L’Artisan Nuit de Tubereuse, Revisited

I had a different post contemplated for today, but since Patty announced a drawing yesterday for samples of the new, hotly-anticipated L’Artisan Nuit de Tubereuse, I thought I’d revisit it.  As you may remember, I got to try a dab from a private pre-release sample – a couple of drops on the skin – in Paris in April.  We all liked it, and (paraphrasing here) Louise said and I agreed that it smelled like something that would be commercially successful.

On Sunday, I got to try two (okay, three) generous squirts on the skin from an actual NdT bottle from an Unnamed Source.  I was so excited about the juice that I didn’t look carefully, but I think the bottle was etched.  Duh.  LMGTFY.  Here’s an image.  The bottle’s etched, it’s pretty in person (although I still like the old-style caps better, grrrr).  There wasn’t a ton of juice left but I think it’s a pale, clear pink — it looked pinker to me in person than what I’m seeing on my screen.

Based on the comments for the drawing yesterday, and since most people haven’t tried it yet – let me do a little refinement/management of expectations regarding this scent.  First off, for all the people wondering if it will equal their first love, Carnal Flower, or (INSERT FRACAS, BEYOND LOVE, OR ANY OTHER GIANT, PAINT-PEELING, NOSE-SEARING, SKIN-BLISTERING GODZILLA TUBEROSE HERE) – uh, no.  Nuit de Tubereuse is a completely different animal.  So if you’re going to love it, in my opinion, you’re going to need to be looking for something different.

It’s not a giant tuberose.  It doesn’t smell essentially/obviously tuberose – or even tuberdenia, since the two, tuberose and gardenia, are often faked up together in a fragrance, whatever they’re calling it.   It’s … well, it’s quirky.  To my nose, it bears not much relation to L’Artisan’s earlier/original tuberose fragrance, and much more of a resemblance to another recent Duchaufour creation, Penhaligon’s Amaranthine, which I think (if you’ve tried that) might give you some idea how you’re going to feel about the L’Artisan.

Notes for AMARANTHINE: green tea, freesia, banana leaf, coriander, cardamom, rose, carnation, clove, orange blossom, ylang ylang, Egyptian jasmine, musk, vanilla, sandalwood, condensed milk, tonka bean.

Notes for NUIT de TUBEREUSE: tuberose, cardamom, pepper, clove, citrus, tuberose, orange blossom, ylang-ylang, rose, mango, angelica, gorse, sandalwood, palisander, musks, benzoin and styrax.

Thus far I haven’t managed to get Amaranthine and NdT on my skin simultaneously, but you can see they share some notes and, while they both have floral aspects, I wouldn’t characterize either as being particularly “about” a flower.  They’re florientals.  Nuit de Tubereuse is less weird than Amaranthigh, but it’s got a top note I didn’t catch the first time around and that a couple folks have already complained they find terribly bitter, while others have found it very sweet.   I didn’t get the sweetness of Juicy Fruit gum at the opening that Robin did – to me it is green and hazy, the rooty, slightly pissy/sulfurous smell of unripe mango, and while it’s not as aggressively peculiar as the green/metallic front end of Amaranthine, it’s still odd, somewhat like picking up a mango and sniffing it for the first time ever.  The mind grasps at the smell, trying to categorize it as pleasant or unpleasant – and it’s both.  If you acquire a taste for mango, and ripe mango contains an additional, slightly garbage-y overripe smell, the whole thing becomes delicious in the mind.  (Is there anything on the planet better than the perfect plate of mango and sticky rice?  No.)  But it’s not necessarily love at first sniff.

The two scents diverge further in style as they go along.  Amaranthine is the sweaty, dirty one – the cumin-y one, which I love, and many of you hate, and there’s none of that sweatiness (at least on me) in NdT.   Amaranthine becomes decidedly cuddly later on in the relationship – it’s milky and soft spices, without ever becoming edible in construct.   In contrast, Nuit de Tubereuse is one-half tuberose, one-half all that stuff in the base – woody and green and resiny.  Again, the amplitude you often expect from Giant Tuberose (hellooooo, Kilian Beyond Love!) just isn’t there – half the scent is base.

I’m now going to bloglift directly from Robin’s Now Smell This review: “The base is that particular blend of earthy and resinous notes that any fan of Bertrand Duchaufour will recognize as his signature, and that really ought to have a name by now. Duchaufourade, I suppose, is a little unwieldy? At any rate, it smells like dirt and soft wood and incense and hot skin, and I find it very sexy.”  I stole that because I wanted to comment on it.  While I totally get where Robin is going with this, and her description of the base is spot on, I have to disagree with the Duchaufourade part only because I dislike most of his famous, signature scents, including those for L’Artisan.  That earthy Duchaufour base he’s known for smells horrible to/on me, like musty old vase water.  I’m no aromachemist.  Whatever he’s doing now, and both Amaranthine and Nuit de Tubereuse are definitely earthy, smells fabulous on my skin, if I do say so myself.   Point being: if you’ve avoided his scents like the plague because of that Duchaufourade, you might like these.  But if you love Duchaufour for his signature base, I wonder, are these are going to seem different to you?

