Our take
What does Manifesto L'Élixir smell like?
Yves Saint Laurent introduced Manifesto L'Élixir in autumn 2013 and labelled it an eau de parfum intense. None of the sources we checked credit a perfumer. It takes the frame of Manifesto, released a year earlier, and pushes it toward night. Bergamot and mandarin barely register. The heart is fleshier than the original's. Tuberose joins the jasmine, while heliotrope brings its almond and modelling-clay smell. The base is mostly about vanilla. It is thick rather than sugary, stretched by ambroxan into something like warm and salty skin. Cashmeran adds a woollen texture. Set beside Manifesto, the Élixir feels denser and less green. It seems to have left the brand's current lineup, although YSL never announced it.
When to wear it
For winter evenings and dates. Two sprays on wrists and neck at most, because the heliotrope turns heady fast.
It belongs to the Oriental / Amber family. Manifesto L'Élixir is one of 47 creations by Yves Saint Laurent in our encyclopedia.
