Rouge

This is such an under appreciated gem of a fragrance. Strange, naturalistic and agricultural, grounded, but very modern and wearable at the same time. I immediately get beetroot, particularly in the opening. A bit strange, but very addictive. You might expect it to smell like borscht or something, but it doesn't, instead it exaggerates the most attractive, sweet, almost candied aspects of the root, and yeah, I realize that I probably sound a bit like Dwight Schrute (and I'm sure he would love this scent as well) but it really makes them beets seem...sensual? The earthy, metallic sweetness almost makes me think of blood and it definitely has that sexy vampire vibe. Thankfully, it's not all about the opening as it also features CDG's iconic incense, and for me, this is one of the best incense notes in the entire fragrance industry, it dries down to a mineralic, slightly churchy frankincense & patchouli base that accentuates the beetroot's earthy nuances and amplifies the gothic atmosphere. I agree with the commenter below me who mentioned aldehydes, they certainly play a major role here, and I'll add that a friend of mine has said that it reminds her of bath salts and I can definitely see why she would make that comparison. Rouge is an elegant scent, but it has a playful side, it doesn't lean too mature and it doesn't take itself too seriously. It's also well above average in terms of performance. Despite everything that I've said implying otherwise, it's not actually particularly dark or heavy, it's quite fresh and clean, and while I wouldn't wear it in the dead of summer, I find it surprisingly versatile, and that's why it's one of my all time favorites.

Picture it: New York City, 2014. You're on the Q line, and you lock eyes with a beautiful bearded man; hair up in a pontail and yogamat slung over his shoulder. He's wearing harem pants- you don't care. You can hear Fleet Foxes playing through his second gen iPod Touch. You coyly tap your toes along to "Mykonos" as your eyes occasionally linger for just a little too long. At every stop you contemplate disembarking, but instead you bring yourself to stay on the train until he gets off at the Union Square stop. You follow him across the street and all the way up the second floor of an old industrial building that houses JivamukTea Cafe and Yoga Studio. (now permanently closed.) You can smell the metallic whirring of smoothie blenders, juice machines, and it's humid inside the only way a gentrified yoga-studio-slash-cafe could get in the early twenty-teens. He sits down with his battered copy of Rimbaud and freshly squeezed beet juice, and you tap his shoulder to play the fool and ask what he's reading. His neck radiates the ghosts of patchouli oil and his own sweet sweat. As he speaks, the muggy aftertaste of beet juice wafts in your direction and makes contact with your own dripping pheromones, his incense tinged musk, and the herbal humidity of the yoga cafe. He doesn't speak english; only broken words through his alluring Belgian-French. You fall in love. You make love in the grotesquely small single stall cafe bathroom. You never see him again. THAT is what Comme Des Garcons Rouge smells like.

Read reviews before buying a fragrance, but take them with a grain of salt. Everyone has their own opinion regarding smells. Some people love it. Some people hate it. My advice is for you to get a sample of ANY fragrance before you ever buy it. That way, you can assess it yourself and have your thoughts, rather than strictly going off someone else's thoughts and opinions. I agree with Francesco02. The colors that remind me of Rouge are red (of course), gray, and pink. Rouge is a vegetal scent that obviously comes from the beetroot note; however, there is a slight coldness to this fragrance that emphasizes the gray color mentioned earlier. I think it's the mint and candied ginger working together with the vegetative scent of the beetroot, but there is also something pink to Rouge's smell. Unlike Francesco02, the scent is not necessarily a loud, bright neon pink, but there is a soft, pale, subtle cotton candy pink vibe. Rouge is a sweet, vegetal, ambery fragrance on my skin. I would not say that it is sickly sweet, but I would NOT SPRAY MORE THAN THREE SPRAYS, especially if you are a guy like me that likes unisex, feminine-leaning fragrances. Just don't overdo it. Then, it will be sickly sweet. Rouge is perfect for women, and certain men can pull this off without any qualms. I think this is a great scent for the daytime in the fall and spring, and it is a great summer nighttime scent when it's not overly hot and sweltering. As I stated earlier, I like it. Two thumbs up from me!!!

