An Insider’s Guide to the Best Lily of the Valley Perfumes of All Time

Floating on the breeze in France today is the delicately sweet scent of Lily of the Valley, which appears in markets and magasins de fleurs across the country in celebration of le premier mai. Despite their prevalence, the bouquets, seen as a symbol of good luck and well wishes, are something of an olfactive white whale.“In flowers, you have two extremes,” explains fragrance creator Frédéric Malle. “White flowers, which are generally more animalic and sensual, are at one end, while roses, which tend to be more petal-y, vibrant, and crisp, are at the other.” Meanwhile lily of the valley sits at the very center of the spectrum, an enigmatic mix of clean, sweet, and bright. Impossible to extract from the bloom through distillation, its scent is difficult to replicate and, when attempted, retains a certain transparency. Many fragrance houses have made attempts to capture its fresh and innocent quality, but few have done so masterfully. From Dior’s legendary hyperrealist portrait of its petit white bell petals to his own lilac-edged twist on the scent, Malle shares five of his all-time favorites.