[4]
And yes, this is day four already of our advent calendar. Yesterday’s winner is Patricia Schneider. Congratulations!
And today we celebrate without any questions the newest newsletter and perfume critics from Perfumes: The guide.
You can download -if you want and are willing to pay 10 $ US- the latest additions to the guide by Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez as pdf. I did, because I was curious. And I am not disappointed.
Thus, today I pick one out of you who leaves a comment and send the winner a bottle of Incense rosĂ©. It is a four star fragrance by Luca Turin, who said among other things “The combination of rose, cardamom, and mandarin is so warm, so welcoming, you feel as if youâve just heard a piece of good news you cannot quite remember.” The guide extension features some 129 additions and you can download it here on perfumes: the guide.
And if you leave a comment here, you might win the Incense rosĂ©…
December 4th, 2008 at 6:47 am
Luca and Tania are nice counterpoints to one another. My favorite comment by TS: “The bottle cap looks like a Mario Bros power-up” –in reference to SJP’s Covet.
December 4th, 2008 at 6:50 am
C’est moi le premier? Super! Andy, I was expecting an even harder question that yesterday’s, so I don’t really know what to say! Incense rosĂ© sounds lovely, what a combination of notes! Could it be worn by a man? Silly question, of course it could… other people might think you smell like a girl, but that’s their problem. I really like the current thinking that scents shouldn’t be categorised by gender.
December 4th, 2008 at 7:00 am
Good morning, Wayne
Oups, snowcrocus was faster! your comments must have crossed almost in e-space.
About Incense rosé for men: Absolutely. This is a pretty unisex one. It is heavy stuff, though, really : One spritz keeps you going for a long, long scented way, but it fits him and her.
December 4th, 2008 at 7:01 am
Oh, Incense RosĂ©! I got a sample of it and liked it very much, and gave the remainder of my sample to a friend who was so intoxicated with it that she ordered a full bottle. In response to Wayne, above: it’s not rosy and pretty, it’s a dark earthy fragrance with a dried-rose-petal feel to it, and a man could most definitely wear it. (This one has.)
December 4th, 2008 at 7:02 am
Love roses, rose fragrances, rose drinks, roses in food.. they just work on/for me.
Really hope for this one.
December 4th, 2008 at 7:10 am
Its good to see that you are receiving some well deserved attention.
December 4th, 2008 at 7:36 am
Andy,
Many congratulations for the fantastic review by Luca Turin.
Yes, IR is quite fantastic.
December 4th, 2008 at 8:00 am
Day 4…time for me to remark that this is the first time *I* have been able to do an advent calendar since I was a kid. Of course, I have had one for my kids…
Congrats on the good words in The Guide; I am grateful for the chance to win a bottle of IR myself!
December 4th, 2008 at 8:12 am
I confess I’ve never tried Incense Rose, but the combination of rose, cardamom and mandarin sounds very intriguing. I love warm spicy notes. I am glad to have the chance to try to win a bottle of it, but in any event I will have to sample it soon!
December 4th, 2008 at 8:13 am
Blimey! I haven’t smelled Incense RosĂ© but if it’s half as lovely as Incense ExtrĂȘme, I’m game baby, yeah!!! :D
Btw, Andy, Reverie au Jardin sent me to sleep last night - it really is such a beauty, a warm musky rose; a good-hearted Rose, perhaps? :)
There’s nothing better than for a fragrance to be able to make me smile… :)
Conrats on the smashing Lutania review!
December 4th, 2008 at 8:15 am
Full bottle again! Wow! I’m here to win! :))
December 4th, 2008 at 8:37 am
Oooooo incense rose!
December 4th, 2008 at 8:46 am
I personally don’t find Turin & Sanchez’s insights particularly enlightening, because my honker best tells what I like! And that’s Incense Rose, Andy! :)
December 4th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Incense rosĂ© with its “drunk” and drenched with wine rose that is sweet as a sherbet? And that all on the famous dark background of Incense? Nice!
The guide yesterday brought a lot of surprises. I still find it very informative resource for studying perfumery ;o)
Have a nice fragrant day, Andy!
December 4th, 2008 at 9:02 am
Bonjour Andy, bonjour aux fans.
Je n’ai pu rĂ©sister et j’ai achetĂ© le complĂ©ment du guide hier soir avant d’aller me coucher. Vos parfums leur plaisent toujours beaucoup. J’aurais bien aimĂ© 4* au Maroc pour elle aussi…
Bien Ă vous
Rebecca
December 4th, 2008 at 9:05 am
Let’s celebrate then :)
December 4th, 2008 at 9:20 am
Thank you for this very generous advent calendar!
