Tabac Blond

This perfume just makes me want to shout out all the notes as they come to me, in ecstasy, lol. I want to become the type of woman whose signature is Tabac Blond. I want to wear it every day in every situation and not have anyone wonder why I smell "like that". As an ex-smoker, this really satisfies a nostalgic part of me, which doesn't long for or crave the cigarettes themselves anymore, but misses the times I spent with friends, drinking coffee or wine and smoking and talking... Some of my best conversations were tinged with the scent of tobacco. In a sort of more abstract way, Tabac Blond does smell like tobacco, only lighter and fresher, and also like dark, floral vanilla. I personally get a far more prominent floral accord than I do spice. I love the vanilla in this fragrance. Spiritueuse Double Vanille by Geurlain could be its sweet little sister. Soft and deep, fresh and rich, Tabac Blond needs to be worn a few times. It is one of those perfumes that has a life of its own, and as such you might not have the opportunity to really get to know her at all right away. She's the woman riding in the elevator with you each day, who you notice and briefly admire but don't feel the need to speak to, until that one day when you suddenly realize you've fallen half in love with her. And even then, the mystery continues. . . I think that I must have a bottle of this perfume. When I breathe it in my mouth falls open as if I'm drinking the scent. Tabac Blond has perfect pitch and temper, it sings beautifully. This perfume reminds me of having the courage to follow your deepest, darkest passions, and to be open to all chances to uncover what those passions are! I don't think that anyone should deny themselves the greatest pleasures in life, so please try to wear this perfume a few times throughout your existence on earth. Just don't force Tabac Blond to adapt to our contemporary ways, our current surroundings, changing beliefs, and new attitudes. Really, I want to adapt my way of seeing and of being to this perfume. I challenge you, Caron invites you, and Tabac Blond begs you (in so far as such a Lady could beg), to take a step toward revealing your secret to yourself.

The only trusted way to buy this scent is to go into a high end department store like Fortnum and Mason's or Harrods in the UK and see it decanted before your eyes from one of the large Lalique flacons into a beautiful bottle of your choice (there are several including gold, silver and mauve and blue glass). The half a dozen or so large flacons (probably containing more than a litre each of scent)with their tiny taps are displayed in a semicircle in their own space on a white bar counter on Fortnum & Mason's beauty floor at the perfume end by the spiral staircase.But you are not getting a beer here! The heavenly Tabac Blond is in one of those beautiful flacons. You are served by one of several very smartly dressed men who patrol the perfume end. Surprisingly there were no women in charge of perfume that day. When I asked why, I was told that men know more about perfume and that most noses are male.Well that me put in my place! You might be surprised to discover the price - just £75 for the EDP and about £25 for the refillable bottle (but I chose the more expensive gold metal one because I did not want it to maybe break inside my handbag). This is expensive but considering the quality of the scent and compared to the cost of perfumes from other houses like Creed and Roja Dove for example, it's very good value. The scent itself just cannot be faulted; it achieves a unique balance of leather/tobacco and floral notes by some miracle. If you want to find the Caron flacons in Harrods, they are not in the huge perfume hall on the ground floor. You have to go to the Salon de Parfums on the 6th floor and navigate your way through the Beauty Salon to get to it. You enter a dark low lit black marble walled sanctuary with sofas and the most expensive perfumes are displayed like precious museum pieces behind glass. Quite an experience and you need a bit of bottle to walk into it as it is so exclusive and you will also be immediately approached. But when you talk to the (male again) assistants, if you are even a bit knowledgeable about perfume, you will be welcomed, even if you don't buy any

This is the ultimate femme fatale scent for me, powdery, sophisticated, dark, magical, slightly animalic, spicy and smoky! I will make sure to have a small decant of the vintage parfum for life. I love learning about the history behind this perfume and the nose Ernest Daltroff. I am also learning about Turin, he famously stated that Tabac Blond was "dykey" which is a very crude remark. I don't understand how he, a so-called expert of fragrances, does not appreciate Tabac Blond? Tabac blonde was created for women who started to smoke during WWII, it is a game-changer! This is a spellbinding scent, I also call it a "liquid courage" kind of scent. It is intended for the bold, daring woman with a strong personality who wants to smell unique. I am new to fragrances, my review will never do Tabac Blond justice. The tobacco note is my very favorite thing about this fragrance. The first spray on my skin is the spicy carnation with leather, I think, I smelled a hint of gasoline, I have tired Mitsouko (Mitsouko was created in the same year as Tabac Blond I believe) before and I sense the sort of similar tantalizing gasoline accord in the opening here. It wears off all too quickly. Vetiver, and the sweet powdery iris, earthy spicy warm cloves gradually comes through. The leather here is dry like an old leather jacket found in a thrift shop, the carnation fades and the leather is becoming softer. The drydown is similar to vanilla incense. I know that my nose is missing so many notes! I genuinely think that all perfumistas should try this once in their lifetime. A great scent to try is Molinard Habanita! It is of a similar vibe as Tabac Blond: a deep smoky powdery, retro-style scent. The longevity is great, and the sillage is soft.

