Description
Series 3 Incense was launched in 2002 and was devoted to the five main spiritual teachings of the humanity:
Avignon – Catholicism
Ouarzazate – Islam
Zagorsk – Orthodox Christianity
Jaisalmer – Hinduism
Kyoto – Buddhism and Shintoism
Each of the fragrances is named after the cities significant for those teachings.
Jaisalmer is Hinduism, named after the ancient Indian city of Jaisalmer, situated in the desert, north-western part of India, in Rajasthan. Jaisalmer means ‘Golden City’ and in ancient times it was placed on the route between India and Egypt. Indian traders were transporting ebony to Egypt, and therefore it is one of the main notes in this fragrance. Red hot pepper is mixed with aromatic warm cinnamon and cardamom, incense is here spicy, woodsy and earthy.
The main notes are cardamom, incense, cinnamon, amber, benzoin, red hot chilly pepper, Guaiac wood and ebony.
The nose behind this fragrance is Evelyne Boulanger.
9669666 – :
When I was a student in Amsterdam in the early 2000’s I used to go to this little store that sold CDG clothes and perfume just to get a whiff of Jaisalmer and 2Man. I thought they were the best perfumes in the universe.
I never actually bought them.
Finally I got a bottle as a birthday present!
And I realized that you should not wait 20 years for something you love… not only because you should get the things you like, and not settle for less, but also because you change and things change in respect to you and to time. I am not as overwhelmed with this perfume as I used to be, just as I won’t be overwhelmed with a shirt I used to love 20 years ago. Not everything is classic.
Having said that, I still like it very much, it has the signature CDG incense scent, and it reminds me now a lot of Yogi Tea (especially the strong scents it used to produce in the past).
AQredrtFCpsviqkrxhl – :
Great scent this was my staple but the spice wore me out after a while. I revisit from time to time I just wished it lasted longer.
Lexa06 – :
One of the finest incense scents out there, BUT: longevity and sillage are both so minimalistic that the scent is never enjoyable for any length of time that I would deem acceptable. Gone in an hour. And this from the company that was capable of making their “2” scent one of the biggest beast-mode bruisers ever.
But still, the scent itself is so nice: the incense is never church-like (big plus), but rather nicely spiced with cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and cedar. There’s also a pleasant synthetic undercurrent which gives everything a slight spark and brightness. I so wish this could be relaunched in triple the strength. (Btw, it actually HAS been relaunched, as Blue Encens, but alas: same poor performance issues. A shame.)
Should’ve been 9/10, but only deserves 5/10.
vab309JeomiWogkig – :
The entire series is a must have for incense lovers. This one is a spicy incense offerings with notes of cinnamon (prominent), cardamom and chili peppers added. Moderate in sillage and projection this one is the most underwhelming in the series. Still very good.
Yurik86 – :
Could it be that people who don’t smell spices and only smell pine sap got this mixed up with Avignon or zagorsk? To me this scent is extremely spicy with cardamom and cinnamon and some clear your nostrils strong herbal incense then rich balsamic woods. I am a woman with a low skin temperature and don’t sweat so this perfume lasts me for half the day and lingers on my clothes for days after, so I am very careful not to apply more than two or three sprays max. This is the most well blended and balanced scent of the four, Kyoto is a bit too tannic and dry and Avignon is very overpoweringly one dimensional, the Moroccan one is a bit nondescript, but this scent is both spiritual and earthly at the same time. The sombering vaporousness of the camphorous notes and the biting almost painful heat of the cinnamon gives an almost mind cleansing sensation. Then the rich warm incense and sweet mysterious cardamom really grounds you. Love!
vallerok – :
In common with all the CdG incense scents, this is beautiful but hardly lasts out of the bottle (I’ve been really lucky to get 2hrs out of them).
This is less to my tastes than Avignon or Ouarzazate, there’s a lot of cinnamon in there which I have no strong feelings towards, but the woodiness is like opening an old trinket box- lovely.
sdvk – :
very dry woody,incence,ceder(ish)…very masculine vibe..a spicy woodshop. If you want to attract men this is it. not powdery or sweet. Not the church vibe as in Avignon.
