Aimez – Moi by Caron

Since its launch in 1996, this has been my perfume for life. Lately, it has been a nightmare finding stock, so whenever I manage to grab some, I buy every bottle I can find and treat them like precious jewels. Although I own a vast collection of scents, I always return to Aimez-Moi; none compare to it. Its anise aroma is unique and drives me wild, yet on my skin, over time, it transforms into something incredible: tobacco wrapped in anise, violet, and mint. It is a scent I cannot stop smelling; I simply adore it.

AIMEZ-MOI, I beg you, I cannot live without you, my love, love me. As you hear, until recently French lovers addressed each other as ‘vous’. Even in 1950s and 60s nouvelle vague films, couples in a state of love trance would address each other thus. The French are like this, for good and for ill; that is why the name CARON holds such meaning. It was not called ‘Love Me You’, but ‘Love Me You’ (in the formal sense), because it sought to symbolise maintaining form and manners within passion and the heat of love. Restraint in sensuality, elegance in ecstasy. Concepts now obsolete, yet part of human history, just as AIMEZ-MOI by CARON is. A timeless, romantic, sensual, elegant, and balanced fragrance. Thanks to the very kind and charming ANNA CÉ, I discovered a floral fragrance by CARON, a house specialising in feminine florals and masculine fougères, with a classicism and exquisiteness that is always appreciated. Nothing in AIMEZ-MOI is artificial. Its 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 do not perceive the declared cardamom note at any point. I find myself soaring over an Austrian alpine landscape in mid-summer, the summer solstice, where the citrus notes of a mentholated violet intermingle with sweet, vanilla-scented flowers that invite me to sit upon them and sip the pollen and nectar. Even that difficult peach note, 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. Furthermore, the performance is above average and not intrusive. AIMEZ-MOI by CARON has all the components of a modern fruitchouli, yet nothing could be further from that scent. It possesses that discretion and moderation that French lovers in ‘Les Liaisons Dangereuses’ had.

I had been hunting for this fragrance for some time due to its reputation as a good, fine, and unusual interpretation of a violet scent. I was lucky to find a vintage bottle, just like in the photo, and I must say I like it very much. The opening is a little strange; one perceives mint with bergamot and cardamom and slightly anise, surely devised to give freshness with unusual notes, not totally citrusy, but I feel it more spicy than fresh. This phase lasts approximately an hour, too long for my personal taste, as initially I smell nothing of violets and would have loved to feel them from the start. Gradually, amidst this ‘mentholated-spicy freshness’, the aroma of sweet, anise-scented violets emerges, very pleasant; it does not feel powdery despite the iris because the violet is accompanied by white flowers, peach, sandalwood, and amber, which give it warmth. This phase is what I like most, and it is curious to note that the ‘cold’ violet note given by the anised facet alternates with the ‘warm’ note from the amber, sandalwood, and peach. This lasts approximately 4-5 hours with a discreet to moderate trail, then drops to skin-level, leaving a residual aroma of very light, non-gourmand vanilla, non-animalic musk, and amber. I have read comments that the opening reminds one of Apres l’Ondée, and it is true that it gives an air, though it is not perceived as so melancholic or retro; it is a more modern yet equally timeless interpretation. I consider it more of a daytime scent than an evening one and find it versatile, although due to the difficulty in sourcing it, I would not use it daily; I plan to keep my bottle as a small treasure. I do not know if it has been reformulated as it is marketed with a different bottle. It is not for everyone, but if you seek non-powdery violets and find it, give it a chance; it is a very beautiful perfume.