Azuree

(Review of a bottle from c. 1992) Lauder and Bernard Chant really outdid themselves with this classic staple. Estee Lauder was inspired to create Azuree from her time on the Mediterranean near the French Riviera, and this context of a visionary American designer taking inspiration from that which has fed the inspiration for countless European perfume creators is a creative brief that was certainly intriguing for 1969. Lauder and Chant delivered on it, and then some, with a neat little twist. As a green chypre of the late 1960s, particularly from a house like Lauder, you would expect florals of the typical types that lean a bit green, such as rose and/or jasmine, bracing swells of oakmoss, finely sanded sandalwood, balsams, vetiver, and a light beige and wispy patchouli. Yes, but not so much the case here. Other stars are at play. The aldehydic bergamot and floral opening sparkles away with plenty of citrusy vitality. Ok, nothing new there; it’s pretty, well done, but also “standard”. At the heart level is where your eyes will go wide, your heart will beat stronger, your back and neck will straighten, and you’ll find yourself wanting to never miss a second of Azuree. White indolic jasmine, and a beautifully done banana custard ylang-ylang pushing a gently sweet quality, are basting a geranium and orris focused presentation that is stunning. Geranium is doing a lot of work here. It is smoothly green and naturalistic by bringing a touch of the lemony quality naturally present in geranium. The orris is powdery, starchy, and dryly floral, making sure all of the other characters are kept in check. The fun continues as, yes, damp woody oakmoss and dried loamy patchouli make their obligatory appearances, but a leather note shows up as well. It’s a very gentle white suede note that is likely a trick of the orris that came through in the heart. The oakmoss, patchouli, and suede are not allowed to dim the lights thanks to a good dose of clean white musks that keep the freshness and energy going. Stunning. This might have been a feminine perfume in 1969, but today it is completely unisex. By keeping the florals well behaved and on the more universally acceptable side of sweet, by giving the effortless geranium a starring role, and by letting leather have a go in the dry down, Lauder and Chant gave us a unique twist on this genre that makes it approachable for all. No, actually, not just approachable - thoroughly enjoyable and captivating. The infectious confidence Lauder’s perfumes used to so convincingly possess - call it loud, assertive, American confidence, if you want - plus the exceptional materials and the way Chant composed them will wear well on anyone. And you’ll want to wear it. Azuree is one of my all time favorites, and certainly towards the top of my list of Lauders, maybe even at the top on some days (I’m going to say that quietly since Knowing and Youth Dew are within ear shot of me).

A reviewer suggested this to me as a good inexpensive leather fragrance. I tried it at the local Macy's: $46 for 2 oz. Price is great! This is far more oakmossy to my nose than leather. (I confirmed by looking at the ingredients on the box, yep - oakmoss is in there.) And, I hate to use this word, I truly do, but upon spraying it on my arm it smelled "perfumey" and not as masculine as I was led to believe it was. So - not for me. But it's a good, distinctive woman's scent! I do like it. This is a long-lasting scent and a good buy. Note: My wife sniffed the Bel Ami I'm wearing on my neck and this on my arm and declared that they smell similar. She's getting something I'm not. I like the upper part of the bottle; it looks like a crescent wrench is needed there. --------- I tried it again on my arm while my wife was with me. She says it doesn't smell feminine at all on me. Three other women behind the counter agree. (One took a look at me and said "Nothing could be feminine on you.") One other women thought it was too feminine. So that's 4 against 1. But, to me, I just can't rid myself of that perfumey note I associate with feminine scents from my youth. So... no. But I might come around some day. --------- Tried it yet again! This stuff is really growing on me. I wish my wife would wear it. It is a seriously good perfume... --------- Tried it again on an arm. Okay, I'm sold. I want a bottle. ------------- And for my birthday in 2025 I got a bottle! 2025 vintage: Evernia Prunastri! Oakmoss! Looking at the ingredients on the box I see it's still included (despite IFRA). Well done, Estee Lauder! This stuff smells indeed like oakmoss and it's glorious! There's a leathery note here as well. This stuff is seriously good, and I bet it smells pretty much like it did in 1969 when it was released. It's butch enough to be unisex.

