Le 3e Homme de Caron

***** Top: The opening is a flurry of yellow-green notes with an underlying hint of pink: some sweet and tangy lemon (or so I read, yuzu) supported by orange (both bergamot and mandarin are listed somewhere, but I’m not exactly sure... the effect is a syrupy citric medley). There are some sharper edges too: likely something mildly anise-like to my nose (it might be tarragon), establishing a musty barbershop fern accord with mutedly sweet, natural lavender that you may recognize as coming from the legendary Caron Pour un Homme, with its raw edges softened towards soapiness. Heart: Sharp, even strident greenness of coriander and vetiver come to the fore after the initial top notes settle, but dominating the heart thematically are flowers: a peppery carnation paired with a sticky jasmine note, the latter of which seems to have a notable indolic facet (this means the hint of body-odour that lurks in ripe white flowers). This could be an illusion (the musk asserting itself, or, as Thomaso7, above, suggests: civet?) Anyway, the skank is more insinuated than spelled out, sensually suggestive of sex (cooling sweat or saliva on skin) rather than skat, and melds well with the not-quite-dirty musk used as a base by Caron in both Pour un Homme and Yatagan... a rind of candied citrus and a ghost of powdery sweetness is still evident in the skin scent. Base: The smoothly played base is an old-school vetiver warmed by tonka bean, dry vanilla and musk. My bottle doesn't list oakmoss, but it does smell mossy. Clove and cedar add an edge of camphor to the tart-sweet/cool-warm mix. The 'steam-iron' or 'snuffed candle' scent of aldehydes, lends a hint of waxiness, a worn-in/lived-in touch like the memory of a casual smoker. Every stage of this fragrance is bevelled, translucent and luminous. When all is said and done, the smell on the sleeve of my shirt produces a mix of soothing beauty and uplifting keenness braced with just a little machismo. As you will note from the contrasts played out in the reviews below, this results in some cognitive dissonance!... The persistent tang of the yuzu opening seems like a stimulating freshness just out of reach, the heart an almost femme tenderness of flowers in the midst of a sultry summer evening mixed in with that body-conscious breath of skank. Despite its heavy use of citrus, it’s not a ‘light’ fragrance, but somewhat aggressive in its density. It feels complex yet linear, and, with its solid projection and excellent longevity, can be a little relentless if sprayed too heavily. Lightly applied, its quality shines. Objective: As a citrus-lavender fougere, it is datable but too well made and blended to be reducible to a cliché. I would say it relevantly transcends the limits of its origin and genre, especially in the age of reformulations. Sometimes this reminds me of something from an earlier vintage, like Eau Sauvage or Chanel Pour Monsieur, for instance, and other times it recalls the risky approach to masculinity that was emerging in the late 70's and early 80's (the aromatic fougère continuum from Azzaro Pour Homme, Paco Rabanne, or even Kouros) assertively masculine, but also creative, with a hint of vulnerability. I can see this appealing to niche lovers because it uses high quality materials to produce an unexpected and memorable impression. To sum up, this is a clashing-yet-smooth, stealthily addictive and highly dependable hybrid of an aromatic citrus chypre, a spicy/soapy/green fougere with a heady dose of woody-floral-musk and a deftly delivered hit of skank. It makes me want to reach for stylish, well-cut clothes and a cigarette (and I don't even smoke...) Like others in the Caron 'Holy Trinity' the ingredients are of very good quality and thoughtfully blended so as to continue giving gratification deep into the well-paced drydown; there's really not one false note or suggestion of cost-cutting from the bottle to the sprayer to every phase of its development. If you are one of those people who cares about longevity and sillage, my bottle (which is a few years old now, a 2014 or 15 batch, and has opened up a bit) has very strong projection and superb longevity. Something I'd confidently put in powerhouse territory (by today's standards, certainly), although I prefer a light wearing myself. Subjective: Like all the Caron masculines I've tried, it takes some getting used to... This one ('number three') maybe most of all, but it's quickly becoming my favourite. I find its social complexities (gender-bending or tough-yet-sensitive? Come-hither or barbershop?) suit the film-noir ethos of the movie, "The Third Man," with its mystery and moral ambivalence, quite well. The overall feel is best held together by purposeful tailoring (choose a suit that fits you well enough that you can slouch in it and still look elegant), while its mix of dissonant notes makes the most sense to me in cool weather. Wear it in selfish reverie and make like nothing’s going on.