I got a sample of the new version in the round bottle. I get a lot of iris, carnation, chocolatey patchouli, musk and vanilla. The leather is really hushed and the vetiver and cedar is barely perceptible, though perhaps without it the fragrance wouldn’t have anything to support it. It hardly has any of the gusto of a perfume “a daring 20s flapper girl who smokes” would wear. I don’t get much mossy mousse de saxe. However! If I think of it as an iris perfume it’s totally gorgeous and possibly the best I’ve ever smelled. It has that musky sweet and powdered skin-scent base that I imagine is the “Caronade” that people talk about. It’s very sensual and smooth. I love that it doesn’t smell synthetic and modern. It smells like a real perfume! It’s addictive, and I might get a bottle of it. I have some vintage on the way so I will come back to add more thoughts. EDIT: Wow. Got the vintage parfum. It’s a completely different fragrance!!! Why did they discontinue this?? It doesn’t even smell dated! The opening is crazy. The leather/carnation is almost scary. Extremely indolic, spicy, and harsh. Ten minutes later it’s a smooth, spicy, powdery floral-leather. Last edit: okay, I revisited the new version. It’s actually amazing. It smells like the vintage, only the leather is more blended. You miss out on the smack-you-in-the-face leather opening (a drawback) but you get to smell it until the dry down (a huge plus). I am absolutely getting a bottle of the new stuff. Long live Caron! What a gem. Might be the greatest perfume ever made.

Tabac Blonde Current 2017 EDP formulation Linden, light aldehyde to give it lift and brightness. Vanillic leather soon follows with a powdery lipstick iris note. Vetiver stirs to give it a metallic/medicinal note from the bottom and a touch of cedar. The carnation gives it a spicy touch but know this isnt a carnation bomb as sometimes carnation can dominate a fragrance. Here, it does not. Back in the 20s ladies would spray perfume on their cigarettes. It was known Germaine Cellier would spray bandit on her cigarettes so a beautiful aroma would mix with the tobacco from the cigarettes. I think here we have the same type of idea where a pleasant tobacco scent is to be worn wile smoking enhancing the users aura. My mother was a smoker and wore Opium Edt and the combination smelled fabulous on her. Now, with present day sensibilities one now sits at the precipice of choosing to smell like a fine leather jacket, minimal florals and tobacco. Is this a ghost of its former glory? Yes. However the negative press isnt warranted. You can do a lot worse buying todays thin designer frags. This is a good niche buy thats interesting and unique. Its not the Icon it seems to be. Its worth a sample and a try. I hope the new nose at Caron reformulates this closer to its former glory. Id put the quality on par with modern Lubins. If one wanted to discover what the big deal was about with the house of Caron, I feel one needs to obtain vintage samples to fully grasp its true splendor. To be continued : Tabac Blond EDC Vintage review.

Review of vintage parfum And the "Love affair" with this fragrance begins...... How do I describe this, something this beautiful something this timeless. Not knowing what to expect I tried this beauty on my skin and the first impression was I have smelt this before and now I know what this mysterious fragrance finally is. A beautiful leather fragrance, a supple beautiful soft leather ... Then a smokyness, this is what first touches my senses. Then a beautiful fresh smelling tobacco intermingles, and dances with the leather. It warms with the skin and just continues to become better and better, then enter the vanilla. Oh how smooth, and just soft and beautiful this fragrance Is. Had I known how beautiful this fragrance is I would've found it long ago. It is all women, but yet there is a little tomboy somewhere within. It is not harsh I found to be very smooth very pleasant, very beautiful. I do think that this is something that can be worn by a male or female, it would be delicious on either gender. Sillage is wonderful, and protects several feet around me, enough that people notice and comment that it is a beautiful fragrance, the lasting power of this fragrance is also magnificent as I continue to smell this fragrance hours later. Why oh why do they always discontinue making something this beautiful. 10/10

