Sa Majeste la Rose

God I love this... It’s my favourite pure rose soliflore. A very solid pure and concentrated slightly honeyered rose with great throw and longevity. To me this is not really green it is just simply the essence of rose flower. I have several different rose absolutes at different concentrations and I add them to my skincare products for its treatment properties and occasionally make my own natural perfumes with it. This is not precisely like rose absolute but it has more in common with rose absolute than any other rose soliflore I have tried. If you’ve ever smelled rose absolute (which is solvent extracted) AND Rose Otto (attar of roses, derived from steam distillation), the door profile is different... Rose Otto is less true to the fresh rose flower - it’s rosey odor is slightly more muted and has a sort of nutty characteristic as well as a kind of damp plant matter note that is pleasant but it’s not a « fresh » green scent more like a few green. The rose absolute on the other hand is a sort of spicy and much more honeyed rosey scent. Sa majesté la rose is much more like rose absolute than. Rose otto - Lutens had managed to capture the extremely subtle spice and smooth creamy honeyed quality of the absolute. I’ve dabbed on pure rose absolute (which you’re not supposed to do but I was experimenting to see how long it would last). Even in its pure form the pure absolute had no lasting power or projection so that is one of the truly wonderful things about this perfume - it’s very close to pure rose concentrate but it has the projection and lasting power of an extremely well crafted perfume. The Guaic wood works perfectly in this fragrance - it subtly anchors the rose and lends additional depth and smoothness without stealing the show. In my opinion this deceptively simple concept - the rose soliflore - is one of the most difficult things to do very very well for perfumers. To my nose - this is the very best rose soliflore. It’s like a concentrated rose flower essence that’s true to the natural ingredients with a little artfulness and it performs like a powerhouse. It is closely followed, in my estimation, by Annick Goutal’s Rose Absolue. I’ve often seen this compared with Jo Malone Red Roses and it’s true that they are quite similar insofar as it’s straight rose with nothing distracting from the rose - as in the other notes are There to highlight various aspects of the Rose aroma and not to distract from it - but for me Red Roses doesn’t hold a candle to this perfume. You have to like the idea of a very straight rose scent though - if you’re looking for anything else this is not for you but if you want a potent loveley and true rose flower than you must try this. As a side note: I also often see this compared to La Fille de Berlin and to me the only thing he’d two fragrances have in common is that they feature some rose and were both created by Serge Lutens. Otherwise I don’t see how the two have much in common - to my nose La Fille de Berlin is so different - it does have a kind of jammy rose that has a kind of wine like quality with a grape kind of edge but the rose is - to my nose - at least equally met by potent amounts of pepper, some spices and heavy musks that smell masculine to my nose... I feel like La Fille de Berlin is different but comparable in its overall effect to Amouage Lyric... Rose plays an important role but it’s not the star of the show that it is in Sa Majesté...

Another creation of Christopher Sheldrake, Sa Majesté La Rose was released in 2000 as another tribute from Serge Lutens to roses, which he admires a lot. This time, the flower explored was the Moroccan rose that, as its name says, it is cultivated in Morocco (country worshipped by Serge and chosen by him as his residence). Its name means "Her Majesty the Rose" and the fragrance is one of the few inside the House that is marketed as feminine. However, it is another great example of shareable perfume (incidentally, I found it a little more masculine than La Fille de Berlin, at least on my skin). In the composition, Moroccan rose absolute, guaiac wood, cloves, white honey (one of the most valuable in the market because of its sweet content, its purity, and its color), musk, geranium, lychee, vanilla and a touch of Chamomile. When applied on the skin, I must admit that the result pleased me a lot! I still couldn't find a perfume of Roses as wonderful as what I felt in Montale Aoud Purple Roses, but I could wear this one easily. As the name says, the rose reigns alone and the rest is just a castle full of dreams, refinement, and hidden secrets about to become another cinema movie. There's not a lot of evolution and everything revolves around the Queen: the honey gives brightness and sweetness, while the lychee and the geranium give green nuances. The musk complements with a touch of sensuality, but the guaiac wood could be more present. With respect to the notes of cloves and chamomile...well, they must have been used only in the tea served by the monarch, since they are non-existent to my nose. Sa Majesté La Rose isn't one of those surprising fragrances of Serge Lutens but fulfills its role. Also does not have the same projection of the others, however, exudes satisfactorily. The lasting follows the standard quality of the House and the content deceives because it's not pink or red, but yellow. If you enjoy fragrances of roses, here's another name to your wish list.

