Description
A homage to women’s liberation, this subtly ambiguous and provocative fragrance combines leathery top notes usually found in men’s fragrances with an eternally feminine floral bouquet. As such, it can be shared by men and women.
The great perfumer and the founder of the house of Caron, Ernest Daltroff, created Tabac Blond in 1919. It is a fragrance for women who smoke cigarettes, since a cigarette was, at that time, the perfect symbol of freedom and chic of a Parisian woman. The perfume elegance is based on the unique combination of leather, tobacco leaves and vanilla. This is a “dry” perfume with an intense note of smoke. The perfume notes are: leather, carnation, lime blossom, iris, vetiver, ylang-ylang, cedar, patchouli, vanilla, ambergris, musk.
tsj005Unlogrere – :
Soooooo…. This is a bit of a mystery vs history moment for me.
I inherited this huge bottle of perfume from my grandmother. I had no clue what is was and for years it just sat on my dresser collecting dust. It was disguised in a 1910 Dorflinger american brilliant cut antique decanter that resembled something that would hold alcohol rather than perfume. But, here it was and here it sits.
For many years I would open it and take a good long sniff. Breathing in all the notes I could just barely touch… Spice, leather, tobacco and every time I would shake my head and wonder… what could it be that is so old yet smells so stunning after all these years?
I set out to investigate! I started with just a bit of info and knowing my grandmother was a avid caron and guerlain perfume snob… I got a few leads. First I thought of G-Laura’s style, her taste for expensive delights. Her world travels and her spirit. Yes, I tried to channel her spirit in leading me to why and what this mystery was.
After two years of research I am so very pleased to find the perfect match to this mystery perfume. I purchased many decants and sent many samples out to individuals that were interested in a vintage mystery.
I had to be sure as I did not want to give this perfume a name without knowing for sure what is was
I am the proud owner of a very large amount of vintage Tabac Blond. I can not pinpoint the era but 1950-1960’s version is the closest I have been able to get my hands on.
This perfume says everything about my grandmother to a TEE! She was classy with a kick ass attitude. She could wrap herself in minks and put on her stilettos one night and the next day grab her leather jacket and go out on the racetrack to buddy up with the boys. She didn’t mind being a kept woman in a fancy high rise apartment in downtown Manhattan! She was the arm candy of a wealthy man in the the early 60’s. She lived her life with no regrets and married that man and lived happily ever after with him! Now, I do not condone her behavior and for that era it was quite racy! But, this perfume has a story and that story comes with a perfume and it is called Tabac Blond!
olga princessa – :
My second review:
Failed to find buyer for my kidney, I have to come up a cheaper way to copy the divine scent of Tabac Blond Parfum.
1. Steal a brand new pack of cigarette from your father. Dump out all the cigarettes, keep the empty box.
2. Steal a brand new genuine calf leather handbag from your mother. Put all the cigarettes in, fill it up with some dried linden flower if possible, maybe a tad bit of make-up powder too (you can find it in your mother’s dresser), then seal the bag.
After three months, the handbag will smell like the body notes and the empty cigarette box scent can serve as a passable lingering basenote for Tabac Blond.
Trust me, I’ve tried it myself, it definitely will save big money. Now I’m typing up this review in a nice shelter for homeless young people.
Paiguewignins – :
PERFECTION!
I don’t use the term lightly and I don’t believe that I’ve ever used it in a review here before. Tabac Blond is out of this world. It’s art. It’s beauty. It’s true fragrance perfection. I could give away every other bottle of perfume I own and just keep this one for the rest of my days and I’d be happy.
The linden (lime blossom) is divine… really so very pretty. The leather is very mild. There’s no sharpness or masculinity to it. Everything is in perfect balance.
It’s really perfection!! I don’t even really know what else I can say about it.
Unlalslak – :
Mysterious mystique of the unwilling dark persona!
This is quite mysterious, slightly dark, but overall a grand ecstasy in a bottle. The tobacco is presented in a leather way with mild sweetness and a factor of mystery. The musk & the vetiver are presented gently to overcome the scene with mystery rather than animalic, dirt, or skunk, it just presented it calmly, pretentiously, and very elegantly.