I like Incense rose a lot and would be very happy to win it :-)
December 4th, 2008 at 9:46 am
Andy, I’m very glad to see and participate in your continous success.
December 4th, 2008 at 9:48 am
This is wonderful! I love Incense rosĂ©. It’s my second favourite after L’air du dĂ©sert marocain. I hope to win this time ;-).
December 4th, 2008 at 9:58 am
Dear Andy,
LT and TS are a nice cute couple but I enjoyed LucaÂŽs blog bakc there when he was really reviewing perfume…
today you get these reviews that are shallow but with a touch a humor…
My sister flipped when I gave her your perfumes to smell…
She said you are a genious.
She loved Marroc pour Elle. Lonestar made her blush….
Incense Rosé is the smell of her childhood - she said.
Kissy
December 4th, 2008 at 10:14 am
Ah, it was Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez’s book which first led me to look up Tauer Perfumes.
On this fourth day of December, I am putting the last few items in my pack, and preparing to set forth. I will ride in many great metal dragons over the next few weeks, and as usual, I am filled with a combination of exhilaration to be taking to the skies, resentment that I do not have wings, and fear at being swallowed by such mechanical beasts. The greatest moment is always that moment when one breaks through the clouds; if a perfume is through the smoke, what then should we call one that is through the clouds?
December 4th, 2008 at 10:14 am
…The annoying thing about The guide is that many people think about it as a bible…
But I’m glad for his kind words to Incense RosĂ©!
It sounds great!
(even more from your description, though!)
December 4th, 2008 at 10:25 am
I have found out that incense is my note. I have probably acquired it at church and and as I am a nostalgic person I like my memories of past.
The bottle of Incense Rose looks appealing and exotic and not overdone at the same time.
December 4th, 2008 at 10:52 am
A full bottle of Incense Rose - I’m in on this one!
Andy, you are the greatest!
December 4th, 2008 at 10:54 am
Good morning! I have just got rid of my fear of roses (in perfume) and combined with the notes and incense, it seems Incense Rose might be a new favourite. Its on top of my list of samples to try anyway so I will probably get a sample of IR soon enough :)
December 4th, 2008 at 10:54 am
I love Incense Rosee Andy, but when it comes to perfumes I follow my own nose and taste. It is fun to read what they write though.
December 4th, 2008 at 10:58 am
At least Andy’s Vetiver Dance didn’t get the comment: ‘NOT VETIVER!’ from Turin/Sanchez, as is the case with Creed’s Original Vetiver. ;)
To me, the guide is a nice collection of general descriptions of scents. But most of all, it shows how taste can be different for different people! :)
December 4th, 2008 at 11:19 am
Hi again Mr Tauer!
I am glad that your perfume is worth those kind words and I thank the couple for having inspired me to dig out samples of your perfumes,having said that my nose and my soul know what I like/love/hate,and there is a lot of different opinions all of them valid in this wonderful and very subjective art that is perfumery.thanks again Lolitaxx
December 4th, 2008 at 12:00 pm
Congratulations on the reviews in the updated Guide, although I think they missed the boat with their write-up of Vetiver Dance. It is beyond Vetiver and it sings, not shouts, and I’ll wear it as my scent of the day today. My father was also mad with them, since Vetiver Dance is his favorite.
Congratulations again and thanks so much.
December 4th, 2008 at 12:04 pm
Dear Andy, I shall wait for addition to The guide in Russian,
Incense rosé is my favorite number two.
December 4th, 2008 at 12:26 pm
Turin + Sanchez make a great duet. I love to read their witty reviews even though sometimes I disagree with their ratings, but we are all humans after all!
Unfortunately, I am not familiar with your interpretation of rosy incense, who knows, maybe I get lucky enough to try it from your bottle!
December 4th, 2008 at 12:45 pm
Today, I have my ancle’s funeral. In our(Japanese) funeral, many incense are burnt to see off the dead.
I have never try your Incense Rose, but today is memorial day for my memory.
By the way, I’ve read the guide. CongratulationsïŒfor getting four stars!!
December 4th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
Incense Rosé? Count me in!
December 4th, 2008 at 1:07 pm
Incense Rose… IÂŽm in!
December 4th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
Incense rose sounds right up my street. I used to associate all rose perfumes with scented drawer liners, until I had a “Rose to Damascene experience” in January of this year and have been madly collecting rose perfumes ever since. Apparently rose scents have a therapeutic effect in terms of affirming women’s feminity - as I am about to hit 50, maybe there is something to this!
