St. Vetyver

Where to start with this one? I love vetiver and recently went through over 30 samples to find new unique scents for both the office where I work and everything else. With Essential Parfum's Mon Vetiver winning the office, I knew I needed something high in quality but versatile if it was to prevent Mon Vetiver from just being my all day every dayer. Enter St. Vetyver. Unique? Yep? Vetiver heavy? Absolutely. Ability to be used for the beach parties, date nights, house chores, or family get togethers? No question- it has a shape shifting, one-size-fits all profile that is all ages and all occassions. At 35, this scent has completely reshaped my idea of vetiver and for that aspect alone it was worth the hefty price tag. It portals you one island over from St.Kitts, but without any risk of the label of "tourist" being applied. It doesn't really make sense until you try it. This is a natural summer scent, carribean isle or elsewhere. It isn't like most fresh summer scents though- the spice and sweet notes tend to show up a lot more in the cold while the fresh notes become muted. Being a major factor for me, the vetiver is the star from start to finish and clearly high quality. The tropical description and notes of this scent caught my eye for sure. Be warned though, most of them are just for copy and locus purposes- what I get in order of appearance is a burst of oranges/aldehydes, bergamot, green, rounded vetiver ( i e hat straw, reeds, etc), some textural olfactory magic being done to give it beach atmospherics ( wet and dry sand? Salty air?), and finally a silky smooth rum accord that is light on the sweetness. It is fresh but warm, green but sweet, balmy but light- for me it is completely unique but not weird in the slightest. Longevity is decent, think 7-10 hrs with moderate to low projection.This is likely going to become my signature, as I cannot stop using since I got it. Another bottle is on its way, and I have yet to get through even a third of the current one. No gray markets either- I want the actual company to get my money for this gem. The cumulative effect this scent creates is a sense of being free of stress due to having earned that right. It's speaks slowly after a long sip of Grand Mariner "I'll do what I want, when I want to" but in a casual "Don't hate me, hate the game" sort of way. It reminds me in many ways of Terre D Hermes but without any of the cedar and a heavier emphasis on the dry, caramelized undertones its reisin accords carry. Both are orange and vetiver scents at heart, but the Durga seems a little less serious. In terms of the build, the opening for me is my least favorite part- there is so much going on that it is hard to make sense of it all. The sour orange note is HUGE. Once the vetiver shows up, sweetend a bit by the rum, it's game on though. It is fresh and clean, but still a little dirty. It's not a cologne, it's your skin as you live your life. It feels "lived in", and it just may make you appear more travelled than you actually are. It conveys beach dunes with waves of dune grass and all the romances, parties, tranquility, and good times that setting provides for those lucky enough. SV feels nostalgic for the purpose of rejuvenation, not merely to just remember. There is no age range for this, but it skews younger than other rum or vetiver scents I know. I haven't been asked yet "what are you wearing?" and I can't say I'd care if I ever wasn't. What I will say is I absolutely will tell those people "nope, this one's for me only". I really hope this stays in production, as this provides something rare, unique, and unforgettable. Although I haven't cared for many other offerings by DS and Durga, I will have to resample a few due to just how good this one is. Maybe I missed something. Don't miss out on this one. 5 stars.

I adore this fragrance and look forward to putting it on in the mornings. For me, it is has the real ‘classic with a weird twist’ vibe that you get with so many DS&D scents. Whereas sometimes I feel they could have benefited from leaving one note behind in some of their compositions, with St Vetyver it all just sings. It opens with a tremendously fizzy, in-your-face bitter orange note that I just can’t get enough of. It then settles gradually into a comforting amber, woody mixture that manages to be a little spicy and a little sweet but not too much of either. The balance is really excellent. The base is really where I start to pick up the rhum note, but it is more leathery than boozy, and harmonises with the earthiness of the vetiver, so nobody will be thinking you’ve been hitting the sauce at work. Although the aesthetic/marketing vision is of a vacation island theme, I actually think this pairs well with a suit and tie at the office as much as a holiday: it’s a strong scent but doesn’t have an over-powering sillage, and so fine for work or play. It is very versatile, capable of being serious or fun. For me, it’s a fundamentally summer scent (and best in hot climes), but that could be because that’s the season when I got my bottle. Longevity is good for me, and I can still smell the base notes on my skin after a full 8 hours. I’ll be buying another bottle when my current one runs out. EDIT: the recent DS&D price increases have been over the top and I think that $210 for 50ml is stretching how much I am willing to pay for this one. I wouldn’t touch their other fragrances at this price point.