I keep on sniffing linden, carnation, ylang, henna, & cedar but no patchouli so far.
Never thought this will be superbly interesting.
Edit (4th Feb 2018) The major drawback of this masterpiece is it’s longevity, it never last more than 5 to 10 minutes on my skin or on my clothes! that’s just too much weakness.
major777 – :
I decide to sell one of my kidney and half of my liver to get a bottle of Tabac Blond, parfum extrait.
Overall,all the high-end lady’s purses are supposed to smell like this. If they don’t, it’s their fault.
The opening powdery notes is noticeable yet reserved. Oh my, what a perfect supporting role this powdery notes play! It has a sense of portion, not to steal thunder of the leather/woody/tabac compound notes.
If you put more than two spray, the tobacco note itself is gonna be the major player, for quite long time. Luckily it doesn’t have that skunky weed-like smell, which appears in a lot of tobacco perfume. It has a bit of moist-woody feeling, not disgusting, just like forgotten books left in your basement.
If you use with discretion, you’ll soon get a combination of soft leather, a really subtle smokiness and a hint of dry cedar. Sometimes when you open a nice new paper box, you’ll get this smell. This, along with that clean powdery note, create a image of elegant, tom-boyish lady.
CTAMECTKA – :
These classics share a thing in common, imo: a deep sense of nostalgia, possibly for a kinder, more simpler world that suddenly went mad. It is the same feeling I get from L’heure blue. These are the bookends of the Belle Époque, of an Eurocentric world, of all the possibilities and nightmares that the philosophies of the XIX century put forward.
Sorry for the bs. Anyhow, Tabac blond is an absolutely beautiful creation from Caron. A beautiful leather and aldehydic opening is quickly followed by a carnation and iris, plus assorted flowers in the middle. From this point on, I feel there is a resemblance between Tabac and L’heure blue. They are both different compositions and landmarks in perfumery, but to me, they share that melancholic longing for a better world, that beautiful innocence lost, that mourning for what is no more. The drydown is a magnificent leathery iris.
They don’t make fragrances that can elicit these emotional responses anymore. Beautiful and haunting,
Smell great my friends.
alena_mts – :
@Csarina I am also dying to have a bottle, it’s one of the best fragrances I have ever smelled. Interestingly enough, I had met a very elegant and charming elderly woman smoking a long cigarette outside the grocery store years ago. She was wearing long driving gloves and had a beautiful vintage look about her. She smelled so amazing, and I asked her what she was wearing and she said it was a couple little drops of Tabac Blond! I fell in love with it instantly, and I do hope that lovely little lady is still alive and well, wearing her mysteriously enchanting signature scent. My chemistry loves this type of fragrance and one day I will have a bottle of my own, and hope that I can pull it off like she did!
garb – :
Thanks for the great reviews everyone. I have never sampled this and am dying to. I have heard about it of course, just could never get my hands on it. I think a trip to London for a couple of days in on the agenda. I remember when “Mr. Selfridge” came on TV, set in the time when Selfridges first opened in the last 19th century right through the 1910s and 1920 and beyond, he bought a bottle of Tabac Blonde for one of his many lovers, and I have had a hankering for it since. It sounds so like my kind of smell. I seek it here I’ll seek it there, is it in Heaven, is it in Hell, that damned elusive Tabac Blond!
leo1986 – :
Tabac Blonde Current 2017 EDP formulation
Linden, light aldehyde to give it lift and brightness. Vanillic leather soon follows with a powdery lipstick iris note. Vetiver stirs to give it a metallic/medicinal note from the bottom and a touch of cedar. The carnation gives it a spicy touch but know this isnt a carnation bomb as sometimes carnation can dominate a fragrance. Here, it does not.
Back in the 20s ladies would spray perfume on their cigarettes. It was known Germaine Cellier would spray bandit on her cigarettes so a beautiful aroma would mix with the tobacco from the cigarettes.
I think here we have the same type of idea where a pleasant tobacco scent is to be worn wile smoking enhancing the users aura. My mother was a smoker and wore Opium Edt and the combination smelled fabulous on her. Now, with present day sensibilities one now sits at the precipice of choosing to smell like a fine leather jacket, minimal florals and tobacco.
