Reviews of Eau Parfumée au Thé Rouge (2005)
by Bulgari

Opens very differently from the other Bulgari tea scents: This one comes on strongly (for Bulgari) with a blatantly rustic black tea note – it has such a satisfyingly clean, near-visceral fermented tea character. As far as the pink pepper, Seville orange, or bergamot is concerned, they are either hidden in the black tea accord or they aren’t there… at any rate, I don’t get any citrus or pepper. The heart note tea is more settled… smoother… and I lose a little interest because it is turning out to be too much like other tea scents that I already own. Also there is a semi-fig character to the heart tea, and I don’t understand why, because I would prefer a tea note to the scent of fig. I don’t get a much of a drydown except for a nutty background note and a little musk that doesn’t seem to last very long. The drydown shows up very scant on my skin. Except for the tea note, I don't find much to love in this fragrance.

I just don't know what to make of this one.Some days I like more than others. It has a very interesting scent, Fresh, Tea and Spicy. This can be worn as an casual everyday scent.

Very obviously a tea-based scent, but is a little too sweet for my liking. I find the floral notes too dominant, over the spice. Overall a very average scent

Nobody - and I mean NOBODY - does tea notes like Bulgari!!! I'm always pleased, if not completely satisfied, with the high quality & smoothly orchestrated elixirs created by this fragrance house. Au the Rouge is satisfying and very unique as well. Tangy overtones perfectly balance the sweet fig and dry tea notes here...and yes, there is a nutty finish as well! I'd say this blend is very wearable by men or women. I'm lovin' this one!

My significant other's perfume when she and I feel erotic. The "fig" must bring out the animal in me. I consider this a remarkably inventive creation and one the three best scents for a female. Not in wide use, exclusive, and unique, with staying power. Bravo Bulgari. Clearly a scent for not everyone, but for a women who wants to project a most feminine singularity, this is it! I love this frag!!!!!!!!

Pinkmimosa hit the nail on the head with calling this 'pure tea party'. This is what I thought entering a colleague's office after he had let loose spraying Au Thé Rouge. It was as if there were a huge pot of rooibos simmering on a burner. Very homely, comforting and unique. I do get some fig and other sweet fruit wearing it, but on others that teapot smell really makes an impression. Clearly not everybody's cuppa as the plummeting price on eBay may indicate, but for me thumbs way up.

This to me is the nicest out of the Thé collection - a minority opinion to say the least. I love the Rooibos tea opening. It's vivid, realistic, fermenting, compelling, off-putting, jammy and reminiscent of rotting autumn leaves all at the same time. AND it makes me want to spritz it again and again for that weird and wonderful opening.
After that, it segues in general fruitiness and lastly a musky base, neither of which enchant me like the opening does. Quite sweet, but wearable. Perfect for autumn.

Gosh, this smells like rooibos tea, but a but more sweet, pungent and artificial. My least favourite of the tea-series.

I got this because of these reviews, and I am so glad I did. I'll never give it up. Even the bad reviews make it seems sooo interesting, don't they? Well it's true, there is some weird stuff going on in it, but to me it's a perfect work of art. It's some kind of bright spice and a little bitterness. Surprized it's meant to be unisex, seems like really exotic females only would wear this. I'd never want my guy to wear this. It's pure tea party.

Sensual and alluring. Always gets a compliment. NICE!

The top notes present a unique stink for a fragrance intended for olfactory consumption: Crossing the pleasant fig-like sweetness is a scent I associate with rotted vegetation. I guess that's just the black tea stating its presence, but I could easier believe it's wet, decaying leaves swiped from a gooey gutter. As odd as it sounds, the odor is as compelling as it is off-putting. This phase is not eternal, and the heart notes reveal a pretty, one-of-a-kind fig. I'll always want a sample around for reference and amazement, but can't imagine wearing this full-on in the company of others.

This is another one of my HG frags. I wear this on a day where I'm not feeling well and need a pick-me-up. It's light and does not offend my nose. I get the tea notes - slighly herbal in a dried grass/floral way. To me this smells like a blend of dried rose petals and darjeeling tea. Lasting power is only 4-6 hours, but I toss my bottle into my purse for refreshing later. I found this at a discount store for under $20 for a 1.7 oz bottle.

I purchased Bvlgari Rouge without trying it first, and suprisingly enough - it doesn's smell like tea, but exactly what the traditional dried plum snack smells in East Asian countries - you will know what I mean if you've tried those in China or Japan or Korea. Sour, sweet, and salty~ it's really a strong perfume. I enjoy wearing it in cooler seasons, it's rather warm and long lasting - it stays on me for over 24 hours. I will wear it in Europe but not in Asia - I don't want people there think I ate a ton of those dried plums!

Very nice! I love tea! Even though it's a unisex cologne there are times that I feel like it is a fragrance that can be better pulled off by a woman but I wouldn't mind wearing this myself ocassionally. But who am I to judge who can wear what. This is a nice fragrance that is not overpowering and you are welcome to spray away on this one. I am thinking about buying my mother this fragrance and this way I can use it myself once in a while.

