Perfume Releases: Endless Flankers, More Ouds & Some New Fragrances

Posted on January 9, 2013 by Kafkaesque

Every now and then, I think it’s fun to post about some of the new perfume releases that are either already out on the market or that soon will be. At the very least, you’ll see some pretty bottles. All posts are taken via Now Smell This (NST), Fragrantica or other, credited sites. (If I could figure out how to properly re-blog a non-WordPress article, I would but, alas, my technical knowledge does not go that far. I have tried to give credit via full quotes and source citation. Almost everything is a direct quote from the original site and/or the press releases that they are relying upon.)

ROBERT PIGUET:

Already out on the market is a new flanker version of Fracas, Petit Fracas, for those who are supposedly “not ready” for the power of full-grown Fracas. Joe Garces, CEO of Robert Piguet Parfums, spoke to Basenotes about it in an interview that you can read here. To me, it basically seems like a fruity, sweet version of Fracas that is designed to appeal to the younger demographic. I am not particularly thrilled about the fact that the notes include cocoa, which seems like a bit of a travesty for something labelled, even partially, as “Fracas.” From the article:

Garces talks about Petit Fracas in the video below. The scent is for women who are not yet ‘ready’ for Fracas, and as well as Fracas’s signature tuberose contains notes of bergamot, mandarin, pear, jasmine, gardenia, cocoa, musk and sandalwood.

To see the video, you can go to the Basenotes article linked above. There are already reviews for it out on Fragrantica, where one person states that Petit Fracas was made because the CEO’s daughter did not like Fracas. I will abstain from comment and try not to thrust my fist through the monitor. No, on second thought, I will not abstain. It’s all well and good for someone not to like Fracas. It’s totally understandable, in fact. But if you’re not a fan, then don’t make your new release something under the Fracas name, especially if its notes seem extremely different and only one-tenth the complexity of Fracas. In other words, don’t try to capitalise on the legendary Fracas name to launch something totally different. You have about 12 other scents. Make this one #13. And tell your daughter that Fracas is not meant to be a fruit cocktail with cocoa!

GAULTIER:

In February, Jean-Paul Gaultier will releases a flanker for his 1995′s Le Mâle called Le Beau Male.

It is developed by perfumer Francis Kurkdjian, who also developed the original Le Mâle fragrance. Notes include mint, lavender, vanilla, sandalwood and musk.

Source: NST.

LUTENS:

Also in February, NST states there will be a new Serge Lutens called La Fille de Berlin:

Serge Lutens will launch La Fille de Berlin, a new fragrance in the “Selective Distribution” series (formerly known as the export range), in February.

La Fille de Berlin is a rose-based floriental fragrance, and is being launched in conjunction with his upcoming book of photography, Berlin à Paris.

Serge Lutens La Fille de Berlin will be available in 50 ml Eau de Parfum.

VERSACE:

Versace jumps on the increasingly mainstream, extremely popular oud bandwagon with Versace Pour Homme Oud Noir

Versace Pour Homme Oud Noir

Versace has launched Versace Pour Homme Oud Noir, a new fragrance for men geared towards the Middle East market. Versace Pour Homme Oud Noir is a flanker to 2008′s Versace Pour Homme.

The seduction of a sunset on a desert; a sensual heady aroma. A fragrance for men designed for lovers of oriental fragrances, for a man with a strong personality. An intense and regal composition; spicy and with a deep scent of leather.

Versace Pour Homme Oud Noir is available in 100 ml Eau de Parfum.

DIOR:

January sees the launch of yet another Dior Poison flanker called Hypnotic Poison Eau Secrète. NST states:

Christian Dior will launch Hypnotic Poison Eau Secrète, a new flanker to 1998′s Hypnotic Poison, which was a flanker to 1985′s Poison.

The notes include citrus, bergamot, jasmine, neroli and vanilla.

Christian Dior Hypnotic Poison Eau Secrète will be available in 50 and 100 ml Eau de Toilette.

GUCCI:

In February, Gucci will release flankers to its Guilty line of fragrances. NST states:

Gucci Guilty Black

Gucci will launch Gucci Guilty Black, new flankers to 2010′s Gucci Guilty and 2011′s Gucci Guilty Pour Homme.

Gucci Guilty Black (above right) ~ an ‘intense and elegant’ oriental floral, with red fruits, pink pepper, raspberry, violet, amber and patchouli. In 30, 50 and 75 ml Eau de Toilette.

