You’re likely to encounter the word chypre if you’re reading about fragrance families or if some copywriter described a perfume you wanted as a chypre. But you may not find the word very familiar and you may not know what it smells like. This is what you need to know about chypre fragrances.
Origin of chypre perfumes
Chypre is a French word pronounced sheep-ray. That is the French word for Cyprus. The island of Cyprus was famous for perfumes and was reputed for its gloves scented with oak moss as early as 1588.
However, what made chypre perfumes popular was when famous perfumer, François Coty classified chypre as a fragrance family in 1917. That was when ‘chypre’ took on the meaning that we now assign to it in modern perfumery.
The timing of Coty’s perfume’s debut was perfect as it was the period after the First World War. Women had to take on roles that were ordinarily performed by men, so, their fashion tastes evolved too. Before the war, the standard for women had been light powdery and floral notes. They did more boyish haircuts, drove cars, wore pants, and were interested in perfumes that were ordinarily not considered feminine. Chypre perfumes fit into the category newly demanded by women.
What chypre notes smell like
Chypre is not a family that you can lump all the scents into one uniform scent category. It is introduced into different combinations to produce a variety of results.
A classic chypre perfume usually starts with a fresh hit of citrus notes which will be followed by floral notes and an earthy, woody base would round up the fragrance.
Types of chypre perfumes
- Woody chypre: this category is a pillar in the chypre family. They form a sensual and deep base for the perfume. Pure woody chypre is usually marketed as men’s perfumes. They usually have notes of sandalwood, vetiver, and cedarwood.
- Fruity chypre: although the chypre perfumes tend to feature more classic notes, the trend towards a youthful twist has made chypre fragrances feature more fruity notes. Common notes in fruity chypre perfumes are apricot, plum, and peach. They are usually top notes that will transition beautifully into the mosses and woods of the chypre perfumes.
- Floral chypre: floral notes like jasmine and roses are added to the woody base of the chypre to produce a sweet scent.
- Chypre leather: Apart from the woody notes, leather chypre also features other natural notes like civet, musk ambergris, honey, and tobacco notes. Chypre leather could be floral, velvety, or smoky and they are usually suitable for any gender even though they are usually marketed as men’s perfumes. Their base notes are deeper and they cling to the skin for a longer period.
- Green chypre: although chypre scents are noted for sophistication and elegance, emphasizing green notes in them could give them an outdoors feel. Mosses and leaves added to the classic chypre notes give them a sporty feel.
- Fresh chypre: bergamot is the most popularly featured note in this category. Fresh notes are usually airy and light. So, they may not last as long as the leather or woody chypre. But these fresh chypre notes are popular for their sparkling scents.
Shop our collection of chypre perfumes here.
