Rahat Loukoum

Oh my gosh - wow - delicious! It's a sugar trip fantasy with a touch of the Arabian Nights. Since treating myself to a bell jar (delivered to Cambridge from Paris), I've been drenching myself in the nectar that is Rahat Loukoum. Yes, it's a gourmand fragnance, but it's 'the' gourmand fragrance. I actually detest the overtly artificial candied trend that seem to typify celebrity fragrances at the moment (and even some more reputable lines have fallen victim). But Serge Lutens has delivered such a beautiful gourmand using such high quality ingredients - that last all day - how many perfumes achieve that nowadays? On application, it's like one has been minaturised like Alice in Wonderland and dropped into an empty candy jar that used to house candied cherries, Turkish Delight, marzipan, warm Madiera sponge and very fluffy marshmallows. It is immensely comforting, soothing and it actually does seem to satisfy my sugar cravings (so might even help me avoid sugary snacks!). Like many of Serge Lutens perfumes, Rahat Loukoum seems to reach the parts of you that other perfumes don't. I'm still a loyal Guerlain fan, but as my husband recently said - he's starting to fall for Serge Lutens' perfume in a big way. They are so rich, so thoughtful, so full of stories ... and they last and last...which for me says quality! If you love candied perfume, Rahat Loukoum will blow your mind. Thanks Serge - another brilliant gem in your crown! Note: I see that some folk feel this perfume is similar to Louve (otherwise known as the cherry bomb!) - I've owned both and personally I didn't feel they were similar at all. In the end, I sold my bottle of Louve - I actually enjoyed the experience of being doused in ripe cherries, however, I wasn't so keen on the dry down which felt like being doused in baby powder.

Just used up the last drops of my 10 year old sample while comparing it with Keiko Mecheri's Loukhoum. It's been so long since I experienced this beauty. I am truly sad that my sample is now gone. This perfume is still available, but frankly, I am scared to drop $300 on something that might have been tweaked and has lost what made it not just "gorgeous" (newer versions are still amazing perfumes), but without exaggeration breathtaking. Unfortunately, many many old bell jar classics lost the "it". I still love newer Sarrasins or De Profundis, but old ones nearly made me cry when I tested them years ago. I don't want to have the same reaction to Rahat Loukoum. For now I will treasure the memory of this spectacular fragrance. As to what I love about it... everything. The cherry, the almonds, the raw honey. It is a lot more nuanced that Keiko's creation, less powdery, sharper. As to comparing it with Montale's Sweet Oriental Dream... just no. Sure, they are similar like a cheap gas station coffee is similar to top quality coffee made in French Press. I like Oriental Dream too, but Rahat is just levels and levels above it. It's just... Serge Lutens is The GOAT. No question about it in my mind. Every time I get distracted from my endless testing and sampling and go back to experiencing my old favorites from him, I get this overwhelming desire to sell off my entire collection including samples and just stick with Serge.

It took me a long time to come around to Rahat Loukoum. The name literally means Turkish Delight and this is pretty much what the scent smells like. I love eating Turkish Delight but smelling strongly of it will always be a slightly questionable decision! The main challenge to the scent of RL is the extreme sweetness paired to a powdery, gelatinous texture. It's strikingly accurate to real turkish delight, from the powdered sugar exterior to its jelly core, hyper-realistic. This really is tooth-meltingly sweet and almost brutal in just how sugar-loaded it smells. The overwhelming scent is one of super sweet almond with powdery notes, with rose and vanilla support which become apparent as it goes on. Even as the scent fades away on the skin (at around 6 hours) it remains sweet, only turning into more of an almond musk. This is softer (in texture, not strength) than its cousin Louve, RL is more obviously gourmand, less industrial and with a less intense benzaldehyde. The big win in Rahat Loukoum is the simultaneous powdery and gelatinous texture, and it is a very lovely scent if wafting out from under clothes (jumpers or white shirts) on a cold (or at least cool) day. It will be too sweet for many people, however - spending time with it does help one to get accustomed to the unrelenting sweetness. Makes me want to brush my teeth a little bit... and then go to bed.