I have the tiniest little sample of Caron Tabac Blond extrait. I was a littlw worried at first, that I wouldn ́t like it, since I don ́t like all vintage fragarnces. But I didn ́t have to worry. Tabac Blond is, on me, an archetypical kind of perfume. It smells like perfumes history, precense and future at the same time. It is elegant, ageless and timeless. The carnation note are close to being a carnation soliflore but somehow it manage not to be. It is rich, golden, strong and very pleasant without being to much. The leather note is quite discrete on me, just as I like leather in perfume (a note that easily become harsh on me). In Tabac Blond the leather note is pure and refined luxury and still with some rough edges. Caron ́s Tabac Blond deserve it ́s place among perfume lagends more then well. It ́s longlasting, rich and make me feel like a golden age Hollywood-move star. Tabac Blond could easily be worn by both men and women and I think it would suit any age, apart from maybe the youngest. I ́ll always need a little amount of Tabac Blond in my collection, it is like a golden shining star. Masterpiece class, best of the best, a must must must try!

I decide to sell one of my kidney and half of my liver to get a bottle of Tabac Blond, parfum extrait. Overall,all the high-end lady's purses are supposed to smell like this. If they don't, it's their fault. The opening powdery notes is noticeable yet reserved. Oh my, what a perfect supporting role this powdery notes play! It has a sense of portion, never steals the thunder of leather/woody/tabac combo. If you put more than two spray, the tobacco note itself is gonna be the major player, for quite long time. Luckily it doesn't have that skunky weed-like smell, which appears in a lot of tobacco perfume. It has a bit of moist-woody feeling, not disgusting, just like forgotten books left in your basement. If you use with discretion, you'll soon get a combination of soft leather, a really subtle smokiness and a hint of dry cedar. Sometimes when you open a nice new paper box, you’ll get this smell. This, along with that clean powdery note, create a image of elegant, tom-boyish lady.

Tabac blond is an iconic fragrance, representing the independent female role models, who emerged after the first world war, who could smoke, wear trousers, take their life in their hands. I have to admit, every time I wear it, it's like a confidence boost, sth that no other perfume has achieved. The opening of this sensual leather and soft smoke, combined with sweet spicy carnations is beyond this world. The top notes persist in the heart as well, a bit mellowed by the floral accords. The musk-vanillic dry down- at least in the EDP- is a bit weak in comparison to the dynamic top notes, but the perfume is still unique. I imagine it on a woman in elegant black clothes, a classic beauty deprived of ladylike mannerisms. She knows who she is, she doesn't care to prove anything to anyone, and the most important : she loves herself. I'm neither a smoker, nor blond, but I love it, and it makes me love myself.

I have some old TB and I absolutely adore it, wearing it sparingly for high days and holidays. It's one of those perfumes that is like no other despite its comparisons to some other leather frags - this is in a league of its own. I wore it once and was followed by a smartly dressed woman who finally asked me what perfume I was wearing - an experience that was both flattering and alarming in equal measure. However being asked about this perfume when I wear it does happen a lot. I have concluded it suits me. It's almost narcotic , it's seductive, heady, uncompromising and completely intoxicating - this is the old version I mean. If you love the carnation/leather/clove accords this is a must. Try and get the older version. I think the newer version is not a (nicotine) patch on the original in my opinion.

My second review: Failed to find buyer for my kidney, I have to come up a cheaper way to copy the divine scent of Tabac Blond Parfum. 1. Steal a brand new pack of cigarette from your dad. Dump out all the cigarettes, keep the empty box. 2. Steal a brand new genuine calf leather handbag from your mom. Put all the cigarettes in, fill it up with some dried linden flower if possible, maybe a tad bit of make-up powder too (you can find it in your mother's dresser), then seal the bag. After three months, the handbag will smell like the body notes and the empty cigarette box scent can serve as a passable lingering basenote for Tabac Blond. Trust me, I've tried it myself, it definitely will save big money. Now I'm typing up this review in a nice shelter for homeless young people.

This is one my favorite "Leather Scents" I didn't realize ... there were other formulations .. I got mine from the source I had my bottle filled from one of the Fancy Fragrance Urns at Caron’s boutique on Avenue Montaigne in Paris. Smoky tobacco with Leather notes... hints of Spiced Carnation perhaps even Cloves...mixed in ... Settles on my skin with its warm sweet Vanilla base... I love it !!! I'm in love with Leather Scents and this one always competes with Chanel Cuir de Russie for TOP of the list ! If you got others to suggest ... let me know ... I'm a Fragrance Addict and would love to add to my ever growing collection... Had to apply this one at bedtime ... needed the comfort of this fragrance .. been having bad dreams .. perhaps this will bring me calm...