Is this a ghost of its former glory? Yes. However the negative press isnt warranted. You can do a lot worse buying todays thin designer frags.
This is a good niche buy thats interesting and unique. Its not the Icon it seems to be. Its worth a sample and a try. I hope the new nose at Caron reformulates this closer to its former glory. Id put the quality on par with modern Lubins.
If one wanted to discover what the big deal was about with the house of Caron, I feel one needs to obtain vintage samples to fully grasp its true splendor.
To be continued : Tabac Blond EDC Vintage review.
voice – :
My lovely husband bought me a some of this from an urn in Fortnum and mason ( at my request). It was a blind buy but I’d read so much about it that I wanted to own it . I have never smelt the vintage formulation but it must be amazing if it’s better than this.
It has taken me a while to grow to love this fragrance but now I don’t think I would want be without it. I wear it work quite often where I find it suits the environment ( I don’t work with too many young go getters). It’s not a compliment grabber or a crowd pleaser but it pleases me and I feel confident wearing it.
This is a classic leather, tobacco and lipstick fragrance, it smells like my grandmothers handbag used to smell only a hundred times better. To my my mind a very wearable classic.
maria 11 – :
Linden… what a delicious flower. It adds such a delicate, sweet, gummy candy scent that flirts with your heart. Along with powdery iris, the opening of Tabac Blond isn’t so suggestive of tobacco, but more like sweet, dense, honeyed pollen in a flower shop.
Carnation adds an intriguing acerbic, metallic-like vein that strikes through the fragrance from beginning to drydown, giving this some aloof chic to contrast with the welcoming floral talc. And you really can’t help but get lured into the soft, sueded patchouli folds of this beauty when ylang ylang starts to warm you with its creamy, fruity floral petals, moistened with a steamy, woody exhale.
Not a whole lot of literal leather or tobacco to my nose, but Tabac Blond is very evocative of the seductive smokiness that these accords can deliver. Coquettish, swanky, classic, Tabac Blond is for bombshells and bluebloods alike who seek abandon.
drutledbard – :
Picture Amelia Earhart in full swagger, swanky with a sense of adventure! Thanks to an amazing Fragrantica member, I just tried a stunning vintage sample of this iconic perfume! As smooth and seasoned as Maker’s Mark bourbon! Buttery leather, a hint of tobacco, lavish spices with a floral heart note. Created by Daltroff to compliment French women who picked up smoking after WWI, its rich full bodied accord has a sophistication not found in scents today. It’s rakish with a devil-may-care feeling. Going on my unicorn list!
etosvetaleto – :
I sprayed on the new EdP, as pictured above, a bit over an hour ago. Before this, I tried the 1980s parfum a few years back. I think the parfum, which I no longer have, was a bit softer and a touch ambery compared to this, but the overall smell is quite similar. This one I’d say is more “masculine,” or on the masculine side of unisex. It begins by smelling something along the lines of old, brittle leather gloves in the woods, perhaps next to an old cabin. The main issue is the strength, so I’m going to add another spray or two and report back, but otherwise I can’t say I’m at all disappointed in this formulation, as I certainly didn’t expect it to be as “good” as the 80s parfum.
UPDATE: After using a couple more sprays, my thought was that this was like a light version of a Tauer scent (unisex or “masculine”) but then the florals became more obvious, and it became a bit softer and sweeter/vanillic. There’s also a touch of a “rooty” quality, perhaps iris and vetiver. In any case, this is really good, but also lighter than it should be, IMO. It isn’t a bad attempt at recreating the older Tabac Blond formulation I tried, but it’s more like an EdC (of the 1980s) than an EdP (even by today’s standards). Today there are a lot of options in the leathery or tobacco genres, so it’s a shame they went in a softer, lighter, less “controversial” direction.
