Courtesan

Oh My Goodness! I have been amiss! I can't believe that I've never left a review for one of my dearly beloved scents!!!! Ummmm....courtesan. This scent is pure seduction for the woman who knows how to wear it. The inspiration behind this scent was Cora Pearl. Long before the latest Instagram model offering...ahem... "bookings" there existed this 19th century English courtesan who took the Parisian world of her time by storm. It's the quintessential story of live fast, die young, make a beautiful corpse---- Pearl lived an incredibly decadent, whirlwind life before dying in her mid 30s of what was described at the time as a "disorder of the female organs". From all indications it, was likely a female cancer that came about as a result of untreated venereal disease (likely what we know as HPV today). Poor thing died alone, broke, and broken which is not the sexiest way to leave this world, but call it more an indicator of the sex repressive 19th century times that penalized women for having the nerve to do the darn thing rather than let it put a damper on the life that she did live. For the time that Cora was in her prime, she ruled the hearts of royalty. A typical night for her was rum soaked revelry dancing nude until dawn when you'd find her in the arms of the Shah of Persia or one of the crowned princes of the Ramonov family or some other bit of royalty from that era. Unfortunately, as any good woman of the evening knows, saving is absolutely necessary for such a life. Cora lived for the present and enjoyed an opulent life of decadent furs, near priceless jewels, and stunning couture gowns. Enter the House of Worth, considered one of the premier couture houses of the day, they supplied Pearl with a large part of her wardrobe. Keep in mind, that fashionable women of the 19th century changed garments 3-4 times a day with resplendent dresses for each day's activities. How did this woman die broke? Well heauxing has never had good retirement benefits and Pearl had a bit of pride that kept her from turning to her affluent friends who no doubt would have assisted her. In the end, it is said that her stunning beauty wasted away and she did not want the men who once fantasized about her to see her in that state including...Mr....Wor---let me hush! Telling too much old tea now. Okay enough gossip, what about the fume? Whew! Egads this is pure 19th century risque sex in a bottle. Imagine a stunningly beautiful seemingly refined "lady" bedecked in low cut gown evening gown of fine silk and intricate bead work sitting in a drawing room filled with paintings of her supposed well heeled and monied ancestors. She's wearing a delicate white floral cologne that gives wafts of spring with her every movement. Across from her sits a gentleman caller and they are speaking in hushed tones over a silver tray of fine rum imported from Santo Domingo. Their conversation is both playful banter and ardent argument over politics, considered a most un-ladylike choice for drawing room conversation. Each time that she leans forward, the gentleman receives an ample view of her bosom and smells the green floral muskiness of her cologne. She doesn't wait for him as she reaches for another glass of rum and places it to her lips. This time she intentionally misses, spilling the glass onto her decolletage, ruining yet another expensive couture gown in her game of seduction. The gentleman hastily offers her his handkerchief and she tells him------- "I'd rather you lick it off." Rum soaked skin, classic white floral cologne, the spicy gourmand chocolate caramel cardamom notes of indecency and roiling passion. The soft hazy musky pink bloom of the afterglow----this is Courtesan. I cannot be without a bottle in my collection. It's one of the few that I've actually had to replace because I use it up. This is one that you spray LIBERALLY, honey. If you have to dab this one on then you are not meant for it. It's not for you and that's okay. There is nothing ladylike about this. There is nothing shy or shrinking violet about this. This isn't elegant...this is sex. This is a "I wonder if she's wearing anything beneath that trench coat" kind of perfume. This is a get your freakum dress out the closet, call the babysitter, and tell him to hurry home from work kind of perfume. I'm just saying this perfume definitely has a bit of skank to it. Sharpen your nails and put on your Revlon Cherries in the Snow lipstick because this fume is old school sexy. No light school girl fruitchoulis here Now...do I just reserve this for date nights and other romantic interludes? I'm not that type. Child, I will wear this to the grocery store. I have worn this to church...what? Let me help the deacon remember why he needs to pray against temptation. Courtesan is a keeper. Out of all of the fumes I own...from pricey niche to drugstore classic. This is the only perfume through which I can go through an entire bottle and that I consider truly sensual. Sillage is arm length. Longevity is 5-6 hours. Best season for wear? Fall is nice but I've worn it in late spring...you might want to switch up in summer because this is a very rich perfume. Compliments: yes! Finally, eh?! Women have asked me what I'm wearing and men always lean in closer. This is one of those perfumes where very few men are going to ask you what you're wearing because it's so...personal. It's not generally a personal question but this perfume makes it a personal one, if you catch my drift. It's like where does the fume start and where does your skin begin. Women will ask...because we know. Men will just lean in and follow you around. Can a man wear this? Hmm. I don't know. I'd love to see one try. Seriously, it might be interesting to see what it does on a man's skin. I'm thinking that with as rich as this perfume comes off that it might work. I do worry that the hefty rum notes mixed with a man's chemistry may come off as more "alcoholic" than perfumery, lol.

