Chanel Coco Mademoiselle

Coco Mademoiselle is the fragrance that gave Chanel a second pillar. It appeared in 2001, twenty-three years into Jacques Polge's tenure as the house's in-house perfumer, and the usual attribution is to him, although Chanel prints no credit. It did something N°5 could not: it spoke to women in their twenties without abandoning the codes of the house. Chanel's own line for it, a sparkling and bold ambery fragrance that recalls a daring young Coco Chanel, sets the intent plainly.

It is also, quietly, an important fragrance in industry terms. It is widely credited with putting a cleaned-up patchouli at the centre of mainstream feminine perfumery. Patchouli in 2001 still carried a musty, head-shop reputation. Polge used a fraction stripped of its damp, camphorous side, and what remained was dark, dry and faintly chocolatey. Almost every fruity-patchouli released since owes something to that decision.

On skin it opens with a bright squeeze of orange, mandarin and bergamot lifted by orange blossom, genuinely sparkling, and the reason so many people buy it from a first spray. The heart is Turkish rose and jasmine, with mimosa and ylang-ylang adding a soft yellow warmth. Chanel describes this as a transparent accord, which is fair; the flowers are present but never heavy. Then the base takes over and does not leave: patchouli and vetiver for the earth, white musk for the cleanliness, vanilla, tonka bean and opoponax for the sweetness. Chanel files the whole thing as ambery rather than floral, which tells you where the weight sits.

This is an evening fragrance that most people wear during the day anyway. It handles a cool Cape winter beautifully and can be insistent on a hot Highveld afternoon: one spray in summer, three in July. It is a common gift and a common signature, and that ubiquity is worth knowing about if you would rather not smell like the room.

Performance is excellent and consistent. Eight to twelve hours is normal, with strong projection for the first three and a warm, close finish that lingers on clothing for days. It is one of the better-behaved big sellers in that respect. If you want the same character with more depth, Chanel sells an Eau de Parfum Intense and a softer night version called L'Eau Privee, but the original is the one that changed things.