Vetiver Oriental

1. History I first encountered Serge Lutens in the early 2000s in Beirut: a friend had Vetiver Oriental sitting on a shelf in his bathroom. I am extremely picky when it comes to fragrance - extremely. Worse, I cannot wear anything that is even slightly chemical. When Vetiver Oriental struck my senses I was transported. For several years that was all I wore - until Serge Lutens discontinued it except in the Paris store, which was inaccessible to me. Now I'm in Hong Kong, and yesterday I found a big 100 ml bottle of Vetiver Oriental sitting like a vision in the Lane Crawford boutique. I couldn't believe it. And the price was far less than I expected: 1500 hkd ($190 US). Sold! My only concern: has the formula changed, or my sense of smell altered as I've grown older? I think both may be true, but not enough to be significant. I know I have the same relationship with this fragrance as in the 2000s. When I forget it, become absorbed in my work, and then resurface, I find myself thinking, "What a wonderful scent that is," which is exactly my habitual thinking in the old days. 2. Investigate A word of caution: When first trying this fragrance be patient; the scent after the dry down is dramatically different. Patience is rewarded. 3. Impressions I'm not versed in the vocabulary of the perfume world, but I can say that Vetiver Oriental is one of those precious scents that crosses cultures and times. It is definitely on the spice side; there is no clear floral note, in my opinion. My impression is of bags of spice in a grand bazaar in Istanbul or Damascus, or in a backstreet shop in Singapore - somewhere along the fault line where East meets West. 4. Comparison and Contrast Until yesterday I had been relying on other Serge Lutens fragrances, and my favorite of those is Arabie. I plan to alternate between Vetiver and Arabie for the coming year. Two years ago I bit the bullet and bought Amouage Jubilation for men. After reading many reviews on this website I suspect the company altered the formula (there's no clear evidence that this is the so) and I wonder if I would have been happy with the first edition. In any case, I found Jubilation far too strong for me, overpowering really, and I could not solve the problem because even the tiniest spray or dab set the world spinning round. Vetiver can also be overpowering, but I give it a half spray at most (the 100ml spray delivers much more than the 50ml), and that works just fine. Finally I should add that I tried the Ambre Sultan yesterday in comparing it to the Vetiver; it is a beautiful, rich, complex, strong scent, but leaning more toward the exaggerated posture of Jubilation, so I gave it a pass with all due respect. Maybe I'll come back to it later. 5. Happiness? I thought Vetiver Oriental from Serge Lutens was gone for good, or at least out of my reach and budget in Paris. I thought it might have changed formula and been a love passing in a crowded train station never to be seen again. Reunion could not be sweeter, and my only concern now is that I must continue being detached from this earthly existence. No doubt the purest, most elegant and transporting scents in this world are but pale shadows of those in the next. 6. One week later: It was too good to be true.I'm getting a consistent reaction in my sinuses when I use this fragrance, and the sillage is far stronger than the original that I remember from the early 2000s. I'm fairly sure now that SL changed the formula, and that's a shame. I will experiment further with much smaller amounts and see if that solves the problem, but if not, I'll have to give it up. I end here to go wash it off, something I never did with the original Vetiver.

If you like vetiver, this is one of the best in my opinion. On first spray, you get quite a strong vetiver that fizzes on the skin. This slows down and for a while is accompanied by an oily, gently rubbery guaiac wood. I usually struggle with Guaiac wood in fragrances if I'm honest, but it's okay here. I'm not sure I'd be so happy with this if it hung around, but after about 30 minutes, it fades right out to the backseat of the composition, replaced instead by possibly the most beautiful sandalwood I've ever smelt. It's dry, warm and fresh, more like a wood shop than any incense. This is also alongside the emergence of a rich, dark chocolate. The chocolate to me is more abstract than I was expecting. I feel like throughout the wear, it's more of a suggestion of chocolate rather than an obvious, gourmand chocolate. There are some ever so slight, gentle florals, and a hint of a powdery iris note that shows up briefly, but for the most part, they don't crowd the stage and bow out after a couple of hours. At this point, for me, the scent is more or less linear, with no great changes, all chocolate, woods and vetiver, with some balsamic, ambery sweetness to keep it interesting. But that description is far, far too simple. This fragrance has an incredible duality, whilst remaining completely wearable throughout. It is at once dry and sophisticated and sweet and playful at the same time. It flits between the two faces wonderfully and not in a typical "unisex" way, as in the fragrance as a whole takes on the particular gender, it literally swings between masculine and feminine depending on which notes catch you in the air. It's really something special to experience. It's strictly black tie only but can be total rock and roll, constantly subverting itself just when you feel like you have the measure of it. When it feels black tie, it almost makes me feel bad for wearing it in a pair of jeans and when it flips and feels more relaxed, it just kills it, feeling like pure casual class. The blend of these two faces is really something special here and elevates it beyond your average vetiver fragrance. I think the way it wears like this, it is appropriate for any occasion, though it still feels a bit too classy for casual wear for me. This is more for a dressed up affair, whether that be work or play. It would absolutely kill on a date night, but I don't know if I would wear it for a first date as it has quite a unique character, it would really depend on the situation. As far as gender goes, the subtle oakmoss, woods and vetiver nail this hard as masculine, but as I say, it flips equally feminine with soft, rich chocolate and balsamic notes. I think it can be unisex and I also think this would be very sexy on a woman, but you'd want to be pretty confident in your style. As long as you own the fragrance and don't let it dominate I think it would work. Honestly, I think that applies to both male and female here. Performance is INSANE. two sprays are enough, will net you a decent sillage and won't be overpowering, which honestly I think could be easily done. I sprayed this on at 10am before heading to work and went straight out when I finished, I got home at 3 in the morning, crashed out on the bed and woke up the next morning at 8am and I could still smell it like I just sprayed it. Even after I got out of the shower after waking up that morning, I could still smell it. Mental. I could go on, but I won't. Unbelievable scent.