Nuit de Tubereuse has decent lasting power, not extraordinary – remember, I’m the scent-clinger.  The sillage is lovely, to use a word I overuse regularly – but dammit, it is.  NdT is a wafter.  It wafted up beautifully from my arm all afternoon and evening, quietly slipping away before I awoke the next morning.

I have been enjoying reading the early reviews and comments, because folks are all over the place on Nuit de Tubereuse.  Here’s a sample from commenter ScentRed on the Posse a couple days ago:  It was not at all what I expected. I was thinking big honking tuberose layered with tuberose and a bit more tuberose. It was much more complex than that, with many players doing their part to create an intriguing overall effect. It´s unusual, but not crazy weird. And yet it is somehow simple and subtle at the same time. I do remember someone describing it as “approachable” or “amiable”, and I think that´s true – but not in a boring way.  I also was surprised at how green it was on me, despite the presence of the florals…

Robin called it “stunning” yet admitted she’d put off her review because she still hadn’t decided whether she liked it.  It’s a funny place to be in as a reviewer, to be confronted with something that seems to have all the right moving parts – that appears to be everything it could or should be, in a genre you typically like – and yet it leaves you kind of cold.   I’ll be interested if her feelings change.

This thing, though?  It does something for me.  It’s a tuberose that even folks who don’t especially care for tuberose might love, because it’s more muted.  So I’ll finish playing my game, just because.  If I were backed into a corner and forced, on pain of … something or other, to choose between Amaranthine or Nuit de Tubereuse (let’s make this easier and say they’re offering me a free bottle, which BTW they AREN’T), I’d take Amaranthine.  I’m fascinated by its journey of weird skankiness to post-coital spooning and then a browse of the Sunday Times.  But I don’t have anything like NdT either (for the record, my personal Holy Grail tuberose is Carnal Flower), and so, of course, I want both.

PS For anyone who missed my link last time, Grain de Musc has reviews of Amaranthine, NdT, and interviews with Duchaufour himself.

  • minette says:

    so, i finally have both of these on. thanks to lucky scent.

    first impression of nuit de tubereuse – reminds me of something bathroom-related. not body smells. cleaner smells. i reapplied it after rereading your comments, and i totally got the mango thing (love mango & sticky rice). but it also smells sharp and somehow thin to me. i don’t want to say cheap. but i do want to say cheap. it’s only been on a few minutes, so maybe my impression will change.

    my unedited reaction to amaranthine was: whoa! and a big smile.

    it smells like an old-fashioned boudoir (i know, like i’d know). smells like thick, velvety flowers. smells like sex. smells like hot spices. all four at the same time. it’s like some monster hothouse flower that i wish really existed. and at least on me, it smells much more expensive than nuit de tubereuse. unless it takes a bad turn, i must have this. it’s the sexiest thing i have smelled in a long time. finally, a va-va-voom perfume!

    meanwhile, nuit just keeps getting more sharp and thin and monotonous with a scratchy something underneath it all.

    • minette says:

      alas, as the evening progressed, nuit de tubereuse morphed into amarige (which i wore loud and proud in the early 90s). by morning, both scents had faded into nice musk-skin scents. at least on my skin, the winner is amaranthine.

  • Haunani says:

    I really enjoyed this review. I don’t think I’ve ever been more sure that I will love a fragrance – can’t wait to try it from the bottle that I already ordered (!). And Amaranthine – can’t get that out of my mind. I shared too much of my little decant, and now that it’s gone, I daydream about it. My mouth actually waters (insert slightly embarrassed emoticon).

    • March says:

      This is several days later, I wonder if you got your bottle? And whether you like it? Yes, where’s the drooling emoticon! 🙂 Isn’t it funny when your mouth waters over a fragrance?

  • March says:

    Creamy and cuddly yet interesting is, I think, an excellent summation. I’d love to hear further thoughts. Maybe it’s the spicy part that ultimately wins us over…

  • nozknoz says:

    My sample arrived today. Right now I’m smelling soft tuberose and very well-balanced spice – the combination is creamy and cuddly yet also interesting. Will wear it tomorrow and see how I like it throughout the day. I think I will at least need a decant. Thanks for reviewing this, March. I’m enjoying the different points of view, too!

  • Kate says:

    I quite like the NdT but think its maybe one of those fragrances that I think smells fantastic on me and others might not quite agree. I’m glad its not Big Tuberose as we have plenty of those, right? Not sure I’ll go for it after my decant is finished.

    • March says:

      I think I wear all sorts of things that other people might not vote as their favorite, so I don’t worry about it too much unless it’s a scent that the Big Cheese asks me not to wear (and there are a few of those). I wonder if you’ll miss NdT when it’s gone? 😕

  • Tara C says:

    I didn’t care so much for Amaranthigh, for some reason it didn’t resonate with me. Love Timbuktu and Dzongkha, even Sienne l’Hiver. Hated Havana Vanille and Al Oudh. But NdT was LOVELOVELOVE at first sniff! It is so lush and sensual. I’m not a big tuberose fan, but this really did it for me. Can’t wait for my bottle to arrive!

