Mystère #29

I've had a sample of this stashed away for months now. I sprayed it on my hand a couple times when I got it and it didn't really intrigue me so I never wore it. Today I was looking through le lobo fragrances and came across noir 29 and remembered I had this so I decided to wear it to the gym tonight. Wow, I really really like this one. There's something about this that all the notes come together to create the linear scent that it is. It's not easy to pick out the individual notes on this one. It's quite interesting, it's aromatic, fresh spicy? Perhaps slightly spicy, and I don't know if fresh is the right word, maybe more crisp. I imagine it's the bay leaf is giving off a subtle savory element that's more prominent in the opening. It's slightly green and grassy which is most likely a combination of the vetiver and hay. It is almost smokey but not. I wonder what the tobacco is doing here, perhaps a hint of smoke but maybe more of a tobacco leaf element that's blending with the hay and vetiver? Maybe the smoke is from the tea? I can't stop smelling my sleeve, it's faded on skin after the gym, but still going pretty strong on my clothes. And I can pick out a little musk now. Projection is moderate, longevity seems pretty good. This definitely lasts on clothes and surprised that it somewhat survived on skin after a swim. Projection intensifies when heating up/working out. I'm starting to understand le lobo fragrances now and I read a review that someone said they have a way of making elegant fragrances with an understanding of showing restraint. Very spot on comment. This is definitely now a solid like, maybe a love I'd have to wear it more. Santals kiss (santal 33) is also one I've come to really love. And Sandiago exclusive is a very nice musk fragrance. I'm probably going to look more into sampling le lobos offerings now.

I sampled Le Labo Thé Noir 29 just over a week ago and was very impressed (see review if interested). I was hoping to find a more affordable alternative and this is the closest thing I’ve found. AF’s Mystère #29 initially hits a little wide of the mark though, chiefly by lacking the restraint that’s so characteristic of Le Labo. This is most apparent in the opening; all the correct notes are there, but AF has amplified them just a bit too much, which fundamentally alters the quiet, ethereal, introspective character of the fragrance. It’s certainly very recognisable, I do like the fragrance and will enjoy wearing it again, I just think it could have been spot on if AF turned down the volume. Over the course of the wearing it continued to grow on me more and more, and well into the dry down the notes started to calm down, settle and quieten, becoming much more gentle and delicate. At this stage it’s faithfully captured everything I loved about TN29. Remarkable. Projection and longevity are both good. I started off a sceptic but ended up a convert, once you get past the opening it’s a very good rendition, I’d highly recommend it as a viable alternative to TN29. Update - After repeated wearing I’ve grown to really love this, the opening is a little more powerful than Thé Noir 29 but otherwise a note perfect copy. Due to the improved performance I now actually prefer this to the original.

This is in the realm of the noir29. I get a prominent fig note. There is a woody base that is kinda unique. A faint rust and quirky body odor. Looking at the notes, maybe the hay, vetiver, bay leaf combo does this. Later stage is light musk and fig.

Layer this with a hint of jasmine or tuberose, and you'll have a much more faithful The Noir dupe.

I've just got my nose on this and frankly, it's disappointing. It's entirely missing that florally bright top note that le labo offers. I'll let the bottle air for a week and come back again to test it but initial read is its really no where near to what it's meant to be copying. And whatever it is doing, is super super weak. Downvoting it's likeness for sure. Big miss here. UPDATE: 4/2/22 Had this close by to test regularly over the last couple of weeks. Re-reading my initial impression again I may have been a tad harsh, but i have high expectations and the other scents i have from this house don't disappoint in the slightest, until this one. Is it weak? No, it has some body to it and it does last a fair while. Projections pretty decent but not nuclear levels, moderate i guess. Does it hold up to being a Noir 29 copy? Not really. It's in the area of that scent, but this is more of an interpretation for sure. Its got better as its settled and there's less alcohol burn off after you apply it now. Even smelling the atomiser you can pick the notes up so it's not weak, but it's not accurate. It IS still missing that sharp floral in the top that Le Labo offers and that to me is such a distinguishing feature that makes Noir 29 a stand out fragrance. A similar scent that Alexandria missed on in the same way was their Xerjoff Naxos copy. That one is a good scent but would be stellar if it JUST had that sweet liquorice note at the top. Thats a defining part of Naxos and its entirely missing in my decant of Alexandria's 1891x. Their version sits between Pure Havane and Naxos IMO. Has more to offer than PH, but not playing at Naxos levels. Conclusion: I wouldn't buy this again. It's not bad but even though it was £30 for me, i'd honestly rather have just bought a bottle of Le Labo tbh.

Testing them side by side and there's some differences, I'd say the clone is around 85% accurate. The original is softer and slightly sweeter, and the clone has more of a menthol note in it and slightly more masculine. I don't smell menthol at all in the original, it's not overbearing but it's there, but goes away after around the hour mark and then the clone becomes much closer to the original. As far as quality, the original has the clone beat, but that's to be expected. As for performance, the clone lasts longer and projects slightly more. Overall this is a solid clone at a fraction of the price. Edit: after more time with it, unfortunately the menthol kills this fragrance.

This is honestly awful. It smells like B.O and baby powder. My boyfriend smelled it and said it smells like diapers. It’s smells like if you took a smelly trucker with body odor and sprayed grandma’s perfume all over him. Blech!!!

Spot on The Noir 29, 96% similar