Vovka_dm – :
Sweet, heavenly leather. Warm, spicy, and thrilling waves enthrall me. Hidden notes in this could easily be cloves, frankincense and brandy. A few drops make me giddy and take me to an incense filled church, flowers on the altar, with an atmosphere of aged intensity. If ever a perfume could make you drunk, it is this. This is in the realm of Habanita by Molinard, and Sahara Noir by Tom Ford. I love them both, and I love this.
FeVydypeEdump – :
Review of vintage parfum
And the “Love affair” with this fragrance begins……
How do I describe this, something this beautiful something this timeless. Not knowing what to expect I tried this beauty on my skin and the first impression was I have smelt this before and now I know what this mysterious fragrance finally is. A beautiful leather fragrance, a supple beautiful soft leather … Then a smokyness, this is what first touches my senses. Then a beautiful fresh smelling tobacco intermingles, and dances with the leather. It warms with the skin and just continues to become better and better, then enter the vanilla. Oh how smooth, and just soft and beautiful this fragrance Is. Had I known how beautiful this fragrance is I would’ve found it long ago. It is all women, but yet there is a little tomboy somewhere within. It is not harsh I found to be very smooth very pleasant, very beautiful. I do think that this is something that can be worn by a male or female, it would be delicious on either gender.
Sillage is wonderful, and protects several feet around me, enough that people notice and comment that it is a beautiful fragrance, the lasting power of this fragrance is also magnificent as I continue to smell this fragrance hours later.
Why oh why do they always discontinue making something this beautiful.
10/10
rvy369InsuffBooni – :
The only trusted way to buy this scent is to go into a high end department store like Fortnum and Mason’s or Harrods in the UK and see it decanted before your eyes from one of the large Lalique flacons into a beautiful bottle of your choice (there are several including gold, silver and mauve and blue glass). The half a dozen or so large flacons (probably containing more than a litre each of scent)with their tiny taps are displayed in a semicircle in their own space on a white bar counter on Fortnum & Mason’s beauty floor at the perfume end by the spiral staircase.But you are not getting a beer here! The heavenly Tabac Blond is in one of those beautiful flacons. You are served by one of several very smartly dressed men who patrol the perfume end. Surprisingly there were no women in charge of perfume that day. When I asked why, I was told that men know more about perfume and that most noses are male.Well that me put in my place! You might be surprised to discover the price – just £75 for the EDP and about £25 for the refillable bottle (but I chose the more expensive gold metal one because I did not want it to maybe break inside my handbag). This is expensive but considering the quality of the scent and compared to the cost of perfumes from other houses like Creed and Roja Dove for example, it’s very good value. The scent itself just cannot be faulted; it achieves a unique balance of leather/tobacco and floral notes by some miracle. If you want to find the Caron flacons in Harrods, they are not in the huge perfume hall on the ground floor. You have to go to the Salon de Parfums on the 6th floor and navigate your way through the Beauty Salon to get to it. You enter a dark low lit black marble walled sanctuary with sofas and the most expensive perfumes are displayed like precious museum pieces behind glass. Quite an experience and you need a bit of bottle to walk into it as it is so exclusive and you will also be immediately approached. But when you talk to the (male again) assistants, if you are even a bit knowledgeable about perfume, you will be welcomed, even if you don’t buy any
surok4444 – :
When I first received this and sniffed, It was instantly something I’d smelled many times throughout my life, but I’d never known it was Tabac Blond all these years. I’ve applied it both on paper and on skin, and in short this is what I get; Heavy, leathery, smokey (like tobacco) and dry – all with a floral-woodiness to surround it.
. . .This gives me a headache if I’m exposed for more than 5 minutes, mostly due to how loud of a scent as it is. (and this was just from a drop on the wrist).
There’s no doubt that this is a high-end fragrance, although, if it was softer somehow, I think i’d be able to appreciate it more. Unfortunately this is nauseating to me.
I think you either will love this scent or hate it.
But regardless, the sillage is enormously heavy and the longevity is excellent!
