For the past twelve years, people have been showing up for #WorldChampagneDay, an international phenomenon created to celebrate the bubbly that the world has come to know and love. From Champagne showers, victory celebrations, to a classy pyramid, it’s been deeply ingrained in our culture that this sparkling wine is analogous with happiness. And each year on the fourth Friday of October, the global community shares in the joy of a bottle.
For French men and women, selecting the perfect perfume for a night out can be as important as ordering the first drink. It sets the tone for the rest of the evening and relaxes the mind.
Most women in France have more than one perfume scent as it allows them to find the perfect intensity for any given moment, whether it may be curling up with a glass of wine at home or heading out for a night on the town.
Lisa Rankin, the founder of Flavors of Paris, discussed what she finds the most engaging about her perfume collection and how she uses scents for self-care.
“Even if I am not going anywhere and I don’t have my makeup on, I always put on some perfume. It boosts my spirits and it's a quick and easy way to pamper myself,” Rankin explained.
According to Rankin, among her perfumes, there are specific scents for different times of day which help to liven her spirits.
“I have three or four scents that I like depending on my mood. I will switch them out if I am going out at night or during the day. I will choose a more dramatic scent if it is for going out at night,” Rankin said.
Flavors of Paris has now expanded its roster of tours. Previously, they offered only tasting tours, but due to demand from clients, they have added tours that, not only, delight your taste buds, but your other senses as well.
To delight your sense of smell and adventure, Flavors of Paris has teamed up with Will Inrig, a perfumer (parfumeur in French) based in Paris, who’s new scent, Homesick, launched in 2021.
Perfumer Will Inrig. Credit: The Observer Collection
Inrig creates perfumes for designers and the fashion industry. He designed and guides a perfume tour for Flavors of Paris.
For guests interested in finding their own personalized scent and learning more about the process of crafting a perfume, Flavors of Paris is offering The Quest for Your Signature Scent, led by Inrig himself.
To learn more about The Quest for Your Signature Scent tour, see our tours page.
During the three-hour tour, Inrig will get to know the guests over coffee, tea and desserts to help him establish an olfactory profile for each guest. What is an olfactory profile, you may ask? According to Rankin, “It’s basically, a series of scents that you have a personal connection with and that display your personality.”
According to Rankin, when Inrig built an Olfactory profile on her, he focused on asking questions about her favourite memories from childhood. This allowed him to read her character and gain a better understanding of what her sensitivities are when it comes to scent.
“He did the tour with me and I was really surprised by how accurate he was,” Rankin explained. “I tend to gravitate to scents as a pick me up, for something that makes me happy and Will honed in on that right away.”
Following the visit at the cafe, Inrig will guide a shopping tour through perfume shops in the neighbourhood, offering personalized recommendations for a signature scent to fit guests’ unique tastes and scent preferences.
“When you take the perfume tour with Will, he takes great care to help you find something you will really like. He will take you shopping and recommend scents based on your olfactory profile”, says Rankin. During her experience with Inrig, she discovered her love of fresh and floral scents, and surprisingly fresh linen, with a touch of lemon or bergamot on the finish.
The personalized nature of the perfume tour allows Inrig to better understand each guest and help them connect with a perfume that fits their tastes and palate best.
Inrig’s new fragrance, Homesick. Credit: The Observer Collection
In an interview with Inrig, he explained more about the inspiration behind his new fragrance Homesick, which he created for the Observer Collection, an accessories brand run by fashion and conflict photographer Robert Spangle.
“I want to represent man and his environment. I try to answer the why, to convey an instant of clarity. I seek the Great Work, a way to heal, unite and purify. I try to unite the four basic elements – earth, water, air and fire – into poetry,” Inrig said.
For Inrig, the act of creating a new perfume is much like giving birth to something new, releasing a new being into the universe.
“I translate a feeling, an emotional atmosphere, into an olfactory metaphor. To do this, I have to find within myself a nugget of truth, the embryo that grows until, in pain, I need to give birth. This is how I view creation,” Inrig said.
See more about Homesick fragrance at:
Inrig’s new fragrance, Homesick. Credit: The Observer Collection
In order to rework this passion to help others find their signature scent or create a perfume for someone specific, Inrig explained it is all about getting to know the individual on a personal level so he can better understand their emotions.
“When developing a perfume for someone else – an individual or brand – I also rely on empathy, an understanding and sharing of another person’s feeling, until it becomes mine too. Then I can render it legitimately. In this sense, the client is a catalyst and channel,” Inrig said.
For Inrig, the act of creating a new scent is a spiritual journey, sparked from initial inspiration and nurtured until the scent is fully formed.
“Once the basic idea is formed, the rest is all labour and prayer. I rework the formula until I achieve harmony of associations, something evocative and, hopefully, limitless. If I’m working for a client, we evaluate trials together and debate. The perfume assumes a life of its own, which I need to encourage. It becomes whole but is never finished,” Inrig said.
