Nuit Epicee – Decennial

Nuit Epicee opens familiar – a combination of Black Afgano, a Lutens’-sweet sandalwood, a million amber perfumes combined… it’s good! A slightly tart fruity note up top (listed as rhubarb but it’s not quite accurate), a rich, heavily resinous amber and violet open Nuit Epicee. The violet is sherberty and sweet, but slightly abstract, very similar to the violet in Cuir Amethyste but with a little more subtlety. The opening is also dominated by a pungent oud wood note, but the oud is sweet, flat with a high pitch – infact, I’m pretty certain it is “Black Agar” – a lovely aroma chemical that I have a little sample of. This note pretty much dominates Nuit Epicee and once recognized, it kind of puts a downer on any expected complexity.

I love the little bit of cumin floating around in the background giving off a hefty dose of warmth – but the oud/cumin combo is not at all animalic or particularly overpowering. The fragrance is extremely refined on the skin, with not a single thing jolting out or leading.
This could be a good thing for some, but for me it becomes un-interesting… and whilst I really like the smell of Nuit Epicee, it has very little imagination.

The drydown brings a pretty solid amber note, lovely and labdanum-heavy, with a sweet sandalwood/cedar base. The black agar still clings onto the skin along with a good dose of incense… but still, pretty generic.
Ok so I say something good and then slate it? Sorry, I am a bit all over the place with this one. The thing is, Nuit Epicee smells good – but when you smell it, it’ll be completely familiar. It picks up pieces of numerous successful releases over the last few years, encompassing the oud trend along with everyone’s love for the woody-amber drydowns (Opus V, Montale’s, Nasomatto’s… hundreds more!) – Norlimbanol? This chemical has dominated drydowns of literally hundreds of releases  recently. Yes, it smells good, that’s why perfumer’s use it, but it’s so boring too.

All in all – Nuit Epicee is an absolute stereotype of modern woody/amber perfumes, with very little creativity. However, as I said, it smells good – but how could it not? It’s not interesting enough for me to wear or be particularly positive about – but it is a clever, unnecessary release given a wonderful notes list:
“Almond, cumin, rhubarb, cistus, violet, blond woods, black amber, praline”
Don’t buy into it… black agar+norlimbanol, end of

Nuit Epicee 75ml Decennial – $150 Luckyscent

Lys Du Desert – Decennial

Decennial is a new line launched to celebrate the ten year anniversary of Luckyscent. Lys Du Desert was created by Andy Tauer of Tauer Perfumes for the line…

Lys Du Desert opens almost identical (but toned down) to both Tauer’s Orange Star and Eau D’Epices. A rich, aldehydic orange marmalade and cardamom spice. It feels like a perfect harmony between the two, where Orange Star quickly brought on a soapy orange blossom and Eau D’Epices’ spices were nose piercingly intense, this balance is what the opening to either should have been if they wanted to be more acceptable – and I find it easier to wear than either.

The lily, is extremely subtle at first, gaining a little strength as time goes on – it’s presence only recognized by a subtle hint of floral clove and a crisp, green/white accord underneath – paired with a traditionally Tauer rose.  The lily’s bizarre metallic/sappy quality is identical to the lily in Tauer’s Carillon Pour Un Ange – a fragrance I really enjoy, but struggle with so much. The florals, as I said, are sublte - warmed and overwhelmed by an already pungent Tauer-ade underneath.

The Tauer-ade underneath is undoubtably familiar, a L’Air Du Desert Marocain (but slightly lighter) clone of warm amber, incense, dry cedar wood and ambergris – made a little more delicate by a slightly powdery scattering of iris. It’s very nice, but I have a little problem - it smells like a bit of a mashup of numerous scents in the Tauer Classics line that I can’t help but think that this fragrance is maybe a previous, alternative formula for an already completed fragrance in Tauer’s house, given new life by a brand willing to take it on?

Tauer is doing amazing new things at the moment – taking unexpected directions starting with Zeta, followed by the Pentachord trio and now the outstanding Miriam and the lovely oily floral that is Loretta… I’m not to sure why he’d produce something that smells so familiar with numerous other fragrances he has created? Is Lys Du Desert made from scratch? Now, I really like Lys Du Desert – it is completely harmonious, a glorious identifiable Tauer fragrance with the citrus marmalade of his that I absolutely adore, and that exotic drydown which us fans have grown to crave. In all honesty, without the knowledge that this is a lily, I may have only picked up on a hint of rose and iris. It’s all rich citrus spices and warm desert air – what has been done throughout his line from years ago.

Lys Du Desert gets lighter on the skin as it settles, gaining a translucency and ”air” along with a trail of sweetness from the amber. Whilst I love the smell of it – I feel like I have smelt it before, numerous times. Recommended for those who didn’t like the soapy orange blossom of Orange Star (although it is still slightly present here) – or the brilliantly dusty and bitter-sweet spice basket of Eau D’Epices. I’d love to hear a bit more about this fragrance from the man himself!

Update 08/12/12: Well… I did hear more about this fragrance from the man himself!
http://smellythoughts.wordpress.com/2012/12/08/smellythoughts-in-zurich-day-7-dinner-at-andy-tauers-with-vero-kern/

Lys Du Desert 75ml Decennial – $150 Luckyscent.com