Limehouse For Women

Limehouse aims at one of the great modern florals, Bond No.9 Chinatown. It opens with a soft peach blossom and bergamot, then quickly swells into the big white-floral heart - tuberose and gardenia front and centre, sweetened with honey and rounded by peony and orange blossom. That lush, slightly fruity bouquet is where it tracks the original most faithfully. The drydown reaches for Chinatown's signature gourmand-chypre base of vanilla, patchouli, cardamom and woods, but here it reads sweeter and simpler, missing some of the spiced, candied-plum depth that makes the Bond so distinctive. Projection is moderate and longevity falls short of the long-wearing original, settling close to the skin after a few hours. A warm, sensual floral for evenings and cooler weather that gets the showy heart right while flattening the refined base.