NOONTIDE Petals – Tauer

Noontide Petals is the new release from Tauer Perfumes. I actually tried this back in December 2012 when visiting Andy Tauer’s, but I was off my tits on cherry schnapps so had practically no recollection of it. Very keen to get my nose on it again… here’s my sample! YAY.

First spray… Miriam is that you? The same blinding aldehyde bomb up top opens Noontide Petals, that tinge of bergamot (maybe a bit of lemon in here?), a gigantic Chanel-like soapiness with the heart thoroughly hidden below the thick, white layer. The citrus may be a little heavier, but when I sampled Noontide Petals again, I literally struggled to differentiate them – totally confused as to where to start reviewing this one. So I decided to spray Miriam on my other hand to compare…

Holy shit you guys are completely different what the hell?! No joke… I have loved Miriam since I first laid my nose on it, and wear it extremely regularly. I feel like I know that perfume back to front, but this little comparison has opened my eyes to new nuances of Miriam… which I will discuss later

BACK TO NOONTIDE… This soapy, lemon-y, aldehyde bomb gets gradually more floral – a rose being the lead, followed by a honeyed ylang ylang, bringing to mind the honeyed, white floral aldehyde bomb of Chanel No.22 (mmmm!). Obviously I friggin’ love it!  I get little hints of orchid? – which at times seems to dominate the florals. The rose isn’t at all a big, red, exotic-thing like in Incense Rose or Un Rose Chypree… it’s a fresh, yellow smelling blossom that you need sunglasses to see (aldehydes still sticking like glitter over this!). Gorgeous, summery and classy, with an underlying Tauer-touch ready to come out later.

The leading floral bouquet (like Miriam), smells alien, blended to an almost unidentifiable, lactonic consistency that smells  futurisitc (the genious being how perfect it is with a swarm of “old-fashioned” soapy aldehydes on top of it). The citrus manages to penetrate it, this lemon lasting much longer than expected… mixed with the lactonic notes of the white florals (a slightly oily tuberose accord? a-la Loretta?), it smells almost like a magnolia. Ok so I’m listing florals galore… I go back to my point about the alien aroma of it… these modern, Tauer aldehydic-florals are truly unlike any other – not at all as straightforward as what you’ve smelt before.
I get just a touch of the jasmine, squeaky-clean and traditional – bringing to mind the honeyed-aldehydic-jasmine of First by Van Cleef and Arpels… but still, this “orchid” vibe is what I can’t get out my head – tainted with the rose. I think Tauer has invented some hybrid floral…

Accompanying artwork for Noontide Petals by Andy Tauer.

The drydown gets sweeter as a slightly powdery vanilla leads into a subtle smoke of frankincense, and woods (very dry sandalwood and what smells like a similar rosewood note to Pentachord White). The frankincense turns just a touch metallic and keeps the glistening quality from the opening through to the very end of Noontide Petals. I also get a subtle medicinal note, it smells like a combination of geranium (although it’s a bit late for that?) and a kind of hyper-clean laundry musk, tainted with something resinous… yeh I really can’t get my head around dissecting this
So, how does it differ from Miriam? Well… spraying these side by side, I suddenly got a huge, almond-biscotti vibe from Miriam… can’t say I’ve ever smelt that in here before… Miriam suddenly has become even more alien to me: the citrus more muted than I thought, the greenery more herbal but spoiled (in a good way!) by this abstract gourmand accord. I get heliotrope and lilac… two things I have never smelt in Miriam before… and a much more resinous, heavy and dense drydown finishes Miriam – slathered with powder and a greater violet/iris dominating floral accord. Suddenly Miriam smells like I’ve never smelt it before, yet when I tried Noontide (before comparing), I would’ve sworn they were the same thing. I now love my Miriam even more <3 Tauer you cheeky minx! Getting me all confused.

SO: Noontide? Awesome. I gotta say, Miriam is the love of my life, but this is almost like Miriam in Spring (perfect timing for the release) – a much lighter (not a bad thing), easier to wear (not a bad thing) – aldehyde-heavy floral that smells fresh, modern, yet timeless. I’m thrilled Andy has put a fragrance like this in his line up (it must suck a little bit making something as glorious as Miriam and having it under a name not your own!). But yes… get your nose on this one <3 Another absolute beauty.

