Perfume Review: Bvlgari Au The Rouge

Au Thé Rouge is the latest addition to the Bvlgari’s family of tea scents. With notes of pink pepper, red tea, figs, and walnut, the fragrance was supposed to evoke Rooibos tea (Red Bush Tea) native to South America. Rooibos has a sweet-woody-fruity-nutty taste, and, as Robin noted, unfortunately Au Thé Rouge does not really succeed in replicating it. The intention to make it smell like Rooibos is certainly evident, but to me it smells more like a rather strong, slightly smoky black tea lightly flavored with fruits and berries and –even lighter- with roses. Having said that, I really like Au Thé Rouge. The tea note here is the way I like it, it is, as I already mentioned, smoky and has an interesting bracing undertone to it, probably due to the pink pepper note. During the middle stage I actually do smell walnuts, or what I think are walnuts, a bitter-nutty note that adds a certain raw depth to the composition. In earlier drydown the fig is quite evident, with the slightly coconutty accord that this note always has to my nose. If Au Thé Rouge were a color, it would be black with a red shine to it, indeed like a cup of fragrant, full-bodied tea. The fragrance is subtle yet rich, and even though it is Eau de Cologne, it has quite good staying power on my skin. To me Au Thé Rouge is one of those scents that, though not exactly extraordinary and amazing, are extremely wearable and enjoyable. Right now Au Thé Rouge is available exclusively at Saks, $57.00 for 1,7oz or $82.00 for 3,4oz.