White Linen is the epitome of clean, fresh, cool, invigorating. Sparkling. It may not be my favorite aldehyde (Rive Gauche and Calandre hold that spot, along vintage N°5) but it’s my benchmark as an aldehyde with the above statements. Vintage has a dark animal vein running thru, and modern feels the same minus the potency and the dark underbelly. I’m starting with the modern version, of which I usually go through a bottle a year. The diminished power requires copious spraying, but with that it ensures it lasts all day on skin and clothes. And there’s no other fragrance that conveys such a sparkle. It’s at once complex and simple, layered but understandable. If I close my eyes I can see and smell pure fresh mountain air. That clean breath, that coolness that permeates your nostrils and opens up your nose. Everything else smells magnified. I sometimes struggle to use it in winter as it feels like an ice pick piercing thru my veins. But I still do. And in summer, it’s the best tonic, for skin and soul. Aldehydes rule here, the flowers and green notes get lost in translation. What’s left it’s a veil of colors that dances on skin. Green, yellow, pink, purple, white. Shades of aldehyde that smell like everything at once, at moments green and herbal, at times rosy, sometimes even white floralish. Always I sense an undercurrent of moss and when it reaches its long drydown, a warm ambery goodness that slightly warms the soul. I wouldn’t say it reminds me of white linen hanging in the sun as that would imply a warmer fragrance. It reminds me of that feel, stepping out of the beach with a wet swimsuit and lying under the sun. The contrast of the heat hitting your cold skin and droplets evaporating. It’s a scent of emotions. The vintage; the first version feels decidedly creamier and more powdery. The aldehydes are as potent as ever but they stay as a background note given a couple of hours. The flowers bloom and the mossy side covers the entire landscape. The civet and honey cast a slightly bruised patina of warmth and sensuality and the amber drydown feels somewhat spicy and sexy. It goes from cool to hot and from effervescent to sizzling. Dirtier but still clean! Sillage and longevity. 6/8 modern and 9/9 for the vintage. Tip: a spray of a musk heavy fragrance and then modern White Linen on top adds some lost dimension and brings it closer to the original while still respecting its marble coolness.