I don't know who was the first to "invent" and launch a Turkish Delight perfume in 1998, but to my nose SL's creation (I'm talking about a wax sample) and Keiko Mecheri's LOUKHOUM smell almost the same. Mecheri's rendition is a bit heavier on the honey note, and the Lutens is very heliotrope-y. That's the only difference between them to me. I have to note that neither of those smell like Turkish delights to my nose, unfortunately, although both are exceptionally yummy. It is rather some kind of powdered sugar with almonds and heliotrope, and a hint of rose water. Strangely enough, leathery TRAVERSEE DU BOSPHORE from L'Artisan (another take on the same theme) smells much more "loukhoum-y" to me. It also certainly reminds me of LOUVE, which is more about almonds, but still smells in a very similar way. I think if you need a powdery sweet Turkish delight perfume, you better choose just one of them, because they are all very similar. My choice would be LOUVE (as I love almonds), but since it is now only sold in Paris and packed in bottles withoit sprayers (it probably states for "luxe" but is a complete nonsense to me), I would then choose Mecheri's LOUKHOUM. And TRAVERSEE DU BOSPHORE as loukhoum with a twist (and with pistachios instead of almonds).

What to say... amaretto, amaretto, amaretto. I've always wanted a perfume that smells like amaretto, and after countless bottles of perfumes that had "almond" notes in them, I have finally found THE ONE. It has a certain thickness, a warmth which would probably not work well with our swamp of a summer (the humidity is killer here) but when fall comes, this will be me 24-7 until early spring. It is really that good. I will layer it with another rose (maybe guerlain) for a more turkish-delight feel, and on its own for a pure amaretto scent. When worn by itself, it is so present and poised...elegant, sexy, delicately sweet. it is most definitely there, but it teases, flirts a little, pushes away a little... 4-5 hours later, just when you think you've perhaps lost it, it comes back, and you can't really help but smile. I have had so many compliments when wearing this, from both men and women. Friends want to hug me just to smell me! The greatest thing about this (besides its utter drool-worthy scent) is that not a lot of people have it/know it, so you won't ever be in a situation where everyone smells the same as you. Gorgeous AND rare. What more can you ask for?

A little gem. First comes the vivacious, delicious smell of black cherries in syrup, fruity, sweet, and very natural. Then the composition evolves, the cherries leave a bit of space to sugared almonds. After a while what I get is a base of cherries and vanilla with this fantastic fortified almond concoction. The liquor part reminds me of Amaretto Disaronno which is a famous liqueur here in Italy, with a faint touch of rose. In the drydown, after 6-7 hours, what's left on my skin is tonka bean and a bit of soft, delicate musk. It's amazing how this fragrance gives you a soft encouragement to look through your memories and try to find something in the back of the mind that maybe hasn't been brought up in years. Many Serge Lutens creations give me this comforting feeling. Many of them are true masterpieces. Rahat Loukoum in particular makes me think about my childhood and my family, even though I never had these Turkish sweets nor I've never been in Turkey. Leans a bit more on the feminine side, but I think anyone can wear it for the sole purpose of enjoying it.

Extremely sweet almond extract smell at first, turning into a more gourmand flavor like almond macaroons strongly flavored with the extract and a little citrus. Many reviewers say that it smells like cherry, but all I really get is the extraordinarily strong benzaldehyde (almond) note along with tonka/coumarin and heliotrope. Then the fluffy white musks appear, and the scent starts to develop into something lovely and wearable, a marzipan-flavored clean musk. About an hour into the drydown, the sweet vanilla-tonka becomes very prominent, then subsides again leaving a vanilla-marzipan-musk mixture that’s a wonderful comfort scent. Early on, the sillage is considerable, but after several hours it settles into a moderate level. The marzipan musk lasts for more than 12 hours on skin, days on clothing. I love Rahat Loukhoum for its fluffy, musky sweetness, its lack of any obvious floral notes, and the fact that it makes a confident statement without being overpowering. If you’re fond of gourmand scents, it’s definitely worth a try.

