Empreinte Courrèges perfume

Empreinte, the very first perfume from the house of Courrèges, signs with its chypre brand and its hippy wind the scent of freedom and absolute femininity of a whole era. A great emblematic perfume of the 70s which, despite the years, has not aged a bit in its spellbinding power!

A chic and hippy imprint for a great Courrèges fragrance

Few perfumes can stand the test of time and that of a reinterpretation, especially some forty years after a sensational first outing in perfumery. This is however the case with Empreinte de Courrèges, the very first fragrance from the very famous fashion house.

Thus in 1971 Empreinte was born while Courrèges haute-couture was in full glory. Mini-skirts, black and white A-line dresses and vinyl jackets thrill the women of the 60s in search of futuristic, totally avant-garde and therefore totally libertarian fashion. It was logical that the very first perfume of this brand, now widely recognized, corresponds to this new spirit of the new “liberated” woman of the 70s. A freedom that is affirmed loud and clear if only by the choice of the name of Footprint, which refers to Armstrong’s first steps on the Moon.

Almost carried like a standard, Empreinte “was the third best-selling perfume in France “, according to Robin Schlang, of Lorience, the SME which obtained the Courrèges licenses. Naturally, when it came to relaunching the great house Courrèges in the 2011s, reformulating this fragrant symbol of the 70s became obvious. Empreinte was therefore born twice, forty years apart!

Patchouli and animalities for a chypre and racy rose

Much more than lunar footsteps, what left a real imprint in the world of perfumes was of course the overdosed fragrance of a dazzling patchouli. As for the bottle, it is in perfect harmony with the Courrèges spirit: curved and sensual lines drawn in a glass cylinder, a lunar cabochon as matched to the Moon Girl collection and golden and metallic colors merging with the colors of the lunar dresses of the artist.

Robert Gonnon, for Firmenich and therefore Courrèges, developed with Empreinte as the very essence of what Courrèges brought in 1971 to the women of the time. Elegance and chic rub shoulders for our greatest pleasure with sensuality of patchouli and floral depths. However, the formula of the original perfume had to be modified to appear again in 2012, in particular because of new legislation concerning animal raw materials.

Empreinte opens with notes of bergamot and tangerine, tonic and fresh, strongly supported by a few aldehydes. At the heart, rose and jasmine exude the floral warmth of the Courrèges woman, free but always elegant. Finally, the base notes will indulge in the absolutely divine powers of sandalwood, vetiver, patchouli and cedarwood. The breadth of these woody nuances will be magnified by crossing a few notes of leather.

“Originally was imprint, a stunning vision, the imprint of a woman’s wake” Courrèges for Empreinte. This woman of the 70s, remains that of the 2000s, Empreinte therefore remains one of the great perfumes of the last century but also of this new one.

Released in 1971, “ Empreinte ”is the first perfume of the Courrèges brand. Chic and feminine, the latter gives a breath of freedom to women, while customs are in full evolution. Courrèges was renowned for being a brand that freed women from then too strict dress codes. The brand favored clean lines, short dresses, and invented the capri pants. Innovative and daring, “Empreinte” follows in the footsteps of these years of liberation from morals. Chic and timeless, the “Empreinte” fragrance left its mark on the Courrèges brand and allowed it to become known as a perfumer.

Robert Gonnon offers Courrèges his first Empreinte fragrance

We know very little about perfumer Robert Gonnon. He began his career with the Firmenich company and imagined his first perfume “Ô de Lancôme” in 1969, which was to be crowned with real success. In 1985, Robert Gonnon will experience another great triumph with the creation (with 3 other perfumers) of Cacharel’s star fragrance, “Anaïs Anaïs”. The last perfume that Robert Gonnon created was “Eau de Métal” by Paco Rabanne.

The bold and free olfactory notes of Empreinte de Courrèges

“Empreinte” begins in a fresh way and invigorating thanks to the presence of bergamot, tangerine and aldehyde notes. A citrus fruit native to Persia, bergamot is now mainly cultivated in Italy, in the region of Reggio di Calabria. With the spherical shape of orange, bergamot has the color of lemon. You should know that bergamot cannot be eaten, it is used only for its olfactory properties. At the very beginning, bergamot was even used as a fixer. In perfumery, bergamot essential oil is obtained by cold expression of fruit zest.

Bergamot gives off fresh, zesty, lemony and sweet tones. Then, the heart of “Empreinte” takes care of the most beautiful flowers, namely jasmine, May rose and Damascus rose. Also called rose centifolia, the May rose is mainly cultivated in Grasse. The “hundred-leaf” rose is actually a hybrid, selected by Dutch growers from the 17th century. The story of its creation is poorly documented, however, its creation gave rise to a species of rose in its own right. Between 1580 and 1710, Dutch rose growers invented more than 200 varieties. May rose is a round, globular flower with thin petals.

Its scent is very floral, but also very delicate. In the language of flowers, the rose is the allegory of love, of its power. In perfumery, rose essential oil is obtained by distillation of freshly cut flowers. It is used in a large number of olfactory, flowery, but also citrus, fruity, woody or oriental compositions. Finally, the base of “Empreinte” is chypre and very sensual thanks to the presence of patchouli, oak moss, castoreum, sandalwood, vetiver and cedarwood.