    • March says:

      This is interesting feedback, you’re another one who didn’t care that much for Amaranthine but loved this one. And I won’t be surprised if NdT is a hit with the “not a big fan of tuberose” crowd.

  • sweetlife says:

    Late to the party, March, to say that I went through a long ambivalent phase with NdT during which I, um, wore it nearly every other day and used up my entire sample. Because, you know, I wasn’t sure I liked it. 8-| And I miss it very much. So now I’m at the stage of dithering over trying to find a split, trying to host one, or just damning the torpedoes and ordering a big bottle just for me, me, me! =p~ Ahem.

    Amaranthigh I do not get at all. Not yet, anyway. When I put it on I’m overwhelmed by a big raspy something and I haven’t managed to get past that yet. We’ll see.

    • March says:

      HAH HAH HAH. Soooooo familiar with the “not sure I like this, somehow worked through 5ml” phase. How funny is that? And then, yes, you MISS it and need more for study. Those turn out to be the big loves, more often than not. x(

  • Robin R. says:

    I received my lovely split of Nuit de Tubereuse in the mail this morning. Wow! I am totally loving it. I can see how it might not hit everyone’s Love button, because it’s certainly not your average tuberose. I’m rather happy it isn’t.

    Funny the way these things work, because just a few days ago I was wearing Dune, which is a very odd duck, and when I sniffed NdT today there was something there I thought the two shared. I’m not positive, but they both have palisander and gorse/broom, and that might be it. It’s something dry, woody, coco-nutty, sharp, almost powdery/pollen-like and rather outdoorsy. Just in case there are any Dune fans out there who are waiting to try NdT, that’s maybe a bit of a clue as to the direction Bertrand’s tuberose has been taken.

    I think it’s brilliant. It’s as though M. Duchaufour has managed to choose all the things that both echo and contradict the most beautiful and strange elements of tuberose.

    But I can really see either being on the fence about it or downright NOT liking it. I think you really have to love tuberose and be willing to explore its less strictly “pretty” facets. But now I want a bottle and that makes me very unhappy. I thought this might be a costly little lemming I could drown, but nosirree. 8-|

    • March says:

      Dune dune dune. I am not supposed to mention Dune, because I finally won my parfum but a few other folks are still after it… Dune, what a love. I’m not sure I prefer the parfum, but it’s much, much smoother. I like my prickly EdP animals… I will have to put it on with NdT and look for your comparisons!

      And now I’m curious, since you loved this and you’re not so wild about Amaranthine — do they seem completely different to you?

      • Robin R. says:

        Prickly EdP animals. Ruff!!

        I’m thinking I’m going to have to get back to Amaranthine. My shnoz might have grown into it by now, maybe. I’m a little more fickle than I’d prefer (or my nose is, anyway). I want to be the kind of gal who is, like, DECISIVE. I don’t think it’s going to happen, though.

        I wouldn’t be surprised if I actually prefer Amaranthine, March, now I’ve been broken-in by NdT. I definitely need to do a side-by-side. Yep. 😕

        • March says:

          Nothing at all wrong with fickle. This blog is peppered (although not pink peppered) with my reversals on scents. I think some things grow on us over time. For sure (and I am hardly alone in this) some of the fragrances I detested most have been ones I’ve ended up loving. Let me know if you do a side by side!

  • minette says:

    thank you for saying what you said about the duchafourade – it often smells like that on my skin, too. so there’s a chance i will really like this one. yey! and i can’t wait to try amaranthine – sounds right up my alley.

    • March says:

      Definitely if you’ve been avoiding Duchaufour, it would be worth trying this and Amaranthine. I think they break new ground, and that’s saying something these days.

  • Sharon VA says:

    I’m loving my Tubey Nights! On me it’s pretty and fun and summery. I get little hints of coolness but none of the weirdness others have experienced. That’s typical for me though as my skin seems to cute-cify everything.

    • March says:

      It is summery, isn’t it? But not oppressive. And bummer with the cute-ifying. Although it could be worse.

  • kjanicki says:

    Oh I MUSt try this. I love Amaranthine. I wonder if Noor in Toronto has any Nuit de Tuberose yet.

  • sherobin says:

    I’ve been wearing this straight since receiving a decant last Saturday, and can safely say that I’m addicted. It reminds me very much of Amaranthine, and of Jo Malone Vintage Gardenia, both of which I love (common denominator being the huge, delicious cardamom note, I guess), but is more wearable than either to me. The Juicy Fruit gum comparison is very accurate, I think, but with lots of little sparkly points of light embedded in it. The green mango feels very much like papaya to me, loaded up with white and green spices. Yummy.

    Unfortunately, I don’t much that’s woody, resinous, or even vegetal, and I wish I was getting some of that Duchafourade, but no such luck. Might try layering it with a bit of Timbuktu or Dzongkha – does that sound horrible? I would like this to be a little more green, woody, and incensy, but like it enough on its own terms to maybe go for a full bottle if I just can’t stop wearing it! Thanks for the review!