If you want to get laid, try something else. If you want to be eaten by someone who likes cakes, look no further. The scent: 8 / 10. Projection on me: 2 / 10. (Wax sample). I like the composition. The quality is top as it is often with Serge Lutens. I’d never get it for myself. And I’d like to smell it on a woman. Not because it’s feminine - it is not -, just because I think it would suit a sun kissed, slim, young woman with some sophisticated craziness. Someone who visits museums once a while, fights for animal rights, is dizzy or a daydreamer, and is slightly kinky. Or maybe not. The point is that this fragrance inspires my imagination. I try to figure out who should wear it, which does not happen often to me as I usually buy fragrances for myself. This scent teasing me. And I like that. Rahat Loukoum is complex. It has something to tell you. It might play with your mind. Give it a try. Even if you won’t buy it, it will add a unique and pleasant experience to your life.

This is one of my all time favorite scent and one of the ultra morphing scents on me. I know I have strange body chemistry but Rahat Loukoum starts as a gourmand, all Turkish candy with almond, vanilla, cherry and that lovely marzipan smell that heliotrope in the right form or concentration can impart. After about 4 hours I start thinking it has faded away but if I sniff my arm I can smell the most wonderful leather and tobacco combination. I've never been in a rich men's club but this is what I imagine one to smell like. Expensive leather furniture, well oiled and VERY expensive cigars, the smell of which just linger in the background. Or maybe it's the smell of an expensive tack room with well oiled saddles and bridles and the tobacco and sweat of the grooms and riders. I have smelled that and love it, and I love both incarnations of Rahat Loukoum. I will say I have only used the Paris version and don't know if there is a difference between that and the export.

When I first sprayed this I thought it was pretty but too sweet, however I recommend a little perseverance because you will be really well rewarded with the most glorious of gourmands. It is as smooth as silk, with perfectly balanced almond/cherry and cherry-stones notes, all wrapped in vanilla/honey and just the merest hit of spice - I am wearing this today with a light overlay of FM carnal flower and I have to say, they are stonkingly gorgeous together. I also love wearing this blonde confection on it's own. This is like wearing something from a fine French patisserie, delicately and artfully made and breathtakingly beautiful. This has notes that are so edible and sensual that it's impossible not to take in great breaths of the deliciously warm aroma, it's evokes (in me) a need to possess every single note. Alluring, sexy, glorious, beautiful and intoxicating. Heavenly.

This is a true gourmand, a DELICIOUS one at that. I just wish the price tag wasn't so forbidding. Oh well, it *will* be mine one day. I've never tried an actual Turkish Delight, but this is definitely how I'd imagine them to smell, especially if they were drenched in honey. I actually used to hate this, because I kept trying it in warm weather for some stupid reason. This needs to be worn in the cold, it's so cozy on a dreary winter day. And so. Damn. Delicious. I mean, gourmands are supposed to smell delicious, that's the whole point after all, but this just takes it to another level. When you're craving a really yummy gourmet dessert but for whatever reason, can't have it, this is what you want instead. But beware, you/others may feel the compulsion to lick wherever you applied it, and I doubt it tastes as good as it smells :p

Wonderful stuff, if you have a sweet tooth or love gourmand scent. I could be reductionist, and say, it's the jammy rose of Rose en Noir allied to the Marzipan almond of Amandes Persane, but there's so much more going on here. It's somehow jammy doughnut, nougat, and vanilla pastry dusted with icing sugar. It's strong, too, only two small sprays will do your office all day and everyone will be sending out for cakes.. This sweetness isn't for everyone, but very few scents do gourmand like this: it's still lovely hour after hour, no vanishing, no falling apart, and it's nothing like air freshener or a scented candle. It's very clever and I'm pleased to wear it occasionally as a delicious treat. Genius from Mr Sheldrake, 10/10 (but I have a sweet tooth!)