I left an earlier review of this perfume---almost 10 years ago! I have now had the first bottle for almost 10 years and have also purchased a backup. It's still a favorite. In fact, the likely reason I still have some juice left is that, unfortunately, when the perfume was released, the sprayer was so janky that both have broken off the bottle. This frag was released during a time when fruity floral aquatics like Vera Wang and Juicy Couture were in vogue. Alien by Mugler had just been released, but nothing like this. It would be another 3-4 years before Tom Ford released Black Orchid, and people began seeking out some of the deeper base note orientals again. I think if this frag were released again today in a better bottle and placed in the niche category, price-wise? It would become iconic. It's really good and is in the same category as frags like Baccarat Rouge but with a much more feminine focus. It begins with a spiced boozy cocktail vanilla, followed by a dry down that is insane, like the soft pink of a conch shell. Don't sleep on this; the nose is Pierre Bourdon, and he is a legend. Bourdon is right up there with noses like Dominique Ropion or Sophie Grosjman; he's just from the older generation, and they are from the younger. It's not "old lady". It just doesn't cost enough for people to appreciate it. Again, a different bottle and tack on a 3-figure price tag, and suddenly, many would think it's impressive.

Oh Courtesan.. so unique, complicated and does not compare to anything! I love this scent so much that I haven't been able to write a review in fear of not doing her justice! I'll get straight to it; Courtesan is sexy and naughty, sometimes the spices may give the impression of bodily parts, the intimate ones. You never know, because the scent morphs and changes, some days she behaves better than others. Never boring, always seductive and confident. I can not help describing this scent with emotions rather than notes I'm afraid. Simple notes can't describe the sum of the whole and I swear the bottle must contain some otherwordly magic not listed in the pyramid. Someone here questioned Courtesans reason to exist. Ouch, that hurt a little. But, okay, I do get it, Courtesan is not for everyone. But for those of us that truly loves it it is beyond comparison to anything else. I would not know how to fill that gap in my perfume warderobe if she was gone. Truth is that Courtesan makes me feel a bit more womanly, a bit more confident, a bit more naughty and certainly a bit happier. Please do try it if you are intrigued by the notes and can handle some skank, because it is very unique and amazing when it works with your nose/chemistry! For lovers of pineapple and Courtesan I recommend 1804 by Histoires de Perfumes. It's a classy well-composed alternatives for those days when Courtesan seems to warm,complicated or skanky.

Oh my; this is delicious. Sweet, sweet cinnamon with a touch of vanilla swirling all around, over punchy pineapple and a kick of cloves..... Not listed in the notes but I also get rum? Or is that just what I think of with the pineapple and spiced vanilla, could be ;-) but I see I'm not the only reviewer that mentioned it.... it's not shouty or overly boozy, this rum note; it's just a little wink of warm sauciness stirred into the mix. Leave it alone for a while, and Courtesan softly gets a little more powdery and brings in a little musk, along with some more fruitiness; but it's all very gentle..... in a lot of ways, this juice does feel like something like a very old, very French perfumier (as Worth is) may very well come up with as their "take" on a 21st gourmand: it's very sweet but also sexy, it's *very* well blended, and it never overpowers, just dances it's sweet spicy deliciousness dance, with only that sweet sweet cinnamon - almost a Danish pastry cinnamon, or the way you get it in some American red candies - being dominant throughout the wear. Playful, cheeky and flirty but with a bit of class and mystery under the veil is how I would describe this. Probably a good "grown up spicy" fragrance for someone who prefers sweet gourmands and is looking for something that is going to appeal to their taste still, but veer in a direction that's a little more sophisticated and sexy. Love at first sniff!

Lovely! The smell of this perfume is intoxicating to the point it almost makes you drool. It's so heady and strong. Creamy sweet vanilla tonka fruity-ish gorgeousness. I cant stand fruity or bubblegummy fragrances, to me they are for teenagers not a woman nearing 50, but l don't mind the fruits in this one as the third stage notes overshadow the fruits and reduce them to little fragrant flickers that leave you wondering what fruit that was you just smelled? As soon as you smell it its gone again and something else takes over. Its done very well. I'm sitting here trying to figure out what it is very similar to that l already own. I'm not getting the sex, sweat, genitals, musky filthy lovemaking sesh that others have spoken of related to this perfume and I'm more than a bit grateful for that (you all have filthy minds 😆 🤣) but it's a lovely inexpensive bit of perf to get the senses stirring. Update 10.03.24 I've just had a spray and I'm on it like a cat inhaling every bit of the fragrance obsessively trying to figure out what it's similar to, it has amazingly strong ties to Hypnotic Poison red original bottle but 40% weaker in intensity. It's got the marzipan almondy sweet creamy vanilla smell that H.P has it's gorgeous. I love this. It's an 10/10 fragrance. If you dont want to pay the rip off price for hypnotic poison get this little gem.