Tubéreuse Astrale

The Shamen once famously sang "But go easy on old Eezer; he's a love you can lose." I think this is true of Tubereuse Astrale by Crivelli. It is my third favourite of this luminary, wonderful house of perfumery behind the unmissable Oud Maracuja and former-Selfridges exclusive Cuir Infrarouge. It is stronger than both these fragrances and is - somehow - much more intense in the opening blast which is pure osmanthus and tubereuse. Bearing in mind neither of the other two are anything less than absolutely epic in the opening, this is quite the statement. But Tubereuse Astrale is, like Ebeneezer Goode - a drug you need to treat with respect and moderation. Going after it like a blue freshie with six or seven sprays just before you leave the house will likely get you the sort of attention you don't want, instead of the rapturous compliments you should be getting in wearing any Quentin Bisch fragrance, or anything from Maison Crivelli. One on the neck, one on the chest and a little one on the wrists if you're feeling hardcore is more than enough. This is something to be patient with as the drydown takes a long time, much like what the Shamen were referencing. The oil content of this is heavy and leaves a bit of a sheen on the skin which tells you all you need to know on the performance and sillage. This is a projection beast. You are filling rooms after leaving them. The good news is the drydown is much more subtle and the cinnamon, musk and vanilla are brimming with class and sophistication. Once the screechiness of the osmanthus dies down it is the sort of gorgeous concoction that closes your eyes, curls your toes and makes your heart beat a little faster. It is absolutely beautiful, and like most of Crivelli's fragrances, is unusually wearable and accessible for such strong and hard-projecting fragrances. You can wear this with casual clothes, right up to a dinner jacket and black tie and everywhere in between. I think the drydown is pretty enough to make this is a genuine unisex fragrance too. Not for the first time this year since Ive gotten into proper niche perfumes, Ive learned that less is more in some cases and that Tubereuse Astrale is one of those times when you need to respect the juice, and take it easy. Then sit back and wait for the magic to really come to life. Scent - 7/10 Sillage - 10/10 Drydown - 8/10 Packaging / bottle - 8/10 Performance - 9/10 43/50

A Flemish legend has it that the Gruwenhald, a half-human, half-elven creature, roams the countryside during the first full moon night after the summer solstice to gather the right flowers and herbs to create his magical narcotizing potion, capable of enrapturing anyone, so that he can kidnap them and lead them to his abode, where they will remain forever as slaves. The recipe for the magical perfume apparently includes unconventional ingredients, such as fairy wings and unicorn blood. Well, after selling his soul to Beelzebub to obtain the details of that recipe, it appears that the chief alchemist of House Crivelli was then forced to spread evil on Earth through a series of other nefarious and heinous creations, such as Oud Stallion and Iris Malikhan. Some scholars at the University of Massachusetts have recently measured the KENergetic levels of Tubereuse Astrale, finding values that are completely off the scale and unprecedented; its plastic whiff may in fact be an indication of the presence of parts of poor KEN itself, but this has not yet been confirmed; an autopsy is awaited. An empirical test of mine on cardboard showed this to be the absolute and by far the best performing and longest lasting extract from Maison Crivelli. Test that anyone can replicate, try it to believe. The scent itself is complex, floral, assertive almost to the point of being stunning, where the tuberose is made sublime, accompanied by a symphony of notes that makes it incomparable. Off-scale projection, infinite duration. Unfortunately, it caused me a very uncomfortable skin reaction, especially on my neck so, despite trying several times, I have not yet been able to wear it for more than a few minutes, I will try again in milder temperatures or in the next life, when I have a bulletproof body. Try it on and hope you don't like it, or the Gruwenhald will capture you.

Really thick jammy floral with a jelly-like texture to it, reminds me of those jelly cup candies I had as a kid. Sweet, somewhat sugary, heavily synthetic (which M. Crivelli leans into in most of their fragrances) but the synthetic-ness is what intrigues me and makes it such a strong and thick scent. Even calling it nuclear isn't enough. As the name "Astrale" implies, it's straight-up Supernova levels of projection, all the while being really pleasant and not screechy or too invasive in a way. An earlier review by Rylai had a description I perfectly agree with: The tuberose is androgynous. When talking about just the tuberose aspect, not the fragrance as a whole, it's more fitting than calling it unisex because, as the word is defined, it "combines aspects of both male and female but isn't really identifiable as either one". The tuberose has a somewhat leathery texture to it, and it feels more of an "off-white" rather than the usual dainty faint bright white that I'm used to. Because of this it has a more general feminine nature to it but the texture of it reels it in a little to the masculine side. Now, overall the scent does lean more feminine but I love it greatly and as a guy I want to say I can still comfortably pull it off. Because of the performance, this is one of the few very high-end niche fragrances I would pay retail for the full bottle, which I am considering very soon, especially since atm none of the extraits from this house are at discounters.

I am writing this review at 9 o'clock in the morning. This may have been a mistake after reading the description of this fragrance. I should have known simply by the title. Tuberose almost always blossoms in the night, and of course astral, the stars in the night sky. Tuberose is such a beautiful flower when it is executed correctly. And it has been done so here. I love the cinnamon incorporated in the top notes. Just a small dusting. Every time I smell it, it feels so intoxicating. Better than any vanilla can be in my opinion. There is sweetness here, but there's so much more. That's why I say the tuberose has been executed so well. It almost acts like a complex bouquet of vanilla. Don't get me wrong, I love all different types of vanilla, but this particular fragrance does something to me. It's a different type of sexy. Almost carnal. Something QUENTIN has a talent for. Out of all the perfumers out there, he is currently my favorite. This specific talent of his cannot be matched by anyone else. It is funny how different notes become your favorite at different times. I never used to like tuberose. Now I can't get enough of it. This is a tuberose exclamation for sure. It is there from beginning to end. And yes it does last forever. Anything from this line has great longevity. So it checks all the marks for me. I purchased this right after my first sample. That's how much I loved it.

This is my favorite of the Maison Crivelli house thusfar. I love the sweet Tuberose paired with leather. The drydown and sweetness at the end of the day on skin are intoxicating. I often wear it on a sweater that doesn't get very dirty and days later I can still smell it there. I've received so many complements on it and a dear friend wants a sample vial from me which she will get soon enough. I have fallen in love with this very comforting scent. It reminds me of my Father's leather jacket, (which he left me) and his encouragement of all the creative things I do like music, cooking, sewing, gardening. Plus the chocolate we used to share :) . So evocative of so many Good things /Good times and how they smelled. I treasure this scent. It is full of beautiful memories for me. Oddly, I don't get cinnamon in this scent. Cinnamon for me is very woody, spicy and reminds me of cinnamon red hot candies or Atomic fireball candies, cinnamon rolls or PHO Vietnamese beef soup broth with charred ginger & onion + Anise, clove and black pepper. Tubereúse Astral is an ephemeral comfort that opens up a portal where I can touch, smell and see my beloved father who passed years ago. I miss him, yet this concoction, this magic potion bring his presence near, I just close my eyes... Amazing what scent can do for the memory. Thanks for your Magic Maison Crivelli, it buoys my soul.