My favourite in the entire range by far. I first found it pushed to the very back of the CDG display, as it was obviously out of stock. So smelling the tester which they didn’t want me to smell suddenly had much more forbidden allure. At first spray on a strip, I dismissed it in favour of Cement and Wonderwood which initially were better. But luckily I sprayed one uninterested spray onto my arm. As Cement and Wonderwood were losing their charm, Rouge was evolving as the much better fragrance. It reminded me a little of Wonderwood but without the Encre Noire element and with brighter, glistening notes of beetroot and ginger. Later that day (once I had washed off the other scents) I made sure to liberally spray this all over my neck. It’s herbaceous, aromatic and spicy with the usual CDG incense but it’s uplifting like a red hot chilli with a sparkling pomegranate ruby. I wasn’t expecting to enjoy the beetroot note so much, but it’s very realistic and amazing in this fragrance, especially when combined with the fresh ginger. I’m told I’m filling the room with my “amazing smell”. I’m smelling the top I was wearing when I sprayed it (as it clings to fabric very well) and I’m getting rosemary with other green herbs, pink pepper and fresh red chilli chopped up with ginger and pressed beetroot juice. I will get myself a bottle of this as I can’t fault it, it’s just so easy to wear for every occasion. A very good (unisex) fragrance indeed.

If you love Incense, labdanum, ginger, pepper and above all BEETS, check this out. I've been waiting for my bottle of Rouge patiently since its release date and it did not disappoint. First off, there is a truckload of beetroot in this. Anyone who can't feel it, either have never smelled/eaten beets or needs a PCR test asap. Plot twist: beet root can be sexy in a fragrance. Who knew? Rouge starts off with loads of incence (along the lines of Epic Woman Amouage and Floriental CDG), pepper, ginger and patchouli. The similarities with Epic and Floriental are just an idea of the general mood, Rouge is much softer and almost sneaky quiet compared to them. But it does get under your skin with finesse. This initial blast of Incence and spice is soon going down to a ground level by the beets and their earthy, slightly sweet, flesh-like soil aroma and it stays until the end, as does the incence. Opening and mid phase is thick but in no way heavy and lingers between sweet-tart and barely bitter, just like the sediment of a nice red wine bottle. Lasting power on skin: 6+ hours solid, before it becomes a skin scent. The one thing I don't feel at all from the pyramid is mint. Moderate sillage within arm's length. Versatility: I have no trouble wearing this day or night, Rouge is such a seductive, comforting scent. A big YES for ME ♥️

Let’s be honest when a perfume’s notes list includes "beetroot" and "sticky incense," you don’t buy a bottle you buy a therapy session. But here I am, three samples deep, writing a love letter to a scent that smells like a gothic farmer’s market in the best possible way. Rouge is not a fragrance; it’s a ceremonial clash of elements that somehow ends in a truce. It opens with a crisp, almost shocking freshness, spicy peppercorn and ginger that snap you to attention before veering hard into smoky, resinous depths. And that beetroot? In lesser hands, it would smell like you fell into a salad bar. Here, it cuts through the incense like a electric pink lightning bolt, grounding the "transcendental" with a root vegetable reality check. It’s earthy, ethereal, and slightly unhinged. I love it. This is an acquired taste, and I say that with the reverence of someone who has smelled the vanilla bomb wasteland of modern department stores. If you like perfumes that whisper "I’m approachable," move along. This one says, "I have opinions, and you might not like them." Living in the Pacific Northwest, I can confirm this juice was made for cold, crisp air. The trail it leaves behind is intoxicating, smoky and slightly sweet, cutting through the drizzle like a bonfire at the edge of a forest. In winter it’s pure magic.