Sharing a Bottle of Champagne at the Barbershop with Alain Delon..... Le 3e Homme de Caron reaches perfection on so many different levels for me that it is something of a struggle to review this timeless and truly great fragrance. First of all, the associations with Carol Reed's film noir adaptation of the novel of the same name by Graham Greene are loose but have some relevance. More directly, however, is the fact that the perfumer has in some way achieved a more modern rendition of fragrances that may have been familiar to the international characters in the war-torn Vienna setting of this story. And this is quite an achievement. Moreover, the suggestion of a 'Third Man' is at the root of what this fragrance is about: not overtly masculine, not dandified, but something else...A fragrance for an elegant, slim, good-looking man, perhaps? The first metrosexual scent, perhaps? (But very solidly removed from the current crop of blandly asexual fragrances on the market.) Undoubtedly, for anyone interested in such classic English fragrance houses as Floris, Penhaligon's, Geo. F. Trumper, Truefitt & Hill, and Crown Perfumery - the kind of fragrances that would have been more familiar at the time of The Third Man - the question that may be on your mind is how much do these fragrances give off an unwanted 'dandified' vibe (and how can their cost be justified with such often weak longevity and projection)?....Similar questions may come to mind about some of the earlier fragrances from that famous house across the channel, Creed. Very often such fragrances may seem to be more risk than payoff. And this is where Le 3e Homme de Caron comes in..... The opening of this fragrance smells like nothing else so much as the opening of a bottle of champagne, but the very evident beauty which is there from the outset and through the life of the fragrance is still masculine, refined and - dare I say - gentlemanly, with a degree of very definite charm. While not a dandy fragrance it does suggest at least some of these old English fragrances, but yet has enough of the French barbershop-feel about it to redeem it. It is without doubt a fragrance that you have to live up to a bit, and wearing at least a shirt and tie is the norm for me when when I wear it. The development of Le 3e Homme is rather linear - others have commented on this - but it is so enjoyable over a reasonably long period with good projection that this is no trouble. In fact, it is one of those fragrances that you will have to struggle to stop yourself from sniffing - it is that good. So, in short, Le 3e Homme de Caron is a fragrance that I would highly recommend. It is extremely versatile but is at its best in Spring and Autumn days when there is a bit of heat in the air. Lastly, it is also one of those rare fragrances that asks you "Are you really handsome and classy enough to try this?" I decided I am and never looked back....

*** UPDATE *** I managed to get the earlier release, the one with the color spectrum band on the box and tall smoky glass flacon. I prefer this to the current release, as it is not as loud, while richer in notes variety. The newer formulation is still very good. You may enjoy both or prefer either one. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- When I first sprayed this on (recent formulation), I was overwhelmed. The aroma came across rather strong and almost suffocating. The combination of lavender, bergamot, bitter citrus, and coriander accompanied by vetiver, oakmoss and galbanum brings to mind a sweet resin or wax. I guess maybe I've smelled too many lavender scented candles in my day! Either that or it's some kind of opoponax/resinous mimicry? I'm a bit confused about the notes depiction of this fragrance, because another trusted site has a different set of ingredients that does not include coriander or clove. Then I discovered the reason why -- this fragrance was reformulated since its introduction in 1985. The original 1985 list of notes includes bergamot, rosemary, lavender, anise, geranium, rose, jasmine, carnation, amber, musk, oak moss, patchouli, cedar, tonka and vanilla. But then a 10-year-old ingredients list mentions lemon, bitter orange, bergamot, coriander, lavender, vetiver, oak moss and galbanum. However, for the current release oddly enough Caron lists only Italian lemon, bergamot, coriander and vetiver (which has to be an oversimplification). Into the dry down, the intensity does eventually subside. The lavender, bergamot, coriander and oakmoss remain prevalent. As it settles, I get an impression... a faint echo of Chanel Pour Monsieur Concentree. Like distant cousins. I tried this fragrance a couple of times and just couldn't get past the "sweet wax" impression and decided I would get rid of it. I very much enjoy Caron Pour Un Homme (vintage) and the only thing I detect similar between it and Le 3rd is the lavender. CPuH is much more gentle and understated and softened by the vanilla. But a friend of mine became quite animated about my giving it more time. "Don't give up on it--it's a masterpiece, just give it time!" So I did... And I gradually changed my mind. I don't know if it's something to do with "olfactory familiarity" or simply air getting into the bottle to let it tone down a little (maybe both), but I'm warming up to it more. It's in my "like" category and may just make it to "love" one of these days. 7.9/10.

