Sel de Vetiver

Wow... what a unique scent. This immediately feels so bright and crisp, but not in an ordinary way. I had never tried a vetiver fragrance before and the notes in this are so youthful almost...I've definitely never smelled anything quite like this. It feels sweet but not saccharin sweet, nor gourmand. I sampled this, along with Heeley Sel Marin and Jo Malone Wood Sage & Sea Salt. For those of you also looking at these scents ("beach"/marine scents), I can give my 2 cents on how this ranks. Heeley Sel Marin- much too sharp for me. I admittedly haven't worn yet, but I let it dry down on a tester sheet and it is very very sour almost and I didn't find it to be mellow enough for my taste. Reminded me slightly of a candle scent, which is unfortunate given the glowing write-ups for this scent. I have most of my sample left, so I may retest in the spring. Jo Malone Wood Sage & Sea Salt - I've reviewed before and really enjoy this scent, but the longevity is so poor. Even with just a "dabbed" scent of Sel de Vetiver, I could tell that the longevity and sillage are superior. I *almost* went for a full-bottle of this, but I decided to wait and maybe even get a small decant from Surrender to chance so I can make sure I like it enough (and also test with a spray and not just a dab). It may be more of a warm-weather scent for me, so I will probably revisit when it gets warmer out. At one point I did detect a carrot-y note in the fragrance (which I wasn't crazy about), but I keep going back to the fragrance and find it to be so different and uplifting. Hopefully this review helps you if you are trying to find a new scent to sample/wear. It's definitely worth ordering a sample!

In the beginning, there is citrus. This probably sounds odd, but it’s just like tasting grapefruit with salt sprinkled on top of it. All too soon, though, the citrus dies away and the vetiver and its companions take over. The vetiver is gray and bitter, as it should be, and is accented by just the slightest hint of dry, peppery spice, the listed cardamon plus a few other things, possibly coriander. There’s also just the tiniest hint of something floral, but it’s subtle, focused mainly on iris. Then the bitterness goes away and there’s more sillage than I would ever have thought. It’s gorgeous, a perfect combination of notes. It’s like floating in a womb of fragrant salt water full of luscious nutrients. It’s the scent they would have used to lull the tank-people into submission in “The Matrix”. When I first smelled the sillage, it was one of those infatuated, “OMG, this is the Holy Grail!” moments, which, of course, like infatuated love, never last very long. As the scent died away, so did the initial excitement. Sel de Vetiver cannot go into my wear-to-work rotation because it only lasts about 4 hours and I like for the scents that I put on in the morning to last through the evening. What a treat to be pleasantly surprised, though. I can see how Sel de Vetiver would be nice layered with TDC’s Bergamote, as suggested by another reviewer. This seems like a good use for the bergamot, since by itself it’s much too thin, linear, and short-lived.

I just love this perfume so much. I don't even understand how any perfume house can capture salt, but TDC does and does it well. I can smell the beach and NO suntan lotion, yay! If I want to smell like suntan lotion, I'll use it! I love vetivers and I've been on a mission to find one that doesn't smell too gentlemanly and that I can wear in hot weather. I'm in south Florida and it's very hard to find one. I love Vetiver Tonka, but it works better for me in the cooler weather. Many citrus scents turn on me or don't last. So while I enjoy the ones that work, I don't get the longevity I want. In this, I sense some grapefruit, but not in a sweet way. This perfume is fresh, light, but heavy enough to be noticed and last a while. This one lasts on me for hours (at least 4) and possibly even longer because I got used to it. The drydown was interesting. I just noticed this after the 4th time wearing it, pepper! Salt n Pepper! What a cool perfume this is! Another thing I noticed. When I tested Hermes Elixir Des Merveilles, I thought, hmmm, this smells so familiar, but I know I've never tested it. I had run out of my Sel de Vetiver and didn't realize the similarity. SdV smells like green stuff and EdM smells like orange jam - but underneath them both, I get the same bright gorgeous scent - whatever it is!

My favourite vetiver fragrance and my favourite summer perfume. It was one the very first niche perfumes and the first vetiver fragrance I got to know, so it has kind of special meaning for me. The vetiver note is present here from beginning to end, but withe different companion. In the opening the most dominant note is grapefruit with a little bit of bitetter bergamot. What make it very different from generic fresh, citrusy frags is addition of cardamom which adds some deepness and density to the citruses. Later as citruses vapourize, a salty note appears. I think it comes from geranium. In my elementary school there were many geranium pots on the windowsills and I remember this complex, fizzy, vibrant and salty smell. I don't detect any other flowers, I guess they are perfectly blended with vetiver and salty geranium, perhaps adding some softness to the creation. I recognized two main types of vetiver in perfumes whose I associate withe colours. So there is yellow, rooty vetiver and green, grassy vetiver, the former I love the latter not so much. Sel de vetiver is obviously all about yellow vetiver - deep, earthy, oily and sligtly smokey. Along with other notes it makes Sel de Vetiver one of the most beautyful vetiver frags for me. I really enjoy wearing it, especially in summer.

Sel Vetiver This is good, as in “tried this on Friday night, went back and purchased the next day” good. Absolutely no aquatics here (not to me at least). What I do get is a breezy handling of what is typically a heavy handed treatment of a common perfume element (think Encre Noire). I once spoke with Roja Dove, asked him about the light treatment in his own Vetiver. What he said is that the higher up the plant, the lighter the vetiver note. While this is in the same vein as Roja’s, derived from higher up in the plant, it lacks the citrusy brightness (and in some ways the weight associated with Roja’s composition) and as a result is much lighter but not lacking the vetiver note in any way. What I get instead is more of a dreamy composition, ephemeral, but at the same time lasting and substantial. The vetiver is light but clearly identifiable, clean, almost if it was sprayed on a shirt days ago and only encountered again when the shirt is put back on. Longevity is around 4 hours with very, very low sillage. If I had to rank vetivers, I’d put this first, followed by Roja’s and then TF’s GV.