The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Serge de Oliveira designed Davana & Vanille around a childhood memory, the sweet smell of pastéis de nata drifting through Lisbon's streets during family days. The fragrance translates that comfort into scent: plum and litchi offer the pastry's fruity sweetness, while davana brings the bitter-herbal edge that prevents it from becoming merely a gourmand exercise. The perfumer wanted a vanilla that didn't simply comfort, one that surprised first, then delivered warmth. Launched in 2017, it remains one of 100BON's more distinctive compositions. The blend captures the nostalgia of those Lisbon mornings, where sugary custard and flaky pastry dough mingled with the morning air, and transforms that memory into something wearable and modern.
What makes this pairing unusual is the davana itself. Derived from an Indian herb with an aromatic, slightly camphorated quality, it adds a bitter-green dimension that most vanilla fragrances avoid entirely. The contrast between that sharp, almost medicinal herbal note and the warm bourbon vanilla base creates the fragrance's central tension. The plum and litchi sweeten the blow, but the davana doesn't disappear. It lingers in the drydown as a quiet reminder that this vanilla has an edge.
The evolution
The opening arrives sweet and fruity, plum and litchi make their case immediately. But within minutes the davana announces itself: bitter, herbal, almost astringent. It catches some off guard, others find it fascinating. The sweetness doesn't disappear, it argues back. Around the 30-minute mark, rose and jasmine step in, softening the davana's edges without erasing them. The fruit fades. The herbal quality remains, quieter now. By the second hour, bourbon vanilla takes over. Warm, round, close to the skin. Cedar and sandalwood provide structure. Patchouli lingers as a faint earthiness beneath the sweetness. On most skin, the full arc takes 3-4 hours. The drydown, vanilla, wood, and a memory of something bitter, stays intimate.
Cultural impact
100BON emerged as a French fragrance house built around natural raw materials, offering an alternative to conventional synthetic perfumery. Founded by a former biochemist, the house brought a scientific approach to natural ingredient selection and formulation. Davana & Vanille demonstrates that natural ingredients can deliver complexity and longevity, offering a fragrance experience rooted in authenticity and thoughtful composition rather than purely artificial construction.
