Reviews by artp

Tribute Attar by Amouage

SEE BOTTOM OF REVIEW! Reformulation alert!!!

(2009 production)Quality, quality, quality!!
This is as prefume should be and reminds me of much of the old stuff in my collection, not smell wise but in roundness, warmth and rich complexity.
I was wandering round the perfume hall in Selfridges and had just left the Tom Ford counter having smelt and tried Tuscan leather again and once more walked away without it. It just kept missing something to my mind. (The leather and smoke were just too prominent which generaly means that they will not last long.) Anyway, going past the Amouage counter, for fun I thought I would smell the one that reminds me of a farm yard and try to imagine someone wanting to smell like that and picked up Tribute instead.
A thick warm smoked rose hit my nose and conjoured pictures of smart bird like women from the 1950's, all dressed in Hardy Amies and Jacques Fath suits, gloves and crocodile bags who smelt of Dumaurier cigarettes and rose perfume! Wonderfull!
I put a bit on and went home. I was expecting it to fade and lose the smoke ending up as the tom Ford one does, a sweet rasberry fruit bit of bordom, BUT NO!!!
I kept on getting whiffs of it from my wrist through out the evening as it grew and developed into a warm soft strong rose and francincence wonder! This is as good as it gets I thought!
The next day it was still there even after a bath so I thought "blow the cost" and got some.
Any regrets? None. Each time I wear it people ask what I am wearing. I have even had a barman remark on it!! Whoever composed this is a genius of the old school form of perfumery.

(2012 production)
OH GOD!!!
They have screwed it up!!! I have just got a new (my 4th!!) bottle and discovered it is NOT the same, it has been reformulated....!
I adored this fragrance. It was everything I love. Rose, tobacco, incense, smoke, the lot!
It is still strong and rosey but now hollow and thinner. The colour is darker and not as viscous as before.
WHY???? It was luxurious, brilliant and divine. It is now cheaper, thinner with a rasping quality.
REALLY, REALLY, PISSED OFF AND UPSET!!!

Le Vetyver by Lubin

I have on one hand Guerlain 'Vetyver' and Lubin 'Le Vetyver' on the other, so here goes..!
For purity and long lasting "vetyverishness" the Guerlain is the better. Soft, clean, citrus fresh and considered rightly the best available.
The Lubin is much darker though and very, very interesting.
It has an almost lapsangsouchong tea note to the oakmoss underneath and a nose tingleing peppery spicyness through out.
The oakmoss is very strong and almost obscures the vetyver note but it reappears and catches you making you go back for an extra sniff.
When I first had it on I was rather taken aback as it is so unusual and not the usual "vetyver" and I wondered if it was going to singe my nose with hatefull synthetic woods after a few minutes making me get out the scrubbing brush but no, it developed and has kept me hooked ever since.
Now, I have to say that I am biased here as I have already have gone through two 125ml bottles of the Lubin and only 3/4 of a 75ml bottle of the Guerlain...!
The reason? It is just more interesting. The quality of materials used is high, it is very well balanced, stuffed full of oakmoss and ever so slightly wierd!
In short, I love it and long may it last!

Nuit De Longchamp by Lubin

I have a bottle of the original (some what evaporated and dark) so I thought I would compare it to the new one.
Lovely!! Smooth, elegant and refined and a great reformulation.
It is not as full bodied as the original, lacking the natural civet and oakmoss base that suports so much but beautiful, feminine and utterly romantic though not in the modern trite, sweet, cloying, white flower way.
It opens with a burst of ylang ylang and jasmine flowers with rose at the forefront, then a warm floral chypre and dries down to a soft orris powder. Beautiful.
I know that people always say this this type of fragrance is 'old ladyish' but they forget that these were perfumes were once as young and modern as the old ladies who wear them! This is a symphony in smell where as so many modern ones are merely ring tones by comparison. 10 out of 10!

Lacoste Challenge by Lacoste

I was killing time in duty free and came across this hiddious screaming thing......
Terrible...
Awfull...
Toxic...
Vile...
All these words and many more came to mind as I jerked away from the nozzle!
I was expecting it to be the usual thin, sharp, metalic, dreary clone as the bottle suggests, but no, it went beyond all description as it stripped my nose of living cells!
It did remind me of something and it took a friend to tell me what....
Anti-freeze!! Blue canned de-icer.... and I mean that seriously...!!
Have a sniff, it is well worth it just for the experience! (much like touching a 9 volt battery to your tongue only far, far worse and not as fun..!)
Horrible, horrible, horrible.....

Eau de Lubin by Lubin

This is a very odd perfume... After a cold blast of ginger and other spices you get a tingly dose of lemons. this goes on for an unusual length which sadly becomes more and more sour as it develops. I kept wanting to find a little bit of vanilla or something in it to give some body to it but no, empty, empty.. This could be interesting but the whole thing seems so cold and hollow it just became unpleasant.
Finally the dry down... I could not work out what it reminded of and it kept snagging at my mind, then it hit me... Tesco own brand "cola"!!!
This horrible drink was a childhood party stand by when parents were too cheap and thought the children would not notice!!!
I really want to like this one, it is interesting and quirky but it is so cold, lacking in base support and bitter that I can't (not to mention the childhood torture) so, no, it is not a favorite...

Tailspin / Passionnement by Lucien Lelong

I have just dabbed a bit of vintage "Tailspin" on and what a shock!
The name says it all! After a short blast of unrecognisable flowers (very short)
it plumets to tars, musks and an almost medicinal coaltar soap then a soft clean reassuring dry down.
Fascinating!! I am wondering who would have worn it as it is far from friendly and 'come hither-ish'.
In short, not one I can fall in love with, confusing and dark but amazing and well worth an extra sniff. Love it!

Calèche by Hermès

I have not smelled Caleche for many years and got a bit of a depressing shock. Can Hermes please stop fiddleing with them, they do not seem get better!!!!
Once more they have taken the guts out of beautiful scents leaving them thin, limp and with a weak base.
Belami has lost its peppery fullness and big warm soft after glow, Eqiupage is synthetic and lifeless compared with the original and Caleche is watery and transparent in the middle. Have the accountants taken over once more or in a rush to be "modern" turned to CK BE for new formulas and style??
Pissed off and disapointed!