This one stumped me initially. Part of me loved it, part of me was weirded out by it. It took a week of periodic testing for me to wrap my head around it. This is NOT, your typical vetiver scent. In fact, it's more the idea of vetiver initially because of the rum and breadiness, but I do get some earthy, salty, and rooty vetiver hits. The straw is a very interesting concept to me, and it comes through accurately. The seagrass and reed is also super interesting, and lends a grassy, balmy quality. The rhum agricole mixed with these elements given me a feeling of being in a humid tropical location, with beaches and marshlands.The clove is not overdone, and the breadnut gives a gourmand element, without feeling like I'm wearing a pastry. The sum of the parts give the feeling of a warm humid southern night in historical Charleston, white linen shirt, enjoying fine food and craft drinks, The locals weave baskets and hats from straw with expert skill. There's beach and marshlands just off in the distance from historical, and beautiful gothic revival homes. Vacation in a bottle and one of the best from DS & Durga, who is a house I admire for taking chances (Mississippi Medicine, Rockaway Beach) and the artwork of David Seth Moltz. I'm getting a bottle this weekend for balmy summer evenings 🌴 Scent 9/10 Performance 5.5/10 P.S. It's better on skin, than a test strip. I tried it a year ago on tester, and dismissed it.

This scent is AMAZING!! It's definitely not your typical vetiver scent, but this is a PICTURESQUE Caribbean pirate/vacation scent. It smells like this boozy, aromatic, woody, and sandy cocktail. This smells like the scene in Pirates of the Caribbean where Jack is stranded upon an abandoned island where he stashed a large amount of rum to drink. I can see this being worn by anyone at any time, but this might be a little too boozy for daily work wear. This is an amazing scent that allows me to unlock my inner pirate and cast the nights away. It does have a very "sandy" quality that I really can only attribute to the reed or hat straw. My only gripe with this scent is that it doesn't last very long on my skin chemistry, but I know it can last 8+ hours because one of my friends sprayed it upon herself and it lasted FOREVER, and it lasts forever on clothes. Overall, it's a boozy, woody, and aromatic scent that I cannot wait to wear during these upcoming summer nights. Hopefully this will help me castaway somewhere :)

Brings to mind an old bay rhum that you could never find online, only in a tourist shop on some faraway island. That AWESOME hat straw - Days at the beach when you'd leave your hat on top of your face to block the sun and as it heats up, you actually do smell these notes, it's divine. These hats are the standard in hot weather places. The rhum comes in perfectly to bring out all the glory of "VETYVER" - No perfumer has done vetiver this good, which is astounding considering its popularity. This is how vetiver should be honored, in a sunny, tropical vignette. The scent only gets sweeter and perhaps a little earthy and green, leading to a wonderful memory of cracking open breadfruit, an absolutely legendary fruit that has made it on ships around the world for centuries.

grassy reeds slapping in the fair trade winds, hot sand, breadnut, a tanned, white-haired chest of a well-groomed man who has just been served a fresh pour on the rocks. Old-style cologne with a sweet and tangy lean, sort of a feminine streak in the novelty of sun-hat. DS & Durga's whole brand seems to be little cheeky wink concepts which is nice, however sometimes it's a bit too synthetic and gives me a headache. This one is the least headache-inducing for me for some reason. I contemplated this as a signature scent, but like another reviewer said, it's a bit too plain and linear for me, but that said I love the soft almost transparent vetiver here. Beautiful fragrance and great for summer. It caramelizes with time, which I like.

Love this scent. It doesn't project very far, but it is a comforting scent that I like to wear when I'm by myself. It reminds me of the smell of the yew bush my grandparents used to have, and all the summertime memories of running around with my cousins, playing tag, hide-n-seek, and catching fireflies in those late summer evenings. If you've ever plucked a small branch off a red-berried yew tree and gave it a sniff, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. For those that don't know the smell, it is a softer evergreen tree smell with a bit of citrus. Very nice.

Rolled the dice and purchased this as a Blind Buy and was thoroughly impressed. Long lasting with decent silage for at least 5+ hours on my skin, this wears great on Humid, warm nights but can be worn all seasons except for Winter (IMO). Sweet, but not cloying. The Rum base notes are tied in with the dryness of the Hat straw and earthiness of the Vetiver. A severley underrated scent.

St. Vetyver to TF Grey Vetiver: "I'm you but better." This has a similar DNA to Cowboy Grass, they both that warm grassy green in the opening. But St. Vetyver has a richer sweetness from the fruit notes and rum. To me this is a broader and deeper fragrance than Cowboy Grass, and more wearable year round. Of the D.S. & Durga fragrances I've sampled, this is my favorite.