    • March says:

      Hey, JM Vintage Gardenia! Good call! I KNEW it reminded me vaguely of something else, and I think that’s it, although the NdT is leagues more complex (but I like the VG.)

      I like your layering idea.

  • Lee says:

    Now, I love me some Dzongkha. I love me some Timbuktu. I’m a fan of musty dusty pickle stew apparently.:-w :)>- 😡

    But Amaranthigh, like its close relative Manaboobia, left me cold and scratching my poorly performing puzzler. Compounded by Al Oudh which left me colder. Heck, I wish it were cumin stanky.

    I’m yet to try NdT. I must. Perhaps me ‘n’ Bertie will be back to sweet sweet lurve.

    • March says:

      … the manboobia, you no like? So sad. And you giggle me with “call me Al Oudh” but I will now confess that I like it a lot, probably because I don’t actually care for oudh that much. 🙂

      Yeah, you and Bertie will be smooching. Or perhaps not, since Amaranthigh didn’t do it for you.

  • Robin R. says:

    I am in Blog Heaven. This is where it’s all come together. First I drooled over NdT because of Denyse’s brilliant and typically convincing positive review; then I got in on a split thanks to the great generosity of a member of this loosely-knit little fragrance-lovin’ community of ours; then I read Robin’s review and got all happily ambivalent and itching to try it for myself; somewhere in all of that I read that you thought it was pretty much the bee’s knees, March, on cursory inspection; then I read a ton of other comments from everybody’s readerships; and now I’m reading your update and all the colourful posts (Tom’s wet sock description going down in history) and I can’t smell this stuff soon enough.

    I love the references to a bunch of other scents I’m familiar with, too. I just throw my own impressions into the pot, stir well, and suddenly I’m enlightened on a whole new level. Cool.

    I like how we can admire stuff and still not have to love it. I like how we can love stuff and not have to admire it. I love that it’s always a great discussion about the art of scent and it only gets personal in the best possible way.

    Amaranthingy is a helpful touchstone. Great stuff, but for some reason it doesn’t do much for me: there’s no emotional response. It doesn’t add up to Drop Dead Gorgeous and Must Have, even though the notes are just the kind I like. It’s like a really, really interesting and creative beef dish that doesn’t taste as good to me as a simple grilled filet mignon. But that could always change.

    By the time Nuit de Tuberose actually hits my nose hairs I will have a ton of preconceptions to bring to it, which is always a good thing.

    Thanks for the smart, good-natured controversy, you guys. 😡

    • March says:

      REALLY?!?! No emotional response to Amaranthine? To me it feel so love it/hate it. It’s hard to imagine indifference. And I enjoy all the back and forth so much. What fun is it if everyone agrees it’s luuurrrve?!? 😉 And also that we can all talk, and agree/disagree, and yet the conversation still stays warm and friendly. Perfume folks are the greatest.

      PS You’re Scotch gal, right? Brother in law is FORCING me to drink endless quality American bourbons to demonstrate that we can do it right. The pain, I tell you. It’s such a chore. /:)

      • Robin R. says:

        I feel your pain. Honestly.

        P.S. Sorry for the really, really late reply. Laptop crashed and burned last week. NOT happy. >:p

  • dleep says:

    I can’t wait to sniff this. The reviews are all over the place. I love Amaranthine! I don’t know what to expect from this.

    • March says:

      If you love Amaranthine, my personal opinion is that your chance of success with this is better than average. I just wanted to make sure everyone didn’t think it was going to be some giant soliflore.

  • Robin says:

    Checking in to say I did wear it a few more times, then put it away. Never say never, but I don’t think it’s going to be love, at least not any time soon.

  • Rappleyea says:

    Very interesting review, March, and I enjoyed reading. Not being a Mr. D. fangirl (or fan woman-of-a-certain-age), I haven’t tried either one of his new scents, but you’ve convinced me that I should – even if just to find out what all of the commotion is about.

    • March says:

      I’m … not sure what the commotion is about either, except that they seem like a new genre to me? I really don’t have anything like either of those two, if you make them a “type.” They’re earthy but also floriental and sexy.

  • maidenbliss says:

    Great review, March. It’s impossible not to want it after reading this post and it sure is garnering some interesting reviews. The comments by ScentRed, Robin, along with Carter’s husband’s reaction got my attention.
    Mango and sticky rice mmmmmm
    😡

  • mals86 says:

    Have been in an aldehyde mindset recently and totally neglecting my little split of NdT (and Amaranthigh, which is just delightful on me with no Weird at all). But fine. Finefinefine… I’ll see if I can get some skin time for NdT soon – sniffed from the bottle it’s all WET DIRT, so that oughtta be really interesting.

    • March says:

      Well, wet dirt is pretty much Duchaufour 😉 😕 wonder if I just can’t smell it? It’s not as earthy/musty to me as his earlier ones.

  • Angela says:

    I still haven’t tried Nuit de Tubereuse on skin, but your review has me hankering for a bottle of Amaranthine! I have a feel it’s going to happen very soon….

    • March says:

      Heh. Are you buying one? I don’t know why I do this. I’ll be buying it sooner rather than later is my guess.

