Diptyque L'eau de Neroli and L'eau de L'eau

Diptyque is a line I enjoy and appreciate, although it must be said that a lot of their compositions these days seem rather simple and short-lived. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing. I think a lot of Diptyque's fragrances are perfect for spring and summer, and seeing that today is the last day of August, and autumn is just round the corner, I thought I would end the month with a couple of quick reviews of two good, yet relatively simple citrus scents.

L'eau de Neroli does pretty much what it says on the tin. This is a brisk, greenish Neroli from the outset. It is quite dry and fragrant, drying down to citrus-and-light-woods, perfect as a pick me up for  a warm spring or hot summer day. It is simple and fairly fleeting, typical of a cologne type of perfume and nice while it lasts. It has what I call that 'typical Diptyque' feel - fresh, zippy, fairly transparent, simple and understated. The top notes are the best phase for me, with that gorgeous and realistic neroli note. The dry down is ok, but nothing to write home about, but then again, I don't usually wear citrus fragrances for their complex development.

L'eau de L'eau is a bit more complex and quirkier than L'eau de Neroli. To my nose it starts sweeter, with far more lemon in it. If I'm being honest, as much as I quite like the opening, it does have a bit of a Lemon Pledge smell to it, which might put some people off. It also has a richer and slightly more polished feel to it. it's not exactly strong, but it has more presence than L'eau de Neroli. I'm thinking there might be some verbena in here too. There's not much more to say about L'eau de L'eau really. It lasts a bit longer, has perhaps a slight herbalness to it and as I said earlier, is a tad quirky in that it doesn't quite smell like anything else I know of.

I'm not sure which of these I prefer or would recommend. I love the opening of L'eau de Neroli, but then it fades away to nothing quite fast. L'eau de L'eau has less of an enticing opening, but does develop in a slightly more interesting fashion. I think both are worth sampling, but unless you are obsessive about citrus perfumes, I can't personally see why anyone would invest in a full bottle of either, particularly if you already have one or two citrus fragrances in your wardrobe.