Fragrance Reviews by flouris

chromatone wrote in an earlier review of Chêne: "sun-baked car seat cushion and dry-rotted dashboard vinyl, with a healthy side serving of faded "pine tree" car freshener, rust, and antifreeze. Essentially it shared many tonal qualities with the interior of an older, unclean automobile left in the sun."

Upon reading this, I let out an "ohhhhhhhh yeah!"

Despite me being a shameless Lutens fanatic, I could never get into Chêne. It reminded me of -something- but I couldn't pinpoint what it was until I read the above excerpt because that is absolutely and precisely what Chêne smells like: a disgusting car that has been parked in the sunlight all day with the windows up. It is a nauseating smell. Sunbaked car seat cushion, that's all Chêne manages to evoke for me.

This is one of the finest tobacco notes I've ever come across - powder-ish sweet/dry smoke.. almost the feel of being surrounded by a circle of smoke machines all going full blast. Very mysterious and nocturnal feeling without coming off as alarming. Unisex with ever so slightly below average sillage/duration compared to other Lutens fragrances. I find it incredibly impressive.

This is horrible, the first scent I've had to scrub off in a very long time. All I get is one big sweet chemical that is overwhelmingly nauseating. It is slightly cucumberish/licorice as others have mentioned, but it has this sickening synthetic sweetness that almost feels like it stains my throat with its smell. As with most truly bad fragrances, the sillage and longevity is extreme.

The oud and castoreum blend to create something very unique and, in my opinion, drop dead sexy. Not cute/lovingly sexy, but aggressive and borderline cruel sexy, yet there is a sense of refined sophistication bordering the entire fragrance. It is fantastic for the first few minutes, but then it does a virtual disappearing act. Sillage and longevity are freakishly minimal, but if you're looking for a very sexy (dominatrix style?) skin scent, something only to be smelled up-close and intimately, this could be almost narcotic in that aspect. Thumbs up, despite the virtual absence of any sillage.

The Serge Lutens website sums Rousse up with one word: Racy. I think that's about as fitting as it gets. It's so unique, especially for a Lutens. Rousse starts with a candied cinnamon spice (think Red Hot candies) and pretty much stays that way for quite sometime before fading to a soft, amber/floral base that is linear/minimalist. It's simply a good smelling, well rounded, unobtrusive yet nowhere near boring, predictable or average smelling perfume. Racy and red.

Gourmand for a tea scent. Smoky sweet Lapsang Souchong tea with a dense slab of moist gingerbread leaning against the cup, inhaling the vapors of it all. It smells entirely pleasant but it's not something I'd really want to wear. It is a bit straightforward and lacking the complexity that turns good fragrances into wardrobe staples, yet the simplicity is what makes this a cozy and comfortable scent. It requires no dissection or analysis, it simply cradles your sense of smell. Ideal for cooler weather.

Neutral but leaning toward a thumbs up.