Aviation Club

Created by Isabelle Michaud in 2011 for her Quebec-based niche brand Monsillage, Aviation Club was Michaud’s first visit to the famed casino, the now-defunct Aviation Club de France, on the Avenue Champs Elysées. On me, it opens with a tangy metallic flash and bright green notes. I smell sparkling bergamot, camphorous, woody rosemary, herbaceous verbena, and woody, earthy vetiver. Together, they create a feeling of excitement and anticipation. A soft, floral note evokes the lobby's flowers and is a nod to the elegant clientele and furnishings. Notes of wood and leather complete the scene, suggesting wood trim and worn leather sofas. The leather extends to the heart with a smoky facet that links to a note of tobacco. This is where the magic happens. The leather is warm and supple, gently animalic, while the tobacco evokes Gitanes, those French cigarettes with a strong, spicy aroma. Together, they make Aviation Club richer and darker. Cognac blends with the tobacco, lending a gentle booziness, while a note of coffee latches onto the leather, adding a smoky, chocolatey undertone. Warm, rich amber completes the fragrance. Aviation Club dries down to a warm, heady, nostalgic scent that punches above its weight as an eau de toilette. It’s the architecture that I admire: the way a woody note threads through the fragrance as it transitions from a bracing green, herbaceous opening to a warm, smoky, leathery base. And that leather/tobacco combo? It's irresistable. Notes: Metallic notes, green notes, floral notes, wood, leather, tobacco, cognac, coffee and amber.