Heat was the first fragrance launched by Beyonce in 2010 and was created by two Givaudian perfumers: Claude Dir and Olivier Gillotin, who also created Curious by Britney Spears and Mariah Carey's Forever respectively. With other celebrity perfumes in mind, like the ones of Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, I was expecting an explosion of fruity strawberry Hubba Bubba notes, but it was nothing like that: the target age is higher here, and so is the level of sophistication.
In fact, there is a fruity note of peach at the start, but it’s mixed upfront with dense florals. The result is neither extremely dense, nor sweet, as if the two sides were preventing each other from standing out too much. The fruity and floral notes are covered by a warm and slightly animalistic blanket of musk. And this is where the name Heat can really be related to the personality of the fragrance (that’s not always the case with perfumes, unfortunately), because this one really is warm, one can (almost) literally feel warm air coming out of it.
Heat Perfume by Beyonce is sophisticated but not to the point of being inaccessible. Some find musk a bit too “dirty,” especially when it comes out at an early stage – like in this case – but Heat is very controlled, like the rest of the notes. It’s versatile enough to be used in everyday situations, but if you are the type of girl who wants to be seducing by not doing it openly, then perfume Beyonce Heat will be a great accomplice. Warmth makes it sensual, and also dark, but just enough to be attractive. I loved it because it will seduce by being discreet rather than by being loud.
And the dry down will be a surprise. Far from the usual musk-plus-vanilla formula of many perfumes for women, it goes green instead: green and woody, but also sweet, and with still a presence of musk in the background. A great finale for a great fragrance: so much for all the detractors of celebrity perfumes.
About the author: Andrea writes perfume reviews - masculine and feminine, designer and niche - at Yournextperfume.com.
