1000 (or Mille) is a perfume created in 1972 by Jean Kerleo for Jean Patou. It is a rich blend of luxury florals which might be seen as something of a modernised successor to the famed Joy (1930). Below we dissect the formula and discuss the perfume and the history of the brand.
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1000 Reimagined — A Floral Aldehyde
Patou, Origins
In 1930, Jean Patou famously ordered his head perfumer Henri Almeras to add “more! more!” jasmine and rose to what was to be the most expensive perfume in the world: Joy. It was in the midst of the great depression that Monsieur Patou discerned that the world needed a dazzle of luxury to counter the bleak austerity of the age. He was right. Joy was a hit and Patou cemented his name in perfume history forever — something he had achieved in the fashion world when he dressed tennis superstar Suzanne Lenglen for her then-scandalous 1919 appearance on the court in a short skirt, flat shoes and low neckline.
Four decades later on a warm spring night in Paris, the new scent 1000 (or Mille) was launched with a similar flair for the fabulous; 1000 bottles in gem encrusted jewellery boxes were delivered by Rolls Royce to the Paris glitterati. It was followed by an advertisement so scandalous it was banned in some countries (the scandal revolved around marital infidelity with overtones seen as sacrilegious by many — a later, and slightly safer, ad was used 10 years later).
Jean Kerleo
Jean Kerleo started his career in 1954 as head perfumer at Helena Rubenstein and a mere 11 years later was awarded the Prix des Parfumeurs de France, an award given only to the top perfumers in France. He joined Patou and created some masterpieces for the brand: 1000, Ma Liberte, Cocktail, Sublime and Eau de Patou. And of course one mustn't forget his Patou Pour Homme (1980) believed by many (including this writer) to be the peak of gentlemen's scents with a close second being the easier wearing flanker Patou Pour Homme Privé (1994).
The Formula
1000 was created in the classical French style — a blend of rich naturals, aroma chemicals and bases.
The Bases
Aldehone Extra is an aldehydic multi-floral base from Roure Bertrand (later Givaudan). It is a very old base that was used in countless perfumes. It contains a hefty dose of aldehydes including Aldehyde C-12 Lauric which may explain why Kerleo opted to use it here (C-12 Lauric blends particularly well with orris and violet odourants and is frequently seen in classical French scents — even non-aldehydics — for that reason). It also has some luxurious florals and a rich fond of natural woods including a rather large dose of Sandalwood Mysore. Interestingly Firmenich also had a nearly identical base called Aldalia which illustrates how artistic copying has long been a part of the perfume industry. Whether Roure Bertrand copied Firmenich or vice versa is unknown, but there is no denying that one is a clone of the other. These bases date to the earliest part of the 20th century.
The other key base used was Mayciane which is a beautiful De Laire base crafted by Henri Robert in 1953 (Robert was chief perfumer at Coty, Bourjois and Chanel where he create No 19 and Pour Monsieur). Mayciane (as ithe “may” in its name attests) is a lily of the valley base. It is sublime in its simplicity and has a more modern feel than many other historic muguet bases. Notably it contains a high dose of Hexyl Cinnamic Aldehyde instead of the more common Amyl Cinnamic Aldehyde of earlier years.
A third base, Taif Rose, is our own and substitutes for Turkish Rose Oil one for one. Our Taif Rose base is equally vibrant as Turkish rose and while it is expensive, it allows for the addition of oriental rose otto at a fraction of the price of the pure oil.
Tonkin Intense and Ambergris Intense replace the overdose of natural musks used in the scent.
The Synthetics
Cyclosia and Iralia are highly refined forms of Hydroxycitronellal and Methyl Ionone respectively. While this scent relies heavily on naturals, the synthetics are very carefully chosen. When you might expect to see musk ambrette (lovely in florals and still legal at the time), Kerleo opted for a very high dose of Exaltolide in combination with Musk Ketone. That Exaltolide overdose is not common for the time.
A very refined Vetiveryl Acetate (with no metallic notes) is used and Hedione makes a welcome appearance marking the move of Patou into modern perfumery. C-12 Lauric (as previously mentioned) is an almost must-have when using violet leaves and Iralia and a very clean quality of Phenyl Ethyl Alcohol extends the luxury rose combination.
The Naturals
There is no getting away from the fact that is perhaps the most expensive perfume formula we have. It combines the highest cost and quality floral oils known to the modern perfumer: Rose de Mai from France, Jasmine de Grasse, Violet Leaf (France) and Orris Absolute. While these are key to the original scent substitutions are possible. In fact, the perfumer himself gave us hints at those very substitutions in the formula for the Eau de Toilette version of the perfume (see below).
Accenting the rose, jasmine and violet florals are a beautiful sweetening touch of exotic osmanthus, luscious green Oakmoss from Yugoslovia and a surprising touch of tarragon oil which Coty also used to great effect in his 1917 masterpiece Chypre. Patchouli (light) from Aceh in Indonesia and a very generous dose of Mysore Sandalwood brings the whole thing together.
Substitutions
When making a fragrance with an in-house perfumer a brand is afforded luxuries that are rarely offered when working with big outsourced companies. It means that a fragrance may be modified in multiple ways to suit multiple strengths, and that is what was done with 1000. The deluxe extrait version (38%) is what we model our 1000 Reimagined formula on, but Kerleo also created a second formula for a lower cost Eau de Toilette. The EDT still remains astonishingly expensive these days, but it serves to illustrate how successful reformulations can be done when costs rise or materials disappear from the palette. Here are the chief substitutions Kerleo made to lower the price point of the scent:
0.92% Methyl Heptine Carbonate (replaces Violet Leaves)
3.7% Rose Essence (replaces bulgarian rose oil)
7.5% Jasmin Imperial + 1.54% Jasmin Blanc (replaces Jasmine de Grasse absolute)
Interestingly Kerleo left the Rose de Mai intact but if you wish to make a substitution yourself, we recommend Rose Imperiale.
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