JahMen – :
After first spray, I already like it better than Avignon. This is so much brighter, bursting with conifer-like incense. Sharp and spicy like CdG’s Black, but with more warmth, which gives this more versatility than either two scents. Unfortunately, I experience the same short lifespan as Avignon, but still a thumbs up!
alxxx – :
This is the safest of the series. It smells nice and adds a bit of spiciness but not overdone. Can be worn year round and does not have many bad things about it. Of course most will go for Avignon if they are searching for an incense scent and are new to these types, but most vets will at least sample this and take it for what it is worth.
dar975Diobtetty – :
This is a light, warm and pleasant scent, but it is also very austere.
If you demand sweetness in your perfumes, this is not for you.
The opening notes are extremely heavily dominated by pinesap and woodiness, and they soften over time to something milder and perhaps more incense-like.
It is nothing like as heavy as many scents that are described as “incense”, maybe because of the blessed absence of patchouli.
Personally I do not find this a spicy fragrance at all, and it certainly doesn’t smell like my idea of India; it is far too simple, linear and restrained.
Genuinely unisex, but also sadly short-lived.
Serpex – :
smells like really strong masala tea.
mr.shibaeff – :
Speaking solely about the smell, for me, this is one of the nicest perfumes ever. Like, if Indian marketplace really smells this way, I’ll have to move to India someday.
It has that trademark incense note of CdG and, especially, Series 3, but, other than that, there’s a whole new world around. The incense backbone is surrounded by an abundance of spices in the opening – mostly cardamom and pepper, but with a dash of cinnamon as well, and later there is a fine mixture of ebony and oriental resins as well. This simplified picture, though, can’t describe how divine the smell is, through the top, heart and base notes, all the time.
Unfortunately, the longevity is abysmal on my skin. I can’t get more than an hour or two out of this one, and that’s really a shame. It also doesn’t project well while it’s present, and that doesn’t help either. To make things even worse, this is as wearable and as unique as any CdG, so that just makes all this more sad.
This is an one-of-a-kind smell, aura and atmosphere but, unfortunately, with very, very short life.
10/10 for the smell
7/10 for the perfume
pashaa – :
Upon first sniff I’m hit with a direct reminder of a certain candy: atomic fireballs. Those round, red, spicy, candies that were reasonably popular in the early ’90s. They were spicy almost to the point of novelty. Anyway, it’s surely the cinnamon and red hot chilly pepper in Jaisalmer’s opening that brings back this memory. And quite a spicy opening it is indeed. Too much for my taste, but a general fan of spicy fragrances should be really pleased with this one. I enjoy it more when the spice starts to calm.
More akin to a colorful Indian spice market than a Hindu temple, Jaisalmer almost becomes edible as it softens up, and the cardamom is really a beautiful addition. Unfortunately by that point it’s nothing more than a faint whisper, as Jaisalmer’s longevity is simply abysmal on my skin. It’s a shame that the scent is gone before it has a chance to really develop, because this is probably the most wearable and most uplifting of the entire incense series. Perhaps it works better on clothing.
proofemubre – :
Jaisalmer is another brilliant incense creation from Comme des Garcons. This one is incense-spicy-woody composition. Cardamom, cinnamon and ebony wood stands out the most. There are also hot pepper and little sourness from red berries.
Jaisalmer is perfectly balanced and perfectly wearable, but I would like to wear it to yoga class or meditate with it.
Exiniauncoora – :
Jaisalmer is a combination of sweetness(guaiac wood, cinnamon, benzoin), incense and spices.
Out of all five incenses, I’d call this one the most oriental, I guess. Don’t know why – to me it’s just oriental-smoky scent.
Longevity is poor/medium – 3-6 hours on me.
It makes me wanna test it more 🙂
nokkot – :
Purchased on Lucky scent and received today. It is just truly beautiful. You get pencil shavings (cedar) and cinnamon. It is wonderful. I can wear this all year. Sample it first, but you will love it.
BOTTAK – :
Smelling the members of the Comme des Garçons Incense series blind is an excellent way to come to terms with the reality that the human capacity for scent discrimination is highly relative. It is very difficult even to figure out which of these perfumes is which except in side-by-side comparisons. Why? Because they all smell like incense, of course! There are lots of incense perfumes around, and this set of sleekly packaged blends includes some of the best.
