Updated 18 September, 5:15PM:
Bond No 9 New York’s “I Love New York” trio available: Yes, the awaited wide availability of the more ‘mass-market appeal’ version of Bond No. 9 — the “I Love New York” collection, complete with the iconic logo — has debuted and is generally available through Bond’s online store-front and most Saks Fifth Avenue locations. The trio consists of a mens, women’s, and unisex fragrance, and retails at a price point around 20-30% lower than most bond fragrances (50ml for $105, 100ml for $175). Creation and formulation has been sourced to International Flavors and Fragrance. According to Bond, the quality of the ingredients and essential oils used has not been degraded by the price-point, and the chief goal is to bring more mass-market availability to the brand.
As a side note, we’ve already tested both the men’s and unisex editions and will be posting reviews of both in a few days.
Histoires de Parfums (Editions Rare Collection): I’m told that the long anticipated US release of Histoires de Parfums Editions Rare trilogy is expected by November in traditional limited availability. The three fragrance trilogy will include Ambrarem, Petroleum, and Rosam, portraying individual impressions of Amber, Petrol, and Rose (respectively) and designed to be focused around enhancing the raw materials and earthiness of each. Petroleum, despite its name, is not expected to contain actual petrol, but the characteristics will be artfully duplicated via the use of other notes and ingredients. Petroleum has gotten the most press of the three. Gerald Ghislain is the nose behind the creation of the trilogy.
New York will have by far the most retail locations carrying, including Odin’s locations, Henri Bendel and other specialty boutiques. http://www.histoiresdeparfums.com will have more information closer to the release date.
Dior’s La Collection Couturier Parfumeur Patchouli Imperial: Dior House nose Francois Demachy has expended the Couturier Parfumeur Collection by 1 this year, recently releasing Patchouli Imperial. Availability is limited to Dior Boutiques, and is priced in line with the rest of the collection (125ml @ $150US). The fragrance continues the very elemental and minimalist renditions of this collection, with emphasis on three core notes: Russian Coriander, Indonesian Patchouli, and Sandalwood at the base. The patchouli heart notes will likely take many by surprise by their animalic nature, but as with all fragrances in the collection, temperance is a key and nothing is overly sharp in their rendition. Reviews of the fragrances in the collection will follow in the coming months.
Creed Feuille Verte: My sources at Creed tell me there is a surprise in store for the 2011 holiday shopping season. Apart from that, one sure bet is the reintroduction and US availability of Feuille Verte. Olivier Creed remains the nose behind this scent. It’s likely that this floral chypre will have undergone some tweaking from its original limited availability, so it remains to be seen if the original citrus opening and rose/vanilla/oakmoss heart will be impacted. Our bet is that the oak moss will be replaced with other green notes and a slightly deeper base. Expect very limited availability (i.e. if you aren’t on a list yet, you’ll be waiting or won’t see it). We can only hope it is an improvement from Original Cologne, which we found a bit lacking in character, albeit a very traditional and conservative scent. Incidentally, those who are still awaiting Spice & Wood should begin to see better availability in 2012. Pity since it is such a fabulous fragrance for fall to simply miss a debut for that season.
Guerlain News: The male clients of Guerlain will be pleased to know that the signature bumble-bee bottles for their exclusive Eau de Parfum lines for men (L’Ame d’Un Heros, for example) will be going away, being replaced by a wood-framed design box surrounding a 100ml bottle. Welcome news in that the price point will decrease accordingly and be presented in a more masculine package. Bad news if you were a fan of the ornateness of the bumble-bee embossed bottle at 125ml. It’s the same packaging experimented in the recently pulled Arsene Lupin Dandy and Voyou. Our guess is that it may become the basis for more of the collection (Spiriteuse Double Vanille has a similar casing with inscribed brass on one side) and form a basis for future packaging. Our hope is that the rumors about a return of Arsene Lupin Dandy are true, but accompanied by a name change. No word on whether Habit Rouge and Heritage are also due for a bottle makeover, but our guess is that they won’t adopt the same wood-box design if any change is made at all.
…And we buried the lead for last. Anyone who has read this blog recently recognizes that a fragrance blog masquerading under a domain name of “Suburbanites.com” seems to be a complete misnomer. They’d be correct. (Editor’s Note: You knew there had to be a reason we mentioned the makeover piece last, this was it). The name didn’t really fit the new purpose for the site, and we’ve wanted to change it for a time. While we aren’t announcing the name change as yet, once we’re closer or this is imminent we’ll provide the details. However, the new name will make a lot more sense and be better aligned to the purpose of the blog. Keep watching for announcements of the change forthcoming.
I'm Andrew Buck, the man behind the words. I'm a published author, project management practitioner for over 20 years, work on Wall Street, and am a fragrance aficionado. I've had a passion for fragrance for 30+ years, and enjoy trying scents and adding to an expanding and rotating collection for some time now. 
