live in the US.

  • Trayee is my favorite Neela creation, I have a decant and especially enjoy it in the fall. Mohur is a beautiful rose…I lost my sample and would love to smell it again. Pichola I haven’t tried yet, tuberose just doesn’t love me yet reading the sumptuous description herein, it sounds like a perfect lush spring experience. I would want to win Mohur and Pichola, it’s never too late to try something new. Thanks to all for the lovely review and generous offer! I’m in the US.

  • GrandmaGaga says:

    The reviews for these three perfumes are enchanting…I love a scent that takes me in a journey or tells me a story and these appear to do both! I think it is very clever of Ms. Vermeire to offer her scents in 15 ml. I would love to win Muhur and Pichola is I were so lucky. I am in the US.

  • ntabassum92 says:

    They all sound so magical, so full of a particular time of day in a particular place. I love India, have always wanted to visit, and these descriptions just take me there. I’m in the US. I have never tried any Neela Vermiere creations. I would like to win Mohur and Pichola.

  • A lovely review of these three; quite transportive! I would love any of these but if I had to pick two, it would be Trayee, which has been on my test list for a while, and Pichola, for the imagery of the palace on the lake. I shall be dreaming Indian fairytales, for sure!
    Thank you Neela, for the draw! Canada, please.

  • I haven’t tried all Neela Vermeire, but I did try a sample of Pichola and Trayee and I really liked them. I enjoy the precision with which they are made and I also enjoy the way they portray Indian beauty; the spices and flowers just evoke being in India. So it’s a house worthy of exploring. I live in Spain, EU and should I win I would like to explore the ones I’ve only sampled; my choice is Pichola and Trayee!
    Thank you!

  • I’ve always wanted to try one of Neela Vermeire’s fragrances, but for some reason I have just never had the chance. My very favorite note in perfumery is cardamom, so it is truly criminal that I’ve not yet gotten my nose on any of these.

    Lauryn makes the milky sweetness surrounding the rose in Mohur sound like a delectable exotic treat, and she describes her reapplications of Trayee as if they are symphonic movements – I can imagine the sinuous progression of the ginger, the cinnamon, the jasmine, the vetiver in Trayee.

    While I’m captivated by the inspiration behind Pichola, Mohur and Trayee are practically customized reflections of my personal taste in fragrance, so I am sure my favorite will be one of these two!

    I am in the US.

  • Smelled Trayee and Mohur once before. I was interested in Trayee at first and turns out I like Mohur even more! I’d love the chance to win a Mohur! And maybe try Pichola as well! I live in France.
    Thank you for this draw!

  • fazalcheema says:

    I am intrigued by Pichola due to its notes and it is inspired by Udaipur which is quite a romantic city. Trayee also seems interesting because it is Lauryn’s favorite and is a distant reminder of lentheric shanghai. My fav from Neela is Mohur and Bombay Bling which I already have so I will go for Pichola and Trayee in this draw. I am in US.

  • Iuno Feronia says:

    The perfumes of Neela Vermeire are fantastic – I love them, my favourite until now is Bombay Bling but I think, Trayee could beat it. It sounds enigmatic.

    Thanks for the draw, my choices would be Trayee and Mohur.

    I live in the EU!

  • Beautiful review, it was a pleasure to read. Mohur sounds incredible fabulous for me. I love roses so much. I would be so glad If I would own this wonderful fragrance. Trayee and Pichola are also sounds really nicely. If I would be as lucky to win, Mohur and Picholea is my choice. Thank you for the chance. I live in Europe.

  • I am interested in trying Pichola, it’s one from Neela Vermeire I have yet to try. I’ve had great experiences trying several others in her line. Should I be chosen I’d love the Pichola and the Trayee. U.S.

  • One of my favorite Roses is Neela Mohur. I own a bottle. I liked the descriptions of magnolia for Pichola and the changability of trayee and would pick those two.
    Thank you so much
    Canada reader

  • Anna Egeria says:

    These fragrances sound fabulous! I’d love to try Trayee and especially Pichola. I’ve never had the pleasure of trying any of Neela’s creations. I live in the US. Thank you and Neela for this lovely drawing!

  • Very nice review. Thanks! Honestly, I was thinking that the niche world needs new blood of creation which combines new visions with old cultures. This is exactly what we need. Thank you for informing us of such a beautiful house.
    If I win I would like to have Trayee and Mohur. Live in the US.

  • The reviews are colorful and lively, and I am really ready to be ‘transported’! I have not sampled any from this line, but Pichola, with its notes of orange, magnolia, and cardamom, sounds heavenly. I live in the US, thanks!