In the case of Jaisalmer, I am struck immediately by the fresh tree scent. No fir trees or conifers or any evergreens are listed in the note pyramid, but my very first impression is of that sort of tree. Other reviewers (including a perfumer) have identified the responsible ingredient as “pine sap”. That sounds right to me, though I cannot claim ever to have smelled neat pine sap!
The overall effect is very church-y, notwithstanding the intention to evoke the atmosphere of hinduism. I’m unclear as to what hinduism would smell like, given the tenets of that religion, but maybe there is a sense of the mysticism of nature here? Or perhaps the point here is to promote ecumenicalism, and that’s why there is so much overlap between the various members of this series?
eagegonsoxozy – :
What’s interesting here is that this “Hindu” fragrance smells just like Russian Orthodox incense. I say so because it has benzoin in it, which is a major component of Russian Orthodox incense; powdered frankincense and benzoin make up the base, and other oils are added to it. In fact, Hermitage of the Holy Cross sells an incense called “Old Church” that smells exactly like Jaisalmer.
This is a great fragrance, and it’s definitely the crowd-pleaser of the CdG incense series. Although I consider Avignon and Zagorsk more interesting and unique, this one is more likely to appeal to the toiling masses.
lex21 – :
The first time around, I found this to be the best balanced, and least of an “outlier” among the incense series. (Hopefully that doesn’t mean boring). It’s more of a straightforward, sweet wood in the top notes, with just a hint of spice to begin with, but that will grow. Cinnamon like in Maharadjah starts to appear pretty quickly, and gets very strong but doesn’t completely overshadow the initial wood note, something that I find happens too often in spicy wood scents. The spices here are very “warm”, or even hot, but it’s not spicy in terms of burning or being peppery. It has the garam masala spice blend of chai tea, but in spite of the “incense” label, it blends them almost solely with wood, not with smoke. I honestly prefer this, when I consider how Tea for Two is almost ruined for me by too much smokiness. Later the ardent fire of the spices cools down, and the smooth, middle-of-the-road sweet wood returns, and it ends up resembling Sequoia somewhat, but with a more polished rather than raw wood aspect. There’s still enough creamy sandalwood along with that slight crayon-waxiness to show that it’s Indian-inspired, but like Ouarzazate it’s not over-the-top, not trying too hard to be exotic. Another balanced, sophisticated winner from the Incense series!
vodoley3288 – :
Great scent this one…reminds me of lots of things but I still can’t quite place what?
It’s a spicy and oriental, right out of the gate the cardamom and dry pepper are there with a clean pure incense which feels somehow cleansing.
Something slightly tiger balmy in the opening but settles to a very subtle scent. 2 down 3 to go and the series is a total hit with me so far let’s hope one of the next ones I try is an absolute knockout!
4963478881 – :
Yum! Fresh cedar shavings with a sweet and spicy edge. I know cedar isn’t in the notes listed, but like others who mentioned pencil shavings, this smells to me like fresh, sweet, shaved cedar. It is such a gentle, natural sweetness, not a knock-you-down, rich, heavy sweetness. The cinnamon is a beautiful pairing for the cedar. It’s as though you can’t tell where the wood ends and the cinnamon begins. I’m not sure about the cardamom, but I guess that could be part of that sweet quality too. The frag evaporated so quickly it was kind of hard to spot all its elements before it was gone.
Like others, I was a bit sad that this had a life of about 10 minutes if that. You’d need to dump a cupful right over your head for this to be more than a moment’s pleasure.
judge666 – :
My husband and I both fell for CdG Avignon, it is truly amazing. Then we decided to branch out and try Jaisalmer. This simply smells like fresh pencil shavings and cinnamon. It is wonderful! It is a bit easier to wear than Avignon, but doesn’t last as long. Right now it’s July (Hot!!) in New Orleans no less, and I wear it. The heat has no effect on it, and it is quite pleasant to catch wiffs of it around me. Try the sample first. Better to spend 5 bucks than 80 if you are curious.
