Hey friends – this is March, we moved things around this week. Quick write-up today. I got my decant of Serge Lutens El Attarine and I … am still deciding how I feel about it, but I can’t say I’m pining for a bottle. That’s likely all the write-up you’re going to get, which is probably for the best since it’s unobtanium at this point.
However. I also bought a small decant of Lutens’ L’Innommable* in their skyscraper bottle. Here’s some AI slop scraped from various sites (you’re welcome!)
“Launched in 2018 and created by perfumer Christopher Sheldrake, it is a bold, complex niche scent described by the brand as a combination of every Serge Lutens paradox. Accords: Amber, balsamic, fresh spicy. Notes: Siamese benzoin, cumin (caraway seed), frankincense, and dried stone fruits with nuances of vanilla and sandalwood … it opens with a spicy, slightly fruity warmth featuring dried stone fruits and cumin, then transitions into a deep, smoky, and balsamic amber drydown anchored by benzoin and frankincense.”
Sounds worth a sniff, right? Well, surprise, it is fabulous. I get dates, coffee, cumin, leather… it reminds me a bit of the old school classic, L’Artisan Navigateur, with the rum and coffee and spices, and lasts a good 24 hours on my skin. So, I should also note that it’s got pretty meh online reviews and Fragrantica stars, so clearly I’m an outlier and YMMV. I’m now contemplating a bottle, they aren’t cheap but they aren’t hard to find either (sidenote—you know how the original tall bottles fall over? These look even more precarious).
Have you tried this? Any of the other gratte-ciel scents? (“sky-scraper,” and apparently inspired by Fritz Lang’s Metropolis.) I think some were existing scents, a couple new ones, and the line’s already been discontinued, if I’m understanding correctly.
*I’Innommable translates variously to unnameable, indescribable, or possibly unspeakable in the “too ghastly to mention” way – choose your own adventure, I guess.
cover image via Pexels, I tried to find one that felt a little like Lang’s Metropolis
I have and enjoy this one as well. Bought it a few years ago when it was dirt cheap because apparently it wasn’t popular. Not a fan of the skyscraper bottles because they are tall and tippy and the tiny black on black print is unreadable, but this one was only ever available in those bottles. I like El Attarine too but in small doses and only occasionally. Arabie is easier for me to wear, as well as PdE Aziyadé, when I want a cumin fix.