Instant love! The only thing I want to be wearing on warm evenings this summer. Despite being vetiver-focused, I would almost call this a savory gourmand (possibly coming from the orange, straw, rum combo). Another truly original and photorealistic creation from D.S. & Durga, yet also more accessible/wearable than some of their other offerings. Great stuff!

Boozy booze, slightly sweet, surprisingly heavy aromatic summer scent. Has a lived-in vibe (and that signature "dusty" DS&D accord) that really works on me. Can handle heat and humidity. According to D. S. Moltz it's not a best seller - but it is his daily go-to and his kids' fav, so it isn't going to be discontinued anytime soon.

It is always great when someone brings something new to the game, especially that now days it became a very saturated market. This fragrance is different from the other fresh boozy ones, it might take sometime to grow on you. It smells like a beer for me, it is not super fresh tho, but its definitly summery.

The opening is quite dry, herbal and peppery, it's summery and nice, I quite like it but holy shit... that dry down is where it's at, lightly sweet, a bit boozy, a hint of leatheryness, woody and a little freshness. It's gorgeous. I love this fragrance and consider it signature scent worthy.

Wonderful vetiver and there is Definitely a straw hat and red stripe vibe going on. It’s nice enough to wear with a jacket and cool enough to wear with t shirt and shorts. To me it feels better dressed up. Would suggest.

Sweet, and slightly fermented. Exactly what they promise— rum and dry grass on the beach. Fun and uncomplicated, the perfect escape. I love when my husband wears this.

Really evocative of a warm, breezy summer's night sitting in a beach chair drinking rum. Nice and sweet, relatively mild with good longevity. Great vacation scent.

Amazing fragrance. Few of the Vetiver fragrances that easily can be unisex. Rum is the main player, with creamy Vetiver. Wearable, complex.

so interesting and idk what this is exactly. rum? hot beach vacation on a boat. idk if i want to buy this or even like it but it's so fun

Slightly smokey, masculine-leaning vetiver. Do wish it projected a bit more, but overall very impressed.

I wore straight Indian vetiver essential oil for years before deciding it could be interesting to see what it's like blended into perfumes. I was so excited about another vetiver fragrance after acquiring my beloved Nishane Sultan Vetiver that I immediately ordered a full bottle thinking nothing could go wrong with the cool experimental addition of "hat straw" and whatever "rum agricole" is. It sounded like organic, earthy beach hut. Actully not dissimilar from THE Beach Hut by Amouage which was catastrophically discontinued before I could ever even own it (how could they?!). So when I got St. Vetyver out of all of its packaging and sprayed it I was PISSED. First of all, the nozzle sprays in a stream, not a mist, so forget lightly spritzing your clothes (or lightly spritzing anything). That's an inexcusable oversight at this price point. Second, it performs like an eau de toilette instead of an eau de parfum-- again, inexcusable at this price point. I do not smell "rhum agricole." I do smell something like seagrass. And it is distinctive. However. EDPs for over $100 that perform like EDTs are like ordering an expensive chocolate dessert at a fine dining restaurant and getting brought a Hershey bar. If I wanted to pay that much money for an EDT I'd just start buying Replica fragrances-- awesome for their profiles, dismal for their performance and longevity. I have the same issue with Imaginary Authors. Expensive EDPs, all with intriguing stories and novel fragrance combinations, that all perform like EDTs. For that reason I don't buy them. That being said, the scent profile is nice and I am kind of "bought in" the company's thing due to the novelty of its experimental vision and fragrance combinations. I'm not giving up on DS&Durga from this one experience, and I do pull out St. Vetyver to enjoy if I'm wearing it to short occasions where the smell will last through it. But with the nonexistent projection, poor longevity and lack of sillage I have to say that this is, at best, equivalent to a really good Body Shop EDT at the price of a high end niche parfum.

This is really nice. It’s not going to change your world but it could become an every day scent. It is intriguing but not weird: a muted hay (more like beach grass and vetiver combined), sweet smokey rum, there’s a soft spice which might be the pepper, and an aquatic cologne vibe which I’ve never liked until this. This could be a great summer scent with the heat to warm up the grass notes. I’m currently enjoying it in fall. It’s the rum - cannot get enough of it! I see why ppl say it’s more masculine but I love it on my skin. My grandfather used to wear linen button down shirts with a fedora straw hat. He’d splash some aftershave on, drink a coffee and work in his garden. This scent screams his swanky name and for that I love it even more.