Thé Rouge is a beautiful and well composed creation. I've never drunk red tea, so I have no idea how it smells, but what I get from Thé Rouge is a delicious combination of figs, coconut and almonds. It reminds me autumn... a warm and confortable bed...

It's a very unique sensual fragrance. Soft spoken but oh so warm. It opens up with the unique tea note. This stuff actually smells like black tea or atleast the topnotes do. After a few seconds, this slightly harsh tea sent transforms into a warm, sensual aroma. I get the fig note and something else mixing in with the tea. It last...pretty long for a cologne. Maybe an hour or four/five.

This is an unique evening sent to me. Suitable for summer nights (without too much humidity) or winter... it's perfect for a fall or sring evening as well!

This is my go to fragrance if I want to feel sensual. I'd use it if I was still dating.. Women be warned, men rejoice. All the women that have smelt it on me are sure that it's a men's fragrance only.. Whatever that might mean :).

This smells more like tea than the other in the series. In fact, it's almost pure tea with figs thrown in. Less in aldehydes than Blanc which was very pale. Tea reminds me of being sick since the only time I ever drink tea is when I catch a cold or am really run down. This is nice but I wouldn't want to smell like a stale tea bag.

My favorite of the Bulgari's "tea" series.

The aspect that I find so novel in this is its tannic character. I get the exact smell of the skin of a red delicious apple on September evening, as the sun sets. Not the smell of apples, but specifically the slightly bitter smell of apple skin. It's a really evocative note, and it reminds me of Autumn and hayrides. Also, the tannic character suggests red wine. Makes me think fondly of getting "wine drunk" with a girl and the lovey-dovey feelings that result. Sure I suppose most people experience this fragrance more literally for its red tea notes, but that's not what I get from it. The whole think is framed by a sunkissed note of hedione, which gives it a warm blissed out transparent feel. Completely unisex and a work of evocative, minimalist beauty.

I bought Thé Rouge while on a trip in Turkey. This smells like Pamukkale, a dry and sprawling region in the southwestern part of the country, where the air was permeated with the scent of the surrounding landscape: figs, olive and sage bushes, ancient ruins and parched ground. I love it.

I've had people stop me on the street to ask what I'm wearing. The lasting power, like with all the Bvlgari Thé frags, is only moderate, but of course it is an eau de cologne. Not overtly feminine, but perhaps covertly so.

Starts out with a perfect blast of tea leaves, startling and real. But this mellows out quickly, which is probably good because you don't want to smell exactly like tea leaves all day. The tea is there for a long time, but a kind of spicy fruitiness appears and mellows out the tea.
I think the fruit reference is supposed to be fig, but to me it is more like olives. Anyway, it is fresher and brighter than any real fruit would be, so there are other things supporting it as well. It qualifies the tea nicely and ends up being a sophisticated, pleasant, fragrance. The tea makes it stand out from the crowd of generics.

I love the aroma of dried black tea leaves. This perfume with its rooibos tea note smells more like black tea leaves to me than perfumes with green tea notes. Usually, those fragrances end up reminding me of more of jasmine (a note usually paired with green tea.) Even L'Artisan Tea for Two was more about honey and smoke than tea leaves for me. Bulgari Thé Rouge is somewhat fruity, but it captures the sweet, fermented aspect of black tea leaves pretty well. I did not try it on the skin, but on a blotter, which was to my regret. I shall have to resample, but I still will venture to give it a positive rating.

One more of my Collectors Must Haves, this fragrance is truly unique. After a few minutes, I don't simply smell red tea, I smell a creamy, powdery red tea which on a man is very intriguing. A unisex fragrance such as this one, on a man, doesn't exactly smell like he's wearing "cologne" because it's so unexpected. Rather, it wraps the wearer in a warm, rich aura. The red I see is not the clear red of the bottle, but rather, the rich maroon on the label. This fragrance, on me, is one of the few in my collection that always receives lustily inquisitive comments. Give this a few minutes to dissipate before judging it. After about a half hour, the richer, warmer notes reveal themselves and therin lies the sensuality of this incredible fragrance.

At firs it smells like Pu-Ehr tea (strong, metallic, fishy, like a baboon run), after 15min. changes, smells cheap, like oversweetened tea with raspberry syrup + hyacinth undertone. In my opinion it isn't Rooibos.

Big thumbs up from me - I enjoy this very much. It's softer, rounder, and richer than most tea fragrances. Yes, it's subtle, but that is Bvlgari's trademark and what makes their products unique. If you want a perfume that shouts its presence, this will disappoint, but I love to wear this when my nose has grown weary of heavier scents. It has a soothing, calming effect - simply delightful!

This is a weired one, for me anyway. Nothing fruity at all, just all tea with a synthetic something I can't quite put my finger on. Either way, SOIR PH by the same Bulgari is far better.