It starts off with a blast of syrupy honey and sweet cherries, much like the taste of chewing some Turkish delight after the powdered sugar has dissolved. As it dries down, it gets nuttier and more powdery then finally settles to a very accurate scent of a freshly opened box of powdered, sweet loukoum with pistachios. This reminds me of Eid festivities. It's absolutely beautiful. I don't smell any rose in here at all. I think if this scent were to ever have a flanker, it should definitely be a more rose-flavoured loukoum. It would give it a touch of maturity while still being playful. PS. For those complaining about the cavity-inducing and cloying sweetness of this scent - blame the dessert! 7.5/10

A tribute to the legendary sweet confection from Turkey, Rahat Loukoum (Turkish Delight), is a delicious confection created over two decades ago. The perfume begins with a whiff of aldehydes showcasing the central notes of almond and cherry. As it begins settling, floral notes of rose, heliotrope emerge. Finally it settles into a powdery base of honey, vanilla, tonka bean, tolu balsam and musk. Moderate in sillage and projection and with good lasting power, this is a unisex perfume that softly caresses your skin with its confectionary warmth instead of overloading it with cloying sweetness. A gourmand criterion. Enjoy!

Very delicious but SL Rahat Loukoum does not smell like the Turkish candy rahat loukoum which smells of pistachio, rose, saffron and honey. Rather, this fragrance gives me happy flashbacks of my childhood when my mother would make her homemade, almond flavored jello from almond extract that she called "almond delight". This was my favorite dessert and this perfume smells exactly like it. Almond and honey dominate but half an hour into the drydown a light scent of cherry, heliotrope, tonka bean and resins come into the background. Super yummy!

Oh, if only this fragrance was stronger! It's a truly beautiful scent - less bright than Louve but with similar marzipan notes, lighter on the cherry, heavier on the rose and almond. It does remind me of opening a box of icing-sugar-dusted Turkish Delight. But after a couple of minutes, like Safran Troublant, it becomes no more than a skin scent. If it had the projection and staying power of Louve, I'd buy it like a shot, but for the moment, I'll content myself with my 5ml decant.

I am a hater of vanilla unless it is very well done. And it is exceptional here. I love a good cherry note, and here it's wonderful, not too sweet, not medicinal, it's just right. The opening has a strong realistic almond which disappears as the fragrance settles. Amazing scent, a must-have for a lover of gourmand scents (which I am not, by the way, but I am glad I have a decant of this).

Rahät Loukoum is THE gourmand fragrance 'par excellence'. It is rich, sweet, creamy, almondy, vanillic - just luscious yet not overpowering. If you don't like oriental-gourmand scents - stay away, then this one is not for you. To all Casmir, Angel and Lolita Lempicka Lovers: give this one a try, you'll love it!

A very nice unisex perfume, that is like a combination between Fumerie Turque and Louve. It starts as the loveliest almond scent that follows with cherry and rose, ending up in a vanillic context that is very lively- almost no powder. Deliciously sensual, sweet but balanced oriental delight.

Such a beautiful gourmnd perfume. Délicate in that and bringing so much childhood memories. Long listing, not sticky. The almond is what is proéminent on me and Imlime it. Wearable all day long and all year long. A classic.

Smells like a powder sugar-coated rahat loukoum with a side of almondy amaretto. It is a very gourmand scent. Holds really well, especially on fabrics and hair. I can't get enough of it. It is very expensive though.

A Serge Lutens masterpiece. I had both this and Keiko Mecheri’s Loukhoum (also beautiful) in my collection, but in efforts to avoid hoarding, I decided to keep only one of them. I chose Rahat Loukhoum.

Une magnifique et gourmande explosion d'amande amère au début..puis de la cerise...du sucre..., malheureusement du musc et d'autres choses qui gâchent un peu l'évolution...

Most gourmand fragrance that i have!

Is anyone selling a bottle of this?