A Very Peculiar Vetiver. As a passionate lover of woody fragrances with an Oriental character, I was absolutely captivated from the first moment I inhaled Vetiver on my skin. The structure of this exquisite woody perfume reveals itself with green, herbal-aromatic, slightly spicy and subtly bitter accords (possibly also containing Artemisia). This captivating opening is joined by delicate woody and powdery notes of iris, combined with floral and smoky nuances from guaiac wood. These accords envelop the vetiver, timidly intertwined with an elegant touch of chocolate, and the floral accords, resulting in a harmonious and refined composition. Sandalwood is neither creamy nor sweet; however, it brings a slightly dry warmth, perfectly complementing the woods and the green and earthy moss. Vetiver remains present throughout the fragrance's evolution, becoming softer. Sweetened by ambery, musky and resinous labdanum accords. Imparting depth and warmth to the last phase. As with all Lutens creations, Vetiver smells very realistic and of great quality! In my opinion, it is a unique fragrance, out of the ordinary. It may be somewhat ambivalent to some, and it probably requires an acquired taste to fully appreciate this masterpiece. Personally, it won me over from the first spray. Substantivity on my skin reaches 10 hours. Diffusion is moderate.

Vetiver Oriental is opulent, deep and rich yet very intimate and personal. It's oily yet dry at the same time. It doesn't need to scream to be heard or appreciated. It whispers quietly and confidently. It's very resinous, powdery, dry and spicy. This isn't a sweet fragrance by any stretch but it does have a bitter sweet quality from the chocolate and vetiver. The vetiver is there however it isn't the main player. The main players for me are the chocolate, sandalwood, amber and labdanum. The interplay between these notes create the dry, resinous, spicy feel that I described earlier. This reminds me of a more refined version of a few fragrances I've owned and smelt in the past namely: M7 Oud Absolu by YSL, L'Instant de Guerlain, Prada Amber Pour Homme intense and Noir Eau de Toilette by Tom Ford. If you're familiar with any of those fragrances, you'll have an idea of how Vetiver Oriental smells. While I agree that you should wear what you like, when you like, I think this compliments the mature, self assured, well polished, well manicured gentleman nicely. It has staying power but doesn't project very well. I can smell it easily on me for the majority of it's wearing but I'm not sure those around me can detect it. It leans more masculine however, a woman could easily pull this off. This will also do well in cooler weather.

In the lineup of popular vetiver fragrances, this one stands in it's own corner near the "gourmand" category. I really do pick out the chocolate note in this. And it works so well with the vetiver, oakmoss, and guaiac wood, much like the way chocolate drives a mole sauce. It's sweeter in the start with a powdery iris garnish and then settles into the dry down. Delicious! Beautiful contrast to something salty and sour like Etro Vetiver. In fact, I've worn both, one on each arm, and enjoy the contrasts. But sadly, this is one of those fragrances that wears close to the skin. Not much in projection here. Longevity is below average as well... seemingly so, until you warm up your skin with activity and catch fleeting whiffs of it still there. Honestly, if the formulation had a stronger base to it that would project and last about 50% more, I'd be willing to spend $135 for a full 50ml bottle (about the going rate on resale). Alas... I'm not sure it is worth it. I managed to blind buy a half full 50ml bottle for a good discount, so I didn't take a full purchase chance. But would I buy a full bottle now? Not sure... I think I'm going to sip this one... and savor it until the end and see how I feel then. I would very likely buy a full bottle if found for under $120. Fragrance: 8.9 Longevity: 6.3 Value 7.2