Roma by Laura Biagiotti (1988)

Take Shalimar, with its bergamot, vanilla, and civet base; add a big dose of amber, a smidgen of black currant and the scent from DoubleMint gum's powdery foil — and you have the sparkling, warm, sweet-spicy Floriental perfume Roma by Italian fashion designer Laura Biagiotti.

Top notes: bergamot, pink grapefruit, black currant, mint

Heart notes: Jasmine, rose, lily of the valley

Base notes: Sandalwood, vanilla, amber, musk, patchouli, oakmoss, civet (from Haarman & Reimer. For slightly different notes, try Fragrantica.)

Like some perfumes in the oriental category, Roma gets a lift from hesperidic top notes. They seem to linger throughout Roma's development, lightening the perfume's mood so that we don't take it too seriously.

The uplift from bergamot and pink grapefruit plus that quirky touch of powdery mint keeps Roma's character from falling into the brooding or overly decadent. It seems fresh and carefree for a perfume in this category. (Notice that the frosted bottle is fluted to resemble a Roman column.)

Mint is said to be a difficult note to use in fragrance without evoking Scope mouthwash or toothpaste, so it's surprising it works so well in a Floriental with such prominent vanilla and amber. You'd think it would clash or seem unappetizing, like the galbanum in Must de Cartier that invoked Luca Turin's scorn. (Incidentally, I love the contrast. Somehow the clash works, for me, in both scents.)

With a fresh, sparkling opening with extra zip from mint; a floral heart that gives it a soft femininity; and a vanillic/ambery/civet base with creamy/spicy sandalwood for depth and warmth, Roma is an approachable beauty like its fellow Italian, the unpretentious beauty Isabella Rossellini. (OK, maybe this was just an excuse to post a picture of the person I think is the most beautiful woman in the world!)

Note: Roma still seems to be in production, but I can't speak to the current formulation. I have the vintage, and as you know, vintage almost always smells better!

 

 

 

 

 

Comments

[Vintage Lady]

Vintage always smells better, you are right. I remember having tried this perfume a long time ago.

[Patty]

Interesting, I've always considered Isabella Rossellini to be one of the most beautiful women in the world, too (along with Isabelle Adjani, Iman, Gong Li, and Catherine Deneuve).

I love the original Mariella Burani fragrance, and also get a touch of mint from it. Per Fragrantica, there is tarragon in there, so it may be from that.

[Perfumaniac]

Hi Patty,

Isabella looks so much like Ingrid Bergman — but somehow even more beautiful! (To me, anyway. Glad you agree.:))

Tarragon very well may be in Roma; it has a very odd but appealing opening. I've never heard of Mariella Burani nor her fragrances! Maybe mint facets/notes in perfume are an Italian thing?

[Elizabeth]

I have a mini bottle of perfume labeled "Laura Biagiotti" but it bears no other identification. I will have to smell it again, now that I have read your notes on Roma to see if it might be that. The little bottle holds about 5ml and is rectangular/columnar in shape. Does this seem familiar to you or any of your readers here? Thanks!

[Perfumaniac]

Hi Elizabeth,

Is the perfume the same color as Roma, and does the bottle look like the one in the ad? I'd Google Roma mini perfumes and see if yours is similar. She had a few others, including Venezia, but I'm not sure what that bottle looks like. Good luck!

[Patty]

There is also Laura by Laura Biagiotti. It's a green floral, comes in a long, teardrop-shaped bottle with a light blue cap.

[Henri]

Hi Elisabeth,

the first perfume by Laura Biagiotti was called "Laura Biagiotti" (1983) and the bottle was rectangular/columnar in shape, like you describe it. So you have a real collectors' item!

In fact I was looking for it on the internet because my girlfriend used to wear it, back in the eighties...