serge lutens: 63 posts

When Serge Lutens presented L’Eau, I found it baffling—it smelled of laundry musks and a whisper of florals, but eventually I took it in stride. When the master has been busy weaving opulent tapestries for the past twenty years, it is only fair that he pursues some other olfactory avenues to remain inspired. When L’Eau Froide crossed my path, I no longer felt any strong emotion about Lutens’ new direction. After all, the man has given us glorious Jeux de Peau and De Profundis! As it turns out, L’Eau Froide is wonderful—a crisp, sparkling cologne of incense and citrus.

The first impression is a chill of ginger and lemon. Ginger sometimes smells like the most citrusy of all citrus fruits, and this is exactly how it features in L’Eau Froide. Its effervescence lends itself perfectly to the cool demeanor of a perfume that means Cold Water in French. After a few more minutes, the bergamot, lemon and pepper begin to sing a cappella.

Continue reading →

Star rating: 5 stars–outstanding/potential classic, 4 stars–very good, 3 stars–adequate, 2 stars–disappointing, 1 star–poor.

Serge Lutens is best known for his opulent Arabian Tale fantasies in perfume form. It is perhaps for this reason that his simpler, less exotic blends like Sa Majesté la Rose do not draw as much attention. Sa Majesté la Rose, of course, is not missing a fanciful element, because its lush, complex rose accord evokes the sensation of being showered with fragrant rose petals. This is something I have actually experienced in the unromantic setting of a Grasse rose processing plant, but I will never forget the exhilarating scent and the soft touch of petals warm from the sun. To find even a glimpse of this memory in a perfume bottle is already special. Therefore, I picked Sa Majesté la Rose to wear on January 1st to usher a year of excitement, adventure and perhaps, plenty of roses!

Continue reading →

Star rating: 5 stars–outstanding/potential classic, 4 stars–very good, 3 stars–adequate, 2 stars–disappointing, 1 star–poor.

In my 10 Perfumes I Should Love … But Do Not, Serge Lutens Rahat Loukoum occupies the top spot. It contains everything I should enjoy, but the end result smells like a cross between a cheap almond candle and a cleaning product. It is also one of the most popular Lutens fragrance. One of the reasons I finally decided to write this review is to hear the views of those who love this fragrance and gladly wear it. Since all of us perceive fragrances slightly differently, perhaps I am missing something. As things stand however, Rahat Loukoum, inspired by the Turkish confection, is not much of a delight for me.

Continue reading →

Star rating: 5 stars–outstanding/potential classic, 4 stars–very good, 3 stars–adequate, 2 stars–disappointing, 1 star–poor.

“Prosperity, pleasure and success, may be rough of grain and common in fibre, but sorrow is the most sensitive of all created things,” wrote Oscar Wilde in his moving essay “De Profundis,” which inspired Serge Lutens’s wistful and delicate creation. De Profundis, which also refers to Psalm 130, means “from the depth” in Latin, and it is from the depths of sadness and despair that Wilde wrote his epistle during his imprisonment. Knowing the background story can easily color one’s perception of a perfume, and this is especially true in the case of Lutens  who is fond of complex and eclectic imagery. So, having learned of the origins of De Profundis, one might expect a somber composition of funereal darkness. Nothing could be further from the truth—De Profundis is a soaring, ethereal vignette of green flowers, full of surprises and such magic twists that I once again have to take off my hat to Lutens and his perfumer Christopher Sheldrake.

Continue reading →

Star rating: 5 stars–outstanding/potential classic, 4 stars–very good, 3 stars–adequate, 2 stars–disappointing, 1 star–poor.

Reading reviews and impressions of Serge Lutens Muscs Koublaï Khan can be both frightening and hilarious. Just consider Tania Sanchez’s “the armpit of a camel driver who has not been near running water in a week!” Out of my respect for your sensibilities, I will spare you further colorful descriptions I have found. All I can say is that I do not get why Muscs Koublaï Khan instills the same fear as the Mongol horde once did. Either I have had enough of clean fragrances or have enjoyed too many animalic ones, but I find Muscs Koublaï Khan glamorous and sophisticated in the style of great oriental classics like Dana Tabu, Myrurgia Maja, and a more recent vintage, Calvin Klein Obsession. Unlike these “Venus in furs” fragrances, however, Muscs Koublaï Khan is drier and sharper, which makes it more modern. If your tolerance for animalic notes extends only to the soft suggestion of “freshly laundered linen,” then Muscs Koublaï Khan will be offensive. On the other hand, if you love the sensual richness of animalic notes, it is a must try perfume.

Continue reading →