I was conflicted about this scent. On one hand... it's absolutely fascinating. It's realistic. I can feel the confectionary aspect of this as I smell it -- there's delicate powdered sugar (as a coating?), and a jelly-like, chewy consistency to the fragrance -- which is unusual, as most perfumes don't dabble in textures the way this one does -- but the texture is a welcome addition. The cherry-almond note is beautifully executed, and I adore it. I've never consumed the real Turkish Delight, but this makes me want to seek it out. It feels similar to some of the specialty confections of my youth, and I appreciate the nuances of those delicacies... there is always more to these creations than just sugar -- they are unique artistic and cultural expressions. Often, they are labors of love. On the other hand... the longevity and sillage of this fragrance are minimal, at best, and they are certainly not what I would have expected from a perfume in this price range. (Granted, I had a dabber and not a spray sample... so, perhaps spraying liberally would yield better results in this regard.) This one warrants further investigation on my part. Everything about the scent appealed to me -- the only thing holding me back from a purchase was the lack of tenacity/projection (and frequent need for re-application). If I could find a way to make it last a bit longer, I could see this becoming a scent that would easily fit into my "holiday" rotation. This one is definitely worth sampling!

What is it with me and SL these days? We are not getting along! After falling in love with Datura Noir and Ambre Sultan, I thought I might be a SL girl, but after my horrifying experiences with Un Bois Vanille, Santal de Mysore and now this, I'm afraid to sniff what's next... I'm an almond freak, and I love cherry if done right, but this was just not my thing. I was expecting a beautiful almond cherry scent but instead I got cherry cough drops (smells exactly like Luden's!!!) with a nice marzipan in the background. I really don't think the almond is that bad but I am so not feeling the cherry. It's very synthetic/artificial smelling and to me the perfume does not at all warrant the ridiculous price tag. There are a million almond scents out there so I'm not hurting for things to try. I'm sad that this one did not work for me but relieved at throwing away any notion of shelling out big bucks for this thing. If I want this smell, I'll pop in a cherry Luden's and sniff some almond butter. I hate to bash on SL like this but I am soooo bummed about this frag :( EDIT: Once the cherry FINALLY fades I REALLY like the drydown, but unfortunately it takes like 2 or 3 hours, and I just can't wait that long to get to the good part. I don't want to feel like scrubbing my arm for 2-3 hours just to get the yummy drydown which has already since faded a lot....

Today, I wore Rahat Loukoum on one wrist, and Louve on the other, as they seem to beg for a side-by-side comparison. I think Rahat Loukoum makes me understand the she-wolf idea of Louve a bit better than I did before. I have been wearing Louve now and again, for its nostalgic evocation of doting mothers and the pharmacy products manufactured to comfort small children—Red liquid Tylenol, Luden’s cherry cough drops, Rose Milk and Jergen’s almond scented lotion on mother’s hands, Cherry Coke pulled from the Rexall soda fountain. It is a complicated slurry of a child’s fever-dream, and at times there is an unsettling fruity-public-toilet-freshener scent that makes me imagine that I will be scolded If I touch anything. Rahat Loukoum is much less challenging and more grand. It’s simply indulgent where Louve is assertively nurturing. This is not mother fussing about your cough or the state of your dirty hands. Rahat Loukoum is grandma love. All candy and rose water and talcum powder. I think of bright eyeshadow over crinkly eyes, Big, fancy cocktail rings, and cut-crystal candy dishes in grandma’s parlor. There’s no disinfectant and no medicine. It’s sweet without the uncertainty, with the elegant mystery that glamorous old ladies hold for small children.

Almond is one of my favorite notes, and I've been on a huge powder kick, so naturally I had to try all the loukuom-type fragrances. I've tried Keiko Mecheri's and fell in love, so I ordered this one (which it was compared to) and a bunch of others. Well, no surprise here, I love it. It starts out a little cherry cough syrup like but that lasts for like 5 seconds, and then it settles in to a GORGEOUS sweet, almondy, powdery, honey scent. It is not quite as powdery as Mecheri's Loukhuom (that one is SO powdery, I love it, but it's all powder at first and then a sweet vanilla-almond scent) but it's more gourmand and edible. The almonds and heliotrope are more pronounced from the start here, and drizzled in sweet, golden honey, with a hint of cherry. Despite that, it never crosses in the too sweet territory. Well actually, take that with a grain of salt. I like sweet. It doesn't cross into Pink Sugar sweet territory though, or even much of what is popular today. It's never cloying, just mouth watering. It's different enough from other sweet, powdery almond fragrances to warrant a buy if you're into that type of perfume. Sorry to be an enabler ;)

