In my previous newsletter, I reported on the Grand Tour through Switzerland. This week I am again doing a small part of this tour in another region and I am travelling with my Alfa GTV 2000 from 1974.
It’s exactly the same car as my dear uncle used to drive. During his lifetime he bought three times this beautiful designed model by Bertone. Now that I myself drive this vintage Alfa, the Grand Tour has an even more nostalgic character. In terms of speed, the GTV 2000 goes well with modern traffic, but you drive without a safety belt and of course the ventilation leaves much to be desired and when you drive you permanently smell the aroma of petrol around the car.
Porfirio Rubirosa liked to soak up the smell of Petrol when driving his Ferrari. At the beginning of the sixties he even planned to develop his own men's fragrance with a hint of gasoline. He did not succeed because of his fatal accident. Hence I honoured him with YVRA 1965. To realize that suggestion of pleasantly smelling gasoline in a fragrance, the use of red pepper oil is crucial. Just squeeze some red peppercorns together and you will find out for yourself.
With a stopover at Brenners Park Hotel in Baden Baden, I stayed at the Lake Neuchatel. I do not share the opinion of my beloved writer Oscar Wilde by any means. He once said about Switzerland: ‘That dreadful place, so vulgar with its big ugly mountains, all black and white like an enormous photograph.’ The Grand Tour proves that Wilde was wrong.
My first fragrance YVRA 1958 has a strong link with the phenomenon of travel and in our collection we also offer scented pads. These days I badly need them in my over heated car. The scented pads can also be used for a musty sports bag or in your wardrobe. During the last few days we entered into a partnership with Travelteq. The company makes ideal bags for transporting your daily belongings and computer. Their bags are made of beautiful Italian leather and have handy storage compartments, even with a separate storage compartment for cigar and telephone. Every customer of their new bags will receive the scented pads in the near future, with which the bag will smell optimally for a long time.
Keep you all posted and safe travels,
Yvo van Regteren Altena