I feel sick....

LOL!

I just mentioned to moreda that I wanted to cry after I tried Reverie du Jardin. But then I remembered there's something worse: Il Giardino by Michael Storer, so I just laughed it off.

I do like Lonestar. It's like Patchouli 24 by Le Labo.

L'Air is a whole different category, that one is really good.

basteri,

i have shipped ur package!

and i really love lonestar memories...... so please get rid of ur bottle and give it to Mo.

I love it!!!!!!!!!

I had a similar reaction to his Vetiver Dance.

Basteri: No, Marocain is really good. In my opinion, it is a masterpiece, and none of Tauer's other frags are anywhere near as good, though some of them are interesting to smell, if not to actually wear.

I found L'Air to be underwhelming and swapped it. The rest of his range is borderline atrocious. Lonestar Memories is the bottom of the barrel; just nasty stuff.

Well, there ya go! Unanimous Consensus!

I don't feel like I'm the lone one here (har har), but I really do enjoy Lonestar Memories. I only have a sample and doubt I'll buy a bottle because I think I wouldn't wear it much, but I really enjoy it for myself. I also think the rest of the line is really superb - I have and love L'Air and I bought my girlfriend Incense Rosé which she smells magnifiscent in.

Also, not an Andy Tauer fan. I'm planning to try Incense Rose, but that's his last shot.

I'm a Tauer fan. The only one I own is LADDM, which I agree is easily his best fragrance. However, I really like Lonestar, too. Reverie is OK. The drydown of Vetiver Dance is very nice, but I just don't like the top notes at all (grapefruit + black pepper + clary sage). Incense Rosé is terrific, but not me. Haven't tried the other couple frags in his line.

Also a fan of Lonestar Memories, though it's a rather odd fragrance and I can certainly see how some may dislike it. It's like nothing else out there.

L'Air du Desert Marocain is a masterpiece. It will always have a place in my wardrobe.

I really like Lonestar Memories (barbecue over a campfire). It has been on my to-buy list for quite some time but other fragrances keep jumping ahead of it in line. Perhaps it is just that I haven't found the right deal for Lonestar Memories yet.

Both L'Air and LM didn't appeal me at first try. Now L'Air is my top five, though hate for LM still remains.

As for other Tauer's creations, I like Incense Rose and Incense Extreme, but wouldn't buy it. They are nice to experiment, but not very wearable.

Davidoff Aventure actually made me wash my throat.. that was such a bad one. I restored the bad start with Antidote (soo good)

I just checked in on this board to see what's up with a current flap of some kind brought to my attention about a "nude woman" on my website. In doing so, I hit upon your comment, Stereotomy, about Il Giardino being so much misery. If it does your heart any good to know, I pulled that fragrance at least three years ago.

If it's still floating around in the ethos, it's outta my hands.

I stand by it, however, as a viable fragrance, though admittedly never my personal favorite. I actually discontinued it because it was such a bastard to concoct having some 80-odd ingredients.

I know you men and women all need to speak freely here about fragrances, but I wonder if any of you can imagine what it's like to read some of the blood-curdling remarks that gush out about creator's babies here.

It slices reeeaaal deep.

Naturally, I read the exact same remarks about every perfumer and know that they also keep their distance from this place for my same reason.

It's exacly like overhearing that your child has a face uglier than a pan of worms.

Carry on, of course. Nothing will change. I'm so very grateful for the countless morsels of praise I receive from so many of you daily.

I guess it's just no matter how thick human skin is, sometimes disparaging comments knife deeper than adoring ones soothe.

One more thing while I have your eye:

Lest any of you think that a single independent perfumer is ripping you off, you should know that nearly every one of them I've been able to talk to has hocked it all to do what they love to do. It's not like Procter & Gamble which buys each raw ingredient by the ton. We buy by the kilo and ounce. I keep hundreds of kilos of ingredients. Some of these containers are worth a couple thousand dollars or more each.

Keeping your interest is like herding ants. Sample mania, postage, returns, the list goes on and on. Perfumistas / perfumistos are undoubtedly the ficklest of buyers around. Well, I guess that's what one must expect in the fashion world.

But believe me, almost without exception we're behind financially compared to the day we started out. So just know that you're getting a hot deal with artisan fragrances. How many hand-made and fussed-over luxury items can you afford nowadays at all? What do you pay for them unless they're produced in some labor camp in Bangladesh? You have access to goods that normally only the richest on earth can afford.

