Hi Crew, My girlfriend Ersilia was asking about CHANEL No 19. Went to the cupboard and realized I’d given away or sold off my vintage 50ml EdT so then I hit the resellers. Found one for a very reasonable price and grabbed it. Came with a box and is so pristine I wondered if the bottle had ever been opened. That original bright green has been maintained, so no oxidization, because the older opened and used ones often skew a little more beige. The parfum in vintage was beige-er than the EdT and most of that age group are golden by now. I took some out to give to Ersilia, it’s now getting some wears around here too.
CHANEL No 19 EdT vintage
These are the original notes given for the 1970 EdT:
Top: Galbanum, Hyacinth, Bergamot, Neroli
Heart: Iris, Orris Root, Rose, Lily-of-the-Valley, Narcissus, Jasmine, Ylang-Ylang
Base: Oakmoss, Vetiver, Leather, Cedar, Musk, Sandalwood
The crisp green of galbanum and flower stalks fresh cut open. It’s so youthful and springlike. When they call CHANEL No 19 a floral chypre it has some very beautiful cousins like Silences, Niki de Saint Phalle, Futur and others. Yes, it’s that but for me the flowers are a bouquet that is really more about the stems and some of the juicier leaves. The greenery is king, with the cool breeze of lily of the valley, feral richness of narcissus and bright dewiness of jasmine all playing supporting roles.
One of the loveliest things about the vintage EdT is how slowly the layers peel back. The opening is a slow morph into the heart and the heart stays for such a long while as the base builds up, overtaking the brightness with furry oakmoss, shiny new leather shoes and slightly petroleum washed vetiver.
Even in the base I can still get memories of the galbanum and bouquet softly coating above the still mainly green scent. No wonder CHANEL No 19 has been such a beautiful, resolve strengthening battle armor since August 19 1970, Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel’s last birthday.
Are you a CHANEL No 19 fan? Did you ever get to sniff some vintage?
Portia xx
What a beautiful description Portia! No 19 is one of my most loved perfumes, maybe ‘the one’ (if there is such a thing for us) especially vintage. Vintage extrait is perfect but EdT comes close. I remember Victoria of BdJ writing about the quality of galbanum that came out of Iran and that became increasingly difficult to acquire after the revolution, hence vintage is so uniquely beautiful.
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Hey there Hamamelis! So nice to see you.
WOW! The One coming from a perfumista is quite the accolade.
I did not know that about the Iranian Galbanum, totally makes sense. Plus the restriction of oakmoss and animal musks. While newer formulations are still lovely and bracing, it’s a different beast.
Fortunately there are still affordable vintages to be found if you look hard enough. Much less fakes than No 5.
Portia xx
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Love it, love it, love it! I have backups of the vintage edt. I also have and love Silences and Futur.
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Heya OH!
We are definitely Floral Chypre tribe. You’d be embarrassed for me if you knew how many backups I have of the genre.
Portia xx
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I’ve not had the opportunity to sample vintage Chanel No. 19 EdT. If I do, you’ll be the first to know. Sounds amazing!
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It’s pretty gorgeous Flaconneur.
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As one might imagine it should be.
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HA! Yes…
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My green Chanel of choice is, as is well documented, Cristalle EdT as old as possible. However, I do enjoy No19. Mine is vintish rather than true vintage. It’s still green & stiffens the spine but less bitchy than Cristalle.
No19 gives me perfectly turned out French grande dame. Cristalle is her younger, wilder sister who gives the finger & has no decks to give.
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Hey Alityke,
I’m also a Cristalle fan but it almost never gets the spritz. I think my bottle must date back to the 1990s and I got it from Michael Edwards in his vast collection clearout. It still jumps and it crisp as you’d like. I’m definitely going to wear it more when I get the wild second sister vibe going.
Jin is a fan of Critalle eau Verte. It smells beautiful on him.
Portia xx
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You describe it so beautifully. I do love No. 19, and have the modern EdP as well as a “golden”-colored vintage parfum (not sure of its age).
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Heya Nose Prose.
That modern EdP is very lovely. So crisp and refreshing. It still has that spine stiffening ramrod of control. They’ve kept it as good as we could hope.
Portia xx
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The write-up treats No 19 as a green of stems and juicy leaves, with lily of the valley, narcissus, and jasmine in supporting roles rather than a big floral bouquet. Iris and orris are on the original heart list, but they barely surface in that description. Do they stay buried under the galbanum, or do they show up as a cool powder once the oakmoss and leather build? The point about unopened bottles keeping that bright green, while opened ones skew beige, also makes the petroleum edge on the vetiver sound like something that grows with age.
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On different wears the iris/orris runs differently for me Ana. It plays background mostly.
Vetiver always has that alluring petrochemical undertow for me but I know not everyone experiences it the same.
I’m trying to think back to the powder levels but while currently sweating it out in Thailand heat and humidity the dry down just won’t visualise in my brains nose.
One day you should come smell my different eras formulations and then you can tell me.
Portia xxx
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