For those who would like to know the vintage TB: Knize 10 smells very very similiar. It's a 20s creation and hasn't been much reformulated, I guess. It's so vintage, that's it's unisex. I like the reformulation of TB as well, it's different, but very unique with extreme sillage and staying powder. Very vintage. It becomes better with age, rougher edgier and much more leathery. I always get compliments on it. A tiny drop is able to fill a room completly. If it would be a recent creation, it would get a lot of love; as a reformulation it gets compared to the vintage the whole time and fails. To glitteralex: Maybe you don't own TB, but Poivre? If so, you can call yourself lucky, as vintage Poivre is a gem and very very expensive. TB is bargain compared...

My lovely husband bought me a some of this from an urn in Fortnum and mason ( at my request). It was a blind buy but I'd read so much about it that I wanted to own it . I have never smelt the vintage formulation but it must be amazing if it's better than this. It has taken me a while to grow to love this fragrance but now I don't think I would want be without it. I wear it work quite often where I find it suits the environment ( I don't work with too many young go getters). It's not a compliment grabber or a crowd pleaser but it pleases me and I feel confident wearing it. This is a classic leather, tobacco and lipstick fragrance, it smells like my grandmothers handbag used to smell only a hundred times better. To my my mind a very wearable classic.

This is one of the most iconic and important perfumes of all time, heralding the popularity of leather perfumes and, to some extent, we have Tabac Blond to thank for sequential masterpieces like Cuir de Russie. The heart adopts the sweet, spicy note of loose Virginia tobacco. A dry carnation wrapping it in its own ‘Rizla’ paper, it is rough and rugged, hand-rolled by leather gloves in the candle-lit corner and wavering shadows. The smoking papery facet of stained browns becomes sour with lime and musk, it commands attention and confidence whether you can match it or not. It shares the unsettling character of Narcisse Noir which came just 8 years earlier, and exemplifies the sheer genius Ernest Daltroff held. A true masterpiece.

i read somewhere that debbie harry wears this. i'm not sure of the accuracy of it, but it made me want to look into the scent and here we are. this smells so 1920s to me and i love it. it starts off a dry tobacco and smoky carnation, then it sweetens up just a little bit with vanilla and cedar but still remains quite dry. i am not getting what i perceive as leather from this. i used to be a smoker, and it indeed smells similar to a pack of unsmoked cigarettes almost like clove cigarettes (but not as sweet), because of the carnation which gives it a spicy-clovey feel. the iris comes out a bit later adding a slight powderiness to this which i love.

For those who don’t get the tobacco smell, I believe this perfume simulates the taste of cigar instead of the everyday cigarette. By combining the leathery note with powdery iris and harsh, sharp carnation, it creates that really dry, earthy taste of aged whole tobacco leaves that carry a sweet undertone. It is not the usual harsh, stringent smell from processed and shredded cigarette tobacco that you would expect from a modern day tobacco scent. Further, this is a perfume that conveys beautifully the feeling and concept of tobacco, like an impressionist painting, hence for me, the quintessential tobacco scent without compare.

I just received my extrait de parfum from Paris and it's absolutely amazing. I can smell iris, vanille and carnation, little bit of leather (I wish it could be more). But I cannot detect any tobacco or smokiness, I kind of hoped for, but I do not miss it. The longevity is unbelievable, it lasts like 24 hours, which is very unusual on me. The drydown is sweet and sensual. It is not a sexy frag but very womanly. And there is nothing old-fashioned about it. It's very classy and in some way very contemporary. And for me the most important thing is that my husband loves it.

One thing that stands out from all the comments is how complex this perfume is! I can smell all the ingredients - not all at once of course - each time I smell it, I notice a different one or two of them. That's the joy of this scent, the sheer complexity. However, the smoky leather and vanilla and carnation dominate. It's androgynous but leaning towards the male. There is very little femininity in it. So I wouldn't describe it as a seduction perfume for women; it's more of a statement, a very interesting one. Which is what the nose who invented it meant it to be.

PERFECTION! I don't use the term lightly and I don't believe that I've ever used it in a review here before. Tabac Blond is out of this world. It's art. It's beauty. It's true fragrance perfection. I could give away every other bottle of perfume I own and just keep this one for the rest of my days and I'd be happy. The linden (lime blossom) is divine... really so very pretty. The leather is very mild. There's no sharpness or masculinity to it. Everything is in perfect balance. It's really perfection!! I don't even really know what else I can say about it.