Gucci Guilty Black Pour Homme (above left) ~ ‘intense and energetic’ woody aromatic fougere, with coriander, lavender, orange blossom, neroli, patchouli and leather. In 30, 50 and 90 ml Eau de Toilette.

ARTEMISIA:

Artemisia Natural Perfume has launched Saveur de l’Abricot. NST describes it as a new fruity floral fragrance and quotes the press release:

Picture plucking a ripe apricot from the tree and taking a bite. Feel the velvety, golden skin on your lips. Taste the juicy tang of the flesh on your tongue. Multiple layers of ambrosial sweetness explode with earthy voluptuousness and piquant twist.

Saveur de l’Abricot means the flavor of apricot. Most of what we perceive as flavor is actually scent. With the fruity-floral richness of Chinese osmanthus and real apricot essence, Saveur de l’Abricot is an impressionistic fragrance capturing the sensuality of eating an apricot.

Artemisia Natural Perfume Saveur de l’Abricot is available in 7 gr Solid Perfume and 17 ml Eau de Parfum. Samples are also available. (via artemisiaperfume).

NST also lets us know that the brand has a sale until February 28, 2013: “everything 25% off through 2/28, no coupon code needed.”

HUGO BOSS:

I don’t really have words for this as it seems like an extraordinarily odd combination of notes, so I will let NST take it on:

Hugo Boss Hugo Red

Hugo Boss will launch Hugo Red, a new fragrance for men, in January. Hugo Red will be fronted by actor Jared Leto.

Hugo Red was inspired by “the dual nature of metal” and features a cold metal accord with grapefruit, rhubarb, and metallic notes; and a hot metal accord with cedar and amber.

Hugo Boss Hugo Red will be available in 50, 75 and 150 ml Eau de Toilette and in matching grooming products.

OSCAR DE LA RENTA:

On the light, flowery front, Oscar de la Renta has launched Something Blue, a new bridal-inspired fragrance. NST provides the details:

Oscar de la Renta Something Blue

Introducing Something Blue, a fragrance to cherish forever. Inspired by life’s most magical moments, this romantic fragrance opens with a sparkling burst of mandarin and linden blossom and warms to an irresistibly sultry finish with notes of bourbon vanilla and white musk. A removable ring engraved with the designer’s signature logo is a symbol of Mr. de la Renta’s abiding devotion to his beloved clientele.

Additional notes include stephanotis, lily of the valley and lychee. Oscar de la Renta Something Blue is available now at Saks Fifth Avenue, in 50 and 100 ml Eau de Parfum and matching candle.

DAVIDOFF:

Davidoff The Game NST has the press release for the new Davidoff scent which is called The Game and which will be launched some time in 2013.

NST states:

Davidoff will launch Davidoff The Game, a new woody aromatic fragrance for men:

Never underestimate the stakes.

Always play fair.

Master the rules and leave nothing to chance.

Because life is a game and the winner takes it all.

The Game was developed by perfumer Bernard Ellena; notes include gin fizz accord (juniper berry), iris, precious woods and blackwood.

Davidoff The Game will be available in 100 ml Eau de Toilette.

Davidoff also has another new scent and it’s already out on the market. It’s a flanker for Hot Water called Hot Water Night and it contains oud. Fragrantica has further details:

Men’s fragrance Hot Water was launched in 2009 and announced as a fiery fragrance woven from powerful red chords. Its composition highlights red basil, red peppers and hot resin, embraced by warm earthy tones of patchouli. The night version—a successor of the first—Hot Water Night, appeared in 2012 as a darker and tawnier version of the original fragrance.

Hot Water Night brings a very masculine and intense composition, which puts an emphasis on hot spices. The top notes of the new edition are intertwining black pepper and aromatic juniper berries. The heart blooms with rose absolute reinforced by the notes of cedar, which are gently laid on the base made from oriental oud and gray amber.

DAVIDOFF HOT WATER NIGHTjuniper berries, black pepper
rose absolut, cedar
gray amber, oud

Davidoff Hot Water Night is presented in a bottle of the same form as the Hot Water release, but this time painted black. The black body of the bottle is graced with contrasting red details, which certainly announces the vigorous and virile chords of the composition. The fragrance is available as 110 ml Eau de Toilette Intense.

CARTIER:

Cartier has a new flanker to its Eau de Cartier line and this one is all about roses. Fragrantica has the details:

Cartier has launched a flanker to their best-selling Eau de Cartier from 2001, called Eau de Cartier Goutte de Rose. The new flanker follows Eau de Cartier Essence de Bois from 2011 and Eau de Cartier Essence d’Orange from 2010, as well as the various collector’s editions of the original Eau de Cartier through the years.

