The Eau de Cologne by Chanel composed by Jacques Polge, and perhaps Christopher Sheldrake too, opens on a mixed impression mingling the accords of an almost medicinal white cologne with that of very citrusy and juicy Mediterranean fruits. The sensations of freshness and exuberance which are typical of an eau de Cologne - it often replaced water in old-fashioned toilet rituals - are present in the head notes but rendered more discreet and suave, in the register of a conversation held in polite voices in a living room where noises are habitually sunk into a very high quality carpet; the iris that one can smell better in the depth of the composition contributes as usual its patrician feeling of elegance suggestive of a murmur more than resounding laughters pealing at the foot of a fountain where washerwomen gather.