L'Air Du Desert Marocain (Review) by Noirdrakkar

[MJM_77]

Great job Brother! A great fragrance as well. I sold it off once before and really missed it in my wardrobe. I re-acquired it a few months later and now I can't imagine not having this in my wardrobe.

[Francolino]

this is a first line scent in my wardrobe, absolutely love it and has an incredible feedback!

[noirdrakkar]

I'd give it a 5/5 in all categories excluding versatility... but I also think less versatility can lead to more compelling (and, thus, better) scents. In fact, I believe that's a truism beyond fragrance. The jack of all trades is often the master of none. Taking away points for a lack of versatility is like saying "Well Bob, I hired you to be a software designer, and at that job, you're the best, but I have to take away credit from your overall performance because you'd be a terrible doctor."

The overall rating was a 4, but the scent was also a 4/5. I found the amber and vetiver notes overpronounced (but some people may love that about the fragrance).

My rating system is a triangulation, because many people ARE looking for that fragrance they can wear everyday.

Ok, what's better than a not-so-versatile artistic masterpeice? An artistic masterpeice that you CAN wear anyday (aka the almighty pineapple stallion).

[Dog127]

I once owned it, but don't think I will ever rebuy it. To me, it's certainly worth a sample, but I think it has much more appeal to people on here than the public at large.

I liked your review, but I would just say that I've worn it in the hot weather and thought it worked pretty well. That said, the opening can be pretty harsh, so you have to let it settle down some imho.

[dougczar]

Another great review noirdrakkar. I purchased a bottle of this over the summer and am very happy with it. I actually find it a little more versatile than you do, but I agree - it is not an every-day fragrance (I think I would get tired of it if I wore it more than occasionally anyway).

Other than "almighty pineapple stallion" (lol), Bleecker Street, and Straight to Heaven, it is probably my most complimented fragrance.

A must-try for anyone exploring fragrances. Also, the hand-signed card inside from Andy Tauer is a nice touch.

[noirdrakkar]

i do agree dougczar. i'm RARELY into woody masculine fragrances, but LDDM makes a compelling case.

[roman_nik]

At least you got the other things. All I got was amber, and when I tried it on my skin, I got amber multiplied x1000 hide the children.

Hmmm. My gf stole my bottle. I love it on her...

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Regarding wearing LDDM during the summer. I frequently use it as an amber base for the summer months. Basically 3 sprays of a vetiver based frag (such as Sycomore or Mugler Cologne) and 1 spray of LDDM. Works beautifully.

[Dernier_Cri]

Too benzoin heavy for me. Always reminds me of lip balm.

[Incontinent]

Great review my friend! Let's see, I bought it, always found it good but never loved it, swapped it, kept a decant, realized that the vanilla is just amazing, and now I'm thinking of buying it again. Strangely, I would up it a versatility point and probably drop it half of a "smell" point.

I guess the reason I love this fragrance so much is that I really just don't come across many fragrances that have such a dynamic dry down. I don't sniff as much as other members here, but I stil sample modestly. And while almost every fragrance has layers of top, middle, and basenotes, few transition as gracefully and magically as L'air du Desert Marocain.

[thatmakesscents]

Great Review.

I guess my skin just doesn't fit this fragrance. It has serious longevity issues on me. A friend tested it and it lasted maybe 45 minutes on him. My bottle is a good one from Lucky Scent.

A few other reviews mention poor longevity as well.

I get a beautiful opening that fizzles out by the time the middle comes in. Then it just disappears completely.

My bottle is just sitting in my closet over 90% full doing nothing.

[L'Homme Blanc Individuel]

I guess my skin just doesn't fit this fragrance. It has serious longevity issues on me. A friend tested it and it lasted maybe 45 minutes on him. My bottle is a good one from Lucky Scent.

Wow. That's crazy. I get over 24 hours out of 3 sprays of LDDM, and that bottle does not have a particularly strong sprayer. I literally get 24 hours. It's there until I shower it off the next day. It doesn't have beastly projection like Interlude Man, but I fond it to have extreme longevity.

[Flora]

I agree with almost everything in your review, except I would give it more 5 ratings. I adore it! It's in my permanent pantheon of really great perfumes, and I never even thought I liked this style of scent until I tried L'Air. A true masterpiece.

[Skyline]

This is good. How much does the bottle cost?

[The Unlucky Rogue]

My favourite frag, the jewel in my collection (for now). I just wish I had a bottle bigger than 50ml.

Not only do i personally love the way it smells, but this one gets me the most compliments of anything i wear, from anyone.

You are right, it isnt very versatile. I have worn this in summer, but 2 sprays is enough. Huge projection and 10+ hrs longevity.

If i had to choose one frag to wear for the rest of my life it would be this.

[Spoombung]

I don't like it.

1. It's too powerful - it dominates a room, draws too much attention and the wearer gets stared at. Embarrassing.
2. The smell peaks into the creosote/turpentine/solvent cleaner area too much for my liking.
3. It's hugely expensive
4. The 'smells like the Moroccan desert' attributed to it is a sales pitch and without any earthly foundation.
5. It's practically unwearable for the reasons above.