The new fragrance is taking the rosy shades of its name into the packaging which differentiates it from the violet-leaf focused original in the white box.

Created by in-house perfumer Mathilde Laurent, Goutte de Rose is a bright and joyful “eau” infused with the delicate essences of freshly picked roses upon which dew is still attached, aiming to inject immediate freshness, femininity and the well-being of a bright morning.

50ml EUR €73.42 – 100ml EUR €98.71

LA MAISON DE LA VANILLE:

La Maison de la Vanille has three new perfumes, including one that is an oud fragrance. NST does not have a date for the US releases, but it seems that they are all out in Germany. NST has this information:

La Maison de la Vanille Intense Patchouli

La Maison de la Vanille has launched three new fragrances, Intense Patchouli, Ambre Secret and Royal Oud. Along with 2011′s Absolu de Vanille, they make up the Les Parfums d’Absolu collection.

Intense Patchouli (shown) ~ “A thoroughly surprising and extraordinary patchouly composition. Perky lemon aromas and Lavender blossom provide a brand new fragrance experience and a real element of surprise. The floating and ethereal lightness of citric notes and lavender let the strong patchouli note dance and almost fly.” Additional notes include white musk, sandalwood and vanilla.

Ambre Secret ~ “Ambergris at his best. Peppery spiciness and soft, warm shades of ambergris. Shining brightly at the start, always dark, smoky and becoming more sophisticated until it ends in pure seduction.” The notes include white musk, sandalwood, cedar, patchouli, Peru balsam, labdanum and vanilla.

Royal Oud ~ “Beguiling Oriental roses and feminine jasmine blossoms underline the precious nature of the perfume. A powerful and expressive Oriental accent leads us into the depths of the mystical and mysterious Orient where new sensory worlds are waiting to be explored. Authentic agarwood exudes supreme opulence and complexity.” Additional notes include patchouli, lignum vitae, sandalwood and white musk.

La Maison de la Vanille Intense Patchouli, Ambre Secret and Royal Oud are available now at First in Fragrance in Germany, in 100 ml Eau de Parfum.

Well, that’s it for this blog post. I tried to cover both niche and main-stream perfume lines, so hopefully, there will something you find intriguing in the list. There are numerous other releases out on the market from new flankers for Coach’s Poppy line, a limited edition version of Clinique’s Happy, a new light Eau flanker for Fan di Fendi, and more. If you’re interested, you can find more information on these (and the numerous other) releases at NST’s New Releases page or Fragrantica’s similar page for new fragrances. Just be prepared to be deluged by a thousand flankers.

By the way, for those of you who may be interested, the Lancome L’Autre Oud fragrance in that drop-dead gorgeous bottle which I posted about in my last New Releases entry is supposed to be out on the market now. However, I don’t see it listed on Lancome’s website and have no idea where on earth one could possibly find this. If you do, or if you get the chance to give it a test whiff, let me know. I think that is one of the most beautiful bottles I’ve seen in a while.

Perfume Review – Robert Piguet Fracas: The History & The Legend

Posted on January 8, 2013 by Kafkaesque

“There are perfume legends, there are perfumer legends, and then there are perfumes that become obsessions. Fracas is all three, which is a hat trick less common that you’d think.”

Fracas Eau de Parfum.

Thus begins The New York Times‘ review for Fracas. It is a five-star review by the highly respected perfume critic, Chandler Burr, for a perfume that he rates as “transcendent.” And I couldn’t agree more. [Clarification: this post and piece is about vintage Fracas, both the very original versions and late 1990s Fracas, not the horribly mangled, modern reformulations.]

As a very small child of six or seven, and one already obsessed with perfume, there were two fragrances that I loved above all others: YSL’s Opium and Robert Piguet‘s Fracas. Out of the vast array of expensive French bottles littering my mother’s mise à toilette, out of all the Lalique jars and containers filled with various mysterious, adult things, out of all the things that made being a woman seem so fun and magical, there was really only Opium and Fracas that mattered to me. It was the 1970s, we lived in Cannes in a villa on the side of the mountain, overlooking the whole city below. There were exciting and often turbulent things going on, new things to explore, and make-believe adventures to be had. And, yet, I was always drawn back to that table. To be honest, it was primarily for the Opium which is still, to this day, my favorite perfume in all the world (in vintage version). But Fracas was a close second.