Do you have a favourite perfume? We’d love to hear which one it is and why. Let us know in the comments section below.
What is more decadent than French chocolate?
If French is the language of love, and chocolate is the epitome of divine indulgence, then French chocolate must equal some sort of decadent love.
If you want a taste of Paris but don’t know where to start, look here.
Chocolate fans need not be convinced of this.
If you love French chocolate as much as we do, read on to learn more about its history, find some tips on tasting, and try a French chocolate recipe.
Let us know if you want help finding the best French chocolate in Paris!
French chocolate certainly has a charm of its own, but its origins are in Mexico and Spain.
It was introduced to Europe in the sixteenth century when Christopher Columbus carried back cacao beans to Spain from his voyages in America.
Although it remained a Spanish secret for nearly a decade, the fame of chocolate began to spread, and it started to be known in England, Germany, the Netherlands, and France.
In those days, it was only for the nobility and the upper class. An expensive and exotic item, many used it as an aphrodisiac.
Thanks to its soothing nature and the mild stimulatory kick it provided, it was almost considered a recreational drug.
Chocolate was consumed primarily in liquid form. French confectioners would blend the cacao beans with milk or water and add additional flavors like coffee, vanilla, and cloves.
Chocolate was first introduced to France in 1615. It was a wedding gift to the 14-year-old King Louis XIII from his betrothed, Anne of Austria, thought to be the ‘originator’ of French chocolate.
Chocolate was so popular amongst the Kings and Queens of France that confectioners were appointed by both nobles and royals to make them their daily cup of chocolate. Confectioners, thus, were highly trained and regarded in high esteem.
King Louis XVI was known to be a great lover of chocolate. So he was the first one to introduce chocolate to the Court of Versailles.
When he married Marie Antoinette and arrived at Versailles, she brought along her personal chocolate maker.
She started the day with a cup of thick creamy hot chocolate topped with cream. She is also the one who started consuming chocolate with some sugar so that it toned down the bitterness and became easier to have (when meant to be taken as a medicine).
As the popularity of the miracle cacao bean grew, factories began popping up to increase production.
David Chaillou opened the first chocolate factory in Paris in 1659. In 1732, Debuisson created the first table to grind cocoa beans, which made the preparation of chocolate easier.
In the 19th century, chocolate became accessible to the masses as commercial production on large scales increased. The first such commercial chocolate factory was set up in the Pyrenees in 1814.
At this time, chocolate was still considered a medicine, and the big player in the game was a pharmaceutical company called Menier (now a part of Nestle).
Towards the early 19th century, more chocolate shops started to open, and chocolate became more accessible to the general public.
In 1884, the first breakfast with chocolate and vanilla cream was invented in France. In the early twentieth century, chocolate shops were typical in towns and cities, and it became customary for people to give chocolate as a gift.
Chocolate remains the perfect gift for any occasion world over, even today.
Here’s a simple dessert to make with French chocolate: dark chocolate truffles.
Add about 12 ounces of bittersweet chocolate to 2/3 cups of hot cream.
Add a couple of drops of vanilla extract.
Freeze the mixture for a few hours until it is hard enough to roll into balls.
Roll it into spheres and coat them with cacao powder.
*Optional: Add some crushed pistachios to the coating for a little extra "Je ne sais quoi."
Et voila! Yum, at first bite.
(Find more details about this recipe along with others at The Spruce.)
High-quality chocolate is meant to be savoured and appreciated, not gobbled down quickly;
When you get a chance to taste French chocolate, don’t rush.
Here are some pointers to help you make the most of your chocolate tasting experience and to help you when you’re shopping for quality.
Check the ingredients and choose carefully. Pure chocolate only has a few key ingredients: cocoa solids, cocoa butter, and sugar for dark chocolate, plus milk solids (for milk chocolate).
Look for this on the label: “International Chocolate Award Winner.”
Use all of your senses when tasting.
Make sure that there is no thin white layer on top.
Make sure it is free of holes and silky to touch.
Learn about the different fillings and textures before you try.
For more sweet tidbits, check out our blog on how to taste chocolate!
There’s nothing more decadent than French chocolate, and Paris has a plethora of high-quality chocolate shops for you to enjoy this rich, velvety, delectable treasure. At Flavors of Paris, we’re all about providing you with an intimate, immersive, and sensory experience of the city. We aim to share the flavours of Paris that we know and love. If you’re a chocolate fan, follow us to learn more about chocolate history and discover where to savour the best Paris offers.
To stay in touch, subscribe to our mailing list or book your tour today!
Unusually quiet are the first two words that pop into my mind when I ponder this question. The residents of Paris have been under strict lockdown since March 16th, and one of the stipulations is that we are not permitted to travel further than one kilometre from our home address so I can only judge by what I experience in my immediate vicinity.