I discovered Azuree trying to find to find a powerful, woody-mossy chypre in which I could also detect a sprinkling of meadow wildflowers. I was having sucess narrowing it down to a few of Estee Lauder's. In the process, I have become a EL fan when I realized the unusual and memorable variety they offer. I have finally found a kindred spirit in Azuree. Reading through Azuree's reviews, I was struck at how they really bring home the validity in the message that your experiences have everything to do with your likes, dislikes. In the case of perfume,how a specific group of notes triggers memories and emotions, and your own personal interpretation of something seemingly(at first glance) innocuous as scent. While was brought back to the smells of the countryside growing up in rural New England and childhood wanderings in the forests and meadows around my home, others harness the strong masculinity of leather over the superamplified, heavy handling of ingredients that on some might smell masculine. I am glad I imagine not that, but a dark moss and needle covered pine forest after an early autum rain, combined with the wildflowers and decidious trees I would smell in the vast adjacent meadows in spring. Azuree IS memory in a bottle. The amazingly reasonable price and obviously high quality of ingredients has made Azuree something I swoon over every time I apply it. For me it has everything a signature scent should posess: A unique and inspired fragrance loved by it's creator. It should capture the fascination of those who are passionate about thought-provoking, quality fragrances; it isn't worn by just anybody; trend followers stay away! Its has it's loyal die hard fans who understand it's greatness. Welcome, Azuree into my life.

YUMMMMBA BUMM BUMMM. What else to say. Sad for days, since I used the last drop of my Cabochard spray. I actually took it out of my old bottles bin twice to attempt to get more out, shaking the atomizer up and down at all angles mathematically possible. I had noticed this mini, purchased in a big lot, which I had assumed was an Avon because of the bottle shape. Plus, I could not read the font size 1...if that, on the teeeeny label, so it sat there for weeks. Finally I decide to try to examine it. With two pairs of readers on at once,I made out Azuree. I remembered hearing of it vaguely. I open the little bottle - Aladdin ́s lamp. I am sitting in the late morning sun, sipping mint tea and sniffing the cap of my Cabochard bottle. Aromatics Elixir is on the table too, but still in its box. This is a Cabochard relative for sure.....But more, warmer, sweeter, less edgy and more powdery. How, I ask the Perfume Gods, How can something like Azuree be so unknown? In 1969, Azuree was born and I was ten. My grandmother retired from the Canadian Pacific Railways and was given a ticket for our family to travel from Toronto to Vancouver, first class, that summer. From the little beaver emblems on the wool Hudson ́s Bay blankets, to the gloved waiters and hardwood furniture in our room, to me this was like perfumes of the age of Azuree and before. In a word, elegance. Whereas today ́s fragrances, many of them at least, are like traveling economy by air...In a few words....La Vie est Blah.....

This wonderful treasure is my favourite chypre scent. Azuree makes my day sunny even with the darkest clouds. The scent starts off with a gorgeous citrus blast, very warm, very sunny but at the same time some spices kick in a bit. To me there is a tiny amount of cinnamon but despite this Azuree is far from a wintery/Christmas scent. It is Mediterranean through and through. The bitter chypre notes make this unforgettable. There is a herbal impression, very sophisticated and clean. Azuree ́s bitterness is pleasantly toned down by a hint of sugared spices. Just enough to make it nicer but without becoming an Oriental. This scent is perfectly unisex. Great on a woman 30+ who is not in the mood of being fluffy or ladylike or cute. If you wear this perfume gem you need guts as it is a powerful scent with big sillage which stays almost all day. If you are man looking for a sunny and warm scent with a certain freshness without the usual sporty-aquatic notes I recommend you to try this one. And, last but not least, there is one more big plus for Azuree : the price :-) 60ml EdP are sold for less than 50 Euro. Best bargain I could think of. Azuree is a drop-dead beautiful perfume, one of the best I have ever encountered (I dare say this means something). Update April 11, 2015 : As now the new version of Azuree haunts the stores I got myself 2 stock-up bottles for a hopefully long future. I never want to be without this scent again. It might have become my signature scent, if any at all.

