Vanille-Benjoin

• Evening
• Romantic
• Cosy

Vanille-Benjoin is built around this pairing, with a vanilla that is less sweet than usual, denser, almost resinous. This is not a light gourmand treat, but something richer and more textured.

The fragrance opens with a warm softness, the vanilla already there but quickly joined by benzoin, which adds a slightly smoky, amber edge. Then the fragrance turns rounder, almost creamy, with a warm, comforting feel.

Over time, the perfume gains depth, with woody, resinous nuances that give it staying power and an almost 'warm balm' quality. The vanilla stays at the centre, darker and more elegant, with a soft but lingering sillage.

Affinessence is a French perfume house founded in 2015 by Sophie Bruneau, which turns the classic structure of perfume on its head. Drawing on more than twenty-five years of experience in olfactory analysis and an artistic background spanning dance, music and sculpture, Sophie Bruneau treats perfume as a material to be worked and shaped, rather than unfolded according to an established pattern. Her approach rests on a simple but defining idea: breaking away from the traditional olfactory pyramid. Where perfumery usually organises its creations in three stages: top, heart, base. Affinessence chooses to isolate each level and make it the very centre of the perfume. The first collection, Notes de Fond, explores deep, persistent materials such as woods, resins, musks and spices. Each creation is built around two main ingredients that converse with each other and shape the whole composition. The Notes de Cœur collection focuses on more floral, gourmand or spicy materials, worked with the same density and longevity as notes that are usually lighter. Finally, the Notes de Tête collection applies this approach to fresher, brighter accords, designed to keep a real presence on the skin.