Ten Scents From Europe Trivia Quiz

Answer: Chanel

Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel (1883-1971) was a French couturier.
She was raised in an orphanage, where she learned sewing. After having failed a career as a singer, she became the mistress of some wealthy men. Meanwhile she started making hats, at first simply as a pastime. In 1910 she obtained a license as a milliner, and in 1913 she started to design jackets, sweaters and blouses.
In 1921 she launched her first and best known perfume, "No. 5". The story goes that the Russian perfumer Ernest Beaux allowed her to choose between a dozen of numbered samples, and Coco picked number 5 because that was her lucky number.
The scent of Chanel No 5 is described as composed of "dynamic, crisp top notes of lemon, mandarin and orange... the bouquet unfolds with rose, jasmine and a new fraction of ylang ylang". As I haven't tried out all the perfumes used in this quiz, I'll quote the description found on the web site of Sephora, one of the main perfume web shops.

Answer: Viktor & Rolf

Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren, both born in 1969, met at the academy of art and design. They founded the Dutch fashion company bearing their first names in 1993.
In 2006, they created their first perfume, called "Flowerbomb".
As the brand name suggests, it provokes the sensation of a "floral explosion", powerful enough "to make everything seem more positive". It contains notes of jasmine and rose, but also of orchid and freesia, on a base of patchouli.

Answer: Versace

Gianni Versace (1946-1997) founded his Italian fashion house in 1978. The company at first made only clothing, but started with accessories (including perfume) and jewellery in 1982.
Bright Crystal is a pink coloured perfume with an amazing amount of different scents: "iced accord, yuzu, pomegranate, peony, magnolia, lotus flower, acajou, vegetal amber, musk".

Answer: Yves Saint Laurent

Yves Saint Laurent (1936-2008) was a French fashion designer. At first he worked for Christian Dior, but Yves founded his own fashion company in 1961. Perfumes by Yves Saint Laurent were launched in the 1980's. The first perfume launched by YSL was Opium, a mix of "tangerine, plum, cloves, coriander, carnation, lily of the valley, rose, myrrh, opoponax, castoreum, cedarwood and sandalwood". One of the variations on this original perfume is Black Opium, containing notes of "coffee accord, orange blossom, cedarwood and patchouli". According to Sephora, the Black Opium sells better than the original Opium.

Answer: Dior

Christian Dior (1905-1957) founded his eponymous fashion house in 1946. His first collection, dubbed the "New Look" by the chief editor of "Harper's Bazaar", was considered revolutionary. The Dior fashion house launched perfumes in 1947.
"J'adore" (which would be translated as "I worship") is a perfume with notes of ylang ylang, damascene rose and sambac jasmine. According to the Sephora web site, it is ideal "for the confident, sensual woman who celebrates her femininity".

Answer: Dolce & Gabbana

Domenico Dolce (born 1958) and Stefano Gabbana (born 1962) are Italian fashion designers. They founded their fashion house in 1985 (women's clothing) and expanded into swimming costumes and underwear in 1989. Perfumes were added in 1992.
Light Blue is, according to the Sephora web site, "irresistible like the joy of living". I dare say this is pure commercial talk: not a single perfume can equal the glorious feeling of "the joy of living".
The scent of Light Blue is composed of "Sicilian citron, bluebell, Granny Smith apple, jasmine, bamboo, white rose, cedarwood, amber and musk".

Answer: Lancome

Lancôme is a perfume and cosmetics company founded by the French Armand Petitjean in 1935. Instead of using his name as brand name (which is quite common in the fashion and perfume industry), Petitjean was inspired by the name of a former castle near his dwelling.
One of Lancôme's first perfumes was "Tendre Nuit" (translated: "Tender Night"). "La vie est belle" ("Life is beautiful") is one of the bestselling and most advertised perfumes by Lancôme.
"La vie est belle" combines floral notes such as iris, jasmine, orange blossom and patchouli with "the sweetness of praline".

Answer: Paco Rabanne

Francisco Rabanedo Cuervo (born 1934) chose the alias Paco Rabanne. This Spanish Basque moved to France, where he worked in the jewellery industry before creating his own fashion house in 1966.
Paco Rabanne's perfumes were distributed under the brand name Puig, until a law suit with Brazil over the trade mark registration and the payment of import duties.
The perfume Olympea presents notes of "green mandarin, ginger lily, hydroponic jasmine, salted vanilla, sandalwood and ambergris".

Answer: Giorgio Armani

Giorgio Armani (born 1934) is an Italian fashion designer. He founded his company in 1975. Armani produces men's and women's clothing, underwear, swimming suits, jeans, fashion accessories and perfume. Armani's company also invested in hotels and restaurants. Sí (the Italian word for "yes") is a chypre like perfume, with notes of "blackcurrant nectar, airy florals and musky blond wood".

Some of you will wonder at the word chypre. I found that this is a specific type of perfume, combining citrus overtones (for instance bergamot, lemon of orange) with a base of oak moss and patchouli. Chypre is frequently enhanced with musk (nowadays synthetic musk, because of animal protection).

Answer: Gucci

Guccio Gucci (1881-1953) started his career as lift boy in the London Savoy hotel. There he got the idea of designing quality travel bags and fashion accessories. Gucci founded an eponymous company in 1921. At first, the Gucci company produced only leather hand bags and suitcases. Soon it developed all kinds of leather ware (including shoes and belts), silk foulards, and later on clothing and perfumes.
Gucci Guilty has notes of "geranium, pink pepper, lilac, peach, amber and patchouli".