If I were to follow the social media trend of serving some of my favorite scents on a silver platter, vintage Azurée would have prominent placement. The younger and more gregarious sibling of Gres Cabochard, Azurée bears a bit more of a resemblance to elder Bandit, bearing an effulgence that may be deemed rasping and certainly not feminine to the modern nose. Some may even consider it pungent, acrid even. I, however, live for the way it smells, the way it feels as I wear it. It's a potent potion—herbal, bitter-green, grassy-yellow, with a profusion of geranium oil and inky mossiness. There is a certain fervor to it that elevates me when I wear it: I walk with just a bit more of a stride. Yet Azurée feels less smoky-dusky than our beloved Bandit, warmer than Cabochard, and a bit less aggressive than its counterpart Aramis. Make no mistake, though, there's strong meat on its bones, There is the illusion that citrus sustains long after the top notes have evaporated, feeling almost like there is a tart lime in its heart complementing the motley herbs and suntan jasmine that form its core. I appreciate that a ylang-ylang seems to surface on my skin as well, lending a custard fleshiness before Azurée settles to leathery, musky embers on a juicy surface. That penultimate sizzle persists before it dries to a marvelous golden frizzante of a skin scent.

Azuree is addictive. I was not sure I liked this fragrance at first. The leather note made me uncomfortable for some reason; that doesn't make alot of sense since I also like Cabochard and Miss Balmain.But I was gradually seduced by Azuree... Today is a day at home alone, so I can wear what I want, and as much as I want. I'm wearing Azuree. I am sure I've over-applied, because my perception of the scent is a little blunted. But it's just something I cannot get enough of. I gave up smoking over twenty years ago. But I still remember the pleasure of inhaling that wonderful dirty-cinnamon cloud. (Only another smoker, whether currently smoking or reformed, can relate to this, I imagine.) Although Azuree is not a tobacco scent, inhaling this bittersweet citrusy leather fragrance is a wonderful pleasure, almost intoxicating.I love this. No I don't know why they hide this under the counter! Like all Bernard Chants creations, it's wonderful. But when I went to the store to buy, the saleswoman had to retrieve it from a cabinet under the counter where I saw it was kept with the Aliage. I guess that with the current fashion for sugary sweet fragrances, that EL thought it best to keep this sexy, androgynous golden leather under wraps.I seriously hope they don't change it or discontinue it. I think it's delicious.

I've had a very high proportion of success in blind-buy purchases of fragrances launched before 1980 (crucial turning point in the history of perfume, IMNSHO). If loving Vietnam War-era creations such as EL AZUREE makes me an old lady, well, so be it! AZUREE is a big wonderful surprise: a complex, herbal-floral-leather fragrance which is a delight to wear from the initial spritz all the way to the drydown, many, many hours later. The sillage is perfect for this sort of composition: rather like a thin veil that hangs loosely on your body, noticeable enough to smell but not loud enough to offend. To my nose, this really is a fine leather fragrance, not an oriental floral. The leather is much more dominant than any of the oriental elements. Yet it is not domineering, as I have found in many more recent leather creations. In my experience, leather in high concentration tends to flatten all of the other notes. Here, in contrast, it is an abiding presence which mingles harmoniously with the many other important chypre and floral notes. AZUREE is a top-notch edp which does not need to be--indeed should not be-- mixed with anything else. It's just perfect exactly how it is. I love this composition. Highly recommended!!!!!

Ooh, ooh! This one is a big surprise! When I first sprayed it on I realised how attuned my nose is to modern fragrances - this is truly a classic in the Bernard Chant mould of Aromatics Elixir and the original Cabochard. It begins with bright citrus and aldehydes mixed with the indolic 'dirty' scents of jasmine and Ylang; and I must say, I wasn't sure that I liked it. After only a few minutes it morphs into a soft leathery citrus with strong herbal notes not unlike eau dynamisante with old leather bound library books. I always envy my mum her signature Aromatics so now I have a Chant creation for myself!. This is a challenging frag. to the modern nose and I agree it's unisex; it's also a rather studious scent far far removed from the fun or whoreishness of modern womens perfumes. This is pure quality in the vein of Hermes and the like but for half the price. Impressive. Note: on wearing this a couple of times, you must embrace it - 3 squirts suits me to get the full joy of it, don't worry, it sinks in just lovely! extra note: I have not worn any other perfume now since I bought this- a record for me! I think I may have found 'the one!'(and my husband loves it)