This is certainly worth trying, but do buy a sample first to see if you love it. . or not.
oka-2380 – :
I didn’t buy this was sent a sample. I wouldn’t wear this if it were the only perfume in the world. Smoky tobacco leather, then powder. My first sniff I thought, oh they’ve made a frag that smells like a gas station! Reminds me of petrol. I’m sure it’s well done and all but no, just no.
stoombvon – :
I first tried this potion in the 80s, having received it in a set with Nocturnes, Belladogia, and Fleurs de Rocaille. Startling in contrast to the perfumes I knew, Tabac Blond was made of old leather jackets, just lit pipe tobacco, unknown herbs and plants with the freshly turned soil clinging to the roots, ambergris and vanilla, and something sharply citric that quickly dried and softened, but remained. Intriging in its complexity, strength, and lack of convention, it was less a perfume than a state of mind. Truly a magical, matchless gem of a perfume.
Night_Ghost – :
This is a review for the current formulation of Tabac Blond Pure Parfum Extrait.
Scent opens with powdered carnations and a creamy leather. The leather is strong on my skin, with an animalic, almost masculine undertone that reminds me of an old leather wallet my dad used to have, if it had been softened in vanilla and white musk. There’s a sharpness running through this fragrance which i guess is probably the lime.
The famous tobacco note is actually quite abstract. It smells like the dry, powdered paper in an empty packet of cigarettes, as opposed the smokiness i was expecting. There’s no actual tobacco here, just the memory of it. A scented imprint of where it once was.
Another reviewer commented that it was like sweetened, scented makeup powder. This is so powdery a floral, you can almost taste it in your mouth. Old lipstick, cigarette paper, dry tobacco leaves and a creamy floral scent. I imagine a night at the opera or a late night cinema outing (when going to the cinema meant dressing up in furs and gloves).
1/4ml of Tabac Blond Extrait lasts easily past 12 hours on my skin, at a moderate silage. Which is just as well, as a 15ml bottle of this could set you back £120 or more!
I have mixed feelings about Tabac Blond. It’s quite lovely enough (though powdery scents generally aren’t my thing), but it doesn’t ‘wow’ me. It’s not as smoky or as dark as I thought it would be, and a lot less interesting. To be fair, the version I have is the current formulation which I am aware is quite different to the vintage one that everyone raves about. I like this scent, but not enough to justify its rather large price tag, nor am I a frequent guest at the sorts of events that would call for such an expensive scent. I also feel that at 20, I am too young for this fragrance. A glamorous 30+ would suit.
However, what is considered expensive to one is no expense to the other. So if you have the means definitely give it a go! If my circumstances change, I would definitely consider buying this perfume again.
vitawt – :
How I learned to love leather. When it’s done right it is soooo right. No tobacco in this perfume but the combination of leather, vanilla and spicy carnation, backed up with patchouli, vetiver and cedar…it creates the effect of the world’s finest unlit cigarette. There is such elegance in this. On skin, the carnation blooms and you won’t smell like an ashtray, you’ll smell like a million bucks. This was created the year women finally won their right to vote and it conjurs up the spirit of those independent chicks voting in President Warren Harding because he was like, such a babe.
istOwetty – :
This review is based on a tiny decant of the current EdT. On my skin and to my nose, I get mostly incense and cedar on top, which reminds me a bit of Breath of God by Lush but without the melon note. Carnation joins in moments later and then dries down to powdery vanilla. Although I have not tried the original vintage formulation, this isn’t as bad as some suggest IMO. I quite like it. Projection and longevity are moderate on my skin.
sverdlovina – :
Totally speechless…
What an incredible masterpiece this is! Like gold or pearl necklaces, and dresses made from finest black velvet. This is a perfume which has to be not smelled but rather experienced!
Tabac Blond (I’m reviewing the Eau de Parfum here) was released in 1919 (same time as the legendary Mitsouko by Guerlain) as a perfume for women who smoked! It was a revolutionary concept, and also a revolutionary perfume in many ways because firstly, it was the first time that leather had been used in a woman’s perfume and secondly, this was one of the very first tobacco fragrances! I think it’s more revolutionary than Mitsouko though.
It’s a hard one to explain but I’ll try to. What you get is dry, soft tobacco, like the paper which lines a pack of cigarettes, rather than the cigarettes themselves. Spicy carnation dominates, along with a gorgeous leather-iris combination and a hint of animalic notes. Damp cedarwood and dry, dark vanilla mixed with creamy ylang-ylang complete the base.