NOONTIDE Petals 50ml EDT Tauer – http://www.tauerperfumes.com (not yet released)

Video: The 3 Roses of Tauer Perfumes

SMELLYTHOUGHTS In Zurich… Day 7 (Dinner at Andy Tauer’s with Vero Kern)

Hi guys!!!

Today is my final day in Zurich (and also my birthday!) and I’ve loved it here so far.
On the first day, I visited Osswalds – a perfume shop in the city centre which has one of the most impressive selections I’ve seen, they have EVERYTHING.
So after a bit of walking around sniffing, I realized I wouldn’t be shopping in Zurich because the prices are soooo expensive! Lutens’ and Parfum D’Empire? You’re looking at about £110+ a bottle. So, quite scary – but I’ve found that almost everywhere in Zurich. It’s such an expensive city I’ve been on the biggest budget ever here. The little bar under my hotel wants the equivalent of £18 for a burger…. it’s insane. But I guess that’s been a good thing really, more money to spend in Paris and Rome!

Ok so, last night… where do I begin? Well, last night was my arranged dinner with Andy Tauer and Vero Kern, all very exciting stuff. So after having some preliminary “nerve calming” red wines back in my hotel, I hopped on the tram and amazingly, managed to not get lost.
I could smell Andy’s house literally before I walked through his front door – a light Tauerade pretty much filled each room.

So, Andy is lovely – he made me feel right at home, which I was hugely appreciative of considering I hadn’t had a proper conversation with anyone for nearly a week! We chilled, drank some beer, and chopped vegetables, shortly followed by a tour of his pad.
So Andy and Werner (his partner) showed me where all the backstage stuff happens for the Tauer brand, and it’s totally true when Andy says he runs everything from home. His little studio in the backroom behind the kitchen is overloaded with a big bottles of aroma chemicals, samples galore, there’s fridges full of raw materials, there’s vintage bottles of his own fragrances and other brands’ perfumes scattered around the cupboards… overwhelming, but a bit of a paradise really! I just wanted to dig my nose into everything. I also got a little tour of their office and library; Andy and Werner seem to have an absolutely perfect set up, having your own studio in your house seems like a dream environment to work in. What’s amazing is the solid relationship Andy and Werner can have when also working in such close proximity all the time (Werner is also the book keeper and Andy’s right hand man when it comes to large orders and all the complicated stuff with the Tauer brand) – they were both charming company. It was fascinating chatting with Werner too, considering he had no real passion or interest in fragrance until Andy started creating, and suddenly in a matter of years has found himself immersed in a world of perfume. I have to admit I felt a little guilty constantly keeping the conversation on fragrance around Werner as I could only imagine it must drive him crazy with everyone wanting to ask Andy questions, but he’s embraced Andy’s work so thoroughly and his insights and knowledge was fascinating.

Vero arrived a little while later with pretty much the most adorable dog I’d ever seen – a little black brussels griffon (I think) called Izi(sp?). At this point the fizzy was cracked out (wine…beer…fizzy, I hope you’re keeping track too) and we pretty much had a big natter about everything – upcoming brands, Basenotes members, favourite frags, perfume construction, particular bloggers, what brands are doing it right, and which ones aren’t, upcoming releases – endless conversations covering every aspect of life as a perfumer. Oh and during all this, gradually getting more and more pissed as two bottles of red wine vanished in a matter of hours and the cherry schnapps to go with the cherry-schnapps-soaked cake seemed to keep refilling in my glass.

Vero spoke about her upcoming work which I’m extremely excited to sniff – it sounds wonderful. We also spoke about her previous ideas for her line and what direction Mito was originally going to go in, it was fascinating hearing all these ideas that could have come to light but didn’t – but new paths mean new things and it sounds like she has some great new things for us up her sleeve.
We spoke briefly about the construction of some of her work and the differences between creating the parfums and eau de parfums, how the formula’s needed to be altered and why her passion fruit signature from the first three fragrances didn’t work in Mito (it was changed to peach).