It was the empress of all white scents. It was a perfume that, as I recall, brought every man who passed by my mother to a stumbling, stuttering halt as they wondered what was that marvelous, incredible, hypnotic smell. It was a scent that I always thought was exuberantly joyful and happy, but which seemed to seduce whomever came within ten feet of it. It seemed like some cloud of happy white magic, all in one jet black bottle. It was the perfume worn by Marilyn Monroe (when she wasn’t wearing Chanel No. 5), Rita Hayworth, and Brigitte Bardot. And its modern die-hard fans range from such polar opposites as: Madonna to Martha Stewart, Ivana Trump to Courtney Love, Princess Caroline of Monaco to Bianca Jagger. It intoxicated them all. And it intoxicated a tiny seven-year old, too.

Continue reading →

Review En Bref: Montale Aoud Cuir d’Arabie

Posted on January 7, 2013 by Kafkaesque

I always try to be fair. In fact, I’m a bit obsessive about giving things second and, sometimes, third or fourth chances. (I think it’s my Libra side.) So, I decided to give the high-end French niche house of Montale one final chance.

If you’ve read any of my prior posts, you will know that Montale is my kryptonite, a perfume house that consistently brings me to my knees — and not in a good way. At various times, I’ve described Montale fragrances as: “horrific,” or “Chernobyl” on my arm, and Lime Oud, in specific, as something warranting a “Silkwood Shower,” an extreme measure normally suited for cases of radioactive contamination that will lead to inevitable death.

But, my Libra side is hard to ignore so, a few weeks ago, I ordered Montale’s Aoud Cuir d’Arabie. I did so even before a fellow perfume blogger, Scent Bound, suggested it, but when he recently warned me that it would take a few tries because “it is the smell of a raw skinned animal,” I paled. No, really, I actually paled when I read that. So, last night, I put on Aoud Cuir d’Arabie, fully expecting to end up huddled in a foetal position in the corner, sobbing and crying “Mommy!”

The fourth time is the charm? I’m shocked — truly and genuinely shocked — to say that it wasn’t bad. In fact, I think I may have liked it?

The Hairy German.

Now, I should confess right at the start that, soon after I put it on, The Hairy German jolted my arm and almost all of my sample vial ended up on my sheets. So, I didn’t have enough to try it out for 2-3 days to see if Scent Bound was right and I’d end up liking it, but I certainly had enough to know that it was very different from my prior experiences with Montale.

I started by putting on (cautiously and with great fear) 1 small dab on each wrist. Normally, I put 3-4 on each arm, but this is Montale! It is a line where prior experiences have shown that a miniscule tiny drop on your finger can last through numberous, frantic, desperate washings, through Lady Macbeth-like pleas to “out, damn spot, OUT!” and through hysterical fear that you will never, ever (ever!) be free of Montale. You see, all three of my prior experiences with Montale followed that exact same path, and I am a woman upon whom almost nothing lasts. But Montale is a whole other story; it is nuclear stuff and you can’t escape it. A single drop can drag you by the hair, caveman style, and clobber you like a T-Rex. And it’s not just Montale’s Aoud line, either, as I tried one that wasn’t. (Oriental Flowers.)

But Montale has as many as 27 different oud fragrances, and this one definitely strays from that horrific, nuclear path. I put on that initial dab on each wrist, waited to be brutalised, but soon realised I was still alive and unharmed. So, I put on some more. Yes, I actually did. Me! Montale!!! I put on 2 more dabs on each arm, and still I lived to tell the tale.

Aoud Cuir d’Arabie isn’t a hugely complicated scent. According to the notes on Fragrantica, it consists merely of: tobacco, leather, birch and oud. Birch is an element whose extract, tar or oil has often been used in treating leather, as an antiseptic in medicine, and to treat eczema or psoriasis. Here, in Aoud Cuir d’Arabie, it creates an immediate impression of the pink rubber in Bandaids. It is medicinal. But so is the initial smell of oud, and the two together create a rather singular, linear note. There is leather — black and cold, almost raw and feral, but never (on me) painfully fecal like horse manure, the way it was in Chanel‘s Cuir de Russie.

Finally, there is an oddly soft floral note that almost evokes rose and hovers as faint as a ghost in the background. I must be hallucinating it from the pinkness of the rubber bandages because rose is the furthest thing from the notes listed anywhere, though I smelled a rose note in both the prior Montale ouds that I tried. I later learn that, according to the Perfume Niche, the rose note is a signature to Montale’s aoud fragrances.