  • ScentRed says:

    Me? Quoted in a Posse post? :”> I’m tickled.

  • DinaC says:

    I clicked on over to Grain de musc to read the interviews with Duchaufour — very interesting — and also clicked on over to Basenotes to look up what he’s made. I’ve got samples of his Eau d’Italie scents, and they are a bunch of weird, difficult to wear, oddball ones. I wore Magnolia Romana one day this spring, and the drydown was horrid on me. Really harsh, like paint stripper mixed with barber shop after shave.

    I sniffed the NdT on March’s arm at Art with Flowers on Sunday, and it was lovely and intriguing. I’ll be interested in sampling it myself when it’s available.

    • March says:

      Those Eau d’Italies do not work on me *at all*. Timbuktu and Dzongkha, ditto. But I’m glad you liked the NdT and it’s not all in my head…

  • Melissa says:

    Great review March. And you already know my feelings about both NdT and Amaranthine. 😡 I’m not sure why I haven’t worn them, one on each arm, just to experience the development of both at the same time. In fact I think that their development is a good part of my love and fascination with both of these scents.

    I also agree with your characterization of the earlier Duchafour scents as mustier than the current ones. I don’t have the same negative reaction to them as you do, and I do like a few of them. But his more recent creations have turned me into a fan-girl. I can’t wait to try Penhaligon’s Orange Blossom.

    • March says:

      I am kicking myself for not paying more attention to the OB, which we smelled for two second in Bon Marche, but I was so distracted by a million other things, like the Dior extrait shelf etc. 🙂 And it sounds like you feel sort of the same about the mustiness level; these are different. And you’re the one who turned me on to Amaranthine in the first place. :)>-

    • carter says:

      Hear, hear! My split is due to arrive any day and children can you say “bated breath?” What an insatiable bunch we are:@):@):@):@);))

  • Olfacta says:

    I don’t believe I’ve seen such a buzz on a fragrance since I’ve been around this lovely little corner of the world. Kudos to L’Artisan: they’re doing this right. My own samples should get here tomorrow. I really can’t wait to try this.

    • March says:

      I’m a fangirl of L’Artisan in that they are more accessible and less niche-y than some, and that’s a compliment. The fact that people are getting all kinds of different reads on it only makes it more fun.

    • carter says:

      Givenchy Paris certainly kicked up a ruckus, but for me there’s no comparison. That one is extremely pretty, but, well, meh. This one takes me on a journey PLUS I think it’s stunning, which is what a fragrance really must do in order to get and hold my attention. It’s like jazz or opera or something, either you crave a challenge along with your pretty or you don’t. I completely understand why lots of people need a break from that kind of scent — it’s exhausting — but for me exhaustion is better than boredom.

      • March says:

        … but I think Amaranthigh and to a greater extent this one hits that excellent sweet spot of “challenge” but still accessible. Assuming it’s not a horrible train wreck on the skin, it’s possible to wear it a time or two and fall in love. And they smell so … like their own new category for me. Sorry if I’m rambling, nephew back from USMC in Afghanistan is here tonight with us, I’ve had a couple of crocktails. :”>

        • carter says:

          No you’re not rambling. That was my point, exactly…you just expressed it better, which makes me feel terrific since you’re three sheets to the wind and can still write rings around me.

          Wonderful about your nephew…what a perfect Memorial Day gift. Please tell him thank you from me and mine:x

  • donanicola says:

    Such an interesting review, thanks March. I had a similar “tried it in Paris in April” experience and have been looking forward to owning a bottle since then. I too felt a kinship between Amarathine and NdT and not just because it’s BD. Both are skin scents for sure but with some off beat stuff going on before they settle down. Both are strangely beautiful. I can’t really say anymore because I don’t get my hands on my bottle until the weekend but when I do I will try one on one arm and the other on the other. That’ll be a ride.

  • Fiordiligi says:

    I love your review – it is obviously a scent that has given you real pause for thought – but not being a Duchaufour fan (Amaranthine = ugh)or indeed an Artisan fan in general I don’t expect to like it, I’m afraid. Vegetal smells are not pour moi.

    Now I do indeed love “proper” tuberose; both Fracas and Carnal Flower are gorgeous, amongst others. I will be careful that my ample poitrine is not too liberally scented though! Mustn’t get the socks wet….

    • March says:

      Yes, it does sound like this won’t be your thing at all! And it has given me pause for thought. I like it that it’s weirder than I remembered, but not so weird as to be offputting. I own plenty of those already.

  • Joe says:

    Hullo. I’m looking forward to receiving an unloved decant that someone palmed off on me (and you know I was all unwilling to buy it and everything, right?) so I can see what this thing is about. I really enjoy Amaranthine and am pretty much a Duchaufour groupie, so this should be interesting. And as a matter of fact earlier today I ate slightly overripe mango with not-exactly-sticky sticky coconut rice (I didn’t have the ingredients even to make your quick version), and I really love that mango aroma, which makes me all the more curious about NdT.