راحه الحلقوم, literally means in Arabic "Throat Comfort", and in Turkish translates roughly as "caress the palate" and that's precisely what this lovely gourmand fragrance does. The initial burst of fragrance is 100% sweet dessert reminiscent of a Turkish delight. The cherry is there for sweetness, the vanilla is a creamy dream, and the almond is warm and delightful. There is some rose, which brings it back around to smelling like a Turkish Delight. There is even some thick and sweet liquor there. But after even a few minutes it does become incredibly faint. I think it's lovely. It doesn't transport me or absolutely consume my existence, but it's on the good side of "like" for me. Very mature, while still being youthful and playful. Sweet without hurting teeth. Foodie without feeling full. It's a perfect balance. Thankfully I don't get any plasticy, rubber smells other report but as it lingers I can get a sense that it could evolve into something with the almond coming through more realistically realized. Solid 7.5/10 for me.

When I first put this on, I immediately felt this was the best perfume I ever smelled. The drydown is very similar to People of the Labyrinths Luctor et Emergo - an almondy saltiness that, more and more, begins to remind me of Play-Doh. It's never intensely Play-Doh, but it makes me feel like a kid again. I love the smell of cherries, rose and almonds, but I time travel too much with this perfume for it to be my signature. Will look at Keiko Mecheri Loukhoum, Serge Lutens Louve and others for more Turkish Delight-esque scents - hopefully ones that retain a rose-almond drydown!

This has been one of the more manageable heliotropes that I have tried. Heliotrope crossed with an almond tart, that has a maraschino cherry or two for garnish. The question is, would I consider purchasing it, while it is available in something other than a bell jar? I don't know. There are so many other fragrances that I want. I should look further into whether Guerlain offers something similar or not. Sometimes, just when I think I have found something else of uncle Serge's to like, the scent kicks up a fuss on my skin.

je ne sent pas du tout la cerise et l'avais acheté car j'adore la cerise, pour moi c'est l'amande, la tonka et le miel qui dominent, du coup un peu déçue et le porte très rarement; pas de sillage vraiment, parfum de peau, tenue moyenne. celles qui aiment l'amande vous pouvez l'acheter, prix un peu élevé comme tous les Lutens mais c'est une marque pleine de bonnes surprises olfactives

It’s a very cyanidic bitter cherry-almond scent. Super potent and radiant with a syrupy sweet base. I want to love it (because I’m a gourmand girl), but I can’t. It’s a bit too much for me.

Resin, resin, resin on me, floor wax, liniment, something that reminds me of immortelle. Gourmand? Would never have guessed!

I wanted a straight up almond extract scent and this delivers EXACTLY that! The added fruity sweetness definitely reminds me of turkish delights! The bell jar is adorable (a lot smaller than what I was expecting), but as cute as it is I would have preferred a spray bottle. On the plus side they did provide an atomizer.

It’s predominantly gelatin with a cherry accent. Both the scent and texture feel very gelatin-forward, and the cherry note immediately takes me back to those cherry Push Pops — a mix of sweet cherry and that faint plasticky undertone. Lasts foreverrr.

Incredibly artful, like most Lutens perfumes, but this was too cloyingly sweet for me. I like really sweet perfumes—and picked up a decant of Rahat Loukoum hoping it would be a more sophisticated substitute for my beloved LPRN—but it’s just too syrupy. The aldehydes and cherry at the beginning are really lovely, but they vanish quickly and it turns into a thick marzipan-y honey almond scent that has a background of Play-Doh and a faint sour note. My sister got the same Play-Doh scent, which I suspect is the almond; it happened with Louve too, but to a much lesser extent and only on me. I wish I could love this as much as I wanted to, but I suppose it’s safer for my wallet this way!

Rahat Loukoum = artificial liquid used for backing for fragrance your cake if you don't have really bitter almond. Rahat Loukoum is worser and more sweet, less bitter than the artificial bitter almond liquid. The perfumer did a very poor job, sorry.

I do recognise all the notes that are talked about, rose, cherry, amaretto, incense, but to me, above all, the most dominant note for the first hour was exactly the same smell as my mum used to iron the synthetics far far too hot...