  • The entire Neela Vermeire collection is beyond exquisite, possibly the most consistently excellent perfume line I’ve ever encountered.

    I can decide between Ashoka and Bombay Bling for my favorite, I have much love for both of them. Of the scents profiled here, Trayee and Pichola appeal to me for their summery notes and recurring spice theme.

    I’m in the USA, thanks for the generous offering.

  • I only recently tried Pichola and was blown away by how beautiful it was. I love Lauryns rich descriptions, always exquisite, such as: “the distinctive milky sap of a broken stem of Queen Anne’s lace overlapping a wet, smudgy rose,” in describing Mohur. and after reading the descri-tion of Trayee I will go back and revisit it, as it had been the least desired up til now. If I won I would pick Pichola and Mohur. My favorites of the line are Picola and Bombay Bling. Thank you for the review and the draw!USA

  • I’m so pleased to see reviews for these fragrances! After seeing Bombay Bling mentioned in the top spring list last week, I just about added the entire Neela Vermeire line to my wishlist. Trayee sounds magnificent; from the gingery floral to the cola vetiver, that kaleidoscopic quality is so enticing and magical. And Pichola! That imagery Lauryn describes is just :hearts eyes: how dreamy! I really love the constant use of cardamom in all three fragrances as well. I’ve never tried anything from this line, but Trayee and Pichola are definitely the ones I want to try first. In the US. Thanks for the draw! 🙂

  • Based on the review, I’d like to try the most Trayee, it is probably the one that will suit the most, although the other two descriptions do sound cool as well. Thanks, I live in EU.

  • I always pay attention when a current perfume is favorably compared to a long-lost vintage (Trayee to Lentheric’s Shanghai)! When NV’s first three scents appeared I got teensy samples and loved all of them. The only one I’ve purchased so far is Ashoka, so I guess I should say that’s my favorite. I live in the US, and would love to win Trayee and Mohur.

  • What a generuous draw!! I love all Neeila Vemeire perfumes I have tried , and Bombay Blong and Ashoka not mentioned here are also amaizing. I would like the rose based MOHUR, and wear it ” while lying on a cloud of silken cushions”. I am a rose lover 😉 The other one I would chose would be TRAYEE , it seems a kaleidoscopic perfume, with all its rich ingredients.
    Thanks for this oportunit. I live in Europe .

  • It appeals to me that the approach to these is more personal and it intrigues me that the review describes them as still accessible.

    I’d be delighted to try Mohur and Trayee,

    I am in the US.

  • Trayee sounds good with its rooty vetiver facet, Mohur for the smudgy rose and Pichola for the magnolia and tuberose flowers. But the one I’d chose is Trayee, as the notes sound like my style. Haven’t tried anything Nella before. I live in EU.

  • cardinalmind says:

    Coming from the same continent but a different region, what appealed to me is in ms. beer’s review is the chance to smell a perfume catering to it and loving it. I currently live in the US, several thousands of miles away from home and its making me crave for Asian infused stuffs to remove the homesickness and loneliness of living abroad. I like both Trayee and Mohur based on the review, and I hope that they’ll be my favorites from the line. Have a nice day!

  • cardinalmind says:

    P. S. I’d change my choices to Pichola and Mohur. There’s an intense drug war in my home country and I don’t want to leave my perfume here in the US. I don’t waant to become a statistic or imprisoned there.

  • I absolutely love Mohur, it is a stunning perfume! I’m thrilled to get a chance to win some. I loved how evocative Lauryn’s reviews of these perfumes are and the wonderful mix of scent and image in her writing. I’d love to win Mohur and Trayee and I’m in the US. Thank you!

  • I love the idea of place-and-time inspired scents.

    My favourites in this draw are Trayee (for heavy opulence) and Mohur (the rose, the rose).

    I’m in the UK.

  • I love how Trayee was called caleidoscopic, Mohur has a smudgy rose and Pichola has puffy flowers earmed in the sunlight.

    I would love to try Mohur and Trayee.

    I am a reader from the EU. Thank you!

  • Hikmat Sher Afridi says:

    Sounds great! would love to participate in the draw for Trayee and Mohur by letting my relative address in US.

  • There’s something about the scents and sights of India that I find so profound and mystifiying, it’s a place that’s always captured my imagination. I was assigned the book “A River Sutra” in my sophomore year of high school and it opened the door to a lifelong fascination with the culture and colors of the country. I highly recommend it this book if anyone is looking for a good read!

    There’s something wonderful about perfumes created for specific places and times. I have a sample of Trayee so I would love to experience Mohur and Pichola. I’m particularly curious about the magnolia note listed in this review–the magnolias in my area just finished blooming for the year and I’m already missing their glorious scent.