VORONCOV18IPPOLIT – :
Avignon and Jaisalmer are the most gorgeous fragrances! I bought both… paid $80 per bottle…. I adore these and would gladly pay more if they could make the fragrance last longer. Literally these scents are completely gone within 10-15 minutes after application. Obviously they are heavy ladened with alcohol. I dont know why they dont concentrate the scents, remove the alcohol and up the price. I so love these scents, but I will never buy them again. I cannot afford to smell great for 10 minutes. I even sprayed my clothes and that had the same outcome. NO it is not my chemistry. I tried it on two friends as well with the same results. REMOVE THE ALCOHOL !! I dont mind paying more !!!
scorneshorm – :
Such a beautiful smell. I expected Avignon to be my favourite from this series, but Jaisalmer wins hands down for me. It is warm, dry, sensual and inviting, and totally different without being alienating. I just wish it projected more!
Edit: Within three hours of application, it has completely disappeared from my skin. Not the slightest whiff of it left. Such a shame. I won’t be buying a full bottle!
veteropen – :
It’s definitely smoky, and right now I am getting pine scent from this perfume. It smells neither stereotypically masculine or feminine, and I like that.
Smells good, but maybe I didn’t dab enough on, because I feel the scent itself is a bit weak. I think this also might go well if layered with a scent with clary-sage or lime.
малина0812 – :
I didn’t like it. The pine note on my skin had a strong dill edge, freshly cut dill. This was so dominant I could not get any other notes. After this faded away, I don’t know how to put it, but what I got was some very chemical and nasty smell like some anti-insect poison.
Seemed weird to me. I don’t recommend a blind buy.
Mike88VK – :
I agree with samuel.martin.1 that this is a lot like masala chai. On me it starts out more like the dry tea leaves and spices before brewing, then the dry down mellows to a chai latte. On me, the dry down smells kind of like Tibetan Mountain Temple by Pacifica, but more peppery. Delicious!
Игорек84 – :
The most compliemented scent I’ve ever owned. I cannot detect any artificiall, chemical note in Jaisalmer, it smells of fresh sweet sweat, like if it was a product of my body. Or I wish it was… The natural feeling of being in “my own skin”, only better. And it DOES NOT include any cumin 🙂 The final impression is not “churchy” at all, but a bit oriental due to spices. A sort of gourmand incense, delicious and calm…
ash2010 – :
This smells like a homemade CHai latte, I still prefer Kyoto but I could wear this in the fall or on a warm winer day. If you love the smell of a fresh Chai tea give it a try.
7/10
IgorC – :
I found this very long lasting even more so than Kyoto or Avignon, I prefer Kyoto but this is more versatile. It smells like high quality Indian masala incense to me.
krecl86 – :
It has a touch of mystery, a touch of moss, outdoors, swamps… Something in it makes me think about vetiver some time after the application? Perhaps not, but some wonderful incense burning, dry, soft, like a lovely aura embracing me delightfully. It developes beautifully. I love the earthy warmness, with those spice and incense facets and Orient. This fragrance has a great character, I’m so tired with those fragrances for women – fortunately there are some exceptions, my all time favorite being Balenciaga Talisman, for special occasions. Jaisalmer is for everyday.
foxnim – :
The CdG Incense series have a problem with this whole line. They’ve done a sensational job of replicating various incenses but they’ve done it quite literally. To me, this is a failure for perfume because while the chemist in me admires turning birch tar into leather, the artist in me needs evocation as much as replication.
Everyone has commented on the pininess of this scent. I see the connection but I think this is actually the ebony. I find this deficient in spice and the pepper missing. My summary: a neat magician’s trick but not much of a perfume.
Sillage: fairly close 1-3 ft
Duration: 3 hours and counting
Fabulosity: He’s a lumberjack and he’s okay
Value to Price ratio: poor
2/10 as a perfume; 9/10 as a special effect
juk88 – :
Resinous, peppery and piney. Smells like a very old book. The weakest one in the incense series.
ivanovpg – :
As others have mentioned, this has a very strong pine note at the opening, that lasts for at least 30 minutes. In fact, it’s so loud that it smothers pretty much anything else for a while. And then it fades away (never completely though) and the incense shines trough. And how it shines! It’s calming, warming, comforting AND not the least bit churchy. While I love Avignon, I find it hard to wear because of the strong churchy connotations; no such fear with Jaisalmer. This is not a meditating fragrance like Avignon or Kyoto, this is an incense to wear when out clubbing. IMO, it’s the most wearable of the Incense series (along with Quarzazate but that lacks any lasting power). The spices (cardammon & pepper) warm this up, making it perfect for colder weather. In fact, I find this much more ‘flamboyant’ than Encens Flamboyant which I also own and although I like to layer my incense scents with other perfumes, I think is too rich to need any ’embelishment’.
