Narcisse Noir

Narcisse Noir like the Victorian mourning jewelry, is simple, solemn, and square in shape. It is set with a circle of black jade with a gold edge, and the tips of countless edges and corners shine with a cold and pale light. There is a beautiful face embossed on the surface of the mica, with clear outlines, a mysterious smile condensed on the corner of her lips, you can always think of the black narcissus that never fades. Narcisse Noir is extravagant, restrained and unobtrusive, while aggressive and contradictory, but I have deeply experienced the beauty of "restless and infatuated". Caron Narcisse Noir lives up to its reputation. As a representative of Caron's heyday, and Narcisse Noir may not be so refined (at least not like Guerlain's), Guerlain came through carving. People praise Ernest Daltroff for excellence. A self-taught perfumer and the great perfume house he founded, even if he doesn't talk about the countless olfactory treasures he created by intuition in the future, just presenting a Narcisse Noir can prove that talent has nothing to do with age or origin. I collect the old 1970's parfum. Narcisse Noir is bright and full, and unlike most classic fragrances, it doesn't have a complex floral core. The bewitching Parfum suddenly follows a green chord, and the deep and dark ink background highlights the blossoming petite and white orange flowers. It is a very simple and powerful picture, clear and unimaginable. The rose-jasmine harmonizes at once, and the orange blossoms are decorated around, and the posture is higher than the jasmine, adding a delicate, soft and sweet character to Narcisse Noir. The taste is just what I like. At first, I was surprised at the lack of Narcissus. A black hole large enough to devour orange blossoms is zoomed in on the background panel, the effect should be the fragrance base Mousse de Saxe (certified example of use), rich, oily musk, moss and leather, led by a creamy fragrance. The connection between ups and downs. The structure of Narcisse Noir is not complicated, the turbid animal elements invade the bright and clean orange blossom soap fragrance, black and white, reaching the peak of drama. A drop of Narcisse Noir essence slid on the snow-white chest of the beauty in black with her breathing, which is extraordinarily fascinating. Caron's style is unexpectedly generous and simple. On the other hand, Guerlain is meticulous and trivial. Caron is straightforward and stands on the opposite side. Narcisse Noir is violent, almost ebullient, and at the same time alienating. It seemed a bit rude at the time. (Compare Guerlain.) But it is undeniable that Narcisse Noir is elegant and noble, no less than Guerlain. Narcisse Noir makes me believe that Caron and Guerlain went head to head, it's absolutely unique, and as far as I know, no one in the fragrance industry has ever collided with Caron Narcisse Noir. This is a classic. It is an honor to be able to appreciate the art of perfumery at the highest level.

I was surprised to have found a bottle of this floating around on a local virtual marketplace. I'm not entirely sure how to date it as it was unboxed. Unlike the image used for this page, the circular gold label is found under the mid-line of the bottle. Unfortunately, when it arrived, I realised that the stopper was stuck. Despite that, I could still catch faint whiffs of animalic orange blossoms escaping from the bottle. After 8 months of trying multiple methods to prise the Julien Viard flacon open, it turned out that the thing that worked was steeping the bottleneck in glycerin. To my surprise, a gentle twist and tug and off the stopper finally came! I simply dabbed a tiny dot onto my wrist. I hadn't flushed the stopper with the liquid - I'd simply applied whatever's coating the stopper directly onto skin. It was like being enveloped by a bouquet of jonquils and orange blossoms. Underlying the heavy bouquet of lush and loud florals was a distinct stank of civet that could come off as halitosis to some. As it dries down, the perfume reveals an incense-leather-sandalwood base. To me, it exudes a similar vibe to Shalimar - dark, seductive, animalic. It must've smelt primal backstage of a Ballet Russes performance. I can only imagine how body heat and sweat would amp this perfume up. Quite befitting of the group that famously danced to Stravinsky's compositions. Absolutely phenomenal. Longevity is eternal. It's been more than 12h since I've tried it on skin and I assure you it is still there despite having another perfume layered over it.