Huh.... This smells more like tumeric to me than any perfume I’ve ever smelt with tumeric notes actually listed in them. So bizarre. I smell the beets immediately but they are sitting side by side with the ambery resins and not blending well but after about 15/20 minutes they start to get along and merge into this tumeric aroma. I’ve been searching for something like this but I didn’t think I’d find it here so that’s cool Update: I like it more and more. I know some people say it’s not that unique and I wouldn’t consider it unique in like a challenging way many of my favorite perfumes are. It is after all mainly a frankincense perfume through and through let’s be real. But there are little nuances in how everything else around the frankincense sets this apart. It’s that subtle touch that really displays taste and discernment in the perfumers nose. It’s mesmerizing and also the more I wear it I get a strong tingling camphor thing going on. Which is my favorite quality for a scent to have it makes scents so multidimensional and enrapturing. My coworkers moan when they smell it. Fathers mothers even the assholes that never speak to anyone stop and breathe it in and go ahhhh that smells amazing!

This was a love at first sniff for me! It's a bit hard to describe, and in my opinion it's very unique. This opens very tart (like a tart fruit), a bit zingy (I'm guessing from frankincense couple with ginger), and very slightly soapy. This deepens pretty quickly becoming sweet, warm, and spicy, while still remaining quite tart. I do get the impression of beets, but that may only be because I know it's a note in the fragrance. It's like beets that have been boiled and then roasted. I get a lot of incense and resins, and at a point in the opening it's also slightly smoky. This doesn't have woody notes listed but it definitely gives the impression of woods especially in the dry down. There is also something earthy about it- I'm not sure if that's the beet root or the patchouli, or both. The dry down is woody, spicy, resinous, and still there is a tartness to it. To me this is gourmand, but not in the sense of a dessert...there is something mouthwatering and even addictive about this fragrance. The performance is outstanding, lasting well over 12 hours. I would consider this completely unisex.

Oh, dang! This one is so interesting. It opens with an eye-opening burst of spiciness that’s just incredible. I definitely pick up freshly grated ginger, paired with the pink pepper and mint. It’s somehow both warm and bright. It’s utterly surprising and magical; I could not stop smelling my wrist for the first hour. As that delicious spice opening wears away, I’m left with the most intoxicating incense. Typically, when I see incense listed as a note, I clock it as smokiness in the actual fragrance. But this is clear, bold incense, the kind you would smell at a Catholic mass. It has its own spiciness, which blends so beautifully with the peppery ginger opening. So, what of the beets? Buried under everything there is an earthy sweetness that presumably comes from the beet note. My nose doesn’t quite distinguish it literally as beets, but it’s there. It grounds the fragrance in a subtle and necessary way. I wasn’t sure what to expect from Rouge, but it definitely wasn’t a spicy, earthy Catholic mass. Just gorgeous.

Wow, I love Rouge!! I happen to love beets and their earthy smell too. I do get an earthy beet note, and ginger and pink pepper for sure. I know rhubarb isn’t listed, but it seems to be present. I don’t get the labdanum or incense, or a definable Patchouli. It’s bright without being sweet or sour, smoother than I’d imagine, and a very easy wear. The dry down has a sort of musky softness. I’m sure the base notes are creating this softness, but do not define themselves individually. I sampled this on a whim, liked it so much that I quickly ordered a small decant, and will definitely add a full bottle to my collection! I can see this becoming a spring/summer favorite, though I am certainly enjoying this now at the end of October! One of my favorite books is Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins. Throughout the story, there is an obsessive drive to recreate an ancient perfume formula and figure out the main note. Spoiler alert: it happens to be beet! I’ve always wondered what that might smell like, now I know!

This one is tricky. On my first try I really disliked it, as I only smelled strong chemical notes, almost like entering laboratory when something toxic is spilled on floor and vapors are fuming everywhere. As time went on I had sample of this and tried again on my skin. Completely different experience. To this day really distinguish any specific tones except the pepper so I'll try my best to describe it through a feeling i get: It's almost like entering a dream and being able to experience a kind of synesthezia of smelling and feeling colour. Its earthy, sharp, ozonic almost. Being in a storm of colors where earth and flowerish vibes combine while the lightining giving the specific petrichor note to it. Its like being on psychedelics and having your senses amplified I smelled hundreds of perfumes and none is close to a feeling this one evokes.

