Ciel d'Opale - No.2

Ciel d'Opale is a niche floral-green fragrance from Ann Gerard, composed by Bertrand Duchaufour, built around the unusual choice of quince and galbanum up top softening into honeysuckle and lily-of-the-valley, then a gentle vetiver-cedar-vanilla drydown. It reads relaxed and outdoorsy rather than showy, with a quiet, warm-powdery quality that unfolds slowly rather than announcing itself. Match Perfumes' No.2 draws on a very similar note list - quince, galbanum, bergamot, lemon and pepper up top, honeysuckle, jasmine and lily-of-the-valley at heart, vetiver, cedar, guaiac wood, sandalwood, amber and vanilla underneath - and the shy, not-sharp citrus opening giving way to a warm, powdery floral heart is a fair echo of the original's structure. Where it comes apart is in the delicacy of the transitions: the original moves gently between its green, floral and powdery phases over several hours, while No.2's shifts feel more abrupt and the composition settles into a flatter sandalwood-amber base much sooner, losing the soft, lingering quality that defines the original.