This is unlike anything I’ve tried in a very long time. When I smell this I get two images, elegant balls and women dressed in black with white gloves and cigarette holders, marble floored ball rooms and the golden aura from crystal chandeliers. The other image I get is the women of the 1920’s, androgynous women (this was reportedly a favourite of Marlene Dietrich). I don’t get “flapper” or “loose woman” out of this. I get “rich woman who smokes”… and yes it’s a lot like the smell of makeup and tobacco but at the same time is so deep and luxurious that it really deserves a few tries to really see the elegance in it. It really gives of an aura of gold and black and luxury.
I can’t explain it all any better than that, really. If you ever get the chance, please try and experience this. A legendary perfume.
yif739Bessinepome – :
This is the ultimate femme fatale scent for me, powdery, sophisticated, dark, magical, slightly animalic, spicy and smoky! I will make sure to have a small decant of the vintage parfum for life. I love learning about the history behind this perfume and the nose Ernest Daltroff. I am also learning about Turin, he famously stated that Tabac Blond was “dykey” which is a very crude remark. I don’t understand how he, a so-called expert of fragrances, does not appreciate Tabac Blond? Tabac blonde was created for women who started to smoke during WWII, it is a game-changer! This is a spellbinding scent, I also call it a “liquid courage” kind of scent. It is intended for the bold, daring woman with a strong personality who wants to smell unique.
I am new to fragrances, my review will never do Tabac Blond justice. The tobacco note is my very favorite thing about this fragrance.
The first spray on my skin is the spicy carnation with leather, I think, I smelled a hint of gasoline, I have tired Mitsouko (Mitsouko was created in the same year as Tabac Blond I believe) before and I sense the sort of similar tantalizing gasoline accord in the opening here. It wears off all too quickly. Vetiver, and the sweet powdery iris, earthy spicy warm cloves gradually comes through. The leather here is dry like an old leather jacket found in a thrift shop, the carnation fades and the leather is becoming softer. The drydown is similar to vanilla incense. I know that my nose is missing so many notes! I genuinely think that all perfumistas should try this once in their lifetime.
A great scent to try is Molinard Habanita! It is of a similar vibe as Tabac Blond: a deep smoky powdery, retro-style scent.
The longevity is great, and the sillage is soft.
petrovichav7 – :
i read somewhere that debbie harry wears this. i’m not sure of the accuracy of it, but it made me want to look into the scent and here we are.
this smells so 1920s to me and i love it. it starts off a dry tobacco and smoky carnation, then it sweetens up just a little bit with vanilla and cedar but still remains quite dry. i am not getting what i perceive as leather from this. i used to be a smoker, and it indeed smells similar to a pack of unsmoked cigarettes almost like clove cigarettes (but not as sweet), because of the carnation which gives it a spicy-clovey feel. the iris comes out a bit later adding a slight powderiness to this which i love.
TemaDK – :
Tabac Blond has been a signature of mine for over 40 years.
I wear the parfum and it sings gloriously, fits like a glove – a long black kid leather opera-length glove.
I wear it in all seasons, whenever I feel like it ; I feel that it reflects who I am.
juri0310 – :
This perfume just makes me want to shout out all the notes as they come to me, in ecstasy, lol. I want to become the type of woman whose signature is Tabac Blond. I want to wear it every day in every situation and not have anyone wonder why I smell “like that”.
As an ex-smoker, this really satisfies a nostalgic part of me, which doesn’t long for or crave the cigarettes themselves anymore, but misses the times I spent with friends, drinking coffee or wine and smoking and talking… Some of my best conversations were tinged with the scent of tobacco.
In a sort of more abstract way, Tabac Blond does smell like tobacco, only lighter and fresher, and also like dark, floral vanilla. I personally get a far more prominent floral accord than I do spice. I love the vanilla in this fragrance. Spiritueuse Double Vanille by Geurlain could be its sweet little sister. Soft and deep, fresh and rich, Tabac Blond needs to be worn a few times. It is one of those perfumes that has a life of its own, and as such you might not have the opportunity to really get to know her at all right away. She’s the woman riding in the elevator with you each day, who you notice and briefly admire but don’t feel the need to speak to, until that one day when you suddenly realize you’ve fallen half in love with her. And even then, the mystery continues. . .