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Such a shame Tauer Perfumes don't ship to the UK and as normal UK prices are atleast 30% more than prices from Tauer directly.

Happy to buy a sample of Tauer for somebody willing to forward me a bottle from France. Cheers

Don't they sell it at Les Senteurs?

[divinesoul]

After buying a decant,it was an instant love with this dry spicy nuclear bomb. On my second day of wearing, i defeated my cousin's Tom Ford TV loaded arm in projection and might. It was like a dream start, i enjoyed every drop of this juice so i ordered a decant again. Again the start was great but suddenly one fine day everything changed and this beast turned into a non pleasing chemical disaster. After each spray my optimism failed miserably and the fizz was missing. I thought about numerous reasons like humidity, temperature , surroundings around the decant etc, and then thought that the packaging was not up to the mark which resulted in moisture in the bottle.

Definitely upset it took me some days to come to terms as i saw a masterpiece in this creation. Then i encouraged and motivated myself to purchase a full bottle.

And after making the call i am still undecided about the juice as this is still not matching with the first decant. Opening of the juice is what bothers me a lot which was not a problem with my first decant , dry down is still close to perfect.

I was away from this forum for about 2 months but thought hundred times to post my sad tale and look for answers here. So today after this post i am finally sharing this. Opening is the problem. Any answers?

Anyway a very good post as always!

[Dernier_Cri]

I don't like it.

1. It's too powerful - it dominates a room, draws too much attention and the wearer gets stared at. Embarrassing.
2. The smell peaks into the creosote/turpentine/solvent cleaner area too much for my liking.
3. It's hugely expensive
4. The 'smells like the Moroccan desert' attributed to it is a sales pitch and without any earthly foundation.
5. It's practically unwearable for the reasons above.

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Yeah , I've looked more than a few times for the magic so many others find in LADDM and I've always failed to find it. The superlatives just go on and on for this fragrance, "masterpiece" over and over. A real head scratcher for me. I always find it so ordinary.

[thatmakesscents]

After buying a decant,it was an instant love with this dry spicy nuclear bomb. On my second day of wearing, i defeated my cousin's Tom Ford TV loaded arm in projection and might. It was like a dream start, i enjoyed every drop of this juice so i ordered a decant again. Again the start was great but suddenly one fine day everything changed and this beast turned into a non pleasing chemical disaster. After each spray my optimism failed miserably and the fizz was missing. I thought about numerous reasons like humidity, temperature , surroundings around the decant etc, and then thought that the packaging was not up to the mark which resulted in moisture in the bottle.

Definitely upset it took me some days to come to terms as i saw a masterpiece in this creation. Then i encouraged and motivated myself to purchase a full bottle.

And after making the call i am still undecided about the juice as this is still not matching with the first decant. Opening of the juice is what bothers me a lot which was not a problem with my first decant , dry down is still close to perfect.

I was away from this forum for about 2 months but thought hundred times to post my sad tale and look for answers here. So today after this post i am finally sharing this. Opening is the problem. Any answers?

Anyway a very good post as always!

I first purchased a decant of this almost 1 year ago. I liked it but wasn't looking for this type of scent at the time. Since then I have kept it in the back of my mind as a "must own" at some point in time. I remember being impressed with both the smell and longevity.

The bottle I currently own was purchased close to 3 weeks ago without having sampled it again since almost 1 year ago. It did very little to impress me on my skin.

Maybe the formula has been tweaked since then ?

[PalmBeach]

Maybe the formula has been tweaked since then ?

Not as far as I can tell. My bottle that is over a year old smells exactly the same as the two bottles I did splits on within the past several weeks.

[divinesoul]

I thought they are playing the dubious (batch) number game!

[noirdrakkar]

This is good. How much does the bottle cost?

$110 for 50 ml

[silentrich]

Through the years after sampling other amber heavy fragrances I lost my appreciation for LADDM. It's a good example, but there are a lot of really good amber's on the market. Still like, but I just don't love it anymore.

[senore01]

Fantastic review. Thank you.

[bigsteve]

Sounds like great stuff, and I have a sample coming (among others) from Perfumed Court.
Most speak of good longevity with LDDM, though one of my correspondents here tried it and felt it wasn't so great.

[Fragmeister]

I can't decide about this one. Sometimes I think it smells fabulous and at other times too floral.

[Tester]

I have just gone all in on this one...blind.

[Palmolive]

Hands down this has to be one of the most impressive and unique compositions ever created, a true tour de force of perfumery. Sure it isn't the most versatile scent in the wardrobe but there are certain times and situations that its just perfect for, forever more. The performance is superb, the price is great and was a scent I'd only inhaled quite recently in my journey (for shame!) due to it not appealing to me at all from the notes.

Highly recommended to everyone who enjoys this game as it really is something else.