Cabaret (2003)
by Grès

One of the notes I get from this is 'inside of a piano' which piano players will recognise. Impossible to describe but evocative of happy times in childhood. The Rose is very sweet but is mixed with incense and wood the only thing that makes this scent less than perfect is that a lot of sprays are needed to have an effect. Maybe just me but I like my scent to comfort and reassure me all day. Otherwise a beautiful journey that conjures up many pictures.

23rd December, 2011.

This has a very ow sillage on me with lots of pachouli... almost smells sweaty...

27th May, 2011.

I am surprised by how much I like this fragrance...I'm sampling it today and it just keeps getting better and better...

Opening notes on me were more of a "rose-lemon drizzle." The lemony notes were strong at first, with a touch of leather, and then a subtle dry rose note became more prominent. For a few minutes I was reminded of wooden furniture polish, but not in a bad way.

Three hours into it, the leather notes have disappeared, and only a trace of lemon remains. Old, withered roses and peonies gently curl around me now in a bed of sandalwood. I'm really enjoying it...

I am buying a full bottle of this...today! :)

Jan
23
2009

28th March, 2011.

Transparent, woody rose. Yes, that's about right. Cabaret has a crystalline quality and is a tremendous value that rivals luxe fragrances in the $100+ category. It's a modern style perfume that is similar to Rocha Lumiere (new), only better. It's a fragrance for a lifetime.

26th March, 2011.

I bought this fragrance in the hope that it would be somewhat reminiscent of the exquisite (yet expensive!)Soir de Lune. Imagine my disappointment upon that first spray when my young daughter said; "You smell lovely mummy, a bit like wet paint!".
I hate to admit it but ,yes - initially that is exactly what it smells like!!

However, after just a few minutes....... incense appears~ combined with a hint of fallen leaves...next ~ a suggestion of ground white pepper,followed by an ethereal, woodsy rose.

If you are looking for a heady,skanky rose I would suggest the gloriously obnoxious Agent provocateur, but, if you are looking for something vaguely similar, yet more eloquent and well behaved ~ this could be the one......

Cabaret is a class act.

6th February, 2011. (Last Edited: 19th April, 2011.)

Transparent, woody rose. I’ve seen Cabaret described this way a number of times. I’ll take the transparent, and even though I can’t really describe how a fragrance is transparent, Cabaret is. I do smell a boozy rose, particularly at the opening. But overall, Cabaret smells of incense, lily of the valley and musk. There are certainly many elements that I’m leaving out, but these seem to be the key notes. They bounce off each other and form some interesting combinations as they evolve---green apple candy? Badgely Mischka-style fruity floral?

The early drydown (a fairly long stretch) smells of lily of the valley combined with the fruit-like sweetness of musk. Later in the drydown, the tone is a cool cedar-like, incensy musk. This last bit stays close to the skin but lasts the length of the day.

Again, I have trouble with the word transparent here, as I can’t really nail down what I mean. But here’s a point of comparison: Sarah Jessica Parker’s Lovely, similarly a musky, woody floral is blunt and gooey, whereas Cabaret feels coated in a glossy clear lacquer. The visual analogy of a lacquer or varnish, a clear layer that enhances or qualifies the color and appearance of what’s underneath, is probably close to the idea here. My bet is that there is a particular use of aromachemicals that focuses or directs the nose to the other elements of the fragrance, perhaps similar to the way aldehydes modify a floral. However it’s done, the effect is lasting and lovely.

9th December, 2010. (Last Edited: 17th January, 2011.)