L'Or de Torrente (2001)
by Torrente

The opening is reminiscent of a dilute Mira Bai, however, the drydown is different in that L'OdT slides into a sort of semi-sweet incense that I would not have labeled "coffee." I can find no fault with L'OdT (which really is saying something), but neither am I moved. When I want to be comforted by the feeling of coffee-like aromas, I'll turn first to Black Vetyver Café or New Haarlem.

Black currant and tangerine at the top combine to release a very fresh & only slightly fruity tone that does a superb balancing act with the coffee and rose in the heart (nope, I don't smell the coffee but mention it; as it is listed as an official note). I also believe the fruit notes keep the rose from cloying - preserving its' freshness. The base note of vanilla orchid is the real hook for me! Simple and elegant fragrance. The bottle is a real vanity accessory!

l'or de torrente has a unique bottle and a unique fragrance...its heavenly and rich and as ladylonestar points out a wonderful sillage (thats when it trails/wafts behind you)it fills your bathroom and bedroom when you have sprayed and has excellent staying power...very very gorgeous indeed

Alright, two things I need to say before I get into a real review here. One: could someone please tell me where the coffee's hiding in here, because I've darn near tormented myself over the years trying to smell it? And two: Ines de la Fressange (and I really love her, by the way - one of fashion's most beautifully "quirky" and atypically gorgeous women), L'or de Torrente just called and wants its fragrance back, and the bottle too, even if you did shift the heavy gold plate around a bit and play with rearranging the leaf motif. Okay, I feel better now! Time to explain myself, and this fragrance. L'Or de Torrente is still being made and is readily available online from etailer sites including Perfumebay, though not so much anymore at traditional brick-and-mortar retailers. But if you like to try before you buy and can't seem to find a tester of the L'or anywhere, I recommend you get yourself to a Sephora right away and spritz on the new Ines de la Fressange fragrance - because it's essentially identical to L'or de Torrente. The same cough-syrupy black currant topnote livened somewhat by citrus (tangerine for the L'or, neroli and mandarin for the Ines) and light greens (angelica in the L'or, bergamot in the Ines), the same rose-iris heart (rounded out by magnolia in the L'or versus lily and peony in the Ines - hey, close enough). The drydowns are a touch different - vanilla and cedar (quite a bit of both, too) in L'or versus benzoin-patchouli-musk in the Ines, but by the time you get to that point, it doesn't even seem worth noting. True, it makes the L'or a little sweeter-spicier than the Ines, but the differences are splitting hairs to me. These fragrances are more less like twins separated at birth; even the bottles are the same with a twist, partially armoured in heavy gold-plated metal and embellished in the motif of leaves. In the L'or, the leaves are depicted in the metal itself; in the Ines, the leaves are embossed on the glass part of the bottle. Take a look at the two, you'll see what I'm talking about. I was so disturbed when I smelled the Ines (which, just to clarify, is NOT the first fragrance she's put out under her name; there is another, older Ines de la Fressange fragrance and I don't know what it smells like, but it is available at perfumebay. Also, for those keeping track, back in the Eighties/early Nineties Ms. Fressange was the "face" of Coco by Chanel) at Sephora, so aggravated by the fact that it was just so very alike something else I already owned. Took me days to go through my notes and collection and figure out it was the L'or de Torrente. Which brings me back to my original gripe number one - L'or de Torrente is semi-famous for having a coffee note that no one I've ever met has ever been able to detect, self included. I swear it's not in there. I know it's not, darn it! Drives me crazy. Happily, Ines' fragrance spares us the mystery and drama of the present-yet-absent note -no coffee note listed, none smelled.

L'Or de Torrente is a very pretty, old-fashioned fragrance; a very fruity floral scent for a good while until it settles into a divine coffee and rose scent on me. It reminds me of my grandmother and being in my grandmother's kitchen long ago; a working kitchen with wonderful aromas night and day, an un-air-conditioned kitchen always closed off from the rest of the air-conditioned house (where there was always a clean and cedar aroma no matter the room) - her own soft perfume, a small 'jar' of fresh cut roses on the little enamel top table, a bowl of ripe, lush fruit on the porcelain tiled counter, a pot of coffee percolating on the gas stove, all mingling together gloriously. L'Or has fabulous sillage and is very long-lasting -- it fills my home and my car with the most wonderful scent even after I've left either, and... I seem to always get compliments from young men.