Serge Lutens: Sa Majesté la Rose

Sa Majesté la Rose smells of decadent naturals from bright galbanum and Turkish rose start to  warm spiced end. She’s not a single rose, but the journey from the verdant rose garden, to the vase in the honeyed kitchen, and finally the deep dried rose in a faint spicy attar. Exquisite, interesting, and alive.

Gender: Perfectly fitted skinny jeans and a scarlet silk blouse
Listed Notes: rose, gaiac wood, clove, honey, musk
Sillage and Longevity: moderately big and very very long lasting.
Rose Reference: Valentines day at the florist (I was once a florist’s assistant. I de-thorned 1000 roses one V-day! Don’t dethorn your roses. )
Verisimilitude: 9/10

50 Word Review: Serge Lutens Gris Clair

Gris Clair starts with the grey of the sky before a cool spring sunrise, bright with pure herbal lavender and sharp green galbanum. The powerful realist lavender slowly softens and warms into a lightly hay-sweetened spicy incense. The dry down is sex in the daytime: clean, warm, and inviting with hints of tonka sweetness.

Gender: A white crew neck t-shirt, worn once under a chambray button-down and hung neatly over an oak chair
Listed Notes: Lavender, incense, freedom
Sillage and longevity: personal but present; 8-12 hours, the lavender ends long before the spice and tonka
Worth it: yes.

50 Word Review: Atelier Cologne’s Santal Carmin

This is an ode to distinctive maple-cream New Caladonian sandalwood sharpened up with, to my nose, Haitian vetiver and cedarwood. The opening limette-tinged sugar rush fades to a luxurious maple warmth sparkling with woody notes. Dry-down is rich sandalwood heaven , sweet and close to the skin.

Gender:  A hand-tailored cashmere suit jacket in the library, red silk handkerchief
Listed Notes: bergamot, limette, saffron, sandalwood (New Caledonia), gaiac, white musc, papyrus, cedarwood (Texas), vanilla
Sillage and longevity: Moderate fading to professional; eternal (at least 24 hours on my skin, weeks on clothing)
Packaging and design: The gold bottle is gorgeous and decadent, if a bit ridiculous. While I find Atelier’s label design a bit meh, the leather sleeve and engraving font are modern and elegant. The travel bottle has a nice geometry.

50 Word Review: Guerlain Aqua Allegoria Herba Fresca

Herba Fresca promises all of my most precious summer memories with a kiss of lemon, and delivers them in a dewy bundle. A  faint but clear detergent note disrupts the reverie. Mint, familiar cut greens (chicory? alfalfa?), and newly blossomed lily of the valley turn from a crisp dream into a spring day’s drying rack full of clean white dishes. At the sixth hour, I need to rinse them.

Gender: Rolled up shirtsleeves
Listed Notes: Clover, lemon, mint, green tea, lily of the valley, cyclamen, pear flower
Sillage and longevity: Quiet, 15 minutes of green and hours of soap
Deadringers: A bag of groceries from the farmers’ market, natural dish soaps