I've been doing a lot of thinking.
Let me be clear: I Want to Love Tauer Perfumes.
I do I do I do.
However, after testing three of them on my skin, multiple times, the final drydown results are:
Lonestar Memories: A&W Root Beer
L'air du Desert Marocain: SL's Fumerie Turque over chopped dates
Incense Rose: Aspirin mashed up with strawberry preserves
What sucks is that I selected these perfumes only after reading numerous descriptions and reviews. Samples were deliberately purchased, and I hotly anticipated their arrival.
Truth is, I'm bummed.
For those of you who have broader exposure to Tauer perfumes, I must know: Do they all share this sweet/sour base?
Is Tauerade real?
Mousse de saxe and Guerlinade, two famous perfume bases, add both distinction and depth to many Caron and Guerlain perfumes, respectively. Love them or hate them, they make olfactory sense.
But instead of gaining interest and complexity upon drydown, the Tauer perfumes I have listed wimp out on my skin and morph into something resembling...cough syrup.
Has anyone else experienced this?
Picture from fotosearch.com
Personally, I think that Mr. Tauer is really a fantastic perfumer, his fragrances are top quality, and each of them tell a story. But, there is a but. His perfumes are not wearable, at least not for me.
ReplyDeletesandy
I want to love Tauer. Really really really want to. I have only three data points so far, but I really really really hated all three data points.
ReplyDeleteSo for me, so far, Tauerade is a reality. But I'm going to persist until I've tried them all. I just hope I won't have hated them all.
Josephine, it seems that your skin seems to amplify the sweeter elements of Tauer's base. On my skin I usually detect a lot of labdanum, amber and ambergris/smoky notes. It is sweet but balaced by these intense, resinous notes. One thing I do know is that Tauer's perfumes have almost a freaky longevity on my skin. They can seriously last almost 24hrs on me and I can see how their potency might not be for everyone.
ReplyDeleteI struggle with Tauerade too, and have tried all but the new orange one. There is a raspy, slightly medicinal, asphyxiating, fuzzy quality to many of them, and I only actively like LADDM, and then only after a couple of hours.
ReplyDeleteI love some of them and some I can't stand. Love the 3 you listed! Root beer and Fumerie Turque over dates, I can understand where you get that, and I still love them! I don't get aspirin and strawberries from Incense Rose though, just lovely orange and incense and rose. Maybe the "Tauerade" you smell is ambrein. I read in an interview with Andy tauer recently that 7 out of 12 of his fragrances have that labdanum extract: http://www.nathanbranch.com/2010/08/the-artisan-series-andy-tauer.html
ReplyDelete(One I can't stand is the new lily of the valley one. Will do a review somedya.)
Know what you mean - they are all really similar. You either love them or hate them I guess.
ReplyDeleteHi Sandy - I couldn't agree more. Andy Tauer has created brilliant concepts and compositions - they're just not working on my skin. Bummer.
ReplyDeleteHi CF - I want to try others, too, but must admit that I'm losing my motivation. Let me know if you run across on you love!
ReplyDeleteMichael, I think you're right - I tend to amplify the sweet factor in all perfumes. Wish I experienced the drydown you describe!
ReplyDeleteHi Flitter - you describe Tauerade perfectly! I was hoping the Incense Rose you sent would be the one, but alas, it didn't work either. I will continue to hope for at least one that I can wear.
ReplyDeletekjanicki, I'm a little jealous that Tauer perfumes work so well for you! Thanks for the tip about ambrein. You could very well be right. I'll check out the interview you site.
ReplyDeleteHi MPL - yes, Tauer perfumes seem to evoke strong responses one way or the other. I hope to find one that I love!
ReplyDelete