Discovered, by chance, their new version of Azuree today. Well, if they had only changed the bottle there ́d be no problem for me....but....we all know a new bottle also brings a new formula. The original "soul" of the scent is gone. And so is Azuree. I was fearing something like this for a long time but until now it was only a nightmarish thought in the back of my head. The new Azuree is not half of what this mighty oakmoss beauty once was. I had to get myself a backup bottle of the old version. Azuree certainly is (IMHO) one of the best leather scents I have known so far and with the lemon-herbal combo one of a kind. A chypre actually can ́t get any better than this one. For me it was love at first sniff and I found it purely by chance (another customer was shown this beauty and I luckily was standing close enough to get a whiff of that heavenly juice)....I am sad to see it gone. Update April 11, 2015 : I got myself 2 back-up bottles. The old stuff seems to be gone everywhere....I was both dead happy and scared when I purchased the last old bottle from one of our local perfume boutiques......it was a strange feeling after all. It feels so final somehow.

This was love at first sniff for me. I take notes on paper and kick around with a perfume for a couple of days before deciding whether to write a review here or not. The first two words I had to say about Azuree were "coconut leather." I find this interesting considering my subsequent impressions. For two days' worth of reapplies, I smell, in order, coconut, lemon cream, modeling clay, gardenia, and sage. And Azuree has no staying power on me. I'm tempted to go out and buy a bottle just so I can hose myself down in it and see if I can get on my skin what I eventually managed to get off the tester strip, which is-and this is two full days later, the thing should last-a perfectly amazing salty leather. I can catch hints of leather in the creases of my shirt, the coconut leather I first described, but I want the full evolution that I got from the tester strip. Why does my skin keep doing this to me? Am I some sort of vampire, sucking the life force out of innocent fragrances? I can tell that Azuree is glorious. Deep, complex, full...but not on me.

Vintage Bottle...just like in the picture above: gold top with ribbed glass bottle 2oz Pure Fragrance Spray Wow, just WOW!! This is my first wearing and the quality of this is stunning. The scent is so beautiful. As I'm sitting here, I get wafts of different notes that just pop up out of nowhere, then recede as another note takes its place. Men can absolutely wear this. In fact, I think it may lean more masculine in today's standards, not that it matters. This can and should be enjoyed by everybody. I must add...I'm several years into collecting now. Going the usual path starting off with cheap, easy to wear mass appealing fragrances, and now exploring more vintage, more complex fragrances. If I would have tried vintage Azuree when my nose was 'new', I'm confident I would not have enjoyed and appreciated what this really is as I do now. So, so glad I finally made the decision to pick up this gem. I don't want to get ahead of myself, but this could be moved into my top 5 in the near future, it's that good!

This was my first favourite perfume, my signature scent through my teens and 20's and 30's. Now, because it is so hard to get, I wear it sparingly. Would love some more!!! I looooove it. Never, ever have I been stopped by so many people and asked what I was wearing. Sad, very sad, that it has become so rare and hard to find. Sigh! Just like my other fave, Fendi. It is strong, exciting, vibrant, warm and just filled with summer and warmth and the beauty of being alive. Lots of hot exuberant floral notes, toned down with the woods and herbs of its formulation. Stunning! If you're a sun lover, beach lover and summer girl, this might just be a winner for you... UPDATE - After a 4 month wait, I have finally tracked down a new bottle, and it's in my hot little hands. Oh, the relief. Yep, a blast of absolute, sunfilled and earthy summer notes. An absolute joy!!And the memories of people and places..... If anyone knows of a regular source for this, please be kind and let me know!!

No matter what fragrance mood I think I am in, If I apply Azuree my memory of whatever else I wanted to wear fades away... The only reason I am not finshed with bottle no. 2 (I go through this fast) is that one night as we were going to bed, my husband caught up with my secret and exclaimed: Yuck! Where's that sickening lime smell coming from?" Like some others here on this site,I like to apply a little fragrance before bed for relaxation and to help me sleep. Who knew that the lime accord could turns a stomach???? For me, it would have to be certain purely sweet scents such as Chloe or Ciara that do that to me.. To repeat Fragrantician Henriette in her review, if you love Azuree and the green chypre group to which it belongs, please don't stop at one representation of this genre. Buy Aramis, Bandit, Cabochard, Miss Balmain-they all are beautiful and are representative of a glamour-sadly non-existent anymore that reflected the whole individual and not just the facade .

