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This week's Fragrance Of The Week explores Sous les Pins, one of the newest creations in Chloé's Atelier des Fleurs collection. Part of the new Mediterranean Essences chapter, the fragrance draws inspiration from the landscapes that shaped founder Gaby Aghion's creative vision, translating the atmosphere of the French Mediterranean coast into an olfactory composition. Created by perfumer Quentin Bisch, Sous les Pins recreates the sensation of walking beneath sunlit pine trees on the island of Porquerolles, where warm air carries the scent of resin, bark and aromatic vegetation.
The Mediterranean has long occupied a special place in Chloé's identity. Beyond its visual beauty, it represents a landscape of freedom, instinct and effortless elegance, values that have accompanied the maison since its foundation in 1952. The Mediterranean Essences collection explores this heritage through fragrances that move beyond traditional floral interpretations, capturing the textures, colours and scents of coastal paths, hidden coves and pine forests illuminated by southern light.
Sous les Pins stands apart within the collection because it does not centre on a single botanical ingredient. Instead, it recreates the olfactory imprint of an entire landscape. Through an innovative extraction technique, the fragrance captures the atmosphere of a Mediterranean pine forest, preserving the subtle interaction between trees, warm earth, aromatic plants and sea breeze.
Fragrance Philosophy
Atelier des Fleurs was conceived as a collection that celebrates nature through artistic interpretation. Each fragrance reveals an unexpected facet of a flower, a plant or a landscape, allowing perfumers complete creative freedom while remaining faithful to Chloé's understated elegance. The Mediterranean Essences continue this philosophy by shifting the focus from individual ingredients to places that hold emotional significance for the maison and its founder.
For Sous les Pins, Quentin Bisch chose Porquerolles as his source of inspiration. Rather than composing an abstract woody fragrance, he sought to recreate a precise sensory memory: the sound of pine needles beneath each step, the warmth of bark exposed to the midday sun and the aromatic breeze moving through the trees. The result is a fragrance that feels deeply connected to place, preserving the spontaneity and quiet beauty of the Mediterranean landscape.
Notes
Sous les Pins unfolds through a refined interplay of woody, resinous and aromatic facets. Pine needles and warm bark establish the fragrance's unmistakable identity, while resinous nuances evoke the dry warmth of Mediterranean forests after hours of sunshine.
A vibrant eucalyptus accord introduces freshness that cuts naturally through the composition without disturbing its warmth. The aromatic character remains light and transparent, allowing the woody elements to breathe while recalling the breeze that moves through the island's coastal vegetation. Delicate green nuances emerge gradually, adding texture and reinforcing the impression of an authentic landscape rather than a conventional perfume structure.
The dry down remains elegant and understated. Woods, aromatic herbs and resin continue to intertwine, leaving behind a soft trail that evokes the lingering warmth of a late afternoon walk beneath Mediterranean pines.
Packaging
Sous les Pins is presented in the signature Atelier des Fleurs bottle, whose fluted glass pays tribute to Chloé's iconic plissé soleil. For the Mediterranean Essences collection, the transparent glass is coloured in a warm olive-green shade inspired by the vegetation of the southern French coastline, while the textured cap recalls the grain of sun-warmed sand. Together, these elements extend the collection's dialogue between fashion, landscape and craftsmanship.
Minimalist in appearance yet rich in detail, the bottle mirrors the fragrance itself: elegant, natural and quietly sophisticated. Every design choice reinforces the connection between the perfume and the Mediterranean scenery that inspired its creation.
Sous les Pins offers an interpretation of the Mediterranean that feels intimate rather than picturesque. Instead of relying on familiar citrus or marine accords, Quentin Bisch captures the quiet atmosphere beneath a canopy of pines, where resin, wood and aromatic freshness merge into a fragrance that reflects the landscape with remarkable authenticity.