It's hard to describe the feelings this scent produces in me. It's warm, lovely, yet mysterious, dangerous. It opens with a warm smell of pink pepper and beetroot that being us in the middle of a countryside, surrounded by people who have a deep link with that earth. Then it's sunset, the Smokey part and incense take place and we realize that those people are attending to a Sabbath in the middle of the forest. But you don't feel threatened, somehow you find yourselves in the right place. This Perfume is magical, intellectual but visceral, complex. I really don't understand all the bad reviews about it. If I need to find a flaw I would say that performance are not the best and sillage is moderate (my flatmate could barely smell it), but it's the main characteristic of CdG scents. Definitely my signature scent.

“I’m so non-physical...” Polymorphic, Whimsical, Edgy. 3 adjectives that come to mind to describe this fragrance. I smell this and picture many things: a Sabbath in the woods, an alternative kid wearing tartan, a church seen inside a dream, a nightclub frequented by vampires. It’s earthy, yet surreal and fluorescent, painting a Lynchian picture of petrichor, incense and pepper. There’s a wet earth-y sweetness at its core given by the beetroot, which adds an almost bloody effect to the fragrance, enveloped by an aura of the most glamorous ethereal incense, with pink pepper and ginger at the opening to give it a dazzling kick. Blood red, slate grey and neon pink all at once. If this perfume were songs: Bunny Is A Rider - Caroline Polachek; Spellbound - Siouxsie & The Banshees; Blue Monday - HEALTH

Rouge starts with sharp, cold, metallic, and a lil bit soapy aldehydes (C12MNA) with incence and huge amount of rubbery-tropical pink peppercorn. Classic rose-patchouli combination turns into minty geranium-patchouli, so it’s smells quite familiar, totally but different simultaneously. Big amount of resins, I’d like to say tolu balsam with almost fruity aspects, but I’m almost sure that is just combination of smth like labdanum and berries such raspberry and fermented plums (rose ketones-like note with plenty of peppercorn). Drydown is cold wet earthy and rooty patchouli & vetiver. I guess I can name it neochypre btw: aldehyde-citrusy start, labdanum and patchouli-vetiver base. There are a lot of hommages to classical niche scent in Rouge, like Avignon, Portrait of a Lady, Casbah, and so in.

CdG delivering their trademark modernity and incense laden vibes, laced with fresh ideas. The pink pepper and ginger of the opening give a sharp, piquant, almost tart, sweetness. The incense accord is both effervescent with olibanum and dense and grounded with labdanum. Then there's this evocation of beetroot, a kind of earthy thread throughout, probably created with careful dosing of cresols or geosmin, or a patchouli type material, fascinating effect. What I love is that it's not the easiest wear, it provides some resistance and even challenge at times, and despite being instantly gratifying to fans of this sort of perfumery, (which I really am) it still evolves throughout the wear. I felt it was a must have for me considering how much I love the brand and the idea of a beetroot accord.

Comme Des Garcons is an interesting house, not only in there clothing but also in their fragrances. Like their clothing brand there is much focus on an avant garde feel, with their fragrances. Rouge is no exception; I originally got a chance to sample rouge at the store and was instantly drawn in by the sweet tanginess of beets tossed in balsamic vinegar. The mint provided a sense of freshness creating a beet salad; as the fragrance dried down I was left with a sweet amber incense that lingered and would not go away. The next day when I went to smell my apple watch strap from the wrist I could still smell the scent quite clearly. This is probably one of my favorite scents and the closest to becoming my signature. Highly recommend sniffing this one. -D

