Un Bois Vanille by Serge Lutens

Hi Perfume Posse, Un Bois Vanille is one of my favourite Serge Lutens fragrances from way back in 2003. It’s one that does get much perfumista love. Maybe because it’s too easy, comfortable, warm and wearable? A Christopher Sheldrake creation. It feels like he is the soul of the Lutens brand.
I’m thinking you all might like a post about a vanilla scent to keep you warm in the northern hemisphere winter.

Un Bois Vanille by Serge Lutens 2003

Un Bois Vanille by Serge Lutens

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Beeswax, Bitter almond, Gaiac wood, Caramelized benzoin, Coconut milk, Sandalwood, Licorice, Tonka bean, Vanilla absolute

My current bottle of Un Bois Vanille is one of the older export bottles. You can see by the Palais Rayale stamp at the bottom of the beige label on the bottle. It then changes to an SL logo (similar to the new bottles logo) and now there’s a brand new bottle and black label as pictured at the top. There is some difference in the scents but that could be due to reformulations or age and oxygenation. The difference is only noticeable if you are changing bottles or wearing them side by side. Don’t sweat it, the modern iteration is still very beautiful.

Un Bois Vanille by Serge Lutens

How does it smell? Sweet, thick and resinous vanilla straight from the bakery, lightly dusted in roasted coconut and kept from being a purely crunchy caramel by the bitter almond and woods. It sounds very heavy, and it is dense, but manages to remain floaty and aerated. A fully fragrant vanilla but not a powerhouse, especially after the first 30 minutes where the whole fragrance settles into a warm, sweet, cozy vanilla-centric beauty. Every time I wear Un Bois Vanille I also get a hit of hot milky coffee that isn’t mentioned anywhere in the  rotes, maybe it’s just me.

Perfect on both sexes, and applied sparingly I think it could even manage office appropriate. For this events that fragrant projection is important then an extra spritz or two will have you glowing for the whole event and well into the next morning. Dry down is as gorgeous as the opening, a slightly dark vanilla that has headed towards the animalic and honeyed. Freaking delicious.

Patty had this to say in her Serge Lutens Comprehensive:

  • Un Bois Vanille (2003) – My gateway vanilla. Up until this, my experience with vanilla was those really heavy ones everyone loved in the late ’90s and early 2000s.  Wretched, overpowering things. Not this, this is vanilla, but softer, it lets you relax into it instead of smothering you with a vanilla pillow.  I still love it.

Surrender To Chance has samples

Are you an Un Bois Vanille fan? Is there a vanilla, or two, that you like better?

Portia xx

 

 

 

Portia also writes for Australian Perfume Junkies

  • Eldarwen22 says:

    I have a little decant of this one and do like it. I am not the biggest fan of vanilla because so many are just too strong.

  • March says:

    I love this so much, one of my favorites….

  • Maya says:

    It’s no secret that I don’t like Serge Luten, but I only recently discovered that it’s Christopher Sheldrake that I don’t like, so I won’t sample any more of his perfumes. For vanillas, I love MEMO Lalibela and like Arquiste The Architect’s Club and Xerjoff Allende.

    • Portia says:

      That’s so interesting Maya,
      Is it the stewed fruit or something else that shits you?
      Portia xx

      • Maya says:

        I really dislike the stewed fruit but there are SLs without it that I also don’t like and I’ve sampled at least 10 and probably more. I think it might simply be a matter of smell and perception and Christopher Sheldrake’s and mine don’t mesh. 

  • Musette says:

    Y’know….. I’ve never been a vanilla perfume fan, mostly because I….dunno!  I do remember liking this one,though, probably because it’s not heavy – Ooooh!  I do have one vanilla that I love:  CB’s 7Bill!  LOVE that one – but it’s got a hint of darkness/sharpness to it, so maybe that’s it?

    xoxoxo

    • Portia says:

      Heya Musette,
      7 Billion Hearts is the vanilla haters gateway, CB is a genius.
      You might like this one then, it’s not all sunshine and lollipops too.
      Portia xx

  • Dina C. says:

    Like Patty, I was not a huge fan of vanilla because of the overly sweet cupcake thing that was so often wafting out of the bottle. However, I’ve learned to appreciate some vanilla scents a lot: Kenzo Amour, Cologne of the Missions by Le Couvent des Minimes, L’Ambre des Merveilles, and Mademoiselle Guerlain. Un Bois Vanille sounds like a great one, too, especially since it’s blended with woods.

    • Portia says:

      Hey there DinaC,
      I never really thought of L’Ambre des Merveilles as a vanilla but you’re totally right. It is one. A funky, sideways, whispering one.
      Portia xx

      • Musette says:

        Holy snakes & cabbage!  That’s one of the best descriptions I’ve ever read “A funky, sideways, whispering one’.  And spot-on!  L’AdM does have that sly vanilla vibe…

      • Dina C. says:

        Love your way with words Portia! 😀

         

  • Tara C says:

    I love Un Bois Vanille and just bought two more bottles of the current version to replenish my stocks in both Montréal and San Diego. That said, I’m a huge vanilla fan and have so many I love: Tihota, Profumum Vanitas, Arte Profumi Sucre Noire, Guérlain SDV, Ligne St. Barth, Mazzolari Vaniglia, i Profumi di Firenze, La Maison de la Vanille, etc. I think vanilla and incense are the two biggest categories in my collection.

    • Portia says:

      Hi there TaraC,
      We are scent related quite a lot of the time. I love that.
      Your line up of vanilla reads like a cool kids MO.
      Portia xx

  • MMKinPA says:

    I’m a fan.  Several years ago I drained a sample but I had quite a collection of vanilla perfumes, so I didn’t buy.  Last year I was able to swap for a partial bottle and I’m happy to have it.  I am a light sprayer so I happily wear it to work.