Aoud Cuir d’Arabie is a cold, cold, cold scent. I smell cold leather and cold, stone fireplaces. There is smoke, but it is not the warm smell of tobacco. Rather, it is the smell of burnt paper. I imagine a giant, cold, stone hearth where there is a lingering trace of burnt papers. It is not acrid, and it is nothing like the smell of burning that one finds in incense, but it adds an interesting note to the leather and birch. I am reminded of By Kilian‘s Pure Oud which has similar cold notes of smoke, stone and pure leather. I liked it then, and I like it now.

That is about the sum total of my experience with Aoud Cuir d’Arabie. I find little else because — on me, as with all the prior Montales — it is an incredibly linear scent. It doesn’t morph or vary, and it never turns into something hugely animalistic or rich with sweet tobacco. On the other hand, it is also nothing as extreme as the experiences noted on Basenotes where the scent is described with something approaching fascinated horror or bewildered love. Some of the comments:

A hospital janitor using bleach to clean puke off the floor. Oh, and an animals corpse by the roadside rotting in the hot summer sun. Why do I love this?

Limberger cheese. Vomit. Dry down did improve to leather, but what a nasty start!

This is a difficult fragrance. When I first applied it, the fecal/animal note was a turn-off. Luckily, after dry-down plus 15 min. that lessened, and the Oud and Leather predominated. It’s projection is great, and longevity is excellent. I wouldn’t EVER blind buy this, you must try it first. I enjoy it after the fecal smell dissipates, and own a large sample spritzer of this. I can’t apply it unless I have 15min. to let it dry-down before I have contact with anyone.

The first thing you get when you apply this is a very barnyard, fecal note, I’m not sure if this is caused by cambodian oud or a very animalic leather. But once you pass that stage the whole composition gets softer and a toned down version of the classic rose oud Montale combo emerges. I also get a pipe tobacco smell together with the leather in this stage that is very interesting. While it evolves the composition becomes very resinous, leathery and animalic, it gets very close to the skin becoming a skin scent, and when you think the scent is gone, you suddenly get a waft of it trough the air. Just marvelous!

it wreaks its dirty havoc all around me. The thick, pungent, hot leather of this fragrance, further pronounced by the Oud, is a leather reminiscent of an attire which has clearly been used repeatedly for numerous socially unconventional sexual acts and yet has never been cleaned once. It is almost verging on repulsive. Nevertheless, when I wear this, there is some aspect of this which gives me the greatest pleasure. […] Perhaps this says more about me than of the fragrance itself, but at least in my opinion, it resembles an almost forbidden indulgence of monarchial proportion.

Portia from Australian Perfume Junkies also loves this passionately. (You can read her review for Perfume Posse here.) As did the Perfume Niche who wrote:

It opens with an animalic note of sweaty, worn leather combined with a medical hit of oud. Pungent, rugged and raunchy. A note of tobacco adds richness, Soon Montale’s signature rose note appears and adds a gentle floral presence. As it dries down, the leather becomes more refined; the oud softens, becomes warmer and more resinous. Together they combine to create a sexy sensuous intimate scent that stays close to the skin.

I certainly liked it enough to want to give it a further, detailed review over the course of a few days. That said, I have to confess, I frequently wonder if I’m confusing enormous relief (at surviving a Montale without being clobbered with ghastly, nuclear strength horror) with actual liking. I think relief may be a huge factor here, particularly as I did find the scent to be very linear. But, I’m a Libra and I like to give things chances, so I will buy another sample of Aoud Cuir d’Arabie. If things change, if multiple tries end up revealing far greater complexity, or if I fall for it without question, I will be sure to update this review.

DETAILS:

If you’re interested in trying out Montale’s Aoud Cuir d’Arabie, you can get a sample on Surrender to Chance where the smallest vial starts at $3.99. If you are intrigued enough to want to buy it outright, it is available at Lucky Scent where it costs $110 for a 1.7 oz/ 50 ml bottle, $160 for a 3.4 oz/100 ml bottle, and $4 for a sample. And, of course, you can purchase it directly from Montale on its website where it costs 80€ for a 3.4 oz/100 ml bottle.

Review En Bref: L’Artisan Parfumeur Nuit de Tubereuse

Posted on January 7, 2013 by Kafkaesque

As always with my mini-reviews, this post will be a brief summary of my impressions of a perfume that, for whatever reason, didn’t merit one of my full, extensively detailed reviews.

With Sephora now carrying seven L’Artisan Parfumeur fragrances, I thought it might be time to review one of those: Nuit de Tubereuse. As some of you know, I love tuberose, but I’m significantly underwhelmed by this 2010 creation from the legendary nose, Bertrand Duchaufour. Actually, to be completely frank, I’m not a fan.

