If you wonder what happened to Sol de Janeiro 71, it is Cheirosa 71, a caramelized vanilla and toasted macadamia mist named for Rio in 1971. I go through nine of its numbered siblings and a mini set, so you can pick the year that suits you.
Sol de Janeiro 71 and the Brand That Names Its Scents After Years in Brazil
I keep a small drawer of perfume mists, and the one I reach for when the weather turns is Sol de Janeiro 71. It smells like the edge of a bakery tray: caramelized vanilla, toasted macadamia nut and tonka bean, with a little sea salt so it never tips into frosting. The brand is a better story than most. Sol de Janeiro was co-founded in 2015 by Heela Yang, Camila Pierotti and Marc Capra, and its first product was a single body cream, the Brazilian Bum Bum Cream. Yang, a former Clinique marketing executive, stayed on as CEO when the L'Occitane Group agreed in 2021 to buy an 83 percent stake. The mists came later and grew into a world of their own, and the naming is what I love most. Every number is a year in Brazilian culture: 62 for the summer the world met the Girl from Ipanema, 59 for the first bossa nova album, 68 for the Tropicalia movement. The 71 points to Rio in 1971, and the scent was composed by Jerome Epinette. The edit starts with 71 and three of its numbered siblings.
Tan Lines, Disco and the First Bikini
Grid two is where the numbers get interesting, because each of these four is a different Rio. Cheirosa 87 is the scent many people first knew as Tan Lines, later called Rio Radiance: solar tuberose, leite de coco and creamy vanilla. Cheirosa 91 nods to the pop remixes of 1991 and runs on pink rose, passionfruit and honey caramel, and this one is a mini sized for a bag. Cheirosa 76 is the night one, with black currant, midnight jasmine and amber woods, and a refillable bottle that suits a scent you reach for every day. A refillable Cheirosa perfume mist is a sensible idea. Cheirosa 48 goes bright with guava nectar, sunlit orchid and pink musk, in honor of the first bikini on Ipanema Beach in 1948. The brand suggests spritzing from six to eight inches away on skin, hair and clothes. I would add one trial of my own: spray a wrist and wait ten minutes before you decide, because the vanilla and musk bases arrive late.
Small Formats for a Coat Pocket
Grid three is the portable one. Cheirosa 39 is built on whipped coconut cream, tropical orchid and toasted praline over warm vanilla, and it is a tribute to 1939 and the performer Carmen Miranda. It works as a hair and body mist, so a light pass through the ends of your hair is enough. The two Jelly Perfume Balms are alcohol-free, twist-up sticks that glide on translucent and not sticky, and the brand says the scent lasts up to 10 hours. Balm 68 is pink dragon fruit, Brazilian jasmine and ocean air, while balm 40 is black amber plum, vanilla woods and jasmine blooms. The Spritz & Sol set holds five minis, which is the easiest way I know to find out which number suits you. What I would skip is spraying a gourmand from three inches away, the way you would a deodorant. Hold it six to eight inches from skin, as the brand suggests, and let it settle. With a balm, skip the heavy swipe, because one pass at each pulse point is plenty for a concentrated scent.
Sol de Janeiro 71 and Its Siblings: Pick Your Year
If you want a shortcut, choose by the story you like best. A bakery in 1971, a summer in 1962, a disco in 1976: Sol de Janeiro is selling a small history lesson in a spray bottle, and I find that more charming than a generic beachy name. Keep a mini in a coat pocket. Layer 71 with 62 when you want more pistachio and salted caramel, as the brand itself suggests, and let the drydown surprise you. The best mist is the one you forget you are wearing until someone asks. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together Bum Bum Cream and the Pistachio Scent That Built Sol de Janeiro and Sol de Janeiro Perfume.
