Our take
What does Cuir de Russie smell like?
Ernest Beaux created Cuir de Russie for Chanel in 1927, a few years after No. 5. The name nods to the leather Russian soldiers waterproofed with birch tar. Biographer Justine Picardie also links it to Gabrielle Chanel's affair with Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich. Today it belongs to Les Exclusifs de Chanel. The opening is surprisingly fresh. Bergamot, mandarin and orange blossom give it a golden glow. The heart blends jasmine, rose and ylang-ylang, with iris dusting everything in powder. The flowers behave. The base is what matters: smoky birch and leather, tobacco and hay, lifted by incense. This leather isn't rough at all. Think of the inside of a new handbag lined with silk. Next to Robert Piguet's Bandit, a much drier and greener leather, Cuir de Russie feels round and almost tender. We rank it among the finest leathers ever made.
When to wear it
Wear it in cold weather, at the office or in the evening. One spray per wrist is enough since it sits close yet lasts all day.
It belongs to the Leather family. Cuir de Russie is one of 45 creations by Chanel in our encyclopedia.
