Our take
What does Babycat smell like?
Babycat joined Le Vestiaire des Parfums, Yves Saint Laurent's high-end collection, in 2022. Dominique Ropion composed it with a clear goal: show vanilla's leathery side rather than its dessert side. The opening is dry and peppery. Pink and black pepper flare up with elemi, a lemony resin with a faint whiff of turpentine. Olibanum and saffron rise next. Your skin starts to smell of warm smoke and wax. The base is the best part. Vanilla thickens against a suede accord, and cedar keeps it upright so it never runs. Think of a suede jacket left near a fireplace. The first quarter hour can feel rough, almost rubbery, before everything melts together. It lasts a long time on skin and even longer on a sweater. Next to Guerlain's Spiritueuse Double Vanille, Babycat is less boozy and far more animal.
When to wear it
For winter evenings, on skin or on a wool coat. Two sprays will do, since the suede vanilla is still there the next morning.
It belongs to the Leather family. Babycat is one of 35 creations by Yves Saint Laurent in our encyclopedia.
