There is something about airport beauty halls that encourages impulse decisions. Perhaps it is the promise of escape, or simply the optimism that comes with packing for a holiday. Either way, while wandering through departures ahead of a recent trip, one bottle stopped me in my tracks.
It wasn’t another turquoise-tinted citrus fragrance promising endless afternoons by the pool. Instead, a pair of gleaming gold wings caught the light from across the terminal. It was Zadig L’Intense Eau de Parfum Intense and, within minutes, it had found its way into my hand luggage.
I have worn it almost exclusively ever since.
The more I wear it, the more I realise it smells less like a traditional summer fragrance and more like a summer evening in Saint-Tropez. Specifically, an evening that begins with a chilled glass of rosé at Byblos Beach Club after a day spent on Pampelonne Beach and somehow ends dancing barefoot beneath a sky still holding onto the warmth of the day.
It is not your typical Riviera scent. There are no sparkling lemons, watery florals or predictable coconuts. Instead, Zadig L’Intense smells like sun-warmed skin after a long day by the sea. It is slipping into a black silk dress while salt still lingers in your hair. It is gold jewellery catching the last of the golden hour light. It is the anticipation of a night where nobody checks the time.
Created by perfumers Florian Gallo and Amandine Clerc-Marie, the fragrance opens with an unexpectedly addictive pairing of black sesame and golden sesame. The black sesame brings a toasted, almost smoky sensuality, while the golden sesame softens the composition with a creamy warmth. Ginger crackles quietly beneath the surface and incense lends a hypnotic, after-dark quality.
At its heart, orange blossom blooms, but not in the innocent way we might expect. Here, it is elevated by an innovative black vinyl accord, giving the fragrance a distinctly rock-and-roll edge. Floral yet rebellious, sensual yet polished, it feels entirely aligned with Zadig & Voltaire’s effortlessly cool aesthetic.
Then comes vanilla. Not gourmand, not sugary, but rich, sophisticated and skin-like. Wrapped in creamy Australian sandalwood, guaiac wood and Tolu balm, it settles beautifully against the skin, becoming softer, warmer and more intimate as the hours pass. It is the fragrance equivalent of staying out until sunrise and borrowing someone’s linen shirt for the journey home.
There is also something undeniably covetable about the bottle itself. Since buying it at the airport, I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve pulled it out of my handbag, on a flight, at dinner or while getting ready before an evening out, only for someone to immediately ask, ‘What is that?’ followed closely by, ‘Where did you get it?’
Perhaps it’s because perfume bottles have become so predictable. Zadig L’Intense doesn’t look like another rectangular flacon destined to disappear amongst dozens of others on a shelf. Instead, Zadig & Voltaire’s iconic wing motif has been reimagined in reflective gold, catching the light like a treasured piece of jewellery or a vintage talisman discovered in Saint-Tropez. It feels luxurious, collectible and surprisingly modern, while remaining refillable and made to be kept rather than discarded.
As much as I love the fragrance itself, I suspect part of its appeal lies in the ritual of using it. Pulling those gilded wings from your handbag before dinner almost feels like taking out a piece of jewellery rather than a perfume. Beauty lovers notice it immediately and, once they smell the warm sesame, orange blossom and creamy vanilla trail, they almost always want to know what you’re wearing.
For anyone looking to move beyond predictable citrus perfumes this season, Zadig L’Intense offers something altogether more memorable. It captures the warmth of a Mediterranean summer without relying on cliché. Instead, it delivers confidence, freedom, bronzed skin, late dinners, dancing until dawn and the kind of holiday memories that stay with you long after you’ve unpacked your suitcase.
If a fragrance could bottle the feeling of a night at Byblos, this might just be it.
Zadig & Voltaire ZADIG Eau de Parfum Intense
£136 90ml
