Perfume Review: Yatagan by Caron
 It is the strangest thing…Certain words, certain images are incredibly, inexplicably alluring for me, khan, sultan, janissary, yatagan…When I hear Middle Eastern, especially Turkish music, I feel an unaccountable longing... for what, I don’t even know. If I believed in previous life, I would have thought I was an Ottoman warrior of some sort in my prior incarnation. Perhaps, the blood will indeed always tell, and, as Bierce has said, a Russian is a person with a Caucasian body and a Mongolian soul. And it is that soul of mine that loves and craves Yatagan by Caron.Created in 1976, this woody-leathery chypre is one of those odd, ugly-beautiful scents (like Muscs Koublai Khan, Kolnisch Juchten, Djedi) that somehow manage to be surprisingly wearable. Named after a Turkish saber with a curved blade, Yatagan smells of grass, moss, earth, leather and hot, hungry, cruel bodies. It is an uncompromisingly dry and austere fragrance with no frills, i.e. no sweetness and no flowers. The first accord hits you with dark, sharp greenness of wormwood and artemisia, and after that aggressive start the scent never subsides, never relents. It gets darker and earthier, with notes of patchouli, vetiver, moss and labdanum being most prominent in the composition. Several wonderfully weird hours later, the leather and musk creep in bringing an even drier and quite animalic quality to the blend. Dirty, dry, devilishly alluring, Yatagan is one of the strangest scents I have ever loved, a dark balm for my “Mongolian” soul. Yatagan is available at Imagination Parfumery, $27.99 for 4.2oz. |
posted by Marina |
12:03 AM
26 Comments:
I'm also a fan of the Orient even though Greece is the easternmost point I've been to. Islamic music is indeed captivating. Haven't had any experience with Yatagan (either the sabre or the perfume ;-)) but I'm sure your lovely post does it justice.
Btw, I'm still puzzled about my Sunday comment (was I so absent-minded and forgot to click on the *login and publish* button after previewing it or my long-winded comment needed deleting?). I sure wanted to raise the bank balance. :-)
Arrghhh--believe it or not, I have never smelled this. But from your description, it sounds as if it's right up my alley. I love Caron, too. I guess I'm sunk!
I haven't smelled this either. Yatagan is a beautiful word. Maybe that's what I will name my first born. That or Rumplestiltskin.
OMG, Marina, I just saw your reply. I got the dates all mixed up, so I guess I'm the stupid one, not the blogger! Sooorry!
Didn't mean to make you cry with the post but it just was as heartbreaking as you say. Thank you for your kind words about my Russian, I do love your language and literature :-). Glad you like ULTRAVIOLET.
Hugs
Dusan,
There is a lovely comment from you that was made on Sunday, however it is under the Saturday's post. It doesn't matter fundraising-wise though, because I was counting the commenters both days. So you certainly helped to raise the bank balance!
Christina,
It similar to MKK "in spirit", not in actual smell :-) MKK us way, way more musky and animalic. Yatagan is drier and more "herbal" to my nose. So don't be scared...:-D
Judtih,
You've got to try this one. There is a very good chance that you will like it a lot. And it's so cheap!
Cait,
:-) He he he. Seriously? Well, it is better than Apple,that's for sure...:-)
Dusan,
Well, it made me cry in a "good way". I was soppy all weekend anyway with all the heart-warming posts and comments. Thank you very much for ebing the part of our fundraising effort!
hmmmm... there's a discount perfumerie right down on Broadway that might have this one. I might have to run over there at lunch..
T,
if you do get to try it, please let me know what you think!
V,
I knew we'd be on the same wavelength here! :-) Yay for Eurasia! :-D
I know it sounds strange, but I get a distinct celery note in the top notes from Yatagan.
Prince Barry,
Does not sound stange to me at all. I get the celery note in Ormonde (women's).
Patty,
Do not be frightened. It isn't nearly as scary/dirty/animalic as MKK. Not nearly.
Oh, I LOVE this one! It was one of the first masculine fragrances I ever tried (many years ago!) that made me realize that the world of men's fragrance was not just the hellish one of Old Spice and Hai Karate, but had things like this in it. Elegant, dry, manly and sexy as hell!
The name is genius and just right. I also have visions of the romance of the East - turns out it's not so fabulous after all, most of the time, but hey I love the fantasy!
Flora,
"Elegant, dry, manly and sexy as hell!! Yes! Yous said it all in one sentence. Perfection.
Mimi,
Oh, I wear it! I got my beady eye on that 4.2oz bottle at Imagination Parfumery...to better douse myself with Yatagan :-)
well I found a different place that did have it and I bought one-oh my! it's brilliant! I love it! The first hit I got had my nose buried in the crook of my arm, inhaling deeply and moaning "oh god". Wonderfully complex, decadent, divine but eminently wearable. A true find, and I thank you for turning me on to it.
I'm "came over with the Mayflower" New England: is it possible that I could have developed a Mongolian soul?
You are an honorary Mongolian :-)
Congratulations on the purchase!
Hi,Im from Iran and as you know it is in middle east..see its my favorite perfume.I read all previous comments..word "Yatagan" which we pronounce it "yataGHan" ..Im sorry talk so much!!
I love this smell and I have a question..are you agree with me,this pefume smells like fresh "walnut" ?
or in iran we say,it smells "hashish" which is some kind of drug..anyway, I can not buy it in iran.anybody know how many type does this perfume has?because i see it in two size..small and bigger one.maybe 75ml and 150 ml ! Im not sure
anybody know which one is original and how can I but it?
I have loved Yatagan for years; it's so straight and woodsy and direct and dry, and on a man I find it wildly erotic (though Bel Ami, on a man, makes me lose my composure entirely). Anyway, I wear Yatagan too, but it's a hair too dry for me, so on impulse I layered it with Ambre Sultan, and what a revelation. I am in love with them together.
Yatagan is strong by today's standards but not by 1976 standards when colognes were redolent of all kinds of spices and herbs.
I really enjoy the wormwood/artemisia opening. There is a dryness to the scent but it has a comforting base of something musky with the slightest hint of sweetness. I also get a pronounced vetiver note that lingers at the end.
I've been familiar with Yatagan since 1976 when it was first on the market. I use to buy it at Prin Temps in Paris. About five years later it was no longer made available in Paris. I use to ask the Caron kiosk salesperson to sell me what ever they had and therefore I've I stashed it for over 30 years!. So glad to hear that I can now buy it through the Internet. Its a very special cologne for me.
I've been familiar with Yatagan since 1976 when it was first on the market. I use to buy it at Prin Temps in Paris. About five years later it was no longer made available in Paris. I use to ask the Caron kiosk salesperson to sell me what ever they had and therefore I've I stashed it for over 30 years!. So glad to hear that I can now buy it through the Internet. Its a very special cologne for me.
The dude is totally right, and there is no suspicion.
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