December 4th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
Good Morning
Without freedom, no art; art lives only on the restraints it imposes on itself, and dies of all others.
Albert Camus
December 4th, 2008 at 1:23 pm
I think I’m going to hold out until the next paperback release of the guide, instead of ordering the supplements.
December 4th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
I’d like to try incense rosĂ©…it sounds great and I trust luca turin’s opinions!
December 4th, 2008 at 1:38 pm
Incense Rose sounds perfect
December 4th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
congratulations on LT’s review :). i love perfumes:the guide, and while i don’t agree with everything they say, i’ve learned a lot about perfume by reading this book.
December 4th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
Aha, without any questions! So you’re not questioning us, and we’re not questioning the Guide! Lovely! ;)
December 4th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
Good morning Andy! TS and LT are very enjoyable, and even though I often disagree w/them completely, it still feels like a “friendly” disagreement!
Debby
December 4th, 2008 at 1:54 pm
Incense Rose definitely deserves a great review - and the idea of it being like a ‘piece of good news you can’t quite remember’ sums it up very nicely.
December 4th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Incense Rose - my favourite of your recent perfumes! Congratulations Andy.
December 4th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
Well deserved praise indeed! Incense rosĂ© has worked very well on my skin — a warm and lovely scent for cold weather. A kind friend sent me a large sample, but I can tell I’ll need to get my hands on a full bottle soon!
December 4th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
A lovely review for what sounds like a lovely fragrance. Well done!
December 4th, 2008 at 2:29 pm
I’m glad Luca Turin gave IR a good review but I trust my nose to tell me what I love and I love incense and rose. I think you are one of the most talented persons currently
working in perfume. Congratulations!
December 4th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
The guide is fascinating - agree or disagree, I love the way LT and TS light a fire under the conversation with their opinions. Cheers.
December 4th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Congratulations on four stars on day four.
December 4th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Well, Iâve bitten! I placed the order for âPerfumes the Guideâ only to see whatâs been written about Incense RosĂ©, because I have strong feelings for this fragrance myself.
The first part of the review I really donât âgetâ. What has it to do with Incense RosĂ©? Is the implication that if the writer were churlish he might have some constructive criticism to offer Mr. Tauer? I certainly hope not! Well, letâs move onward, then! I do like what comes nextâŠ
Although Iâm drawing a blank on the Guideâs reference to Mendelssohn, nevertheless I am reminded by it of the line from STARDUST MEMORIES in which Charlotte Ramplingâs character comes up with the phrase âProustian rushâ. Woody Allenâs character suggests that the name âProustian Rushâ might work quite well for a perfume! At any rate, a âProustian rushâ is a very particular form of time travel, in which one foot is planted in the past while the other remains firmly rooted in the present.
And so, while Incense Rosé is absolutely a modern fragrance, its accords stimulate my imagination, bringing into being each time I sniff a sort of inner mise-en-scene. I am taken back to a time of collective innocence, you might say. To a pre-enlightenment, pre-renaissance era. Think medieval; think the Crusades! There is a sense not only of a fusion of past and present in Incense Rosé, but also of East and West. (Equally remarkable!)
The other concrete, inescapable impression I received immediately upon testing Incense RosĂ© for the first time was of [what I mean by] âpotpourriâ. There are certain scents I am intrigued by and drawn to that are in my mind related to a classic potpourri. On me I invariably find them, sadly, unwearable. Iâd been longing for something fitting my [perhaps weird] idea of potpourri that I could actually put on and leave on. And so I rejoice at the advent of Incense RosĂ©!
—–
ps oops this comment was accidentally sent to day 3, so sorry about that, I don’t know if it’s possible to delete from there, but … well, I don’t know how it happened, sheer excitement I suppose?
December 4th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
Ooooooooooooooooo…everything’s coming up Roses! The une rose chypree gives me shivers…bay and cinammon, citrus and rose, the soft woodiness of labdanum, vanilla and vetiver….these notes sing on my skin… *beams*
And a chance to nestle down in a bottle of rose-petal’d incense? Heaven!! It’ll be like attending Christmas Mass in a winter garden~
Thank you for following your joy and sharing it with us, Andy; here’s hoping for snow in Zurich soon! :]
December 4th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
Oh I love that book! Congratulations on the four stars for Incense Rosé, the review sounds wonderful!
December 4th, 2008 at 3:05 pm
I find the book quite fun, and was happy to see Tauer perfumes included!
December 4th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
I am a new perfumista, but I have found incense is my favourite scent in a perfume as well. And others always describe scents so more beautifully than I- “Christmas Mass in a winter garden” to describe Incense Rose. How lovely and exact.