Not a fresh rose, definitely not a clean rose, not a rose confiture even not so elegant also. That's what I believe. It's a warm rose, too much warm, to be a rose. Traditionally roses are related to youth and freshness whereas this has a dirty musk touch inside with a soapy note which seems to redeem it. But it can't. I love roses and I'm at ease while wearing fragrances with such a component but I'm not so, while wearing 'Sa Majesté'. It makes me feel as if I walked in the street wearing nothing but my frag! So... I can't see it as an innocent rose. I totally disagree (SORRY) also when it is compared to grannies perfumes when the expression "grannies perfumes" stands for old fashioned, harmless, inoffensive, puritan and innocent Eau de Toilette (you can choose between lavender or vervain): no, no, no! Grannies fragrances were much more than this, they were alternative, bold and outrageous especially compared to those of their modern nieces. The latest are overwhelmed (and me among them!) by more or less similar frags, whose ingredients are often disposed in a different order BUT quite always they are almost the same: wether resembling...or...or...or- why-not...or....!?! ..and when a frag is really 'new' it is left aside being not really understood. BUT if it must be compared to grannies frag...according to my personal definition of grannies frags ...yes! it's true - as well as old frags - this is not at all an innocent rose. I adore roses and perfumes on this subject but my bottle containing S.M.l.R. (a frag I like, after all) is almost full! Nothing to say about its persistence, which is remarkably good. Remarkably embarrassing... p.s. If it were a literary work it would be O. Wilde's tale "The Nightingale and the rose".

If you want to feel the purest of roses - this is the perfume for you. The opening is bright and strong, like the roses bouquet tied together and the aroma of unopened blooms is mixed with that of the leaves. Moments later - red roses come out in all their unapologetic and bold beauty. The scent is rich, with great depth and purity like no other. There is no powder or sweetness diluted by other flowers. There are just roses and nothing else. At some point, the honey peeks through, adding a bright and sharp edge to the roses petals. It makes the scent slightly candied and alcoholic, but only a bit. The honey is a backdrop, a tool to open up the beauty of the roses' singularity even further. It does not compete or blend with it, it merely highlights the beauty which is already there. The scent is enveloping, luxurious and unmistakable. You are in the presence and in the hold of Her Majesty the Rose. The perfume sounds different in different temperatures and personally I prefer it in crisper and cooler air, as then the rose is the most realistic and enveloping without being suffocating or overwhelming. You will be noticed when wearing this perfume, the sillage is brilliant and projection near perfect. It stays on for hours and best worn on the open skin of hands and chest. Sa Majeste La Rose is the one that is unapologetically honest, proud and incredibly beautiful. After her - no other rose will ever feel as good.

I am wearing Serge Lutens Sa Majeste La Rose today. When i first sprayed this scent, I was instantly reminded of my rosewater. But that is not it. I thought it was then my Bio-fresh rose cream mixed with Land of Roses rose perfume oil. The tart, green, powdery of my cream matches the fresh opening of SMLR. Meanwhile, the sweet, musky, woodsy rose of the perfume oil has the same vein as the middle notes of SMLR. It starts off as a bunch of pure, white roses cut off with the stem and leaves in-tact. Very fresh, green yet subtlely romantic. At this stage, the projection is going well and strong; people could smell SMLR from two metres away. The middle notes treat SMLR so well, it turns into a sweeter, light pink rose. The lychee is cheerful, while the green notes in the opening disappear. The honey note becomes more prominent mellowed by guaiac wood. The dry down is where the rose is tenderized with animalic musk and a blend of soft, oriental woods. This charming symphony lasts for seven to eight hours on my skin. Sa Majeste La Rose is a masterpiece of an old fashioned rose bush. It does not conform to the modern but rather embraces the past. When I smell this scent I am reminded of a fine spring day sitting on fresh white linen whilst sipping floral green tea, and catching up with dear friends. <3