1000 ... Mille

I’ve been keeping a secret. I never wanted to confess my love for Jean Patou 1000 to the public. It’s been in my top 10 list for the past 7-8 years. Anjelica Huston, as much as I admire her, has pissed me off. She has expressed her love for 1000 (also known as Mille to the French) and now the whole world seems to know about it. I started, stopped, hesitated and in the end never written about JP 1000 because I wanted it to be Mine. I’ve been selfish. Teo Cabanel Alahine is my public Holy Grail. Jean Patou 1000 is my secret Holy Grail. And now my secret is out.

As far as I’m concerned, the house of Jean Patou is the best there is. If so many masterpieces from Jean Patou hadn’t been discontinued I would proclaim JP the king of perfume houses – easily better than Guerlain, Chanel, Caron and the like. Jean Patou Joy needs no introduction, it’s a household name, up there with Chanel No. 5. I happen to prefer Joy to Chanel No. 5 by a mile. But with all the discontinuations (no more Vacances, no Chaldee, L’Heure Attendeu, Adieu Sagasse, Colony, Que Sais-Je) it becomes difficult to appreciate Jean Patou for what it was, what it could have been, should be. It’s terribly sad.

But the silver lining is that 1000 still exists and it’s still excellent. Sure, I have the vintage and it is slightly better but I don’t think the current 1000 is ruined by any means.

I find 1000 to be so beautiful it’s distracting. When I wear it I lose myself in thought when I sniff my wrists. It’s utterly, sublimely gorgeous and stunning. The House of Patou describes 1000 as “the essence of extravagance,” letting the consumer know the considerable cost of the ingredients that are used to create this luxurious fragrance. I find 1000 to be that perfect sort of luxury, the sort that that doesn’t shout or wear it’s pricey label on it’s sleeve, it’s simply effortless beauty and elegance. Similar to Alahine, my other HG, 1000 is potent yet subtle, stunning yet discreet.

I don’t think categorizations particularly matter with 1000; if you favor classically styled fragrances then it’s something you must try. 1000 is somewhere between a rich floral and a floral chypre. There are so many florals and notes at play yet it all comes together as if they were meant to exist this way, perfect harmony. I suppose the most prominent floral note for me is rose. And the base seems like woody suede. The smoothest suede ever. Nothing else smells specific to me, I wouldn’t know there was osmanthus, violet, patchouli or angelica in 1000. 1000 is simply itself, it exists as an entity, a being, a whole which is so much more than the sum of it’s parts, I don’t find it necessary or worthwhile to tease apart it’s notes.

Purplebird7 from basenotes describes 1000 so perfectly I had to quote her:

"This perfume will draw you in. Most florals expand outward, diffusing sweetness. Hence, they risk becoming piercingly sweet and cloying. Mille seems to concentrate the scent of a thousand flowers in one, small space. That one place where it is applied acts like a gravitational force, a black hole, a dark star of fragrance."

Jean Patou 1000 launched in 1972. It doesn’t smell like the 70’s to me. It definitely smells classic, but it’s easier for me to wear than many other classics I own, it seems to transcend time.