St Vetyver opens a bit musty. Maybe like an antique store's smell of wood and dust. A little masculine and a little mature. I don't smell hay or straw exactly but does have a hay/straw vibe. Dry down mellows out in some ways but also the spice comes forward. Not exactly boozy but does remind me of spiced rum with hints of pink pepper. I'm not sure how much that comes through in the projection, my guess is its more intimate. I think it might smell better on a man but I wouldn't call it overtly masculine. Overall a pleasant scent, but I think it's a personality dependent fragrance - not everyone is going to enjoy wearing it.

Not the most classic vetiver: it is very bold/woody, and I really have this idea of a glass of rum in the sun, a "straw" hat on the head. On the other hand, the marine/pink pepper accord escapes me almost completely. The dry becomes almost floral, which I think is quite delicate and interesting. Anyway, I think it's very nice, and I have to admit that it's a vetiver that stands out. Could definitely be worn full-time by non-purists (I especially like vetiver when it's extremely dry). But it surprised me.

This is a nice vetiver contrasted by a gourmandy bread and rum note. I especially like the bitter orange opening that tends to burn off very quick. Not exactly what I’m looking for in vetiver and I feel like the composition is a bit flat, Performance is average

I love this smell, takes me right to the beach. The vetiver is more imaginative I think. Definitely has some rum scents, and I think it’s great for summer. It last a while on me.

This smells like Santa Claus, but it’s not Christmas—it’s like July... Decompressing Old St. Nick..

Gives me bay rum vibes- surprisingly sweet, great summer smell

Spent a lot of time with this one from a 5ml decant. Vetiver is a favorite and this seemed like a unique take that would be worth the price. With my nose and on my skin... Opening is a dark and a bit dirty citrus with a bit of hairspray. (Bitter orange?) Vetiver is light and soft. I wanted so much to find those boozy rum and beer bread notes others mention but they don’t exist to me. Going to put it away for a few months and try again in the fall. Smells good (lovely even) but since short / intimate (2-4 hours) and it contains no unique qualities to my nose, I can’t currently justify a FB buy.

I really thought this one would blow my mind, but perhaps my high expectations ruined it? It's an inoffensive, pleasant enough woody scent. The hat straw dominates and allows me to delight non-perfume people with the realisation that hat straw is a distinctive scent they can recognise, so that's fun. I've had to make myself wear it several times in the hope that I will grow to love it, but I suspect I'll use up my 8ml decant on my couch cushions rather than my skin. I need scents that create emotions like excitement or contentment. St. Vetyver is just nice.

Light aromatic woody scent that makes for pleasant unobtrusive wear and has a tropical vibe. The scent opens with notes of orange, pepper and sea grass. There is a brief heart of grassy notes and slight clove. It soon settles into a light powdery base highlighted by the vetiver with slight rum and synthetic musk. The unisex scent has moderate sillage and longevity. It is pleasant and will satisfy the undemanding wearer but by no means is it one of the criterion vetiver scents out there. Enjoy!

I love vetiver fragrance. The smell of St. Vetyver is not bad, but overall it is a huge letdown for me. Longevity and sillage do not perform well on my skin either. My nose doesn't pick up vetiver note in St. Vetyver; instead, clove note is dominant through out. Why put Vetyver in the name if the note isn't the main character in the composition? [Edit: St. Vetyver has been growing on me. I am not 100% in love yet but started to like it more.]

This is a vetiver-barbershop scent, with verdant freshness and pepper spiciness. It's a little masculine for me, but I would love smelling this on someone else.

enjoyable but very poorly composed boozy vetyver. Bursting top notes and then a very weak sillage who lasts 30min. mediocre

very aromatic! Kind of just whatever to me actually. The rum is a bit much

Powdery, sweet and undefined. Too light for Fall, too sweet for Summer. Like for Cowboy Grass, the vetyver is more present on the label than in the bottle, and has poor performance. In a nutshell: really nothing to loose sleep about, and will likely disappoint who (like me) is a vetiver fan. Might do an interesting job on a woman, though. Hard pass for me.

I tested this on paper first, and found an intriguing take on vetiver, mildly spicy and reminiscent of bay rum. I was looking forward to testing it on my skin, but unfortunately when I did I got a strong powdery smell that overwhelmed everything else--very unpleasant and disappointing.

Boozy spicy cookie. Not the best from the line.

Lacking in any actual veitver. Very medicinal smell that borders on licorice/anise and powder once it’s settled. A pungent sweetness that is sickening rather than light or refreshing. Reminiscent of bug spray. I get what this was going for, but it missed the mark big time.

