Today I Tried

[JaimeB]

At Saks in San Francisco, I tried the Cartier series Les Heures.

There will be thirteen, but so far only five are out: One, Four, Ten, Twelve, and Thirteen.

One is basically a suede scent, reminiscent of a new pair of gloves; Four (the cocktail hour) smells like a martini made with fresh basil; Ten is supposed to be seductive, but is actually very fresh and upbeat and kind of cologne-y; Twelve is rich, smooth, and chypré, with jasmine, incense, patchouli, and labdanum; Thirteen is a heavy leather with (to my nose) too much of the birch-tar smell of the tannery. The most promising for me is Twelve; the SA kindly gave me a sample, which is wearing beautifully on the back of my right hand as I write.

Sorry, I must be getting dyslexic; I originally posted Six for Four. Easy to confuse in Roman numerals VI for IV.

[jason_newton]

Jamie, is this Cartier's answer to Chanel's Les Exclusifs?

[petruccijc]

The local Cartier rep at Saks told me 3 more are due to be released before the holidays.

[JaimeB]

Jamie, is this Cartier's answer to Chanel's Les Exclusifs?

Golly, I have no idea if Cartier thinks these are in direct competition with the Exclusifs de Chanel series, but I guess that's possible. Of course, Chanel began the Exclusifs by (re-)releasing EdT versions of some of their most famous perfumes, such as Cuir de Russie and Bois des Îles, and later, No. 22; and I think the newer ones were conceived to try to be in the classic early Chanel style, but updated a bit to meet modern tastes about half-way. The ostensible motif of the Cartier Les Heures series is to capture the spirit of various times of day, around-the-clock, as it were. I thought One and Twelve were the best, with Four a distant third. Thirteen I thought too strong on birch tar, and Ten just too bright for an evening scent. But what do I know? These are just my opinions. I am glad there will be three more to sniff before the end of the year!

Oh, and by the way, my name is Jaime (that's Spanish) and not Jamie. I hope you'll keep that in mind. Thanks!

[jason_newton]

Ah, sorry about that. I should read a little more carefully.

[hirch_duckfinder]

Jaime - oh my! I have been mispelling your name for years. Sorry.

[Diamondflame]

Thanks for the brief intros to these, Jaime! I love suede, chypre & yes, birch tar scents. So I figure I, XII & XIII would interest me. And I don't know why but I also LOVE Roman numerals! LOL.

[Siifter]

Chanel Allure Homme Edition Blanche. Loved it! Got right into my buying list.

[Riley]

Yesterday I tried TF Tobacco Vanille, Bois Morcain, Neroli Portofino. All fantastic in my books. I thought all 3 were out of this world scent wise. I was really drawn to the Neroli though, if I was able to choose I think I would go with this one. Just cant afford this line right now. All 3 are on my wishlist. When it comes down to it I think I would purchase the Neroli even though the TF TV is outstanding

[nsamadi]

Papyrus de Ciane. Old school green. I swear it's a cheaper alternative to Creed Windsor. Minus the rose, but they both come close.

Gaiac 10 smells like a mix between Kyoto & Calamus, a really stripped down combination of both. Very CdG.

Poivre 23 opens with olives and pencil shavings then dries down to something sweet. It looks like it has pretty good longevity/sillage.

Sublime Vanille smells like a vanilla & lemon pledge combination, very light and watery.

[Ken_Russell]

Classic Male Grooming Eau de Toilette by Scottish Fine Soaps

Very gentlemanly in a conservative manner, almost a "barbershop chypre", however not in a dated, stuffy or tasteless manner, I have also started a thread on this topic, should further details about this frag be of interest