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Frisson D’Hiver translates to “the first chill of winter” in English. The fragrance received its difficult-to-pronounce name from Alfred de Musset’s poem “Que j’aime le premier frisson d’hiver…,” which deals with changing seasons, nostalgia, and love lost—subjects captured, in another form, by the fragrance’s icy citrus, indolic florals, and deep bed of vanilla.
“Que j’aime le premier frisson d’hiver! le chaume,
Sous le pied du chasseur, refusant de ployer!”
Or, in English: “How I love the first winter chill! the stubble, / Under the foot of the hunter, refusing to bend!”
De Musset’s family was upper-class but poor; his father worked in government positions but never gave his son much money. His mother came from similar circumstances, and her role as a society hostess—drawing-room parties, luncheons, and dinners held in the Musset residence—left a lasting impression on young Alfred.
With the help of Paul Foucher, Victor Hugo’s brother-in-law, de Musset began attending the Cénacle at the age of 17, the literary salon of Charles Nodier at the Bibliothèque de l’Arsenal. After attempts at careers in medicine, law, drawing, English, and piano, he became one of the first Romantic writers. By 20, his rising literary fame was already accompanied by a sulphurous reputation fed by his dandy side.
It is easy to see why the poem became such fertile ground for perfume: winter as atmosphere, memory as an ache, beauty sharpened by the knowledge that it will change.