Vetiver Oriental (2002)
by Serge Lutens Les Salons du Palais Royal Shiseido

Mmmm, a rich oriental vetiver, mossy, resinous, dense, complex and almost gourmand with its touch of dark chocolate. The central note of vetiver poses a rooty and typical (from vetiver) woodsy mould over the general work. Seasoned dark-brown woods, leather, tarry notes, balsams and labdanum compose this intriguing scent. The resinous moss-musk-labdanum-amber accord reminds me the typical Mazzolari's mossy and syrupy density. The beginning is a bit rough with the performance of some spices, citrus, herbs and tar but the smell tends progressively to morph in a sort of smooth and  warm mossy vetiver with hints of dry flowers and seasoned (and slightly smoky) woods coloured by hints of amber. The final outcome is tasty and almost brewing with its cocktail of resinous labdanum, balsams and musks. The almost edible thick and gummy temperament is enhanced by the chord of guaiac woods and chocolate that is so attractive for us. The fragrance itself evolves as a mysterious and multifaceted dark juice from the forest. One of the best from Lutens in my opinion.

22nd January, 2012.

could one say about this ... a chypre-vetiver or a Chypre à la Lutens? I cannot fail to notice a similar pattern to pour monsieur concentrée or tiffany for men, having a similar buttery-mossy lemon quality.
Lutens presents here a semi crisp and mossy vetiver that doesn´t seem the typical vetiver of most of fragances, but rather an interpretation of the theme of spicy green oakmoss.
It smells good, smells clean but I would have liked a more innovative work about vetiver.

3rd December, 2011.

FEMININE

NO VETIVER

Those are the important points here that I needed to get out of the way so the casual reader that simply scrolls down really quickly will get my 3 most important points (the other being the thumbs up). I didn't look at the "notes" before wearing this, as I often don't, because I feel that "knowing" beforehand could cloud judgment.

Vetiver Oriental is a delicious, flaky desert, with a fruit-based filling, that I want to sink my teefs into. Just smelling this I can practically feel that moment, you know, when your molars break through the flakiness and hit sweet ground zero. Oh man, that's some good stuff. Anyway, eating disorders aside, I don't smell any vetiver here. That's not really a bad thing, but it almost changed the review to neutral. I don't like false advertising. Another thing is that this is entirely feminine, and I even had a coworker confirm that for me. This also almost altered my review. May I recommend changing the name to "No Vetiver Having Gourmand, for women." (in keeping with the English name scheme of this fragrance)
So, ladies, wear this at your peril, for I may try to eat you.

giggity

7th August, 2011.

Intriguing…After sporadically testing this over a period of three months, I’m still not sure what I think about it. One minute I think that I’m smelling some wonderfully edgy accords, the next minute I feel that I’m not sure that I like what I’m smelling. The opening is an unusual one: It has a lot more going on than the typical vetiver fragrance. There’s iris, green, gaïac, and balsam in quite a unique accord—especially for a vetiver fragrance. This is one of those accords that challenge. It’s a little bit sweet and sharp and quite a bit aromatic and resinous. I believe that the gaïac note has a lot to do with the aromatics and the uniqueness: the myrrh can account for a lot of the resinous vibration; and the licorice provides the tar-like sweet note. I don’t get a clear chocolate note. To my nose the vetiver functions at the edges of the fragrance rather than in the mainstream of it, and, if I have a problem, this must be a part of it: I love vetiver, and I would like a stronger vetiver presence in this fragrance. The base is sumptuous with typical Serge Lutens ambiances and longevity. This is an excellent fragrance—at least I think so most of the time...other times I’m not so sure. What I really like about Vetiver Oriental is the gaïac note and, also, that I find it a quite wearable fragrance—probably more wearable than most vetivers.

Originally submitted 24 May 2007

11th December, 2010. (Last Edited: 7th June, 2011.)

I think I don't get this one. I am a big Serge Lutens fan, but Vetiver Oriental was one dull, undaring, interchangeable and generic smell on me. Left no impression!

27th July, 2010.

Balancing skillfully between woody vetiver and sweet oriental proves to so many other vetiver scents that creativity, in certain circumstances, is a risk you must take. To compose with a dry ingredient such as vetiver, within the strictly oriental boundaries of Lutens house and produce a crowd pleaser, is a challenge indeed. Using a a sensual palette of notes , ranging from sweet and woody to herbal and earthy, this one practically can please almost anybody. I wish only it could maintain this beautiful vetiver note for a little longer before passing to the sweet ambery base. Just great.

1st December, 2009.