The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Purple Pop landed in 2013 from Ulric de Varens, and it announces itself with the kind of warmth that catches you off guard in the best possible way. The almond and anise pairing opens with a clear licorice sweetness, bright and slightly powdery, before the vanilla softens everything into a plush, skin-close hum. The almond reads more like marzipan than raw nut, sweet but not cloying, while the anise adds that subtle aniseed lift that keeps the composition from going flat. As the hours pass, the top-note sparkle fades and a creamy, almost milky warmth takes over, settling into something that feels more worn than sprayed. It wears close to the skin rather than projecting widely, which gives it an intimate, personal quality.
The almond and star anise combination is the kind of pairing perfumers reach for when they want sweetness with a little attitude. Anise brings that cool licorice snap, almost toothpaste-adjacent in a way that should clash but instead grounds the almond's marzipan softness. Layering jasmine sambac over that base gives it a creamy floral undertow without turning the composition into a traditional white-floral. Vanilla bridges the two worlds, its warmth softening the anise's sharpness while the sandalwood-tonka finish adds a powdery, almost cosmetic close that wearers consistently describe as high-end body powder.
The evolution
The first 15 minutes belong to almond and star anise, and they're loud about it. Sweet, slightly medicinal, with that black-licorice edge doing most of the talking. By the 30-minute mark, jasmine sambac starts threading through, and the composition softens from sharp confection to something warmer, creamier. The vanilla arrives quietly and stays, pulling the whole thing toward a powdery, intimate space by the second hour. From hour three onward, sandalwood and tonka bean carry the load alone, close to the skin, almost talc-like in their softness. On fabric the next morning, what remains is a faint almond-vanilla warmth, the kind of trace that makes someone lean in rather than pull back.
Cultural impact
Purple Pop sits in a category the brand knows well: everyday sweetness with enough character to feel personal. A handful of wearers have compared the drydown to the soft, clean finish of body powder, picking up on that almond-vanilla softness that settles close to the skin. It shares DNA with the broader Ulric de Varens catalogue of playful, unpretentious scents designed for daily wear, and that family resemblance shows in how easily it slots into a rotation. The fragrance leans into almond and vanilla as its anchor points, with anise threading a gentle licorice lift through the opening that keeps the sweetness from feeling one-note.
