I’ve been working my way through Serge Lutens’ new Royaume des Lumières collection, and my winner is Bois Roi d’Agalloche. Smoky powdery oud-patchouli is part challenging and part comforting for anyone who loves to smell different. The amber accord in here never lets the patchouli get too sweet and it’s like being near a cozy fire, after wrapping yourself up with a blanket pulled out of the cedar chest. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Sidi Bel-Abbes is the one that everyone talks about it. It’s also for the seasoned perfume wearer because it blends a funky oud with a funky musk. We’ve seen Lutens do this before, but this feels different, more nuanced and easier to wear. That said, it reminded me of the Cartier oud collection which is smooth and easy to wear, and shockingly comes out as being more affordable too. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
The rest weren’t ones I wanted to keep wearing but maybe others will find something compelling in them. Tarab is a rose-oud, a fragrance genre I’m yet to be wowed by. Zurafa is leather made soft with the addition of some iris, and finally Craceuse de Flammes, which is a sweet rose hardly more interesting than others that have come before it. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
The bottles are beautiful, inscribed with Arabic-inspired lettering, and no doubt appealing to the collector in all of us. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Of course, a new Lutens collection always offers much to dissect and think about when it launches, and so today, even with thousands of launches, this one stands out as something to be experienced. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
I know many of you have smelled some of these. Share your thoughts in the comments. ⠀