I first tried this potion in the 80s, having received it in a set with Nocturnes, Belladogia, and Fleurs de Rocaille. Startling in contrast to the perfumes I knew, Tabac Blond was made of old leather jackets, just lit pipe tobacco, unknown herbs and plants with the freshly turned soil clinging to the roots, ambergris and vanilla, and something sharply citric that quickly dried and softened, but remained. Intriging in its complexity, strength, and lack of convention, it was less a perfume than a state of mind. Truly a magical, matchless gem of a perfume.

Not a review, but a humble request, F'net is selling Tabac Blond from Caron in a new bottle. I suspect this is the 2021 reformulation, and it is lovely. I doubt it is or could be the Daltroff original composition, if a Fragrantica writer is able to sample and review this (preferably with a comparison to the Daltroff Masterpiece) it would be a wonderful public service to so many devoted Fragrantica readers and contributors. Thank you so very much! 8-D

Sweet, heavenly leather. Warm, spicy, and thrilling waves enthrall me. Hidden notes in this could easily be cloves, frankincense and brandy. A few drops make me giddy and take me to an incense filled church, flowers on the altar, with an atmosphere of aged intensity. If ever a perfume could make you drunk, it is this. This is in the realm of Habanita by Molinard, and Sahara Noir by Tom Ford. I love them both, and I love this.

I'm checking in on this a few years later, LOL. Thank you to those who've shared their thoughts on the new juice. I'm wearing it tonight, on this Christmas Eve (like a nice Jewish girl should LOL). Happy holidays all of you yummy smelling fraggies. May we all have a wonderful New Year too! Cheers!

I liked this "old lady style" parfume. The thing that struk me was how perfect the name Tabac Blonde was for this parfume. It's tabac for sure, but something sparkling and bright that combines well with the idea of blonde. It reminds me of Mitzuko a lot. But lighter.

Tabac Blond has been a signature of mine for over 40 years. I wear the parfum and it sings gloriously, fits like a glove - a long black kid leather opera-length glove. I wear it in all seasons, whenever I feel like it ; I feel that it reflects who I am.

Bright and warm at the same time, like sunshine. Not overly feminine, due to it's subtle leathery, and green notes. Deep smoky carnation, but not too heavy, and much softer that La Nuit by Paco Rabanne. I would prefer stronger sillage. Beautiful!

This is the perfume. this is stored somewhere in our olfactory memory in generations I believe. To me its opulent and magnificent iris and tobacco. its a Parisian in a dress that smokes cigar on the horse in the sunlight with bruise on her face

This is my favorite. It is what I go to in fall, it feels tweedy, leathery, smoky, like being bundled up on a cold, windy fall day and slipping into a smoke filled pub.

I'd describe this as a perfume we all've heard once before from someone :) Soft and very gentle tobacco cream! Should not harm anyone, it's quite nice

Tabac Blond calms a restless soul. Sometimes Iconic formulas need no dissection. Not for modern noses.

I am once again on a quest, this time to find an EDT or EDP (parfum) that will not break the bank if worn every day! Creed's Jasmin Imperatrice Eugenie and Malle's Musc Ravageur will always be beloved. However, at nearly $250/75ml and $240/100 ml respectively, I must find more affordable alternatives if I wish to wear a fragrance every day...and I DO!!! I recently bought several fragrance samples and among them was Tabac Blond. I purchased the fragrance after reading so many positive reviews about it here on Basenotes and I’m glad I did!! I feel a bit confused by this fragrance but overall, I think I like Tabac Blond a lot. However, in order for me to purchase a fragrance and wear it often, I have to know that I really really like it, almost love it. I really want to love Tabac Blond but for some reason, I feel ambivalent about the fragrance. Like it, definitely...like it a lot, yes...love it, uh...not sure. For me, the opening is quite heady with lots of floral...carnation (of course), iris, ylang-ylang and other floral notes that I would NOT expect from an incense-leather-smoke fragrance. As others have stated, the opening is pure floral, like carnation floral...and lots of it, along with a wee-bit of smoke and leather. I did not find the opening to be overpowering or unpleasant...just surprising. Having said that, I wish the floral opening notes remained more prominent and not (as one writer stated) “just there to smooth out the rough edges of the other notes...there’s nothing floral about Tabac Blond.” So true, so true... Be careful what you wish for (I, wishing for more incense, smoke ‘n leather, less Oriental floral) because after a half hour or so, Tabac Blond morphed into a relatively nice, albeit mild mild mild solofleur that was positively choking with leather & smoke, perhaps a wee-bit of amber and vanilla, too...but leather...and smoke & carnation. More leather, I would say than smoke At times, I found the dry down almost too leathery and smoky for my tastes, at one point even questioning if my eyes were burning & tearing, if my throat was becoming scratchy and if I was having some difficulty breathing due to the overabundance of leather & smoke & some carnation-lolol. So, I LIKE Tabac Blond...I really do. It is a welcome departure from the usual and ordinary citrus-floral-amber Oriental. Yes, NOTHING really floral about this fragrance. I’m going to try a few other incense-smoke-leather samples and perhaps pass on buying a full bottle of Tabac Blond...for now. I would like to give Tabac Blond a fair try, which I do not think is possible with a few drops from a 2 ml sample. I’ll try this fragrance again and hope to fall in love.