Thank you all for reading my discourse,

Michael Storer

Nope, didn't like Lonestar at all. I would rather wear Dzing! That is an odd leather scent, but I can appreciate it. Whereas Lonestar, not at all. A scrubber.

I absolutely love Lonestar Memories. It's a brash and daring, though wearable, fragrance that evokes many memories of places and events from my childhood.

Lonestar Memories is a weird one. It's certainly evocative, but meat, mint and baked beans aren't a terribly wearable accord for me.


A fragrance isn't like a new tire. Though there are some reasonably objective qualities, like sillage and longevity, its purpose is all in the mind of the buyer. Whether fragrance is art or not, it's judged by similarly subjective qualities, so all praise and disdain has as about as much meaning as you choose to give it. The only way to avoid criticism is by not releasing it at all.

I'm not a perfumer, but I'm involved in a similar creative profession and have worked on things for months and months only to have them trashed. It hurts for a moment, but if you take it at all personally and let it fester you're doomed to unhappiness. No matter what you make, I can guarantee you not everyone is going to like it.

nail together the cross and find me a cliff, but I love RauJ... It is a very special time and place wherein the wearing actually works, but I find it to be a guilty pleasure when I'm relaxing at home after a long day

I thought Michael Storers comments were insightful and thought-provoking. Nobody wants to hear that their creative offspring is being destroyed.

However, as someone who has had work in the public eye (I was a journalist for many years, and am currently a photographer published worldwide), I do know that sometimes when you stick your head above the parapet you get shot at. It's part of the risk of putting something out there to the slings and arrows of outrageous criticism.

We all have pet hates. I hate A*Men by Thierry Mugler with a passion and there are many sacred cows in this forum that I cannot abide (Bois de Portugal being one, which I think is vastly over-rated). But that's just life.

I'm not familiar with Michael Storers work, but the anti-ness of a previous poster has prompted me to want to experience his work myself.

So, Michael, even though that may have been really tough to read, some good may come out of it, as you may well end up with a new customer.

To each his own as the saying is.

Thank-you for your contribution and the humility you demonstrated in writing that! I'd love to get some samples of your work, if you can let me know where I can, that would be great.

Hi Basteri

I felt sick when applying these two, which I also tried together. I get this acrid, asphyxiating rush of medicinal incense with a number of the Tauers - Incense Rose is bad for this too.

Le Maroc pour Elle is ghastly on me because it adds spicy fruit to the above, and I think Reverie du Jardin was weird on many levels, but I do like L'Air du Desert Marocain (after two hours or so to allow the intense dustiness to subside) and Incense Extreme is surprisingly approachable.

Love L'Air--great drydown, and has that quality of being fairly quiet at close range but having surprising projection. L'Air also presents in such different ways over the course of the day. It's one that will interrupt you in the middle of something you're doing to find the source of that beautiful angular scent, and then you realize it's you, and that some stray idea has come loose from the L'Air novella, drifted a few feet away and drifted back, strikingly odd and beautiful out of context.
Lonestar Memories is in the category of lovely curiosities for me. I take it out to sniff and think much more often than I wear it. But it's also like certain music that sounds irritating in the abstract--too busy, too abrasive--but is actually totally fun and interesting when I actually listen to it. Just not a background scent, this stuff--it requires thoughtful attention to enjoy. A wonderful perfume for sitting and reading with.

Agree with L'Air's capacity to interrupt and surprise - once it quietens down after the hot, dusty opening blast, it is mysterious and beguiling. I last wore it in an (equally) smoky Berlin club, and it felt very fitting. You can take the scent out of the desert....

I feel you, Lonestar Memories is just too much fire - burning tires, rubber, wood, coals, oil, tar, leather; it smells like barbequed tar to me. I felt sick, too. The only difference was when I wore LM, i was wearing it with New Harlem and Route du Vetiver; it was terrible on so many levels. It was all of the above, plus gourmand sweetness of coffee and vanilla, and grassy-earthy-greeness. It was so bad...

And thank you for replying to it, Michael.

I'm a freelance journalist myself, and I'm in a theatre group. Believe you me, I know how harsh criticism feels like, after you have written/played your ass off and think you have done a reasonable performance.

