Noir (2007)
by Christian Lacroix

I am not certain if I initially had a bad bottle of this but the first bottle I purchased I disliked very much. Way too spicey and peppery. Ugh.
Gave the bottle away.
Now, I received another bottle as a gift.
This time around it appears richer and less intense.
There's a nice deep root beer like quality so I'll reserve this for Autmn and Winter but it has definite character and quality.
It appears both Masculine and formal.
Thumbs up.

29th September, 2011.

Simple, straightforward, and masculine. Lacroix understood his employer (Avon) and their clientele. Mass market, mass appeal, no discord or discomfort. Too plain for my tastes but beautifully balanced and very easy to wear. I applaud Avon and CL for taking the chance to work together. Perhaps more interesting projects are in the future.

3rd May, 2009.

I'm sure people may beat me this post. But, this a great alternative to versace black jeans. You've got a great clean scent, certainly manly, nice soft wood undertones, and there's something something in this that has that same leather like qualities. It must be the ginger and iris/orris playing tricks again. I prefer this this one to black jeans as it is somewhat pointed and hollow. Noir is more rounded, playful, and refined. Great scent but it's lacking on sillage and longenvity.

-MAX

2nd December, 2008.

Big let down or are people expectations too high for a $28 fragrance? Geez. Nice woodiness with light spices and musks. It's very light on the skin. In fact, I can barely smell it on myself after application. however, everyone else around me can and that's important as much as anything. If I didn't have so many bottles I'd get this. Speaking of bottles, this one looks neat.

What I find amazing about this scent is that amongst all those $100-$200 bottles of "niche" fragrances, this and Burberry London are the two top compliment-getters I've tried so far.

17th November, 2008.

I like this fragrance, but don't LOVE it...
I have to say that I too was disappointed because I do LOVE Tumulte Homme soooo much; I guess I was expecting Noir to be similar. Noir wears very close to the skin. It is a light scent with some spice, a little smokiness and some greenness to it along with a touch of fruitiness as well. I would like the sillage to be stronger and the longevity could be a little more lasting as well.

This is a good daytime scent able to be worn to work without being offensive. It is also a casual wear scent to be worn with an open collar polo shirt or on the weekends. I suppose one could wear this into the evening but would have to reapply before going out.

Avon produces for mass market, so I don't expect much from them. Their other scents are so-so as well. Noir is not an offensive fragrance but it is no winner either.

26th October, 2008.

I can understand why people would see this as a 'let down.' But it must be appreciated for what it is.

It is a pleasant, spicy, honest scent that is elegant in its simplicity. I am very surprised to see that pepper is not listed as one of its notes, because I kind of get that particular note from this combination, but it's probably just my imagination. Yes, it is not 'noir' at all, I do agree. But there is a likability in this - a sense of freedom almost.

It is light, but not citrus-y. Spicy instead with a light-hand. The cedar, musk and vetiver base is not at all original, I agree, but if you are going to have one or two light mainstream fragrances with respectable longevity that are not edgy rather conventional, Noir can be an excellent choice. The opening is saffron flower, ginger and grapefruit leaves. It is an interesting opening, though familiar. The linear movement of the fragrance is smooth, and not surprising. It is not too bold, but spicy enough to make sense. The heart notes are grassy and dry, but it is not particularly green. There is orris root, cardamom, and they claim there is something else in there called 'cactus pear' note. I do not know what that is, so I cannot really detect it.

It is not uncommon for mainstream fragrance companies to list exotic imaginary notes in fragrances that are not actually in the composition just to seem more exclusive, and even though I don't blame Avon for doing this, this fragrance does not include anything too exotic or unattainable. That is that.

I like this scent, and prefer to wear it in between days when I grow tired of wearing the usual heavy and bold choices, which tend to be more my flare. It creates a nice balance. Plus, it is nice to find a cheaper mainstream light frag that does not heavily rely on citruses, and still smell elegant and expensive. The bottle, though gorgeous in concept, does not look as chic and precious in real life. Still nice; it has that 'Lacroix aesthetic'.

This is a Avon scent though: it is not daring and envelope-pushing as Lacroix fashions. I feel like this is almost like a celeb scent, in which they only used the designer's name, and not particularly his innate personality.

10th September, 2008. (Last Edited: 20th June, 2009.)