Safran Troublant (2002)
by L'Artisan Parfumeur

I agree with the flavors on the previous posts. Not a sexy scent to me, like Opium, but a comforting scent.

12nd October, 2011.

To me this one smells like oldfashioned rosewater...cheap, thin, quiet and inoffensive, but nothing to wear nowadays.

5th October, 2011.

This is my story. I walked into Barney's on Madison Avenue, I told the SA I was looking for a nice vanilla, she handed me this first. I smelled it. I bought it, and I left.
I've never smelled anything remotely similar. If you like vanilla/saffron perfection, you have come to the right place. Get this one.

1st July, 2011.

I had tried a sample of Safran Troublant a while back and found it quite intriguing, very different from many of the more floral L'Artisan fragrances I've tested. Finding a whole bottle at a decent price, though, wasn't the easiest task, but I finally managed to get a partial bottle from a swap site.

Yesterday was my first public wearing of the scent. I knew I had an exacting day ahead of me--an appointment with my therapist (because one always feels a bit "troublant") plus as many errands as I could fit in before the anticipated thunderstorms. Although my experience has been that many L'Artisan fragrances are quite short on sillage and longevity, Safran Troublant nevertheless outlasted my own energy, and it was still going strong when I collapsed into an early bed last night.

On me, Safran Troublant is a heady, voluptuous spicy oriental. Saffron, I find, is the most prominent note, surrounded by a rich and harmonious blend of passion flower, rose, and vanilla. Every now and then I got a whiff of sandalwood emerging from under my clothing when I moved suddenly. All in all, I was surrounded by a luxuriously pleasant but unobtrusive aura of fragrance for over eight hours.

The scent developed very little over time--but when something is this lovely, who wants it to change?

21st August, 2010.

I finally got a full bottle of this wonderful scent
and I am sooo pleased with it.
Its my first venture into the
Gourmand category of fragrances.

I love this smooth, sensuously
light and spicy scent.

The Saffron infusion ...added to
a rich and unique mixture of flower notes and my favorite base ... Vanilla!!!!

although it may sound like a "Plate of Paella"...
its very .... Uni-Sex in my book...

I cant stop smelling my wrist ....
and can't wait to wear this out and see what the response is from friends and strangers.

UP Date Oct7 2010:
My only compliant:
Non lasting and fleeting!
I find myself spraying it over and over....
to recapture its ethereal
magic.

19th June, 2010. (Last Edited: 15th January, 2011.)

Gourmand fragrances are a genius idea: beauty for foodies! When a perfume's brief reads like a Ruth Reichl essay, it's certain that some corporate entity has fully calculated the profit in pushing consumers' hunger buttons. Most gourmand products do so cynically, offering you a feast of edible-sounding ingredients but ultimately leaving you empty and unsated. Not so Safran Troublant. This olfactory riff on Persian choleh zard (saffron rice pudding) delivers all the delicacies -- saffron, honey, rosewater, cardamom, nutmeg, cream -- but manages to do what few others can: feed the soul. Delicious AND nutritious!

30th January, 2010.