I thought Sl loukoum scent would be the holy grail loukoum but it didn't mix well with me - just cherry and nuts. My boyfriend said is smelled like a scratch n' sniff sticker or Play Dough.

Started off like candy, dry down was reminiscent of a rubber dog bone. Not my favorite. So far nothing tops MDB for me re Serge.

White Witch Parlor on Etsy. Cherry and Almond perfume oil, 12 bucks. Good stuff.

It's wonderful, but I wouldn't want to smell like a cake

Ugh. So, so sweet and cloying. Shout out to the reviewer who helped me identify why I also found it nauseating and PTSD worthy -- yup, cherry cough syrup.

Hands down, this is one of my absolute favorite fragrances on me, and everyone agrees (except my ex-boyfriend, it made him sick!). I went through two samples before I bought the travel atomizer. I have now gone through three of them. My only issue is that it is so much of a skin scent. The scent lingers on fabric, even hair, but on my skin, for some reason, the sillage is so soft, so weak, it dissipates in what feels like 10-30 minutes. You’d have to kiss my neck to find it. That being said, it is an exquisite creation; I don't get much powder initially - instead I feel it hit me with the aldehydes like a candied cherry almond syrup blast that flies up the nose like helium. I'm not even sure what helium feels like or smells like, but there is a chemical feeling, as if you are unbottling an unstable liquid that immediately evaporates. Except it is on your skin. It is evocative in that way. It's a sensual fragrance, and there is a bitterness that lingers. I find myself sniffing my own skin, my collar, compulsively, like a fiend, surprised every time at how truly special Rahat Loukoum is. Once, I sprayed it in my hair and pulled it up in a ponytail before going clubbing - a man walked by in the crowded smoking area, stopped, turned, and said with a sense of truly serious urgency, “You smell REALLY good.” I just wish it lasted longer. But I love it so much, I'll probably keep purchasing once it runs out. I wonder if the bell jar will have a different effect than the atomizer. Etro’s Heliotrope hits a heliotrope note I’m addicted to in Rahat Loukhoum but both have extremely poor projection. In the same vein, Keiko Mecheri Loukhoum cannot compare and smells so cheap to me - but I really enjoy Montale Sweet Oriental Dream as an alternative (thanks to user Scented Salon for the suggestion). It has a better projection than SL’s and a truly cloying and coating sweetness that I personally love in certain gourmands that lean towards almond. The main difference is that when I wear Sweet Oriental Dream, I’ve been told I “smell like candy,” whereas when I wear Serge Lutens Rahat Loukoum, I’ll get a text hours later or the next day: “I was just thinking of how good you smelled.” See? It lingers.

Here's another one of those Sheldrake-Lutens spins: "See, these are the notes and the blurb but we do it our way". Rahat Loukoum. You see the name, you see the note breakdown, and you think to yourself: "This is for sure the most exquisite rendition of a proper Turkish Loukoum accord". Nope, this is odd. It's Lutens. I prefer the actual smell of this, as I slowly but surely developed an animosity toward gourmands. And I had more than my fair share of proper, authentic Turkish loukoum in my childhood and teen years before touching a dumbbell and getting infected. Therefore, I am more than familiar with its flavor. Rahat Loukoum is, like most old-school Lutens, unique, and ahead of its time. It almost feels like another quirky perfume, Dans Tes Bras, but done in the Lutens style. If it conveys any of the Turkish loukoum flavors or textures, it's the powdered sugar coating. It feels like a cold sugar powder. That's the gist of it. With lots of bitterness and white musk in the base. The cold powder accord is the main focus. It is introduced with the help of aldehydes and then sustained with plenty of white musk. To the main accord, there is only a touch of a cherry flavor that is never sweet, but rather sour. And a metallic-bitter almond accord that only reinforces the idea of cold. Aesthetically, it hints at something like Iris Silver Mist but it is done differently. It smells vintage, making me also think of those silly wigs people in high society were wearing back in the 17th-18th century. Precisely, it makes me think of the face powder the mademoiselle were using to pamper their faces. It's a weird perfume. Something that I occasionally apply to amuse and remind myself of. Cold, powdery, musky, only slightly sweet and bitter-metallic on the edges. Not the Loukoum people might be looking for, but the one they never expected, for sure. IG:@memory.of.scents