    March, I’m thinking of Angela’s review of HdP L’Animale, where she talks about it being a tuberose without being a tuberose. Not that NdT will be similar in any way, but I wonder if you’ve tried that one. I actually was loving it during the winter (it’s a cozy thing), and I actually like that it’s not a PAINT-PEELING GODZILLAESQUE thing and that tuberose is one leitmotif that weaves in and out.

    You may have unwittingly prompted me to wear Amaranthigh tomorrow… that is if I remember when I’m running around trying to get out the door. b-(

    • March says:

      Hey, I bet you’ll love it! Sigh, have not gotten my mitts on any really ripe mango yet. My intro to the genre, btw, was at a high-end tearoom in Bangkok, and I’m afraid that spoiled me. (I think I made embarrassing moaning sounds as well.) But I’ve made it at home and it’s still delish.

      Heh. Animale is sitting down on my desk, with all the OTHER stuff I haven’t opened and sniffed yet. But I will and let you know how it compares in my opinion. It’s the immortelle one, I think?

      I really want that bottle of Amaranthigh now. :-w

      • Ruanne says:

        On the mango tangent… Do you ever shop at the Asian grocery stores? That is where I usually find wicked good mango. You can tell it’s the right time to buy when you see people purchasing entire flats of them.

        • Winifreida says:

          One thing we do have here is mangos, all sorts of hybrids..I remember reading once that the main aim of the plant breeders was to get rid of the turpentine-kerosene thing that the wild ones tend to have! No wonder we fumeheads go crazy over them!

          • March says:

            I have friends from Australia who’ve told me that a) mangos are like trash in the street and b) that they’re 1000 times better than anything here. 🙁

    • carter says:

      How the >:) do you do that italics thing? It’s driving me insaner8-}

      • Joe says:

        Basic HTML tags. I can’t really type them here because then they’ll turn into italics and such…:o

  • morpyk says:

    I really want to try it now-not 100% sure that London L’Artisan has it already-cant see it on the UK site:-?
    I got Amaranthine as my birthday present a few weeks ago and while I love it the lasing power is somewhat disappointing on me,I have to keep reapplying every 2 hours it seems,maybe I am anosmic to the drydown:-?,good to heat that NdT has a decent lasting power and good sillage -can’t wait to try it!!!

    • donanicola says:

      Heh there – L’AP in London (Cale St) received their shipment at the weekend – also have you seen there is a new L’AP store opening next week in Covent Garden:)

      • March says:

        And thanks for the update. They closed our L’A boutiques, which makes me sad.

      • Fiordiligi says:

        That’s interesting. They closed the Marylebone High Street shop and are reopening in…Covent Garden? Hmmmm. Very strange.

      • Katya says:

        Thanks so much for letting me know-must get there this weekend!!

    • March says:

      Wow, the vagaries of skin! Amaranthine is one of those “forever” scents on me — there until I wash it off. Good thing I like it — often scrubbers are that way… and it sounds like NdT is there for you!

      • Katya morpyk says:

        I am so puzzled to why that is-not lasting at all on me,will try and spray it on the clothes tomorrow, I spray about 4 spritzes , maybe it’s not enough:((:-?
        And what a shame Marelybone store has closed, Marelybone High Street is one of my favorite shopping places:)

  • In a way, the “tuberose” in the name does the scent a disservice, because it raises expectations of a tuberose treated in the classic way, creamy with some green aspects. In fact, its working title was “Belle de Nuit” (beauty of the night, but also a poetic way of naming a prostitute) but since that wasn’t available, they went for Nuit de Tubéreuse.
    Of coure, you know that I’ve been smitten by this one from the outset. And the rest is in my blog post!

    • Masha says:

      That’s too funny! But couldn’t they have gone with another double entendre when the first didn’t work out? “Farfalla” comes to mind….

    • March says:

      As always, thanks for the insight. I’d wondered (read?) if NdT was going to be a precursor to L’Artisan discontinuing their regular Tubereuse, but I don’t think that’s the case (although I heard that was true of Havana Vanille replacing Vanilia, any thoughts?)

      Belle de Nuit is a gorgeous name, too.

      • I’m not quite sure where that’s at. Bertrand said first they were discontinuing the original Tubéreuse, then that they weren’t, but he doesn’t follow that closely.
        Masha, “Farfalla” is butterfly of course, but it’s also a type of pasta so I guess that wouldn’t work. I know they had a lot of trouble finding a name that wasn’t already owned. All the perfumers I know complain bitterly about that.

        • March says:

          I think it’s like web addresses, they ran out and bought all the obvious names? And farfalla does make me think of the pasta, which we serve a lot. 🙂

        • Masha says:

          In the Sudtirol, “Farfalla” means prostitute….

      • Louise says:

        Nina Ricci had a delicious floral gourmand about 10 years ago called “Belle de Minuit”-I wonder if the name is still patented?

    • carter says:

      Nuit de Poitrine:d

  • Lavanya says:

    Oh my God- you make this sound so good! I must must try this. Even though tuberose is my favorite flower – I don’t end up loving tuberose soliflores (EXCEPT tubereuse criminelle)- so I am extreemely curious to try this one. Unripe mangoes you say??..It has been so long since I’ve spent a summer in India noshing on sliced green mangoes dipped in chilli powder and salt (ok..ok.I will stop getting carried away). definitely need to sniff this one though.