I, fortunately, work in between two Comme Des Garcons stores in central Tokyo (Omotesando). I frequent the stores on occasion and have built rapport with the staff at the flagship store. One of the store managers and I got to talking about fragrances and they shared that Rouge is singular in the CDG's collection, given how sexy it is as a fragrance. The house is not known for doing sexy as much as awkward, quirky, or punk fragrances. Rouge is a promiscuous deviant but is in line with CDG's incense repertoire. It is captivating, memorable, elusive, and magnetic. It encapsulates a romance that begins with an energetic flirty blush to a post-coital flush. A genuinely red experience.

a bombardment of compliments is imminent when putting this on. It is so unusual but not at all grating. The notes seem wild and almost repulsively random, but the combination is divine. From an understated fruit and green patchouli opener to the light touch of pink pepper and the soft white incense and mild saponic drydown, I am HOOKED. Layers extremely well with Margielas Bubble Bath for a more soapy, coconutty affair or with Odeur 71 for a more masculine mecha skin touch. I wear this masterpiece day/night and for every season. and for someone that doesnt believe in signature scents, i have gotten known for this.

I still remember the day I first sprayed Rouge on myself—it was such a magical, almost orgasmic experience. Love at first smell! It continued to amaze me throughout the day as the notes unfolded one after another. The final dry down was divine—a comforting and enchanting soapy scent that reminded me of something from the past I couldn’t quite place. Rouge is such a unique fragrance with an out-of-the-box concept, but at the same time, still very likable and wearable. It gets a 10/10 just for the magical feeling it gives me every time I wear it!

I'm trying to describe the scent. It is important to remember that this brand is focused on conceptual things, be it clothes or fragrance. After a few hours, the brightness of the smell decreases. But it is still the same dry, smoky, “morning after a party” smell. The smell of smoky clothes. And it’s wonderful, from “start” to “end”. No catch. Clean. The beets, which a villager (maybe))), a city dweller and a partygoer feel so clearly will not find here. I don't want to disappoint anyone. The perfume is amazing. Wonderful smoky "afterparty"👌

Rouge has been one of my 3 go to fragrances over the last year. It shines through in the spring season I found. The fresh, herbaceous, balanced sweetness and savouriness from the beetroot and ginger is beautiful. As it settles, I found more of the smoky incense, amber and pepper shone through. At first glance, this is an easy going simple fragrance, but with some time and inspection, this is a complex scent that explores many different accords. Fair longevity and projection as well. Love this! 9/10

This one surprised me , this is probably the first time I’ve tried an incense that doesn’t make feel like you’re at a temple at all and using such a particular note (beet) in a way that’s appealing. The spiciness in this is also not abrasive or demanding to only be worn in colder months. A blend of notes that seems like would be maddening but it’s done with solid cohesion. To say I’d buy a bottle within the first wear would be impulsive but it’s very beautiful to me

At this point, for me... Comme Des Garçons can do no wrong. I own Avignon, Kyoto, and concrete. I tested Rouge and it’s a winner as well. Sophisticated and polished. This fragrance is beetroot (who knew) ginger and mint. Plus there’s incense that no one does like CDG. This is elegant yet approachable. I will say while this is unisex, I don’t know if this is for a younger audience. It has a debonair feel to it in my humble opinion. This will be my next purchase.

This is definitely a departure from the woderwood/wonderoud/floriental CdG scents of last decade and has more in common with CdG 2 (thanks to the pachouli note) than with any other pebble bottle/Puig CdG scent. Wearable, yet intriguing and very CdG. Opens up with beetroot and pink pepper, which quickly give way to a pachouli, ginger and incense dominant dry down. A must have for any CdG fan. Excellent longevity and sillage. Brilliant!

hate beets but god i love a beet note staying power on this is INSANE like some of the best i’ve ever tried. sprayed it on at like 10 and could still smell it about as well as when i sprayed it 8 hours later. 100% will be picking up a full bottle of this. a fascinating vegetal (almost reminds me of tomato soup tbh) fragrance and like nothing i’ve ever owned before. also the bottle is beautiful.

