When I visited Osmotheque in 2024, my favorite perfume that I got to smell from their archive was Vent Vert by Balmain. Created by Germaine Cellier in 1947, Vent Vert was a groundbreaking green perfume. It smelled to me like a window thrown open, and outside everything was fresh-cut greenery.

In Paris, I searched antique markets for vintage perfume and found a handful of classics in miniature eau de toilette bottles: Mitsouko and L’Heure Bleu by Guerlain, Joy by Jean Patou… and Vent Vert by Balmain.

As I wear my vintage Vent Vert more often, I am getting to know the particular character of this vintage bottle: not just any window thrown open: a window in an old manor library. I smell the fresh-cut greenery breezing in, with an added patina. It may not be the same as the freshly-blended version at Osmotheque, but it still has the essential character of Vent Vert. The way this bottle has aged is part of its personality.

Read more about my journey learning to love vintage perfume in the Spring edition of Immortal Perfumes’ The Scent Strip.