I have utmost respect for independent perfumers like you or Andy Tauer. I think many of us here at Basenotes could only dream of becoming one, but lacking the skill, talent or courage to actually become one. And for sure, we don't lack the courage to criticise scents on this online board (although the skill is debatable ).

Il Giardino is one of my least favourite niche fragrances I have ever smelled. But please don't get offended or discouraged: I am sure that for me, there is someone else in this world who regards Il Giardino as his/her Holy Grail!

And for what it is worth: I did not toss away the sample of Il Giardino, like many would do, but I saved it, and at a certain time I sent it off to a fellow Basenoter. I have to admit he didn't like it as well , but there was enough left of the sample for him to send it away to someone else, who.... well, you get my drift. That's the joy of Basenotes, it's the joy of sharing.

If that sample reaches someone who absolutely loves your creation, wouldn't it have been all worth it? There may be more negative remarks about Il Giardino than positive ones, but wat counts is that there are people out there who enjoy it.

Thank you again for replying on my comment. I understand it was an emotional reaction, but as you can read, it has sparked off a discussion, and I hope it will trigger people to visit your site and order some (samples) of your other creations.

Were you applying from samples, or full sprays from bottles? How did you manage that feat, I'm curious?

I wore Lonestar Memories as my SotD today again, and I don't really get the meat/bacon accord you guys're talking about. Tar, yes... Smoke, yes... Meat, no?

I think I understand the "meat" connection, because barbecue (BBQ) is rather standard in the US. Meats are cooked over an open flame which chars them, and the sauces are often smoky and tangy, too. Barbecue cooking of meats simulates curing by wood smoke (which is one way to cure bacon).

Even though I am well experienced with barbecued meats, I mostly got a burning tire scent in Lonestar Memories. Having said that, it seems it can smell quite different depending on skin chemistry. On mine it was horrible.

I described the smokiness of some Tauers in my post above as "acrid" and "medicinal", ie a tingling, stinging, "smoke gets in your eyes and makes them water" sensation, which sounds as though it ties in nicely with the barbecue process evoked so vividly by Asha. I think Strollyourlobster also hit it on the head when he used the word "abrasive". That is an excellent catch all word to explain why I cannot get on with most of the line, though L'Air is great, and Incense Extreme a strangely mild mannered anomaly.

Mastorer,
Perhaps it might do you some good to take some genuine (or even not so genuine) criticism for what it is? If perfumistas and perfumistos or what not are the ficklest of buyers, then why do you engage with them or care about them? Perhaps because those are the only people who would even pay any attention to you. Kind of ironic how bad mouthing (or atleast frustrated) towards your clientele you are.

Ouch, dude...

I don't know you from anyone and I don't want to be mean, but I think Mastorer was just trying to make the point that he hopes we don't forget that small niche companies are run by people with feelings and both monetary and emotional investment in their work.

And no one's forcing anyone to like it. But if someone hates something, there's no reason to be flippant and cruel just because the internet makes it so easy to be that way.

At some point, early in the development of the internet, the nerds starting it decided that, on the internet, it was ok to harshly criticize for the sake of bitchiness and shock value instead of for the sake of true constructive criticism. Sadly, that lives on today, Basenotes occasionally included.

Michael, please keep doing what you're doing.

Mudassir, I've enjoyed many of the things you've posted - I hope I'm just taking this the wrong way.

Thank you so much for speaking out on my behalf, Rogalal, and encouraging me to continue with what I love to do.
Your words were well chosen and much better than I apparently expressed the concept.
It certainly is not that I don't like perfumistas(os).
Everyone knows that people who are interested in fashion, follow fashion where it goes next and what was hot yesterday is not what's hot today, etc. etc. I guess it was unfortunate that I chose the word "fickle" to describe this phenomenon. I certainly did NOT mean to offend anybody by that word.

Michael

Rosalal,
What does it have to do with feelings? Luca Turin or Chandler Blurr rip some scents apart. They probably shouldn't be as harsh as they somethimes are. But, at the end of the day, its a piece of art. Just because I might or might not have put my heart and soul into creating something, doesn't mean I should feel offended and start being a cry baby if some people bash it. Storer would himself kiss the floor Turin or Burr wals on in order to get them to review it, despite of them seemingly hurting the feelings of his fellow artisans.