I have a tough time with almond notes. Not almonds themselves - I could quite happily chow down on them any day - and not for the reason you might think. I like almonds. Almonds are fine. Almonds are not, actually, the problem. The problem is that every time I smell this particular combination of bitter-almond-née-cherry, I'm instantly transported back to my grandmother's kitchen, a large spoonful of children's cough medicine held under my nose. It's somewhat impressive, like a scent-fuelled time machine, the memory somewhat careworn with the many-years nostalgia... standing in her 50's styled blue kitchen, staring at a spoonful of bright pink liquid, dust motes dancing in the sunbeams around us. I'm sure the chemists had some excellent intentions when they flavoured the syrup, I really am. Maybe they broke out Mary Poppins - a spoonful of sugar flavoured cherry makes the medicine go down. Maybe they figured that children would be so delighted at the colour - neon as it was - that they would forget the rest of what was to come. Readers, the fact that I still remember this should tell you that these good intentions meant nothing to a child who only barely managed to finish her dose. In some ways, I'm glad. My grandmother is long gone, but this one moment in our lives together is buried in my memory like it's been caught and preserved in amber. A snapshot no camera could have taken. I can't wear this fragrance. It's lovely, it really is, a cherry and almond pastry with sugar glaze on top. It's worth trying. But I can't wear it. I'll be putting my sample with my photo albums instead, pressed to the pages... preserved with the rest of my history, just waiting to be rediscovered.

Rahät Loukoum has been high on my test list for years, because I love high quality gourmands and Serge Lutens is unquestionably among the very best at creating those. I was also intrigued by the fact that their line features not just one but two Turkish delight type gourmands - they must love the idea of those as much as I do! Now that I've finally acquired a little quantity of this one to compare to my treasured decant of Louve, I have to say I'm a little puzzled, though: they definitely smell a lot alike. Both are wonderfully straightforward gourmands with a focus on candied almonds, very sweet but in a balanced, rather sophisticated way that never feels overwhelming. I'd say Louve is more reminiscent of marzipan while Rahät Loukoum calls to mind the Turkish delight suggested by the name (covered in powdered sugar!) - but that's hardly worlds apart. Louve is heavier on the cherry, and more powerful in general: it's dense and syrupy, it projects very strongly and it stays around all day. Rahät Loukoum is by no means a light scent either, but it doesn't have Louve's (staying) power, which was surprising to me seeing how striking it is on application. Bottom line is they are both wonderful scents, and I'd be over the moon with a full bottle of either. This one seems to be a little cheaper/easier to come by these days (I still mourn the demise of so many great Serge Lutens scents in the cheaper 50 ml bottles...), so if I ever get one it will probably be this one, but until then I'll happily switch between my decants.

Serge Lutens' Rahat Loukoum is a sweet and sugary delight. God only knows why this fragrance is a Palais Royal exclusive. In a market dominated by all things sweet and gooey, Rahat Loukoum would sell like hot-cakes. Rahat Loukoum opens with a rich cherry liquor note, with a slight medicinal quality. This top note however is quick to fade, settling into a delicate blend of vanilla, almond and tonka bean. The heart and drydown, in my opinion, smells very much like a vanilla butter cake. I love this sweet and creamy approach. I wear gourmands very rarely, however I wouldn't mind wearing Rahat Loukoum every now and then, especially considering that it's light and inoffensive. Like Keiko Mecheri's Loukhoum, Rahat Loukoum does not remind me of turkish delight whatsoever. They're both soft and powdery vanillic scents, more cake-like than candied. Rahat Loukoum doesn't smell like your typical Serge Lutens fragrance. Some may complain that perfumer Christopher Sheldrake was playing it safe. Agreed, Rahat Loukoum is not particularly unique, but I enjoy it nonetheless. In true niche style, this fragrance has excellent longevity and strong sillage. I would recommend it for wear during the cooler months. A light application is all that is needed.