This is a review for the current formulation of Tabac Blond Pure Parfum Extrait. Scent opens with powdered carnations and a creamy leather. The leather is strong on my skin, with an animalic, almost masculine undertone that reminds me of an old leather wallet my dad used to have, if it had been softened in vanilla and white musk. There's a sharpness running through this fragrance which i guess is probably the lime. The famous tobacco note is actually quite abstract. It smells like the dry, powdered paper in an empty packet of cigarettes, as opposed the smokiness i was expecting. There's no actual tobacco here, just the memory of it. A scented imprint of where it once was. Another reviewer commented that it was like sweetened, scented makeup powder. This is so powdery a floral, you can almost taste it in your mouth. Old lipstick, cigarette paper, dry tobacco leaves and a creamy floral scent. I imagine a night at the opera or a late night cinema outing (when going to the cinema meant dressing up in furs and gloves). 1/4ml of Tabac Blond Extrait lasts easily past 12 hours on my skin, at a moderate silage. Which is just as well, as a 15ml bottle of this could set you back £120 or more! I have mixed feelings about Tabac Blond. It's quite lovely enough (though powdery scents generally aren't my thing), but it doesn't 'wow' me. It's not as smoky or as dark as I thought it would be, and a lot less interesting. To be fair, the version I have is the current formulation which I am aware is quite different to the vintage one that everyone raves about. I like this scent, but not enough to justify its rather large price tag, nor am I a frequent guest at the sorts of events that would call for such an expensive scent. I also feel that at 20, I am too young for this fragrance. A glamorous 30+ would suit. However, what is considered expensive to one is no expense to the other. So if you have the means definitely give it a go! If my circumstances change, I would definitely consider buying this perfume again.

Totally speechless... What an incredible masterpiece this is! Like gold or pearl necklaces, and dresses made from finest black velvet. This is a perfume which has to be not smelled but rather experienced! Tabac Blond (I'm reviewing the Eau de Parfum here) was released in 1919 (same time as the legendary Mitsouko by Guerlain) as a perfume for women who smoked! It was a revolutionary concept, and also a revolutionary perfume in many ways because firstly, it was the first time that leather had been used in a woman's perfume and secondly, this was one of the very first tobacco fragrances! I think it's more revolutionary than Mitsouko though. It's a hard one to explain but I'll try to. What you get is dry, soft tobacco, like the paper which lines a pack of cigarettes, rather than the cigarettes themselves. Spicy carnation dominates, along with a gorgeous leather-iris combination and a hint of animalic notes. Damp cedarwood and dry, dark vanilla mixed with creamy ylang-ylang complete the base. This is unlike anything I've tried in a very long time. When I smell this I get two images, elegant balls and women dressed in black with white gloves and cigarette holders, marble floored ball rooms and the golden aura from crystal chandeliers. The other image I get is the women of the 1920's, androgynous women (this was reportedly a favourite of Marlene Dietrich). I don't get "flapper" or "loose woman" out of this. I get "rich woman who smokes"... and yes it's a lot like the smell of makeup and tobacco but at the same time is so deep and luxurious that it really deserves a few tries to really see the elegance in it. It really gives of an aura of gold and black and luxury. I can't explain it all any better than that, really. If you ever get the chance, please try and experience this. A legendary perfume.