Wearing this sparingly for the past year and really like rouge, one of my favorites from CDG. I’ve gotten familiar enough that now i can sort of pinpoint what was making me so nostalgic. Im not saying they are the same but when i take a whiff of my wrist i get reminded of perry ellis 360 mens (the blue juice) a cologne i wore in high school. This obviously better quality and its own thing

My signature scent. If i could only have one perfume for the rest of time, it would be this one. The ginger-beet-patchouli mix is so good, sweet yet hippie-ish. The biggest compliment getter too. This could work in any season, it smells amazing when melted onto summer skin. God forbid CDG ever discontinues this as there is truly nothing like it.

sweet, warm but fresh. only a touch vegetal. the color of the bottle is perfect. yes its red, but its not a 100% opacity red. its extremely unique while being very very wearable. you could wear this at any occasion and any season. it could be an amazing signature scent... it’s very modern and I love it. It’s gorg.

Rouge reminds me of what a flower nursery / garden smelled like as a kid; extremely nostalgic. Floral fresh but with a sweet, natural earthy delicious intensity. Borderline edible. Extremely unique as are all the CDGs I've tried. This one is probably signature scent-worthy, but just not for me. 8/10

I don’t really get beetroot at all. But I get something earthy and zingy. Peppery and sexy. Soo beautiful and cool, would be incredible on a stylish man actually. Signature scent worthy. I’m surprised people actually think this is anything odd or polarizing

I sprayed this then went outside to a warm sunny day and instantly amplified the notes of beetroot ginger and mint and creates this clean spritz scent that's chic. Comme de garcons fragrances are avant garde and outstanding. Very artistic.

Why would you sample a beetroot perfume then get mad it smells like beetroot? What did u think it was gonna smell like? We told u the notes break down told u every step of the way you were warned. Sometimes I wonder

Very well done incense that comes off as clean. The beets and ginger add just enough to differentiate it and "sweeten", similar to what a fruit note is to oud. Masterpiece

Rouge is amazing! It's very bright, bold, and optimistic. I love how it opens bright and juicy and later incense and labdanum make it more earthy and woody. I love it.

this fragrance is sickly sweet and beety. like a russian candy shop. somewhere between cheery cola and ginger sachets from a sushi place

Smells like woodstock in the 70s. Dated yet timeless. Gives off a rebellious yet good natured vibe. Its a 9 from me!

orthodox church, two-headed calf, beets in damp soil, flowers on unmarked grave, loss and gain, metamorphosis

Incense in this one is as gorgeous as the one in Loewe 7. Mm! Chef’s kiss!

It has everything I like in a perfume. Instant Love.

It’s dirty, fresh and earthy. Love it.

On me, this is ginger through and through. Not a dry, powdered ginger you might bake with, or a fresh, earthy ginger root: no, this is Japanese gari, the pickled ginger you get on the side with your sushi. This ginger is wet, spicy, and briny. It fades in a linear fashion during the life cycle of this fragrance, with the pickling smells slowly overtaking the ginger itself. The ginger in the opening shouts, instantly recognizable and sharp, like a display in a health food store. Three to four hours in, however, much of what remains is the strong smell of pickling, with vinegar and herbs, and the suggestion of ginger softened into the background. I smell vinegary brine, along with, perhaps, dill. This is no cucumber dill pickle, however; the vegetal matter being pickled here is piquant, homey, and sharp, with dill notes like those found in homemade pickles, not in the industrial jars of green liquid found in the store. Five to six hours in, as the ginger fades entirely and the pickling herbs begin to die away, there's a faint whisper of sweet smoke that could be incense. Rouge makes you savor every moment of the savory vegetable smells, and rewards you with a hint of something smoky-sweet clinging to your skin at the end. At this point, I'll readily believe the leftover whiffs of pickling vinegar suggest beets, in all their earthy, briny glory. This scent is linear for a long while, and the twist towards a touch of smoke and earth in the drydown is an unexpected and amusing trick. I picked up this sample for the beetroot. I actually don't detect anything I'd call beets here (except perhaps the suggestion of pickled beets in brine) and I've had a beet or two in my day. As a ginger lover, however, I'm surprised and enthralled. This is not a baking ginger, but a loud, wet, taunting, biting ginger that lets everyone know it is alive and it can fight. I don't get mint or even incense, either; all I get is ginger, lovingly pickled in a fascinating bath of vinegar and herbs. Is Rouge the correct color moniker for this fragrance? Not for me. This is a sunny orange or salmon-colored pickled ginger smell, with bursts of bright yellow spice. This fragrance makes me crave something sweet. I sampled Mecheri's Ume on one arm today and this on the other, and alternating between the sugary plum cake and the pickled root vegetables was olfactory heaven. This one is a little challenging and a lot gimmicky, but impressive and charming nonetheless. I'm not quite sure what sorts of occasions demand I smell like Japanese pickled ginger, but I look forward to them.