I do understand niche companies have monetary needs or what not. The proof, my friend, lies in the pudding. There are quite a few small time niche artists whom the same fickle permistos or perfumistas spend more than twice of what Mr. Storer sells his scents for. Until 4-5 years ago, he would have been doing whatever his other part-time gig was instead of being a "perfumer" had it not been for sites like this. But instead of coming on a board that is his bread and butter and engaging in constructive criticism himself, while fully expecting some very minority to bash the hell out of something for shock value, he starts being a cry baby.

And this certainly wasn't an isolated incident. Perhaps you haven't followed the intellectual constructive "way ahead of anybody else" criticism from him on this thread:

http://community.basenotes.net/showthread.php?t=227909

Sorry.

I'm just trying to be nice to everyone.

Maybe Mr. Storer would be better off using BN to promote his frags and ignore the stew of occasionally-negative community comments, for his own sanity. I write music and make it a point to not read sites where I know some people don't like the stuff I put out.

And, thanks to great moderators here and a lot of amazing members, Basenotes is usually an oasis of calm in an internet full of mean-spirited rudeness. I just like it that way - it's absolutely nothing personal against Mudassir at all (his link proves that Storer can give it as good as take it...).

Anyway, I'm sorry I got involved and here's hoping a moderator kills this thread and we can get on to the important business of asking each other if we think things are masterpieces or not and trying to convince noobs to try Creed

i agree with Mudassir 100%.

and Mr. Rogalal, this site was built upon the strength of peoples view and not the industries. and if there are perfumers visiting this site, it's purely based on the fact that they would get honest opinins on their products. if a scent SUCKS, we are free to say so!

Yes it is! Actually, the ingredients are about as dense as in Lonestar, but due to their different nature the whole impact of L'Air is 'mind blowing'. It depends on the wearer if he finds those blows heavenly or hellish! I couldn't decide on that for a while but as the negative impressions grew, I traded my 3.4 bottle away (it was still almost full after two years).

Falling ill from simply sampling a scent can happen. Reporting that shouldn't necessarily degrade it. I see it as a warning from my body's alarm system, and best perfumes have caused that to me, like when sampling Lutens' perfumes I strongly reacted to Un Lys and Fleur d'Oranger.The same happened once trying two sprays only of Musc Ravageur (which I love).

Now to Lonestar: it is one of the very few that seem to really have birch tar included . People often talk about birch tar in context with leathers. I doubt that many leather accords really contain the tar. The vast majority seems to have birch oil instead (think of birch oil as diluted tar). When I wanted to experiment with BT they hesitated to really fill off like 15 ml at the apothecary. It would be way too strong to any nose, they said. And they were almost correct. As a layman I found no way to dilute that enough by hand to turn it into something pleasant on human skin, and my experiments led me to feel terribly sick twice. I had to pause for days not to induce the feeling again. And now I even don't touch the diluted stuff. To me it's clear what made you fell so ill, Basteri, and I symphathize! .

I am relatively late posting this - for one reason mainly: I live near Zurich, Tauer lives in Zurich, and I have met him more than once at his vernissages (usually around X-mas). We could have become friends, but I knew this would perhaps not happen if I wanted to be open about his perfumes and marketing. But I can filter what I must say in public, and we can stay on friendly terms. There is nothing else that Le Maroc and L'Air could really be compared to, I agree. Both contain quality ingredients, that is obvious. I like those ingredients very much, why else would I love Ambre Sultan ? And should a man or woman walk by my desk in a street café wearing one or the other I would also enjoy the trail, but close up for more than seconds I find both über-ambitious and louder than necessary.

@ Michael Storer re: " It's exacly like overhearing that your child has a face uglier than a pan of worms..., etc. "

I hear you. And I really appreciate your being here and also talking openly. The same holds true for Abdessalam (Profumo.it) and the presence of René (Les Nez). But I have a good answer to you only in cases where your babies are being received well by us perfume fans. Maybe it would be worthwhile to discuss optimal forms of criticism in a future thread.

For now, let me say this: I wanted to not eat my fish as a child, and as an older person I also want to be free to criticize perfumes (and perfume critics) as much as is politely possible in clear language. It's never nice to rain on anybodies parade, so I hold back a lot of times. I think everybody should always monitor himself a little. But occasionally it's necessary to lean against the storm ! As a whole, I think, it helps next to any business to be discussed rather than remaining unknown. One bad bashing often provokes quite a number of contrary reactions. In the end it all balances out to something close to the 'truth' which is often seen as positive. Just think of the BN review section, or most of the Creed and Kouros threads.