Perfume Review: Rousse by Serge Lutens

Review by Tom In response to a really unattractive public whinge over at Perfume Posse, kind Patty sent me her sample of Lutens newest (rather than just writing "man up and deal with it, Pansy" which is most likely what I deserved). I have of course read some of the other reviews, but I will add in my impressions. Well, people have been pretty love it or deeply disappointed with it. I guess you can color me deeply indifferent to it. Unlike practically on everyone else, Rousse on me goes on too light: it actually makes L'Antimatière seem like, well, a Serge Lutens scent. Trying to get in close to smell it in the crook of my arm, I can barely discern it, move away from it and I get the barky cinnamon woodiness. I also get the same sort of listless imortelle that I get from Chypre Rouge. There's a coolness that reminds me a bit of Gris Clair, but so muted as to be almost non-existed (this must be March's "Gris Clair light"). The drydown is very nice, a rounded vanillaed amber. I don't think it's like Idole that much. I actually wish it was, since I find Idole far more interesting. Actually, I much prefer Chypre Rouge to this, and it makes me gnash my teeth that Mandarine Mandarin is sitting in a bell jar in Paris mocking me and this one will soon be at Barneys doing the same. In the Auto world in the late 50's through to the early 70's, there was something called the yearly new model. Unlike today where the difference between the 2007 Belchfire SUX and the 2006 before it might be a new paint color or making power ear-muffs standard, the car companies would trot out almost completely new sheet metal each year in the attempt to seduce you into a new car purchase by making your 1966 Impala look so last year next to the shiny new 1967 in the neighbors driveway. This was apparently a very expensive and designer-frustrating experience, since it meant that designers were putting the finishing touches on the 68's, firming up the 69's, working on the clay models for the 70's and sketching out what might become the 71's all at the same time- and all had to look different. I somehow wonder if Mssrs. Lutens and Sheldrake, in locking in the idea that there will be (at least) two new scents every year aren't giving themselves the same problem: how many variations on a theme can there be? Of course, it could be that there just wasn't enough in the sample for me to retrain my nose to the point where I "get" it, and I will simply need to douse myself in it when it appears. It could also just be that they have veered from what I personally like, and this is just another great big unattractive public whinge on my part. Naaahhhhhhhh. Rousse will be available at the usual suspects soon.