Aimez – Moi by Caron

My favorite perfume since its launch in 1996. Years have passed, and I still have it. Finding it has been difficult lately, but whenever I do, I buy every bottle available, though I still treat it with excessive care. I own many perfumes, but I always return to Aimez-Moi; nothing pleases me as much as this one. Its delicious anise aroma, unlike any other perfume, drives me crazy, though on my skin, as hours pass, it transforms into a scent of tobacco wrapped in notes of anise, violet, and mint. It’s a smell I can’t stop smelling. I love it.

AIMEZ-MOI, please, I can’t live without you, my love, love me. Just as you hear it, until recently French lovers addressed each other with ‘vous’. Even in 50s and 60s Nouvelle Vague films, couples in a love trance would use that form of address. The French are like this, for good and for bad; that’s why the name CARON holds so much meaning. It wasn’t called ‘Love Me You,’ but ‘Love Me’ (with the formal ‘vous’), because it symbolized maintaining propriety and manners even within the heat of passion. Restraint in sensuality, elegance in ecstasy. Concepts that are obsolete today, yet part of human history, just like CARON’s AIMEZ-MOI. A timeless, romantic, sensual, elegant, and balanced fragrance. Thanks to the very kind and charming ANNA CÉ, I discovered a floral perfume from CARON, a house specializing in feminine florals and masculine fougères, with a classicism and exquisiteness that is always appreciated. Nothing in AIMEZ-MOI feels artificial. The opening is citrusy with a slight floral touch: bergamot and mandarin, perhaps stemming from that anise I almost perceive as citrus rather than anise itself. Immediately, a delicious mentholated violet candy aroma oxygenates the fragrance, producing an effect similar to an iso E-super, but without the artificial prevalence. I don’t perceive the declared cardamom note at all. I find myself soaring over an Austrian alpine landscape in the middle of summer, at the summer solstice, where the citrus notes of a mentholated violet mingle with sweet, vanilla-scented flowers that invite me to sit upon them and drink the pollen and nectar. Even that difficult peach note, which is usually insidious, is here wisely drawn: present but not overwhelming. The dry down could resemble a Guerlinade, heavier on florals than the GUERLAIN accord, but with that powdery, sweet, dreamy air. Additionally, the performance is above average and not intrusive. AIMEZ-MOI by CARON has all the components of a modern fruitchouli, but it is nothing like that scent. It possesses that discretion and moderation that French lovers in ‘Les Liaisons Dangereuses’ had.

I’ve been hunting for this perfume for a long time, drawn by its reputation as a good, refined, and unusual interpretation of a violet scent. I was lucky enough to find a vintage bottle, just like in the photo, and I must say, I really like it. The opening is a bit strange; you can detect mint, bergamot, and cardamom, with a hint of anise. They surely designed this to give freshness with unusual notes, not totally citrusy, but I perceive it more as spicy than fresh. This phase lasts about an hour, which is too long for my personal taste, since I don’t smell any violet at the start and would have loved to feel them from the very beginning. Gradually, amidst this ‘mentholated-spicy freshness,’ the scent of sweet, anise-infused violets emerges, very pleasant. It doesn’t feel powdery despite the iris, because the violet is accompanied by white flowers, peach, sandalwood, and amber, which give it warmth. This is the phase I like the most, and it’s curious to note how the ‘cold’ violet note from the anise facet alternates with the ‘warm’ note from the amber, sandalwood, and peach. This lasts about 4-5 hours with a moderate trail, then fades to skin-level, leaving a residual aroma of very light, non-gourmand vanilla, non-animalic musk, and amber. I’ve read comments saying the opening reminds one of Apres l’Ondée, and it does give it an air, though it’s not as melancholic or retro; it’s a more modern yet equally timeless interpretation. I consider it more of a daytime scent and versatile, though since it’s hard to find, I wouldn’t wear it daily; I plan to keep my bottle as a small treasure. I don’t know if it has been reformulated since it’s sold in a different bottle. It’s not for everyone, but if you’re looking for non-powdery violets and you find it, give it a chance; it’s a beautiful perfume.