I think that I must have a bottle of this perfume. When I breathe it in my mouth falls open as if I’m drinking the scent. Tabac Blond has perfect pitch and temper, it sings beautifully.
This perfume reminds me of having the courage to follow your deepest, darkest passions, and to be open to all chances to uncover what those passions are! I don’t think that anyone should deny themselves the greatest pleasures in life, so please try to wear this perfume a few times throughout your existence on earth. Just don’t force Tabac Blond to adapt to our contemporary ways, our current surroundings, changing beliefs, and new attitudes. Really, I want to adapt my way of seeing and of being to this perfume. I challenge you, Caron invites you, and Tabac Blond begs you (in so far as such a Lady could beg), to take a step toward revealing your secret to yourself.
amazon67 – :
I have some old TB and I absolutely adore it, wearing it sparingly for high days and holidays. It’s one of those perfumes that is like no other despite its comparisons to some other leather frags – this is in a league of its own. I wore it once and was followed by a smartly dressed woman who finally asked me what perfume I was wearing – an experience that was both flattering and alarming in equal measure. However being asked about this perfume when I wear it does happen a lot. I have concluded it suits me. It’s almost narcotic , it’s seductive, heady, uncompromising and completely intoxicating – this is the old version I mean. If you love the carnation/leather/clove accords this is a must. Try and get the older version. I think the newer version is not a (nicotine) patch on the original in my opinion.
dcak – :
One thing that stands out from all the comments is how complex this perfume is! I can smell all the ingredients – not all at once of course – each time I smell it, I notice a different one or two of them. That’s the joy of this scent, the sheer complexity. However, the smoky leather and vanilla and carnation dominate. It’s androgynous but leaning towards the male. There is very little femininity in it. So I wouldn’t describe it as a seduction perfume for women; it’s more of a statement, a very interesting one. Which is what the nose who invented it meant it to be.
Reihar – :
Opened smelling a bit like Kouros and now im seeing the comparisons to Lagerfeld Classic. Almost like a Tabac EDC. Im still getting a lot of Lagerfeld into the drydown. Not bad.
ole9432 – :
For the EDT:
The opening had me thinking, incense!, but then as it warmed up I was able to pick out the leather, cedar, vetiver and carnations. As it fully settled on my skin a few hours later the vanilla sweetened it up and it became quite nice. This wears fairly close to the skin on me.
The leather in this is sweetened up by the vanilla keeping it from getting to heavy and old. The cedar and vetiver give depth and keep it interesting. The carnation gives it that little floral “lady like” feel, with a slight hint of pepper. A well crafted juice, just not my personal style.
Hierceawstart – :
I am finally exploring “The Classics”!!! After reading about them for several years now, I decided to purchase samples of the various ones that intrigued me the most. They arrived yesterday afternoon, but I couldn’t try any of them because I was already wearing something else. This morning is a different story, clean slate and all that, so I daubed on Tabac Blond vintage parfum. I do not have a very discerning nose, I tend to identify the scents that I already know and fail to pick up on the other scents that may be contributing. I say this because for the first hour of wearing it, all I could smell was carnations, heaps and piles of sharp, strong and spicy carnations!
I am now in my 3rd hour of wearing it and alas, the sillage isn’t too good on me. But oh, what I can smell!!! Wonderful dusky, dry, close to the skin blend of patchouli & musk . . . and probably ambergris – if I knew how that added to the mix.
I’m not bowled over by this parfum, I won’t be hunting for more. But I am very happy to have had the experience of trying it. I will use up the remaining sample and if I find that anything has changed, I will post another review.
HanWin – :
After making the point many, many times that I dislike leather perfumes I had to eat my words this morning. Within seconds of spraying from a sample of Tabac Blonde I fell absolutely in love. Most leather perfumes smell to me of the note the leather is made of (rectified birch tar I think). This leather isn’