After the ephemeral whisper of fruit has vanished, a raw, oily viridescence instantly plunges the scene into shadow. It is the Narcissus, magnified in root and stalk, its floral sweetness crushed into silence, mingled with the austere bitterness of orange blossom – it is a sensual beast clad in a jacket of vegetable-tanned suede. You inhale the scent of his leather attire; he seizes your hand, leading you into the dark conspiracy of the shrubbery in a desolate corner of the park. In this sordid, mechanical, greasy, yet terribly addictive atmosphere, the phantom scents of flowers – rose and jasmine – drift in and out. Amidst the perspiration and the throes of agony, you perceive a tenderness within the violent collisions. Torn between these two extremes, you are overcome with a delicious shame, yet you sink recklessly into the abyss. You fall until the world, thought, emotion, morality, and reason vanish in a single instant, transmuted into a mere breath that bursts from parted lips like a volcanic eruption, tainted with his heat and yours, only to dissipate into the cold indifference of the moonlight. All ceases to exist. There remains only the buzzing in your ears and a trace of bitter orange blossom lingering in the nasal cavity to remind you of the sin that has just transpired.

In the early 80s I found a presentation bottle of Narcisse Noir with the beautiful black glass stopper and the gold thread and medallion hanging from the neck. I was the first to open the package. I found it in a thrift store. It was beautiful. I would wear it with an evening flapper dress from the 20s when I went out for dinner and dancing. I felt so beautiful wearing such a rare fragrance. When other ladies would ask me what I was wearing, nobody knew what Caron's Narcisse Noir was! Now, almost 40 years later, I open the bottle which has residue on the bottom and take a sniff. Mmmmm, I am transported back to the desert and mountain nightclubs and I am once again 22 years old!

A dirtier more intense version of the EDT. I have both and wear them together. The musk is more prominent in the parfume. I have only the one bottle so I use sparingly on wrist and breast bone. Very beautiful and decidedly Caron. Certainly a love, but I am a hugh Caron fan. If you love Caron classics you will love this, a masterpiece.

My review is for the original formulation from a late teens/early 1920s bottle. It's not mentioned in the notes, but the original does definitely contain narcissus (it smells more like they used a high-quality extrait, rather than an enfleurage). The narcissus is perceptible for about 20 minutes before it disappears into the orange blossom. I feel like I also smell a small amount of jasmin grandiflorum, slightly indolic. On me a small amount of civet is detectable, though possibly ambergris (can't tell the two apart - only saying ambergris because there is a saltiness to it.) Ultimately this smells dated, for sure. But you can definitely see why flappers would enjoy it - such a departure from the classic violet and rose perfumes out there. There's a darkness and sensual tone to it that keeps it from being boring. It must have made quite the waves back in the day.

I'm gonna CRY! I bought a bottle of this in a thrift store for $3, not knowing what it was. I just liked the black lid, and something was familiar about its design. I didn't realize it was a ground glass stopper, and it got packed in loose with my other stuff... the bottle emptied its last few milliliters into a fabulous vintage macrame purse. The purse now smells very nice. This is a white floral animalic. I'm surprised to see no tuberose as a listed note, as I do get a grapey aura. You win some, you lose some. This isn't my favorite fragrance I've ever smelled, but it's always special to have a few drops of something rare. At least I have the beautiful flacon, and I was able to smell it before its demise! I must have a curse or something when it comes to Caron, my antique Bellodgia has a stuck ground stopper I have yet to coax open. I can tell you, both of these scents are high-quality and worth the investment. Hopefully you'll have better luck than me!

Soapy and a little dirty at the same time. Disappeared relatively quickly, before I could really suss out how to feel about this vintage scent. Womp womp.

Imagine, if you will, that Madame de la Rougierre, the exceedingly creepy and exquisitely cruel governess in Le Fanu's gothic tale Uncle Silas, was taken to task for her evil ways and, as divine punishment, was reincarnated into a brooding French bisque portrait poupée having to endure dusty shelves and grubby little hands for eternity. That is what the smolderingly honeyed orange blossom, wickedly animalic. waxily aldehydic, musty-powdery melancholy of Caron Narcisse Noir smells of. In a good way? Or...as good as it gets for our delightfully nasty Mme de la Rougierre, I guess?

Nag Champa powdery (no smoke), dark floral notes, likely a little bit of patchouli and turkish rose, neroli, jasmin, resting on the perfect dose of balsamic sandalwood, musk and civet to make it sensual and sexy but never filthy. Beautiful combination of nectary, hypnotic florals and darkness, very suitable for evening wear, also quite strong stuff. Recommend 100%

My parfum bottle smells like an ashtray. 😳😳😳. Then becomes animalic Musc. WOW so good