Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Tubéreuse by L’Artisan Parfumeur


The term soliflore refers to a single flower or floral note perfume. Tubéreuse by L’Artisan Parfumeur, created by their founder Jean LaPorte in 1978, is a great example of a soliflore.

Tubéreuse is anything but subtle. The minute you spray it out of the bottle, the beautifully full and lush scent of blooming tuberose is upon you. And stays upon you -- so you'd better really like it.

I happen to love the scent of tuberose. But I am not accustomed to a lot of tuberose all at once. L’Artisan’s version is ever-present and mostly true, but perhaps a bit too much. Or maybe it’s just that I use too much, because it is intoxicating and you find yourself wanting it more and more. Most notably, the squarely buttery middle lingers longest and keeps you sniffing your wrist.

But, Tubéreuse is a single note, and not a note in a blend. As long as you understand that going in, you will not be disappointed. It is what it is. Or is it?

The first time I ever sniffed tuberose absolute, it was sampled to me by a friend who brokers precious oils through India. My head spun. It was stunningly floral and buttery, but also a bit spicy and green. There was so much going on through that lusciously buttery floral from that one single plant. The absolute is, of course, derived from the natural plant source. L’Artisan Parfumeur’s Tubéreuse is not. It is rather one note-ish, though a lovely one note. But there is no dimension to it.

The bottom of the box lists these ingredients: Alcohol Denat., Aqua (water), Parfum (Fragrance), amyl cinnamal, benzyl salicylate, hexyl cinnamal, linalool, benzyl benzoate, hydroxycitronellal, farnesol, cinnamyl alcohol, geraniol, limonene, eugenol, benzyl alcohol, benzyl cinnamate, isoeugenol. There’s nothing “natural” in the bottle. Maybe I’m a little disappointed because with a name like L’Artisan Parfumeur, I thought there might be some natural ingredients involved.

The bottle itself does not disappoint. The pretty, etched, 7-sided glass bottle with a hot pink label is surprisingly heavy to pick up. The bottle feels good in your hands.

But what about a lovely tuberose absolute at 5% mixed with Perfumer’s alcohol and water? I think that would make the best tuberose soliflore. I will have to try that. In the meantime, I’ll keep the bottle of Tubéreuse nearby, and probably use it up.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh, Trina, tuberose is one of my absolute favorites, too. My quest for it in a perfume has been long and arduous! Once upon a time I worked for a florist who only carried "high-end" flowers, and she always had tuberoses -- and I always brought some home with me! YUM!

Jean

P.S. I'm a subscriber to the "Natural" group, but I lurk there; I haven't ever commented.

Snowdrift Farm said...

Dear Jean,

Thank you for your comment. I have to agree, tuberose is one of those rare and perfect scents I would love to bask in. Say hello at Natural when you get the chance : )