I had been looking for another bottle of Miss Balmain. It has become increasingly hard to find. Even the square bottles(reformulated and not as good)are now hard to find. I read somewhere that Azuree and Miss Balmain were very close and so I went to a department store and tried Azuree on a paper strip. I had seen this perfume in stores most of my life and had not ever tried it. WHAT WAS WRONG WITH ME! On my this is lovely! Warm florals,oakmoss,and leather. It is very similar to Miss Balmain, at least on paper. I had planned to go back and buy a bottle but I found a good deal on Ebay for a vintage Miss Balmain. Now I know if I ever run out of my favorite woody leather I can always enjoy Azuree by Estee Lauder. I think it is a great fall winter scent with it's dry woody florals and expensive leather. The price was not bad either for two full ounces.

In the world of leather-chypré, Bernard Chant is at the top of the game, taking after the great Germaine Cellier. He created a scent profile so unforgettable with Cabochard, that he continued to tweak it repeatedly, and so was born Aramis, as well as this stunning Azuree. It battles the juxtaposition of the leathery moss accord we know, with something rather sour and tart; fizzy citrus and herbs tingle at the senses behind the shadowed earthiness. It is grounded in dark greens and browns, contrasting a sunny forest floor with that of warmed leather bags and coats. Azuree is a familiar cousin of Cabochard, only with the citrus largely amped up, coupled with those dry herbs and sparkling aldehydes. It is a shame we all caught on, for this now costs a small fortune on eBay. Though, that is the way when dealing with masterpieces.

Azuree is a mossy, herbaceous, aldehydic leather that is gorgeous, complex, and challenging. It's not an easy-wearing scent (and I love those kinds too!) and kind of tickles the nose and catches in the throat; it's THAT strong, kind of like the hot sun, cool air, and cold sea -- sharply contrasting and a little jarring. Today I wore it alongside Bottega Veneta which it definitely resembles as a classic leather. Bottega Veneta, though, is a softer, plummy leather that has a honeyed warmth and is classy and elegant. Azuree, on the other hand, is harsher and more soaring and elemental: earth, plants/herbs, sky/air, sea. I love both of these and must admit that I don't reach for them enough because I have such a wide variety of fragrances and they are STRONG! But they are so beautiful, I must make sure they are in the rotation.

In these days of reductive reformulation she is a monument to quality, silage and longevity - in every sense of that word. Opening in a vertical trajectory, fueled by aldehyde and super charged bergamot, this scent is heading for the stars. The interior of USS Azuree is pure leather - no PVC and hard plastics here. In order to retain a sense of space age decorum, the more animalic elements are banished by a good strong bunch of synthesized herbs and a modest bouquet of boiled up blooms. The pace is maintained a million miles or more, then, arriving at it's destination our spacecraft scent slows almost to a stop, allows the softest of amber landings. Mission accomplished. Can a man wear it? Azuree could be in a crowd of super heavyweight boxing champions and still be the butchest one in the room.

Azurée was love at first sniff. I expected a lush and generous chypre with woody, earthy notes. I was not expecting the mossy equivalent of a film noir, or a dusky leather accord that makes me think of 80s rock gods. Oh, to be lounging on the Med with Def Leppard circa 1988! I live by the Mediterranean and can see the original inspiration for Azurée; the citrus and bergamot make it difficult to miss. But it’s the oakmoss and patch that catapult it to another dimension that is darker and more introspective than the sea and sand vibe. Add to that the unmistakable note of artemisia softened by gardenia and jasmine, and we really are in the forest of the headless horseman. Azurée is a pungent elixir that takes you on a journey. Aromatic and inimitable.

My vintage Azuree smells just like my vintage 1970's Cabochard parfum but it's a little more green and its flowers last longer, making it smell fresher and brighter. Oh how I love my Cabochard and hate to say this, but you've been trumped by Azuree. UPDATE: I went shopping today and stopped by the Estée Lauder counter to see if the Azuree in the new square bottle smelled the same as the one in the round bottle. Nope, this reformulated Azuree smells like a stronger, sharper version of the newest version of Cabochard. In both, the green notes and florals are gone but Cabochard's smoky tobacco and leather mellows out while Azuree stays strong and pungent. I'll stick with the vintage on both.