Serge Noir

Notes: patchouli, cinnamon, amber, black woods, cumin, incense

On a recent trip to Aedes I sniffed the new Serge Lutens scent, Serge Noir.  It reminded me a lot of Donna Karan's Chaos, which I had just purchased the day before. Only a side-by-side comparison showed me how different they were.

Serge Noir opens with a heavy dose of cinnamon-coated patchouli, with the spice taking away or masking some of the dirty earth quality that patch sometimes has.  The "dirty" aspect instead is supplied by a gentle dose of cumin, which works particularly well in this fragrance, providing warmth rather than its usual skanky body odor aura.

A hint of incense swirls around the other notes, and a sweetness shows up in the drydown.  The cinnamon stays pungent throughout, a nice barky, spicy cinnamon that really is the star of the scent.  Love it.  Several hours later the scent softens quite a bit to a light muskiness.

Lutens scents are usually more miss than hit for me, but this is one I'd would invest in.