It smell like my work....I'm a dentist....a smell only clove leaves... Unfortunately my decant is in trash... For me it's unwearable.

D.S. & Durga St. Vetyver is a robust vetiver-laden mix, somewhere between fresh and ashy/earthy, with touches of classic fougere in the background, perhaps as a function of some of the other notes—for example, orange, pink pepper, sea grass, and clove. There’s complexity but a relative ease of wearing, and I suspect that vetiver fans in particular will find this to be quite the treat. It’s a very strong fragrance, and probably comes off being a little darker due to its strength. I like it overall at the intersection of classic, provocative, robust, and creative. It’s roughly about as dark of a vetiver fragrance as I like to wear, though something like Lalique Encre Noire a la Extreme is a singular exception when some of the ashy vetiver dominance if ceded in favor of resins. It’s a study fragrance with a good amount of range from fresh to dark, a year-round option that I might not wear in the heat of a summer day but otherwise feels like a sophisticated, interesting option. The retail pricing for St. Vetyver is $260/175 for 100/50ml, very much in line with most of the house’s offerings, though the 100ml size is currently on sale at FragranceNet for $171. It is sold via the house website as well as boutiques like Tigerlily Perfumery, from whom I obtained my sample. 7 out of 10

I love this so much, it is definitely signature scent worthy for me but I fear maybe it isn't odd enough for me-which honestly just speaks more to its perfection. I love pink pepper, vetiver, and sandalwood all of which I get in this fragrance. Maybe my nose isn't developed enough because I've never smelled bread nut and that's what I'm thinking of as sandalwood? On me, this opens as bright, fresh cracked pink pepper and vetiver. It dries down into a warm, woody, slightly vanilla scent with a touch of vetiver for spice. I don't get any boozy notes. I'll keep wearing my sample and think about upgrading. This seems like a good one to have and just very pleasant but not as unique to me as the ones I've tried from D.S. & Durga.

Rum, wood, and bitter orange on the opening, like spilling a chinotto soda on an expensive teak patio table on the patio of an idyllic tropical beach house. Despite the name, the vetiver isn’t super aggressive— it provides more of an earthy undertone which balances out the relative sweetness of the aforementioned notes. This is so lovely for first couple of hours, but once the top notes fade out I’m left with a kind of sour lingering smell that I don’t love.

This is very transportive. Reminds me of drinking Rhum L'orange on the beach in Mauritius. Opens with a full nose of bitter spice: clove, pepper and dried orange peel. Sweet rum and a slightly smoky vetiver dominate the dry-down. It has this brown-sugar sweetness that lingers close to the skin, but it's well balanced by assertive smoky spice notes. While I have strong beachy associations, the notes hold their own through cold weather. I bought a full bottle.

What an interesting scent. It is not the usual vetiver because of the boozy sweet edge from the Rhum. It's a fascinating list of elements...who knew straw hat could be a scent! and bread nut. As with Cowboy Grass, which I really wanted to love, it's not. But i think what I am learning with DS frags is that they are better layered than stand alone...except for Crystil Pistil which is one of my top 5 favs.

The drydown of this, weirdly enough, is like full-on gooey dark amber. Just straight amber, think Balmain Ambergris or something. Nothing in the notes reflects that at all so I was caught pretty off guard. I like the open where you do really get that straw/dry grass accord and the mid pretty well.

Bright, endearing, idyllic take on vetiver. Evokes a beachy, organic feeling. Has some hippie-hipster vibes to it- I really, really like it as it's not demanding yet intriguing. Comfort pick for any occasion...also seems like a good choice during C-19 lockdown, spray it, chill, breathe.

Airwrecka's review is spot on. It smells exactly as the painted description says on the box - gives very drunk cowboy with a straw hat on a horse riding through a high, overgrown grassy field. I personally think it's beautiful as it hits the notes exactly, but it's not a crowd pleaser.

Where is the vetiver? I don't detect any. It's fruity, sweet, seaweed-y. It's pleasant, complex, and high quality; but not much vetiver(if any!) Edit Yes, there's vetiver lol but it's only detectable briefly in the opening. Poor longevity, and even poorer(non existant) sillage.

Fermented bready vetiver. The green shows up for me as woodsy pine/fir/evergreen notes. Gets spicier as it wears. A nice and smooth perfume, not as special as I hoped but comforting, wearable and non-offensive.

Like a slightly sweetened, rum-tinged version of Cowboy grass. Also a passing resemblance to spice bomb upon each initial sniff, which fades as your nose processes the entire scent profile