Perfume Review: Vetiver Oriental, Serge Lutens

Review part of the Fabulous Fragrant World of Serge Lutens by Cris Rosa Negra. Now available in English language. To read the Portuguese version, click on here.

Vetiver Oriental, Serge Lutens

Unique, enchanting and lovely soft. These are the virtues of Serge Lutens Vetiver Oriental, a mysterious, captivating and slightly ardent fragrance that conceives the vetiver as main note, bewitched by the iris softly sweet and always involved by the woody base surrounded by balsamic delightful waves that connect the earthy luxury to the body, mind and soul comforts.


Among all Serge Lutens fragrances, Vetiver Oriental is what set an interesting relation between the orientality of the Serge Lutens experiences in Marocco and the traditional odour influences of woods and resins such as vetiver, musk, sandalwood and others closer to the earthy and sultry pungency, which are scented qualities of great East Kings and also, on the other hand, bring to memory some luxury and cosmopolita West places where there are urban men connected to the technology and all futurist trends, places where Serge Lutens also experienced his career.


Vetiver Oriental set a scented balance between the East and the West, joining the traditional and the modern features and,remained in this relationship, the fragrance opens a captivating scent for refined, multicultural and avant-garde men, as well as Serge Lutens is. It occurs because the perfume is an oriental which blends balsamic and woody components creating an East reference and the source of some raw materials. It is found in Vetiver oriental the Indian vetiver, the sensual Arab amber and the multiorientals such as mosses, labdanum, sandalwood, gaiacwood and musk.

Vetiver, essencial para a perfumaria, principalmente como nota de base
Vetiver, essential for perfumery, mainly as base note

A luxury mixture and made in the right measure to not suffocate the nose with the exhausting pungency of the woods. This right proportion of the fragrance only is possible because is included the most modern retro classic note iris which is not common in male perfumes. The iris perfumes the fragrance in all moments with the vetiver and a mysterious accord vanilic woody which makes the connection between the iris and the woods. Although this composition has chocolate in the middle notes, this component is not so evident , consequently doesn't determine the odour in the mixture.


In this Lutens(ian) creation, the Vetiver is not green, sour and refreshing as in some classics of the perfumery but also is not pungent such the natural oil of Khus; on the contrary, the vetiver is extremely structured for a comfort scent, light and warm to cover the skin with a sophistication before wearing any refined clothing. Vetiver Oriental has a relationship with some personal memories about olfactive nuances such the sweet aromatic woody of Cartier Le Baiser du Dragon that interacts to Vetiver Oriental in notes such as musk, iris and vetiver, besides both are very elegant. Also other scent relationship is established with Serge Lutens Ambre Sultan in terms of resins componentes and some sultry pictures hence both bring to memories differents aspects of the East influences.

Nota de íris em Vetiver Oriental... Ela está sempre "visível" olfativamente
assim como a íris dos olhos de todos nós.
Iris note in Vetiver Oriental... is always "visible" olfactively as well as the iris of our eyes.

Even though the perfume is wearable for both sexies. Vetiver Oriental is perfect for men and it would be perfect that a woman next to him would wear Cartier Le Baiser du Dragon. A perfect couple of fragrances for a couple of good taste, equally perfect.


Notes : Sap, iris pallida, undergrowth notes, vetiver, gaiac wood, chocolate, musk, amber, labdanum, sandalwood and mosses.

Perfumer: Christopher Sheldrake.

Perfume Review by Copyright Cristiane Gonçalves aka Cris Rosa Negra for Perfume da Rosa Negra Originally published in portuguese language in 2007.
Photo credits: Serge Lutens Vetiver Oriental bottle by Serge Lutens Fragrances. Vetiver roots at UFF Eyes' iris, source Wikipédia