After 4 samples, I finally invested in a FB and I can see myself wearing it quite often. A must try for incense lovers!
venzli – :
Really nice, warm, spicy incense with strong notes of cinnamon, clove, pepper, and some kind of a pine-y woody note. It’s like a strong spiced tea perfect in autumn and wintertime. I like this one alot.
kain. – :
A rich incense opening! But not the kind of incense that we can find in Avignon, where mixed with myrrh gives us a church feeling.
Here we have a incense note accompanied by spicy notes like cardamon upon a resinous base where benzoin shines. A very versatile incense based fragrance if I may say.
naum2961 – :
I adore incense-based fragrances although it wasn’t a scent I was familiar with until I dated one man that was a meditation fanatic, and then after that, a man who sees himself as one of those new-age hippies.
I had tried Heeley’s Cardinal and Comme Des Garcons Avignon, both of them being rather similar, and believed that I had experienced everything that an incense-based fragrance could possibly achieve. I have since found Jaisalmer which has taken my love of incense to new heights.
I agree with Scorpiosheep that this fragrance is not so ‘churchy’. It’s more resinous, like the sweet, smokey scent of burning wood in a pine forest. It tends to smell very masculine, however on my skin it turns quite feminine and sensual. Delightfully mysterious actually.
The cinnamon is fairly heavy in the opening, as is the pepper which together create an interesting, spicy blend. The woodsy notes are strong contenders through to the heart where Jaisalmer gives me that outdoorsy type of sensation. Like wandering through the wilderness and not knowing what you’ll discover.
This fragrance is indeed pungent, so I spray with caution and allow it to settle before leaving the house. Too much could easily be offensive, however I do believe compliments will be in order when I next wear this in public.
The longevity is extremely good, as reviewers have previously mentioned. I think Jaisalmer is one of those fragrances that will either be loved or hated. For those that like incense, amber, cinnamon, pepper or pine, or all of them combined, Jaisalmer is sure to impress. I’ll just re-instate for those men looking at this page, wondering why it’s listed for women, do keep in mind that Jaisalmer is intended to be unisex.
Ckral – :
Initially Jaisalmer is a dry and austere balsamic incense loaded with fresh pine sap. If it contains spices, they’re not much in evidence. I’m not sure what the Indian connection is, because it doesn’t smell at all like typical Indian incense. What it smells like is church incense accompanied by one of the best pine resin notes I’ve ever smelled in a perfume.
A couple of hours into the drydown, I imagine that I smell a little patchouli, but it may have been left over from something I was working with earlier. The scent remains mostly linear, just the lovely warm pine balsam that reminds me of the rosin that’s used on violin bows. After the initial phase there’s not a lot of sillage, but the skin scent lasts all day.
Jaisalmer is a unique take on incense. I really enjoyed testing it, and will surely end up using all of my sample, then possibly going back for more.
bulba_ – :
If you mention “woods” or “incense”, this will definitely get my attention. If you say both in one sentence – I’ll be hooked up =)
I remember sampling CDG Avignon and Zagorsk at the store, trying to decide which one I want, but somewhere at the back of my mind it screamed “Too much church! Are you 100% sure you’ll be wearing this?”
And then my hand reached for the bottle standing nearby, which happened to be Jaisalmer, and …oh! This was it, I found it!
Yes, this one is full of masculine tones, but somehow I love it, and some time after the application and settles to become very cozy. Many incense fragrances are often accompanied by patchouli, which I don’t always appreciate. This fragrance, deprived of dreadful patchouli and rounded up by amber, woods and spices, has development and lasts very long, and I love it in cold winter weather. I guess, it’s my favourite among the CDG Incense series))
TanuxaKiska – :
Exactly like burning incense, including the sharp woody edge. Really not a perfume scent, but extremely atmospheric. Recommended for incense fragrance aficionados.
SergioBargio – :
Very spicy incense which makes me think of an oriental marketplace.
It is not a sillage monster, in fact you’ll have to smell close to the skin to get all the shades of this scent.
If you liked Donna Karan Black Cashmere, you’ll like Jaisalmer. Both are quite similar.