This is a wonderful petrichor incense perfume. It's not red, though. It's a lot of browns, beiges, grays, blacks, and greens instead. What's supposed to make it red - or give the impression of red - is the smell of beetroot, which the perfume definitely conveys in a very convincing manner. But, two things: 1) this is going to be lost on people since a shockingly large number of people couldn't tell you what beets smell like, so how/why would they recognize this as red/purple beets, and 2) beets don't smell colorful, not in the way flowers or fruits do for example. Beets smell of wet, sweet, woody earth, similar to rotting oak wood, which is to say... erm... brown. That aside, this very convincing beetroot note is flanked in the top by smooth peppercorns and ginger, a bit of geranium as a wingman in the heart, and a good heaping dose of incense and green, peppery patchouli in the base. The peppercorns and ginger are bracing and attention grabbing, without tickling your nose to the point of sneezing. Well rounded, tightly fruity, and spicy. The geranium helps make sure the funky, rotting, wet compost smell of beets doesn't go too far down the road of no return by using its camphoraceous side to lift the beet accord into the air. The incense and the patchouli base dominates most of this perfume's rather long life on my skin. The incense is a bit tarry and sharp, but also very pleasant and deep, calling to mind frankincense that might be billowing smoke a bit too quickly. The patchouli is a natural connection to the peppery, green, and earthy notes that came before. All in all, I have a very solid opinion of this perfume. I like it quite a bit. It's artistic and different, but it also smells good. However, I struggle to think when I'd want to specifically wear it. I have plenty of perfumes that do artistic better, and plenty that do "smell good" better, and plenty that do both better. I think, then, this is a unique, artistic, petrichor incense perfume for the non-collector; the person who wants something interesting that smells good, but doesn't want to put in the effort or time to look that hard, or a lot money to curate a collection with some rarer and higher-tier curiosities - both of which are completely valid and understandable. For the person that wants something along these lines, but easily accessible, I'll point them to Rouge all day long.

Sampled this for fun while searching for a signature year-round scent. When I tested it on a strip my first words were “Wow, this is sultry,” followed by, “It’s beets in dirt!” On the skin it also opened with very obvious “beets just pulled out of the dirt” and spicy fresh ginger, both of which I love. Not much pink pepper on the opening for me. Unfortunately the beets don’t last long though, and after about 20 minutes they disappeared and an interestingly sweet smell came through alongside the ginger that reminded me of vanilla. Like a ginger ice cream sweetness, not sure which note that’s from, but maybe the labdanum. Then after an hour or so it was down to just the warm spicy incense and patchouli with a hint of the ginger left. Never got the mint but green aromatics tend to disappear on me for some reason. This is definitely not the year-round signature I’ve been looking for - way too warm and spicy for a hot summer day. But it would be delicious for a cool fall stroll in the woods or the pumpkin patch.