I own a modern "parfum" version of this, 100 ml in cylindrical bottle. A tragic mistake has occurred. I wandered into a perfume boutique in Zurich and sprayed a Caron fragrance that I thought was Tabac Blond on my wrist. I went for this one because it was the only Caron I have heard of. I fell in love with the scent. It haunted me all day and all evening. I was determined to come back and buy it in the morning, but as an American, I did not consider that everything is shut down in Europe on Sunday. So I flew home without it. Back home I did locate it on the internets and bought my bottle... and it's the wrong perfume. Perfume I fell in love with had tobacco as the most prominent note. Tabac Blond has no tobacco in it, zero. I must have sprayed one of the other three fragrances by Caron that have "tabac" in the name. So now I am stuck with this gigantic bottle of Tabac Blond that I can't return. I do like it, but I certainly don't love it. It is too classy and too grown up. This is how perfumes smelled 100 years ago, no doubt. It is extremely heavy on aldehydes and carnations. The strength of it is unreal. Even if I used it every single day, it would last me like 15 years because 1 spray is more than one needs. I can see this on a beautiful older lady dressed in furs and diamonds, with silver hair, Birkin in hand. Someone like Helen Mirren or Jessica Lange. Myself, I just feel like a little girl playing dress up in it, despite my rapidly approaching 40's. I just can't pull this off even if I am dressed up.

Tabac Blond starts off with a potent leather note, combined with the soft, honeyed smell of Linden blossom (which works to take a bit of the "edge" off of the sharp leather). Carnation and clove quickly appear, lending a beautifully warm and spicy aroma. Cedarwood also becomes prominent in the early stages of dry down. I love the contrast between masculine and feminine here -- honey and leather, carnation and cedar. I don't necessarily smell tobacco (and oddly it's not listed as a note either), but Tabac Blond does have a smokey aura -- likely caused by the melding of wood, musk, and leather notes. Soft musk and vanilla become more obvious later in the progression, and the final phases of dry down are powdery, comforting and sweet. My only complaint is that the early leather stage passes all too quickly. Tabac Blond is surprisingly intimate, with moderate sillage. It has a sexy, languid vibe. It makes me think of sitting in a booth at the back of a smoky club, listening to jazz, smoking, drinking, and making eyes at a man in the crowd. It is also fascinatingly androgynous -- it's for the woman (or man) who is confident, but never aggressive or overly-showy. The wearer of Tabac Blond doesn't NEED attention, but he/she gets it anyway!

I am extremely fond of Tabac Blond EDT. I have not dipped my snout into any other vinatges or concentrations. I am satisfied with what my nose has to tell me now. I am not a smoker, never have been, never will, but my mother was. I remember picking up her cigarette pack and breathing in the stunning gourmand smell of tobacco leaves. It was an absolute crime when she lit them and they turned into noxious smoke vapour. Ernest has done a marvellous job of recreating that sweet, earthy, dry, delicious tobacco note in a perfume. It takes a few minutes to get to this stage as carnation is busy strutting around like a show pony. But once the tobacco develops I cannot keep myself from myself! Later on, the freshness of the tobacco is sweetened with vanilla condensed milk, a hitherto undiscovered delicacy. I don't pick up much leather here and no cedar whatsoever. This is an eminently feminine perfume and it would make an excellent alternative to mainstream woody perfumes if you are looking for something beautiful, unusual & special to wear.

Linden... what a delicious flower. It adds such a delicate, sweet, gummy candy scent that flirts with your heart. Along with powdery iris, the opening of Tabac Blond isn't so suggestive of tobacco, but more like sweet, dense, honeyed pollen in a flower shop. Carnation adds an intriguing acerbic, metallic-like vein that strikes through the fragrance from beginning to drydown, giving this some aloof chic to contrast with the welcoming floral talc. And you really can't help but get lured into the soft, sueded patchouli folds of this beauty when ylang ylang starts to warm you with its creamy, fruity floral petals, moistened with a steamy, woody exhale. Not a whole lot of literal leather or tobacco to my nose, but Tabac Blond is very evocative of the seductive smokiness that these accords can deliver. Coquettish, swanky, classic, Tabac Blond is for bombshells and bluebloods alike who seek abandon.

Ready for a little more grief about reformulation? After having, and enjoying, a decant of the extrait I now tried the vintage formula. Its even richer and more golden. The aromatic tobacco, the leather, the lime - all golden. I percieve it as warmer and not so dry as the recent formula. The carnation is as beautiful as can be when melted with the golden accord. A little vanilla in the base adds soft sweetness in the drydown. This could have been quality niche from 2011 aswell as a 1919 vintage. An unique and attractive sensation, I understand why it is still loved and in production. There are other Carons closer to my heart, but I'd be very happy to have some of this aswell. Very good lastingpower, moderate sillage.