Andy and I spoke about Lys Du Desert for a bit and how it’s so “old school Tauer” – I’d been wondering since sniffing it why he hadn’t taken a drastic new direction for the Decennial scent. He said though that he knew he wanted to create this fragrance for a long time after visiting the Joshua Tree each time he was in LA – he didn’t really give a true answer other than saying “That’s just how it turned out!” which is actually, completely fair! I really love the smell of Lys Du Desert – and I think when you try the newer work of Andy, you forget just how awesome his Classics line really is – and Lys Du Desert is like a new, classic Tauer – I have a bit more of an appreciation for it now!
But on the topic of new directions for Tauer’s line… well, my mouth is zipped, but my nose is d-e-s-p-e-r-a-t-e for more! Trust me – keep your noses peeled, something awesome comes!

So originally I planned to ask particular questions, and I took my laptop to jot down answers and stuff so I could make this post be an interview – but I’m so glad it didn’t work out like that. It just… wasn’t right. The company of Andy, Werner and Vero was nowhere near as formal as I thought it would be (no need for those pre-drinks after all), it was so relaxed and laid back that I didn’t crack out the laptop or the notepad once (apart from to show them my itinerary and what shops I’m visiting in Paris and Rome – they gave me some more “must visit” places).  So I left just after midnight, I can’t quite say I remember my tram ride back to the hotel… but a lovely birthday-celebration night it was!

Vero has invited me to her pad this afternoon, and Andy is doing a talk later on white florals which we’ll both be attending (although I won’t understand any of it, I said I’d just nod along and smile!). So more posts to come! Yay Zurich! And tomorrow… off to Paris

SMELLYTHOUGHT’S 2012 Winter Vacation! (2 week disappearance)

Hi guys, Freddie here

Well, tomorrow is the day I go on holiday. I haven’t spoken about this much on here yet – but tomorrow I leave for Berlin. I stay in Berlin for four days – then off to Zurich for 3 days, Paris for 4, Rome for 3, then back home
I’m travelling alone so it’s a little scary – but I have tons of places to visit and things I can’t wait to get my hands on!

I think the standout event I have planned, is dinner at Andy Tauer’s  in Zurich with Vero Kern also a dinner guest It’s the day before my birthday and they’ve been extremely welcoming. I can’t wait to meet them, pick their brains and have a lovely evening in great company.

I also am super excited to visit the CampoMarzio70 stores in Rome – stockists of O’Driu and tons of other obscure, uber-niche brands!

So yes, tons of things planned, lovely people to meet and places to see. Hopefully my hotel rooms will have Wi-Fi and I can keep you guys posted on all the gossip and maybe slip a review or two in there on things I sniff whilst away

Look forward to reading what everyone else has been up to when I get back!

Freddie x

L’Air Du Desert Marocain – Tauer

Being on a roll with some classic fragrances, I thought I’d throw in LADDM, or, L’Air Du Desert Marocain by the insanely talented Andy Tauer.
How to I even being to describe this scent?

L’Air Du Desert Marocain opens with the scalding scent of tar, but it’s not unpleasant at all. Instead this thick black intensity becomes filled with lush spices, sharp dry incense and “Tauer-ade”.
After just a couple of minutes once you’ve attempted to get your head around the hot, desert air opening (very original I know…), a warm amber softens the composition to something much more bearable.

So, you have the lush Tauer spices of cumin, some pepper and some other kitchen spices I can’t quite pick out… there’s a hot dry incense, a thick tar like note, some amber that is both crumbly and resinous yet slightly creamy and skin like, followed by some deep earthy vetiver. It is everything all at once, and utterly transcendent.
LADDM transports you to an utterly calm place in your mind. It is relaxing, spatial, meditative and warming.

How do I know what the air in Morocco smells like? - LADDM reminds me of bonfires, camping, late summer nights, holidays, sunshine, college and my school friends, fireworks, the beach… it just makes me feel great, it smells… great. But then again, so do a lot of Tauer’s. I find his fragrances absolutely transporting and captivating. I cannot smell one without feeling flooded with thoughts, images and my imagination runs wild.

I think Luca Turin described Incense Rose as “…So warm, so welcoming, you feel as if you’ve just heard a piece of good news you cannot quite remember.”. It describes Incense Rose, L’Air Du Desert Marocain, Orange Star and Lonestar Memories all perfectly, probably along with numerous other Tauer’s which I haven’t even sniffed yet. I don’t think I can top that quote.