I like the earthy and dewy mid-high that this has from the ginger and beets. It's very subdued and soft, a bit like a really warm comforting ambient album. A tremendous spring wear in my opinion. On the other hand, there's something about the base that really bother me. CDG doesn't shy away from heavy use of synthetics and it usually works, but the lower register here feels like brutalist building plunked in the middle of a nature reserve. I'm not sure what it is exactly but I feel like the few people pointing out to oud in other reviews might be referring to the same thing. This sort of sweet amberwoody accord thing that almost goes into Boccanera territory. Makes me a tad nauseous on the wrong day. Still quite good but would be a 10/10 if it had a bit more zing and the base was turned down or smoothed out in some way.

Opens smelling like an expensive juice shot - what if you made a 'gourmand' scent where the edible notes are herbs and vegetables? I think the beetroot note reads more as carrot to me, there's definitely something sweet-root-vegetable but it's not got the intense earthiness of beetroot, but carrot juice doesn't work as well for the 'rouge' story I suppose. Healthy and refreshing opening eventually dries down to a less assertively weird, sexy incense-patchouli base that sticks around for hours and hours and hours. Probably not 'wearable' for the office but absolutely for warehouse parties, gallery openings, etc. Surprised the fragrantica consensus leans toward 'daytime' on this - to me this is 100% to be worn in the dark.

Let's start off by saying this doesn't really smell all they much like beets, and that's probably a good thing for most people. There are vegetal notes and deep earthy notes for sure, but those are earthy notes as opposed to dirty notes. The characteristic smell of beets comes from geosmin which is also found in dirt. I don't detect any geosmin in CDG Rouge, and its a very powerful and distinctive chemical, so I'm about 98% sure there's none here. It's still a very original and interesting smell. The contrast of the minty notes with the earthy and smoky notes is pretty cool. Well worth smelling and truly reminiscent of the scent of Tokyo for me, but not sure this would ever be a daily wearer for me.

Incense bomb on my skin. Though it opens with peppery ginger, it just turns into a full-on incense attack after 15 minutes. I can still get some of the other notes, such as the pepper, patchouli, mint, and that chromed-red undertone, but still, the incense is too strong. If you love incense perfumes, this could make a sultry autumn-winter addition to your wardrobe for your nights out. If not, try with caution. Projection is crazy, but I don't know how long it lasts because I got home after testing it, and my partner politely demanded me to shower. But even after a shower, I can still smell the incense on my hand after rubbing it with scented shower gel. 7/10

On me this opens with bright cranberry (sauce), pine, and pink peppercorn. This quickly fades into the heart of (very sweet) beetroot and incense. Beetroot lends its earthiness and sweetness but it’s well balanced with the cranberry carrying over into the heart. Eventually the cranberry fades, leaving the beetroot and incense along with some woodiness (I would say birch). It’s definitely much softer and less clinical than most CDG offerings, unfortunately also less longevity and sillage for me. It’s a wonderfully funky winter/holiday scent but is too weak to cut through the cold weather (not that you would need to wear this “out” due to the pandemic).

The best performing incense offering from CDG. A bit like a ‘remix’ of the incense series. The beetroot note was only obvious to me after it was pointed out, otherwise it just smelled like a an abstract gingery incense. Have received compliments on it, which I haven’t on others from the incense series i think mostly because they don’t perform. Toes a good line between intrigue, weirdness and class. Even though I probably like other scents from the incense series more based on notes and composition alone (Avignon) think I will buy 100mls of this as it actually performs and I can see myself wearing it multiple different contexts.

It's really hard to describe. It's experimental and clearly not for everyone, but it might be the signature perfume of only 1%! It really smells like beetroot and incense, maybe a little black pepper and a little mint. It also smells like a freshly cleaned kitchen surface. I can't stop smelling my arm. I loved the perfume, but it's far from everyday use... I definitely wouldn't recommend it for blind purchase. Its longevity and sillage are incredibly good. Anyone who doesn't try it as a decant is missing out.