The Smell of Old Money: A New Perfume Evokes the Scent of a Legendary 1892 Party

Caroline Astor famously invited to her Patriarch Ball in 1892 the only 400 people in New York City who mattered. Unacceptable parvenus and new-money folk not on the list pleaded deadly illnesses and unavoidable sailings to Europe for the month. But, alas, the crème de la crème Four Hundred list was printed in The New York Times, and those not on it were exposed.

Quelle horreur!

Now, the St. Regis Hotels, another swell nabob, has envisioned what scent wafted through Caroline’s infamous Four Hundred Ball — perhaps a heady mix of the exotic woods of the ballroom’s carved paneling, the sweet, green scents of potted palms and apple blossoms that lined the walls, the light, crisp essence of the champagne that flowed and the unmistakable musk of old money. Arquiste conjured the scent for the St. Regis, and you can purchase a spritz of New York’s Gilded Age — Caroline’s Four Hundred room spray and Caroline’s Four Hundred candle — for $80 each, at stregis.com/boutique.