Route du Thé (1986)
by Barney's New York

This is a a Bergamot bomb! Spice and warmth, with a sweet honey note about 10 minutes in. Honestly, I can't detect any LOV in there. The Amber base is delightful, but still heavy on the Bergamot. Route du The evokes Earl Grey tea with honey and lemon-very delightful, modern classic, & unisex. Niche before niche existed.

12nd October, 2011.

Disgusting, smells strongly of some hazardous household cleaning product with it's sharply synthetic notes. I'd rather wear Cillit Bang.

9th January, 2011.

BARNEYS ROUTE DE THE: Conceivably my signature fragrance, in that for twenty years, I have repeatedly returned to Route de The. This was the fragrance that taught me scent was non-gendered. It was early in the Eighties when Barney’s re-introduced this fragrance, and much of Manhattan got caught up in its clean, crisp smell: like spring narcissus in a rock garden after a rain, with a touch of wet macadam. I knew an interior designer who wore it—and it was an epiphany to realize that fragrance had nothing to do with being male or female—and soon thereafter, with earnings from tutoring students, I bought my first bottle of Barney’s Route de The. Years come and go, and some years, another bottle of Route de The awaits me under the Christmas tree. To wear this fragrance anew always makes me happy—and apparently many others, too, given the many compliments I receive.

7th May, 2009. (Last Edited: 9th June, 2009.)

This is what Costume National Scent should have been. Just a tad bit light on Amber, and add a bit of fruitiness to give it more character.

11th April, 2008.

This fragrance always reminds me of extra-dry ginger ale. It's kind of sharp and fizzy and I was very surprised to find there are no ginger notes in it. It dries down to a clean soapy smell on me.

This is not a fragrance I'd wear to seduce someone; more like something I'd wear to a business meeting. It's crisp and clean on me.

Sometimes I layer this with something sweet, like Brandy or a vanilla scent. Might not work for everyone, but it does for me.

3rd November, 2007.

I love it, but can understand why it may not be a hit with everybody. If Malle Bigarade Concentree smells like "stinky oranges," and TDC Rose Poivree smells like "stinky roses," then Route du Thé smells like "stinky tea." For fans of lighter, fresher, softer tea fragrances, this one may not be a good fit. But, for fans of unsweet, crisp, sharp scents, I think this one would be a good fit.

17th February, 2007.