christopher sheldrake – This Side of Perfume

Now Sampling: Serge Lutens

October 28, 2018

I’ve been sampling a couple of recent Serge Lutens releases and I thought it would make sense to group them together for a write-up. So here we are!

Le Participe Passé

Notes: artemisia, bergamot, pepper, fruity notes, Egyptian balsam, resins, caramel, cumin, leather, and patchouli.

This one opens green and bitter from the artemisia. It almost smells like celery to my nose. It’s green and vegetal. It’s an odd opening, even by Serge Lutens standards, and yet I keep applying it just to smell that strange, bitter artemisia.

The composition quickly settles into a more typical Lutens dried fruit note and a beautiful resin note. I’ve never smelled this particular Egyptian balsam before, but it’s very smooth and a little bit aromatic. It blends with the vegetal artemisia, creating a harmonious green, balsamic scent.

This scent is named after my least favorite tense to conjugate in French and it seems that Christopher Sheldrake and Serge Lutens purposely composed this one to recall some older Lutens releases. Perfume aficionados will know that Uncle Serge has had some, shall we say, eccentric releases in recent times. (I couldn’t get on with Dent de Lait at all.) Le Participe Passé is more similar to some older Lutens orientals, like Ambre Sultan. But there is the unique artemisia opening here, making Le Participe Passé its own scent and not just a copy of previous classics.

Baptême du Feu

Notes: gingerbread, powdery notes, tangerine, castoreum, osmanthus, woody notes.

This one is right in the Serge Lutens wheelhouse of warm, wintery, festive scents that just call out to be worn around the holidays. It has some similarities to two of my Serge Lutens staples: Five O’Clock au Gingembre and Fille en Aiguilles.

Baptême du Feu opens with a zingy orange citrus note and a warm gingerbread note that draws you in. The osmanthus functions as an undercurrent holding everything up until the castoreum comes in. And we must talk about the castoreum here because it is of course, an animalic, and it’s not subtle. To me, castoreum smells like a rich, black leather with a dank and oily undercurrent, which is really where the animalic nature comes out. If you don’t like animalic notes, steer clear of Baptême du Feu. The castoreum heart lasts for a good three hours on me before fading to a more approachable woody base note.

Baptême du Feu is rich with a lot of depth. It has foody gourmand notes sprinkled throughout the composition without ever turning into a gourmand like Jeux de Peau. It’s very grown-up and contemplative, but also some sensuality. I think this is the type of scent that a lot of people are looking for from Serge Lutens.

_______________________

Both Baptême du Feu and Le Participe Passé are available from Serge Lutens. I got my samples from Luckyscent.

The info on notes is from Fragrantica.

Photo taken by me.

Rousse by Serge Lutens

February 14, 2017

Notes: amber, Mandarin orange, cloves, resin, cinnamon, and cedar.

Rousse is a special one to me. It was initially released in 2007 and it is sadly now only available as part of the exclusive Serge Lutens bell jar line. I suppose it wasn’t a terribly big seller. On the one hand, I can understand why. But, on the other, I love Rousse. It’s the perfect type of warm spice you’d want to wear in the doldrums of January/February. And it’s my go-to for Valentine’s Day.

I was lucky enough to snag my 50 ml spray bottle shortly before it was announced that Rousse was moving to the bell jar line. You can see it has the old Serge Lutens Palais Royal logo, which I love. I still have a substantial amount left. The juice has definitely changed over the years but, like a fine wine, Rousse has aged well. The fiery hot cinnamon is still very present. It always reminds me of Red Hots and various Valentine’s Day candies.

Rousse was initially famous for a waxy lipstick note paired with the cinnamon. It’s much less waxy now. I find it has developed into a warm rich musk and something like orris butter. I can’t find any specific floral notes listed for Rousse. (Least of all on the Serge Lutens website. Uncle Serge is always cryptic.) I’m guessing there’s a touch of iris and some kind of white floral. Kafkaesque guesses that it’s magnolia, which makes sense to my nose. Whatever the floral note, it’s become much more prominent and creamy over time.

Overall I think Rousse has become a little bit more smooth with time. It still has a quirky edge to it though, so it’s not completely mellow. That cinnamon still crackles right off of the skin with heat and intensity. The supporting notes seem to have become more rich and creamy, as though Rousse has now grown into itself. If you happen to track Rousse down, it’s absolutely worth it. There are so many greats from Christopher Sheldrake and Serge Lutens, but this one is a real gem.

____________________

Rousse is available directly from Serge Lutens in the 75 ml bell jar bottle.

Image taken by me. Info on notes from Fragrantica.

La Religieuse by Serge Lutens

April 30, 2015

Notes: jasmine, civet, musk, and incense.

A new Serge Lutens fragrance is always a bit of a riddle to figure out. In this case, I first noticed the purple juice in the bottle, which gives a cool vibe to the fragrance. Then there’s the name itself: La Religieuse, which means the nun (or it could refer to the pastry of the same name, as the pastry dough resembles nuns in their habits). Monsieur Lutens himself has to say: “Deliver us from Good! Jasmine petals are as white as snow. Black is my religion.” Interesting and thought-provoking from Serge Lutens. However, for me, the fragrance itself doesn’t offer quite as much to think about.

La Religieuse opens on a fruity jasmine note. The fruit is lemony and sweet, giving the impression of a lemon bar dusted with powdered sugar. The scent doesn’t go full dessert though, at least not on my skin. This is no Jeux de Peaux, and it’s certainly not meant to be a grand gourmand like some previous Serge Lutens releases. No “religieuse” pastries here.

The fruity jasmine develops into a very pared-down jasmine. This jasmine is bright white and sparklingly clean. There is no trace of the indolic, nor even a hint of sharp green to be found with this jasmine. La Religieuse becomes a cold, soapy scent, and it remains this way for a few hours on my skin. The cold effect here comes off as icy rather than the pure snow Serge Lutens references. It doesn’t really bring nuns to mind either. At this stage, the fragrance reminds me of the way some public spaces (like hotel lobbies) are perfumed: something nicely noticeable but inoffensive.

I thought the civet would bring some of that “dark side” alluded to by Serge Lutens. Unfortunately, on my skin, the civet is an almost minimalist version of itself. It brings a touch of warmth to this otherwise icy cool fragrance. And I detect a hint of sweat that goes slightly sweet, which I assume is the musk making an appearance. Other than that, the dry down here is a quiet affair, laced with subtle incense. I know that incense is very subdued on my skin, and I’m fine with that. I just wish the animalic notes stood out more to really anchor the composition. This fragrance could use the balance and the depth those notes would bring.

In the end, I’m no closer to solving the riddle that is La Religieuse. In fact, I’m frustrated because it’s actually a pleasant fragrance. It’s an eminently wearable jasmine, and will probably work well for summer. But, when it comes to Serge Lutens, “pleasant and wearable” feels like a disappointment. Quite honestly, for the price, it’s reasonable to expect more. I feel like it could have been interesting to see how this cold version of jasmine interacted with more powerful animalic notes, but this fragrance just doesn’t work that way on my skin. Still, if you’re interested in a clean-smelling jasmine, I would highly recommend La Religieuse. And, as always, I look forward to finding out what Serge Lutens has in store for us next.

____________________

In the US, Serge Lutens fragrances are available from Barneys New York or from Luckyscent. I got my sample of La Religieuse from The Perfumed Court.

Image and info on the notes are both from Fragrantica.