    Oh and by the way- wanted to tell you (since you love this one too and not many of the perfume bloggers I read seem to) that I finally bought a bottle of SL Fleurs d’ Oranger and am loving it!!

    Also recently tried Amouage Jubiliation 25 for men- smells sooo good- is it just me or does it not smell like Bond no.9 Silver factory met and married Bois Blond (and threw some roses around themselves)..the top notes remind me of the saltiness in Silver factory while the dry down is almost exactly like Bois Blond..anybody else get that??

    (Phew- that was a long comments but couldn’t stop going on random tangents..:))

    • Lavanya says:

      oops- typos!!

    • March says:

      Yay on the Oranger!!!! It’s good when you finally commit, isn’t it?! I’m laughing, I met someone last weekend who also bought a bottle of Miel de Bois (as I did), a more-than-lifetime supply. But it’s MINE ALL MINE.

      I predict you will like NdT. Also, yes, Jube 25 for men has reminded more than one person of Silver Factory, although I like 25 better…

  • carter says:

    The pepper! I love the opening, which does smell like green mango, but with blast of pepper. I can’t get enough of it. This fragrance to me is simply fascinating with all of the changes it goes through from beginning to end, and I adore every phase of its development. And yes, the wafting is an enormous part of its charm.

    I have been wearing it every day since I received my split about a week ago, and I fully intend to keep on wearing it straight through summer.

    • carter says:

      I just re-read Denyse’s review and interview with Duchaufour and am reminded that the pepper is pink pepper, which may explain the color of the juice.

      The other thing I neglected to mention is that my husband, who rarely remarks on anything I spritz on mostly because he just doesn’t smell it, went nuts for NdT, to the point where I gave him a split of my split to wear himself. It is definitely a tuberose a man can easily wear.

    • March says:

      I think I’m weaseling my hands onto some as we speak … 🙂 It’s another hot day, maybe I’ll go with Amaranthingy!

      • carter says:

        I’m reaching the dregs of my split and am headed to Bendel’s later this afternoon or tomorrow. The only other option would be to steal it back from the DH at gunpoint>:/

  • Jarvis says:

    I’m finding NdT to be fantastically strange. Vegetal. At times, green and almost mentholated. At other times, fetid. Wisps of incense, sure, but burning in some humid, nocturnal garden. I’ve enjoyed wearing it, but it certainly is more of an olfactive piece of art than an easy-going wearable fragrance.

    • March says:

      These are so much fun to talk about! Clearly all over the boards with this one, somewhat like Amaranthigh and … what was that (hideous) Malle? Dans tes Bras? Which smells AMAZING on 5% of folks and awful on everyone else.

      • Musette says:

        I am going to have to revisit The Bra. I don’t recall it being much of anything. Was there something I missed?

        xo >-)

        • carter says:

          Absolutely one of the strangest, shape-shifting scents ever, IMHO. I love it…I hate it…I love it…I hate it…#-o

          • March says:

            Smelled AMAZING on Melissa. Smells like rotten mushrooms on me, and plenty of other folks.

          • Musette says:

            I was just telling Joe the Magnificent that it had about 32 seconds of sheer beauty (cold, wet violets cut with a steel knife)…then it morphed into a truly boring mess. Play-Doh. But not the ‘whoa! PLAY-DOH!!!” of Anne Pliska. More .. …..:-< is that Play-Doh? Or a wet baggie? What? :-< Then it just.....went away. xp >-)

      • Joe says:

        IN YOUR BRA is fantastic! 😡 What are you talking about???? I love that thing, and I’m down to like 6-7ml in my last of those little travel thingies.

    • Winifreida says:

      OMG bring – it – on…do you folks have ANY understanding of what its like down here in the colonies being staked out by the Post Office….the last time a bottle of L Artisan came here was …well it was probably my Dzongha a couple of months ago..but you know what I mean!

  • tmp00 says:

    I like tuberose but had a bad experience with Carnal Flower over the weekend. A friend of mine and I stopped into Barneys and on the way out I seemed to have lost her in the Malle area. She obviously stopped at the Carnal Flower, which she loves. Unfortunately, she applies all perfumes in the same manner, whether Hadrien or this one: spritz her ample poitrine until her socks are wet. Honestly, she could be smelled from space. (she was terribly pleased that she “nursed” a bottle of A la Nuit and it lasted a whole 3 months!). I’m not usually such a wuss but I had to cut the coffee short; she didn’t want to sit outside and I felt like I was being smothered by a florist.

    There was also the woman at SatC 2 who was wearing a little too much Fracas for 10am on a Sunday.

    I do love tuberose, but ladies and germs, go steadily…

    Amaranthingy I might have to try…:d

    • carter says:

      Yeah, I am a tuberose freak and I use a very light hand with CF, and Tubereuse Criminelle, which is my favorite tuberose, does not even leave the house on my person until those notorious top notes have played themselves out. I am madly in love with the opening of TC, but I would never be thoughtless enough to inflict it upon the public at large.

