Vierges et Toreros

This spectacular collaboration between star perfumers Antoine Lie and Antoine Maisondieu is a culmination of all that confounds and seduces me about fragrance: salient limbic responses and vivid flashbacks to sensations not felt in years. An oily tuberose bubbles over, bursting through a peppery seal, puff and fuzz, a mentholated unguent drying on sebaceous skin, fills my nose with this inexplicable bliss. What on Earth is going on? This smells freaking head-scratchingly gorgeous. Ylang ylang like over ripened botanic detritus being picked off of leather boots, lived-in denim dungarees, gentle florals growing furry and feral, "I am a lineman from the county, and I drive the main road" starts playing in my head. Vierges et Toreros smells like AM Gold, has that feel of those pale, faded TV slides used as interstitials in the 70s, announcing a community calendar, an exhibit at a local art museum, or the debut of a new public affairs program. "Oh the canvas can do miracles, just you wait and see" is what this fecund costus root accord croons in the heart, "fantasy it gets the best of me" as its goat-fur reverie and post-coital bedsheet essence grows more addictive over time. Nutmeg and perspiration arouses the senses; gee, I wasn't expecting that. The tuberose transitions from mentholated petals to lily whispers, a rugged leather is brushed senseless into soft suede and the Animalis Hypo base sheds more herbaceous and woody in this dusty vetiver haze. For those whose tastes are firmly planted in the likes of Kouros, Bel Ami, animalic fougeres and chypres from 35 plus years ago, and have yet to explore what 21st century niche has to offer—this would be a perfect gateway drug. A brilliant, absolutely brilliant fragrance.

I tried this on blind of the notes, only remembering people mentioned 'blood' in reviews & I'd been curious. I got a semisweet sandalwood-like opening with something thick and rich and oddly sweet I recognized from ELDO's Charogne (tuberose's richness mixed with their brand of leather + ylang), something zippy contributing an effervescent edge (ELDO's good at this, it's bergamot & spices here) and some other fun spices (light application of pepper, nutmeg, & cardamom the most). The combined effect was a fun, sweetish but lush floral with an increasingly buttery-feeling, gently leathery undertone, so yummy & unique! Unlike anything else I've tried, excepting that little bit reminding me of Charogne at the opening. BUT... 2+ hours later it morphed into an entirely different beast! Now it smells undoubtedly masculine, like something one of Lutens' musk scents (MKK, Mauresque) would produce as an offspring. I'm tempted to use the word 'dated' but don't let that offput you; I'm very, VERY attracted to this. And if I'm being brutally honest, it makes me blush a little because I feel like this would be something I'd smell on an older man, an older but strikingly sexy man who looks every bit his age and still makes the ladies swoon, a la Sean Connery. I love it! Very rich, almost powdery amber edge with lots of the smoothest pepper I've experienced, and a TON of dark, decadent musk. Very animalic, spicy, and rich smelling. As the Connery joke goes, it stops evolving and stays in the manly phase once it gets there because "Once you reach max level you stop leveling" (look up the pic, gamers will laugh). I love the opening on myself; I'd be strongly tempted to devour a man wearing the drydown. Hm. Decant or FB wanted!

Sensitive cowboy vibes. If you enjoy animalic notes at all, take any gasps of horror, wailing, and gnashing of teeth concerning this fragrance with a grain of salt. This is a cool masculine-leaning take on tuberose, and there's an avant-garde aspect to it, but ultimately I don't find it the least bit challenging. Just pleasant for what it is. This does for tuberose what Terre d'Hermes does for orange. To me it's vetiver dominant with generous black pepper on the front end and light tuberose humming in the background throughout its lifespan (as advertised), and yes there is an animalic aspect, but since that's a product of the costus rather than civet, deer musk, castoreum, etc, it stays well away from being pissy or barnyard-y and veers more modern, toward the smell of something that resembles good quality natural wool. If you have a sensitive constitution when it comes to smells, this may read as edgier than you'd prefer, but I doubt most will be even remotely offended by this unless all they're used to smelling is Macy's perfume counter testers. This also isn't nuclear in strength by any means. Previous versions might have been stronger, but I actually kinda prefer that my bottle provides adequate but not overwhelming projection and sillage since the scent's uniqueness more or less speaks for itself and doesn't need to be blasted into the stratosphere to make its point. This is a great one from ELDO, and it's a shame it was discontinued since it strikes such a great balance between wearable and innovative.

What a fragrance! I'm always looking for fragrances out of the ordinary, and I think I scored here! There are two ways to read this fragrance: 1- we get into the marketing game: "Vierges et Torreros". That is: "Virgins and Bullfighters". The name is well found: indeed, one can smell notes reminding clearly of blood (the virgins... not so virgins anymore) and the corridas (bullfights), a smell of animalic flesh and cowshed. While I agree with the blood image, to me it reminds me more of a goat farm, goat excrements, possibly rotting goat cheese haha! I would have chosen a different name personnally, mire like "goats and butchers", or "shepherds and slaughterhouse"... 2- you forget the name: aside of the fresh opening (ylang-ylang/bergamot), it morphs quickly into a linear base, that is a beautiful spicy tuberose (tuberose+black pepper+nutmeg) that makes this one lean strongly towards the masculine side. The drydown is about birch tar/leather+musc+vetiver. Also noticeable is a hint of cardamom. Whichever vision you should have, I think that again the duo Lie-Maisondieu made a total hit. A show of 21st century perfumery. I love it, but I admit it may not be the easiest fragrance to pull-off. In the same "range" as Histoires de Parfums 1740, but surprisingly I'm not a fan of HdP 1740... Strongly recommended to frag heads, but not as a blind buy. (I blind bought it, but I personally like "extreme experiments"). Spring/Fall nights, 30+ fragheads. (lovers of sephora's freshies: stay clear from it!)

Interesting one this..I purchased a 10ml sample to try it out, and on opening the bottle my first thought was "cheap, very alcoholic womens' perfume"...however, I applied some to the skin and then it was a completely different story. Initially, a heavy nutty floral note (the tuberose?) which dried down to a spicy leather, and definitely made me think of bull fighters and dust under the spanish sun....perhaps a hint of blood in there too. Fast forward to last night when I made the bold decision to apply this liberally to my neck and back of head before attending a black tie event. My experience of this fragrance this time was somewhat different...I seemed to be getting more of a coconutty tobacco scent from it, but always with a bizarre slightly cheesy body odour smell underneath....not wholly unpleasant, and as fan of animalic scents I appreciated the uniqueness of this. The longevity is superb (24 hrs+ on my skin) and sillage also good (although perhaps my dining companions were not so appreciative). I do like this and will continue to wear it on special occasions (it is not one for the office really). This is a really fascinating blend of floral, leather and animalic and I wonder if my perceptions of it will change as I wear it more often...this scent takes you on a journey, an adventure, and perhaps that is it's main attraction...there really is nothing else out there that resembles this one.