I"m coming back to Tabac Blonde after first trying it seven months ago. During that time I increased my exposure to leathers and the Caron suite of urn parfums, and was curious to see if my experience wiht TB would change. The opening tests my patience, as the carnation is just too sweet and the leather too rough. After 2 1/2 to 3 hours the dry florals kick in, and I am much happier; this is the phase i liked best the first time around. in the end, however, this sits just below a 'love' from me. For everythin I like in this fragrance I can point to another that does it better. But i highly recommend it to anyone looking for a leather, becase tastes differ and this one should not be passed by.

This is an exquisite golden tobacco perfume from the great house of Caron. It's luxurious, mature, complex and very sensual, transforming any woman wearing it into a classy rich goddess. The leather and carnation add spice and a naughty twist to the more classical base of vanilla, (light) patchouli and musk. I'm very much in love with this fragrance, I adore its opulence and impressive style, but it is at the same time quite demanding and it would take a lot of self-confidence and a very fashionable outfit to pull off this one. Not to mention golden jewelry seems like a must when wearing this. By far the best tobacco I've tried to far.

For the EDT: The opening had me thinking, incense!, but then as it warmed up I was able to pick out the leather, cedar, vetiver and carnations. As it fully settled on my skin a few hours later the vanilla sweetened it up and it became quite nice. This wears fairly close to the skin on me. The leather in this is sweetened up by the vanilla keeping it from getting to heavy and old. The cedar and vetiver give depth and keep it interesting. The carnation gives it that little floral "lady like" feel, with a slight hint of pepper. A well crafted juice, just not my personal style.

Tabac Blond parfum: One of the sexiest tobacco-leathers. It smells like an expensive, vintage, transparently smoky, leathery, powdery vanilla with a slightly boozy touch. A tiny bit scandalous and a whole TON of elegance. It reminds me of the Prohibition era. Tabac Blond EDP: A lot of sharp cloves. Not much else. Maybe some sweaty hair in the background. I love this fragrance, and I miss it.

A delightful fragrance. Very sharp, very fresh and has a zinging sensation that is quite interesting. Very unisex. It grows more powdery as it sits... I would be elated to try an older version of the fragrance, as it does feel that things have been hushed up in some ways. Overall a perfectly decent powdery carnation/leather fragrance. 6.5/10

Dusty old books, unlit cigarettes, old leather- this is fantastic for a man or a woman. There's no sweetness or fruit or any of that, just a dry, rather masculine blast from the past. Really beautiful if you're looking for an excellent Leather note scent.

The nostalgia is hitting hard here.. this smells exactly like walking into the Asian store that has the plane t shirts, weave, house slippers, and incense.. it smells exactly like that.. I may have to get a FB just on GP.

When I first received this and sniffed, It was instantly something I'd smelled many times throughout my life, but I'd never known it was Tabac Blond all these years. I've applied it both on paper and on skin, and in short this is what I get; Heavy, leathery, smokey (like tobacco) and dry - all with a floral-woodiness to surround it. . . .This gives me a headache if I'm exposed for more than 5 minutes, mostly due to how loud of a scent as it is. (and this was just from a drop on the wrist). There's no doubt that this is a high-end fragrance, although, if it was softer somehow, I think i'd be able to appreciate it more. Unfortunately this is nauseating to me. I think you either will love this scent or hate it. But regardless, the sillage is enormously heavy and the longevity is excellent! This is certainly worth trying, but do buy a sample first to see if you love it. . or not.

I had to take back my earlier review on this saying there is no smokey/leathery notes. Actually there is a smell of tobacco. I could not locate it on my wrist but today I applied the perfume on my neck/chest. About an hour later I was wondering why I smelled like tobacco. Folks. I smoke and I could never detect such tobacco stink on myself (which I regret to say but is the nasty one, like when you spend the night in a club where smoking is allowed and you sniff your clothes the morning after, if you dare). So I would say myself I do not find tobacco unattractive but do not fancy this one :(

This review is for the new Caron in the round bottle. I have no history with the vintage ones so I don't know what this is "supposed" to smell like. I get a massive carnation note on top of some incense and some florals, maybe iris? It smells very old fashioned and somehow reminds me of Mitsouko. I don't get any tobacco notes.

This is listed as a leather fragrance, but I don't get leather or tobacco here. Just lots of iris and carnation and a generally old fashioned powder+spice+floral impression. I have a sample of the newest formulation so maybe older versions are more distinctive.