Encre Noir (2006)
by Lalique

I recently fell in "like" with Costes (a fragrance of mostly topnotes)-- I liked the fresh, clean lavender and rose over a slightly musky/woody base. But it has very little persistence on me, and my skin ends up accentuating the rose, making it too feminine for my taste. Coincidentally I also recently tried Encre Noire (mostly basenotes), and liked it very much, but the lack of top notes and the steady inky dirty woodiness was relentlessly masculine. So I did the unthinkable and layered the two, and had a very pleasant couple hours experiencing a more masculine Costes. The old-lady rose association was gone, there was improved persistence, and the two complimented each other nicely.

I know, I know: heresy. I should leave the perfumery to the experts, but it was a fun experiment....and I might do it again.

Very similar to Comme Des Garcons Man2 IMO, seems to be very linear I can smell only strong vetiver and wood. Very strong longitivity and sillage but gave me a headache

Encre Noir was love at first whiff. Encre Noir opens up with that bit of "green" from the Hatian Vetiver but you soon notice the licorice yielding a dark, inky, metallic texture that adds depth and mystery to the composition. There is a slight suggestion of spice, but rather it is the earthiness of the Vetiver Bourbon that quickly fades and supports Encre Noir's complexity. The Musk and Cashmere Wood adds sophistication and "Manly" overtones. As a whole, this is indeed a dark, brooding, inky fragrance that has instantly won me over. It is complex, yet smooth. Dark while mysterious. It conjures up several scenarios to mind. A must in any serious wardrobe and a fragrance that can be worn for any occasion and season. Finally, a Lalique that I don't want to be without!

for me the most interesting fragrance for men at the moment!
beautiful composition - ink, powder, woods! a dream!
try it...
if you like writing with your 'mont blanc'-pen, you're going to love this one!

Unique and fantastic! And for me it is mastic! The saleslady in the shop requested me to try Encre Noire (by the way it is "Encre Niore" not "Encre Noir"). At first, I smelled the bottle. And I loved it; It was just like mastic. Then I tried it on my skin. It smelled like mastic with cypress, benzoin and bergamot. For me, ink smells like mostly mastic, cedar or cypress and a synthetic substance which I can't designate. So, I decided to buy my "Black Ink". And the saleslady asked: "What did you smell?" I say: "Mastic!" She said that everybody had smelled different scents. Now, I still smell mastic like scent and it doesn't have barely top, middle or base notes for me. And it has long lasting on my skin, e.g. lasts much longer than my favourite; Body Kouros. My nose says "Encre Noire" is "Mastic D'Encre".

Not an easy scent –complex, spicy and woody, without the balance or sweetness that would make it all friendly.

It is fairly intense and strong, which is brilliantly mirrored in the name and bottle. Notice how most of the reviews here unconsciously reference the bottle: “dark” “inky” and “black” come up again and again. I would say this deserves a gold medal for the matching of name, scent, and bottle, as they all seem to reference each other and together the whole is more than the sum of the parts.


You have to be careful where you wear this one because it is bold and strong. It won’t be liked by everyone, but everyone will notice it. It lasts well, although the spiciness fades and it becomes pleasantly woody in the end. The drydown is pleasant, but the early notes of boldness and spicy complexity are what you will remember.

As another compliment to the bottle, I should add the spray on this one is remarkably good. It is easily controllable, so you can squirt just a little or a lot, important in a scent as bold as this one. It also sprays a very fine mist, which is great for even application. I wonder why other manufacturers spend so much on the bottle but then attach an unwieldy spray nozzle.