I was badly surprised by how sharp the initial notes are - acrid and one-dimensional. After those burn off, though, this settles into a beautiful mild fruity rooibos tea note, not too sweet, with a very nice light musk. When I wear it I apply it early, before I leave the house, since those first notes are so very sharp on me. The longevity isn't terrible but it stays very close to the body.

Nice,sensual and intriguing. Best for anyone during the day.

I tested today this fragrance, both on paper and on my skin. Although this is an unisex fragrance and I usually take them as feminine ones, I gave it a try.

On paper, the first notes I felt was tea... like a box filled with leaves of tea (remembered me the old tea PG I drink when I was a kid). This note lasted less than a minute, then appeared a fruity note, a bit tropical, and a fig note. This fruity note felt until the last moment (around 8 hours later) and was complemented with a musk note... didn't felt woody notes.

Lamentably on my skin can't get the tea note, just the fruity ones that felt a lot like a Hawaiian Tropic suntan oil... delicious, but not on my style.

I think it should fit better on a woman than on a man, it's a fruity cologne, aimed for warmer seasons. According with the attendant who sprayed it on me, in her case the fragrance accentuated the tea and fig notes, preferring her to use it on evening events. Anyway, it's a near US$100 Eau de Cologne, so I shouldn't recommend it just for daytime use. Didn't think a teenager should use it... as a Bvlgari product, it's aimed for a range of 30+ years old women who wants to distinguish itself.

This is very interesting - sweet and spicy and unconventional - but the terrible longevity ruins it for me. Hopefully Bulgari will see fit to make an extreme version eventually.

While I think I would enjoy it more if it were slightly less sweet on the dry-down, I really like this scent. I prefer it in colder weather, unlike a previous reviewer. There's a tang to it that makes it feel modern.

Black tea with lemon, from start to finish. I don't smell the pepper, fig, or walnut, and the musk is nicely subdued. It's both refreshing and comforting at the same time, perhaps due to how uncomplicated it smells on my skin. A good light summer scent on me.

Really, really good stuff. Scenteur7 described it as having a "nutty" finish -- very accurate, that.

Wonderul unisex scent -- esp. nice in "sweater weather" months. The tea notes are definite without being overpowering (as can, IMHO, sometimes be the case in the Thé Verte and au Thé Verte Extreme versions).

Au The Rouge – though I expected it to be irresistible – is a bit disappointing. Red tea is referring to rooibos tea – the sweet tasting South African bush, used as a (superior, in my opinion) substitute to black tea – less the theine. However, Au The Rouge starts with the acrid note of oolong black tea and a hint of spice (so it’s not quite ‘decaf’). The dry down reveals the rooibos – smooth and delicately sweet. It is very pleasant, though I did not detect the fruity and nutty fig and walnut notes that are part of the marketing scheme for this scent (another disappointments, as I love figs). Comparing to what I expected from it I can say I hoped for more and was disappointed – this scent does not particularly stand out and my favourite remains Au The Blanc. For my red tea kick I will stick to my favourite rooibos chai.

I've enjoyed all the Bulgari tea fragrances, and wish they would package them as a set, so I could give them as Christmas gifts. Bulgari managed to hit each season with this line, which means "Au The Rouge" is their winter fragrance. It fits this position well, being warm, toasty, smooth, comforting, and yes, red. The first thing I thought as the midnote developed was "Constant Comment"! Does anyone else remember this spiced tea? It was one of the few spice teas available in the '60's, and very good, but not along the same line as Chai tea, having more of a tea elixir quality, like an oolong . This fragrance has definite echoes of that fermented tea quality, which makes it a pleasant, warm tea/spice/wood combo. It seems like it would be a natural for the Christmas holidays, more so than Nuit De Noel, to my nose. This is another winner for Bulgari's tea line.

This really is an interesting scent and has unbelieveable lasting power. The only thing that bothers me is on my skin there is a very strong peppery green note that I just cannot get over. This has decent sillage, but just doesn't work for my chemistry.

Extremely refreshing summer-cologne type of launch from the jewelcrazy italians. As extreme and over the top as their watches and jewelry may be (nicknamed Vulgari by some...) as subtle and refined are most of their fragrances. And this one is no exception. Smells very much of the african red tea Rooibos, an accord hard to describe, but I`d say it's somewhat dry and with a irony touch. The same vibe can be found in some of Comme de Garcons reds, and Eau Parfumee au The Rouge could easily be a part of that series. Some vanilla in the base makes it linger longer than most offerings in this concentration. Completely agree with Marlen's whine comaprison as well. Could become a summer staple.

Smells quite similar to The Blanc but with much more interesting basenotes and drydown. This one retains the freshness of Blanc but adds an almost nutty finish. It remidned me of the finish of a fine white wine. My travel companion offered "This is the scent of being dressed in a fine Italian suit on the way to an opera." I'd be happy to wear it every day though!