Back to the scent though. It remains relatively linear, the tar burns off greatly and leaves the dry heat of the incense, amber, vetiver and spices filling the air around you throughout its life. The fragrance I think is pretty much indescribable in the sense that no review you can read can quite create the picture in your head that LADDM does, you just have to sniff it. That’s why this review is much more descriptive visually than literally.

If you are reading reviews of this and haven’t tried this fragrance yet, stop reading, just try it. Don’t go in with the greatest expectations but just smell it for what it is, it’s very rarely an instant love and you instead come to appreciate it over time.
The only reason I don’t own a bottle is for this reason, it takes time to truly love. For me, most Tauer’s are like this, but L’Air Du Desert Marocain has taken the longest to become attached to. Also, I just cannot decide which one I want to own first! Andy Tauer is an exceptional perfumeur and in my opinion extremely underrated.
Everyone knows this is his signature fragrance, and whilst reading about it on forums and such can often become tiring, just sniffing it once again reminds you why.
It is a complete masterpiece.

L’Air Du Desert Marocain Tauer 50ml EDT Intense – 79.70 Euros www.tauerperfumes.com

Tauer – Orange Star & Incense Rose

I absolutely adore both of these fragrances, and in fact, I love most of Tauer’s line (from what I’ve tried anyway). The only reason I do not own a full bottle yet is I simply can’t make up my mind as to what I want first!

I’ll start with Orange Star.
I am not into citrus fruits in fragrances, at all. I read somewhere that this was a citrus for people who don’t like citrus, and the combination between the juicy clementines and incense and amber etc. sounded fantastic.

Orange Star opens with an unbelievably juicy clementine and mandarine, but it doesn’t come across as edible at all. It’s very hard to describe. It is completely mouthwatering! It smells clean, but not “fresh” clean like most citrus scents. It is deep, almost resinous, and reminds me more of a marmalade than a fresh fruit. Although it is not listed in the notes, I am sure I can smell cardamon in there as well as some beautiful sticky vanilla bean, but the vanilla bean is minimal and exceptionally blended and gives me of a texture and sweetness rather than a vanilla extract scent.

After some minutes the patchouli starts to creep in, it is very green, and works beautifully with the tart oranges. On first application, this stage of the fragrance reminded me of Gorilla Perfumes’ Karma fragrance, only this is of absolutely exceptional quality and has far more depth.
The sweetness begins to smell quite honeyed, reminding me again of the tart marmalade in the opening. The patchouli, ambergris and rich honeyed clementines and mandarins swirl around each other in absolute perfect balance all the way through the heart. A slightly soapy note joins in, but it is not unpleasant at all, it works just to keep the incense, patchouli and amber more on the clean side.

The fragrance in the later drydown loses its tartness but stays completely rich and full of life and character.
Really, really wonderful!!

Incense Rose somehow also opens mouthwatering, despite their being nothing edible in it at all. It is tart, rich, and absolutely sparkling. A jammy rose is buried deep amongst some beautiful burning frankincense and cedar wood, and lovely and bright at top is a similar juicy bergamot and clementine. The wood is resinous and soaked in the rose and smoke. Yet again, the rose manages to remain clean amongst all the darkness – and that’s exactly what this fragrance is – dark. It opens bright and sparkling and quickly descends into a spiral of black smoke, rich spicy incense, ambergris and woods with occasional dazzling sparks of bright red bursting from the base.

Patchouli is in there too keeping the fragrance fresh, green, but slightly earthy. At the base is the “Tauerade” combination of ambergris and vanilla and anyone who has sniffed L’Air du Desert Marocain will recognise it at the base of this fragrance, and Orange Star at that. The “Tauerade” is absolutely beautiful, dry, incensey and airy. It literally floats around you like a meditative cloud.

Both Orange Star and Incense Rose have incredible longevity and sillage, I’m blown away by the quality of these and the strong effect they have on me. I would highly recommend both of them to anyone, and I think they are fantastic value for money as a bottle would last me years and years.

Well done Andy Tauer, you are my favourite perfumeur to date.

Tauer Incense Rose & Orange Star 50ml EDP – Euro 85.50 RRP
(The cheapest price I have found for these online is the official tauerperfumes.com site!)