      • tmp00 says:

        Carter-

        I love TC including the opening and could in small amounts see it going public. Or I’d just enjoy it on you in private. It’s the epic, car wash level overspray that I couldn’t deal with. At least with this scent.

      • Joe says:

        Oh come on, Carter! Pull out a purse spray of TC and apply a couple spritzes before getting on a downtown-bound C train at around 8:30am. Everyone will loves you. They’ll be so wide awake by the time they get to work that they’ll be able to save $5 on their morning latte. =)) Well, I’d sit by you, anyway.

      • March says:

        I do appreciate TC’s opening more on other people than myself. And Louise teases me periodically by wearing Angel. On her it smells lovely and she hasn’t overapplied.

      • You know, that’s odd, I could never even imagine waiting for a perfume to lose its top notes before going out… Especially not Tubéreuse Criminelle: they’re the best part!

        • carter says:

          Eh, they don’t know what they’re missing. But in this town someone will flip you the bird for saying “have a nice day.” Actually, I can’t say that I have a problem with that, but I digress…

          The point is I got into a rumble at the Metropolitan Opera, for crying out loud, so I ain’t about to challenge some crackhead on the train by offending his delicate sensibilities.

          • mary says:

            A true crackhead has long ago lost his or her ability to smell anything in the white flower range–just sayin’8-x

      • Winifreida says:

        :))yep the only reason I don’t bathe in Criminy is that I’m scared of running out of my decant…

    • mary says:

      “Until her socks are wet”– thanks for making me laugh–hard! I needed that.

      I need to go into town to sniff this one. But I’ll make sure to keep the windshield wipers on–hee hee. March–once again, beautiful writing–

    • March says:

      Ugh. Carnal Flower I DAB. It’s just too freaking big. I like to wear it to church, but I am soooooooooo careful about how much I apply. Your description makes me feel queasy — it’s like the way women wore Giorgio back in the day. I can’t help but wonder whether the chronic oversprayers have lost some of their sense of smell? Certainly it’s possible to become largely anosmic to a scent you wear every day (I think of that as the Light Blue Angel Syndrome.) 🙂

      • Musette says:

        Great Gravy!

        Tom, are you okay? 😮 Between that and the Fracas at the Movies, my head is spinning! No wonder people dislike heavy florals (and Angel) so often. Like March, I DAB CF. And Fracas – well, over the years I’ve learned how to apply it so it’s intriguing rather than terrifying. But that takes some learnin’.

        xo >-)

        and March? Don’t forget POLO, back in the day, when you could smell a guy coming half a block away and the miasma would linger – outside – for a good 10 minutes after he’d passed (or was it simply that there were So Damn Many Men Wearing Too Much Polo? 😕

        • Musette says:

          btw – I dislike Angel because it’s yucky. And because folks wear so much of it.

          But mostly because it’s yucky.

          xoxo >-)

        • Winifreida says:

          Its a bit like sex really, just how far do you go in public before you ‘frighten the horses’….?o:-)

        • tmp00 says:

          I’m fine. The Fracas wasn’t as bad; it was just tuberose-overload.

          My friend is a dear, but she has application issues. Perfume is applied by the bucketful, make-up in multiple coats. It was cute at 20 but is getting a little Baby Jane now that 50 is no longer a vicious rumor.

        • March says:

          Polo. Okay, throw a brick at me, but I get all verklempt and nostalgic at that, like for the original Lauren, remember that?

          I gave away my bottle of Fracas when I realized that I couldn’t apply it lightly enough. Not even walking through the spray. 🙂

          And Angel is dreadful. But I’d miss it terribly if it was gone.

      • Six spritzes for me. Minimum. Mwah-hah-hah…

        • tmp00 says:

          Six is nothing to my friend. I can take it with most things but that much Carnal Flower was a little too Carnal for 2 in the afternoon on a warm spring day..

  • HemlockSillage says:

    Waaaay interesting review, March! I appreciate you battling through your reactions, comparing your take to others’, then giving a final vibe. The very variabilty in blogosphere reviews on NdT make me want to try it, posthaste. I’m not a huge tuberose fan, but I keep trying. Here’s hoping this one will be weirdly magical. Be well.

    • March says:

      It’s definitely more unconventional than I realized with my first teeny dab, and that will probably please some folks and disappoint those who were hoping for a big tuberose soliflore. If you can love a floriental, you might like this one. :)>-

  • Louise says:

    The bottle is so pretty, innit? And it is such an interesting perfume-I have enough to spray liberally, and I’ve worn it 3 times so far-and am of at least 3 minds 8-|

    NdT is a real changeling on me-one time it was very floral, with the tuberose jumping out. Next time-well it was indistinct. And today-mostly wood, almost incensy. I wondering what tomorrow will bring? 😮

    I love Amaranthing on others, but it just goes nasty on me. The bad kind of nasty :((

    • March says:

      Hey, it turned out to be even more interesting than we’d first thought, and two thumbs up for that!

      I am really looking forward to giving it a run in the heat.

      Amaranthing could be absolutely revolting gone wrong, I can see it. And it doesn’t go away either!