Nuit de Tubereuse is an eau de parfum, and Fragrantica states that its notes are as follows:

cardamom, clove, pink pepper, black pepper, citrus, green mango, angelica, tuberose, orange blossom, ylang-ylang, rose, broom, musks, vanilla, sandalwood, palisander, benzoin, styrax.

Nuit de Tubereuse opens green. It’s green tuberose and it’s unpleasantly medicinal. This is not the mentholated, camphor and eucalyptus green of Serge Lutens Tubereuse Criminelle, but something much more unpleasant, like sulphur. I also have a distinct impression of aspirin, along with an astringent note that strongly calls to mind rubbing alcohol, cheap vodka or cleaning products. Some comments on Fragrantica describe a very similar experience.

For fairness sake, however, I should add that a number of people on Fragrantica seem to like this perfume, in part because it is nothing like traditional tuberose scents like Fracas. There is none of that warm, buttery smell that one finds in the more traditional tuberose scents like Fracas. They find it much lighter and more manageable, though some think that it can be quite masculine. I don’t think it is masculine, but I do find it surprisingly strong for a L’Artisan perfume which — in my experiences thus far — have been rather light, sheer, gauzy and without great projection.

As moments pass, the astringent green tuberose and aspirin is joined by a lot of pink peppercorns, some clove, soapy musk, and a faintly sour, green edge that most reviewers attribute to the mango. If so, it’s definitely green mango. The whole combination sounds a lot more unpleasant than it actually is — but it’s still not a particular joy. The tuberose is cold. Stone cold. About 30 minutes, I smell something that calls to mind fruity bubble gum. In slight disbelief, I look up some other reviews and, yes, reviewers like Now Smell This and a few others commentators have noted “Juicy Fruit.” I sigh, and start to wonder if I actually like Bertrand Duchafour fragrances.

After an hour, Nuit de Tubereuse turns into a jasmine and ylang-ylang fragrance on me. Mostly, it is just plain jasmine, even though that is not actually listed as a note. Yes, there is a faintly earthy edge to the jasmine, but it is nothing like the earthiness mentioned in a number of comments, both on Fragrantica and Basenotes. I had expected quite a bit of it due to the inclusion of angelica. I have a bag of angelica powder for cooking, and its earthy pungency always makes me reel and re-evaluate making that recipe. (Angelica is in Serge Lutens Ambre Sultan and it is, I am convinced, why some find that scent so unpalatable.) In any event, I expected a lot more earthiness in Nuit de Tubereuse due to the angelica and the various online comments. But, no. It’s just plain jasmine with ylang-ylang. It’s nice, but I’m utterly bored to tears. So much so that I’m relieved its sillage is moderate to low (about 30-40 minutes at strength, then close to the skin), and that the longevity is about 4 hours on me, though most report far greater length. I can’t wait to get this off and try something that is actually faintly exciting or enjoyable.

A lot of reviewers have stated that this is not really a tuberose scent as much as it is a floral and spiced fruit scent that just happens to have tuberose in it. I agree. And some perfume bloggers, like The Candy Perfume Boy, have done “a big 180” on this scent and have ended up really liking it. That will never be me, I fear. I’m far too turned off and bored to want to give this umpteen chances until it finally sways or bullies me into submission. In fact, I’m starting to think that I simply do not like green tuberose, or modern twists on tuberose. (Perhaps I was too imprinted in my childhood with Fracas, and can’t move on?)

I can’t decide if I would recommend Nuit de Tubereuse as a starter tuberose to those terrified of the more traditional indolic, buttery, overpowering tuberose scents on the market. Some commentators on Fragrantica think it would be a great way to tiptoe into this floral sub-category. But, after some thought, I don’t think it would be a good idea. That opening is simply too unpleasant; and the rest of the time, Nuit de Tubereuse is merely a linear fragrance that is quite boring. If I had experienced some of the earthly, woody base notes, perhaps I would feel differently.

That said, body chemistry is a funny thing and enough people have liked Nuit de Tubereuse or noted the earthy, woody dry-down for me to suggest that you may want to give this a potential sniff if you happen to pass by a bottle at Sephora. After all, it’s not completely hideous or revolting. But I would certainly never recommend that you blindly spend $120 on a 1.7 oz/50 ml or $165 on a 3.4 oz/100 ml on an impulse purchase just because you think you like tuberose. Please, don’t do it.