Serge Lutens Borneo 1834

Thanks to a friend at POL, I finally have a bit of Borneo to sample.

I've been waiting a long time to catch a whiff of this one. Frankly, I wasn't really eager because of how it has sometimes been presented: camphor and patchouli. Two highly possible negatives.

Camphor wouldn't interest me, but patchouli is a favorite, provided it is the right presentation of it. Patchouli has many different manifestations, some of which are just too dark and bitter or 70's for me to wear. But the patchouli in Borneo is my favorite kind -- it's heady on the sweetness, similar to that found in Prada By Prada For Women..

Wow! My sample is not a spray, but this is a love from the first blast. Loads of sweet patchouli...even when daubed on. There's something sensual about applying a fragrance in drops, made doubly so, when the fragrance is sensual to begin with.

It reminds me a bit of Yves Rocher's Cocoon, which is a much less expensive version. But whereas Borneo is deliciously smooth and holds close to my skin, Cocoon is brass and wild and stronger through all the layers of notes, including the chocolate. Another way I'd describe it would be that Cocoon feels a bit artificial, whereas Borneo has no feeling of artifice in it. For me, I find Borneo far more wearable -- darn! (I expected it.)

Well, never say I don't have expensive tastes. I generally like the best.

I decided today, after smelling Borneo from the sample yesterday, that I would try Borneo on one arm and Andy Tauer's L'air du desert marocain on the other. They have notes reminiscent of each other, while being different.

And because I liked it from simply smelling it, I wasn't afraid to really give it a real try the first time I wore it. I was pretty sure it was not going to be a scrubber on me.

Both of them are sweet and hot and dry. Borneo settles quickly into more sweetness and a uniform nature. DM settles into sweet and dry and sensual, while still holding distinct notes that blend but are not lost in each other. Of the two, I can smell DM more strongly, but not so strong I would tire of it over the day. I think I'd have to reapply Borneo to keep pace. That's not necessarily a bad thing.

Well, I will have to drag out my Prada again to compare that also a bit later in the day. If you are lucky enough to find a sample or a decant, definitely try Borneo, if you like sweet patchouli.

Borneo 1834, part of the non-export collection, is available only in Les Salons du Palais Royal in Paris, where it retails for 100 Euros for 75ml.

Karin

The notes of Borneo include Indonesian patchouli, white flowers, cardamom, camphor, cistus, galbanum, cannabis resin, cocoa accord.

Originally posted 2007-03-02 12:49:45.

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