I was watching a video of Leonard Bernstein describing Beethoven’s compositional style. To paraphrase: “Though he was not a good melodist nor a good harmonist nor a good orchestrator, his works are works of genius. How? It was the form. In Beethoven, every single note that succeeded the prior note was the right note. Invariably. How he did it, no one knows, because he struggled: he scratched out, he beat himself up, he never left his rooms, he was constantly in agony, always saying he was merely touching the tip of the iceberg. And yet every single note in his works checks out, no matter how unpredictable, they are always right. No one had that, not even Mozart. It’s like he had a direct telephone line to God.” Sometimes I get a similar feeling with a perfume. Le 3e Homme de Caron is one such beauty. From first spray to final drydown, every single note that follows the previous one is the right note, the perfect note. The entire composition flows seamlessly, like an inevitability. Like it was wired to us directly from Heaven. To put it in context, it swam upriver when masculines were thumping their hairy chests with macho bravado, belting their husky baritones and revving their muscle cars. And it didn’t go the way of water and woods, those aquatic-antiseptic-alien-hyper-synths that were to sweep the fragrant ecosystem the following decade. This was a different sort of creature, in a category that is historically bereft of exemplars (the floral masculine), and done in such a way that only Caron could (Françoise Caron was creative director, to boot). It’s floral, yes, with carnation and geranium and jasmine and rose (?) at the heart, but it’s a spiced up and green floral. To paraphrase Tania Sanchez, its message is pretty simple: “I’m beautiful before I’m anything else, masculine or feminine.” Now, you have to love cloves (eugenol) and anise (anethol), because the perfect blend of one or both of these warm spices with that dreamy Caron lavender in the opening is a marriage made in heaven. This is a mood lifter that makes you say with a big smile on your face: IDGAF today, I’m just gonna feel good! But the real magic lies in the backbone: sultry and warm animalics that run through the bright opening and the floral heart and flow into the semi-sweet, earthy, musky dry-down for which it’s so well known and loved. Among my all-time favorites.

Gorgeous and a successful blind buy for me. Normally I don't buy blind because it never works out. But, between my passion for Caron pour un Homme, the five star review in the Guide and how stupid cheap it was ($22 for 4 oz delivered), I cracked. While I was waiting for it to arrive, I worried that I almost certainly wouldn't like it. Clove? Not a fan. Fougere? Not a fan. Barbershop? Just no. Classic masculines? Uh uh. I sprayed it on paper first and left it to settle. An hour later I was back to find something subtle, unique, meltingly soft and quite unisexily beautiful. Today I'm wearing it on skin and am enjoying the heck out of it. I think the note pyramid is pretty accurate but also largely irrelevant. This is one of those fragrances that is so well blended it smells only like itself and not like the notes that compose it. The opening I would describe as "sweaty lemon sorbet." I know that doesn't sound very good but it's so soft and caressing, I find it lovely. It get's sweeter, softer and possibly more floral as it settles. I know that lavender or clove are there but I can't really pick them out. This is one that you pretty much have to try to see if you'll like it. Truthfully that's true of all perfumes but this one even more so. Even if you don't like any of the notes or classic masculines, you might love this. Every fragrance fan, male or female (like me), should give this a try. Edit: Sillage and longevity are crazy good for something this natural smelling and inexpensive. It just keeps getting better - sweeter and softer. Second Edit: I keep looking at all these reviews saying that it's a classic masculine and best suited for a "mature gentleman" and shaking my head. Perhaps this is obvious, but that is purely their associations and underestimates how unique this fragrance is. If a mature gentleman is wearing it, it will smell like a mature gentleman and maybe people will experience it as a classic barbershop. When my seventeen year old son wears it he smells very fresh but also warm and slightly sweet, classy but unique and youthful. When I (a middle aged woman) wear it, it smells more floral, spicy and soft. In Tania Sanchez's five star review in the The Guide, she says that she's never smelled it on a man and seems to believe that it's simply too beautiful. It's for everyone who appreciates beauty.