December 4th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
congrats on the well-deserved four star review! LT certainly has a way with words. Funny how when I disagree with them, the book is a load of subjective bunk, but when I AGREE, I congratulate myself on my fine taste. Thanks for the chance to try Incense Rose!
December 4th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
I’m glad they liked Incense Rose. I love how radiant it feels, much different from other incense fragrances I’ve tried. I’d love to have a full bottle!
December 4th, 2008 at 3:20 pm
Incense Rose sounds like the one for me from the notes. I’d love to be in the draw.
December 4th, 2008 at 3:20 pm
The Guide is great fun! Please enter me in today’s drawing.
December 4th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
I’m kind of kicking myself for asking for The Guide for Christmas, I can’t wait to read it. I love Turin’s comment on Incense Rose, what fun :)
December 4th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
Happy Dec 4! I love the sound of incense rose.
December 4th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
I’m so excited - I also downloaded the latest segment of the guide, and immediately wanted to try Incense Rose. Yay!
December 4th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
That sounds absolutely lovely - the more roses the better!
December 4th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
Ah, that sounds gorgeous! I would love to be entered into today’s drawing, thank you!
December 4th, 2008 at 3:56 pm
Cardamom and roses . . . sounds like something I want to eat! I’ll definitely be buying this one, if I don’t win, of course!
December 4th, 2008 at 4:10 pm
I am currently on the ‘N’ section of the original Guide. I find it more entertaining than highly informative. Though I have learned a few things about the industry that I didn’t know previously. Congratulations on getting a positive review of Incense Rose!
I am excited about the possibility of winning a rose scent. Incense has become a favorite note also.
May everyone have a loving heart!
December 4th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
My fast-diminishing sample of Incense RosĂ© is almost TOO sultry and sexy on me to wear — almost! Amazing stuff, and I would love to be entered in the drawing.
December 4th, 2008 at 4:20 pm
Happy day 4!
December 4th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
Incense Rose…. sounds perfect - a warm welcoming scent. It’s going to be freezing in New York this weekend. I need a warm welcoming scent right about now!
Thanks Mr. Tauer, you’ve made the holidays fun!
December 4th, 2008 at 4:49 pm
From another Kathryn than the one above–I am wearing my sample of your Incense Rose today. It is hard to choose, but I think that this may be my favorite of your wonderful perfumes.
December 4th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
the scent if roses was said to sooo entrance the wearer/receiver of the bouquet to the point of being oblivious to all else - akin to being naked emotionally, and sometimes NOT careing if one was naked in the physical sense either!!! Insense Rose would be many times more powerful!! hotlanta linda
December 4th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
Incense rosé sounds intriguing!
December 4th, 2008 at 5:05 pm
Hello Andy,
Visiting your advent calendar has become the highlight of my day! Congrats on the well deserved review of a beautiful fragrance. I am going to go dig up my sample and dab some on.
December 4th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
It was a review that left me hankering to try Incense Rose…it sounds like a fragrance I have oftened dreamed might exist
December 4th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
MMMMM…..cardamom and rose. A warm scent on a chilly winter’s day.
December 4th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
I loved IR long before LT and TS reviewed it (thanks to Andy’s generosity with samples at the time of its release!).
I also love LT and TS’s book. I don’t know anyone who treats it as a Bible (the way too many wine drinkers treat Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate). I see P:TG as some very subjective muses from a couple experienced noses who write intelligently and amusingly, if not always precisely, about fragrances. At the end of the day my nose will guide me, but LT and TS have, on occasion, pointed me in the direction of new things to sniff.
….such as Andy’s own Incense Extreme. It’s one of the few Tauer fragrances I’ve yet to try. It seems to have gotten a slightly lukewarm reception at the time of its release (perhaps only because many people were justifiably raving about Incense Rose). But in the last several weeks I’ve read many encomiums to it on Basenotes. And now Luca Turin has added his voice. IE is now high on my “must sample” list!
December 4th, 2008 at 5:39 pm
oops….that’s “musings” not “muses.” Oh for a preview button!
December 4th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
If I won, I was going to give this to my mother, but based on the above comments, I might just have to keep it for myself! Sounds perfect!
Thanks again Andy for the holiday fun!
December 4th, 2008 at 6:08 pm
If I won this, I would keep it for myself. I know that isn’t the spirit of the holidays but then my family tend to give horrible gifts!
December 4th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
I would love to hear this “piece of good news.”
December 4th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
Hurrah for bonny perfumery, hurrah for cardamom and hurrah for Mr. Tauer!
December 4th, 2008 at 6:37 pm
Hi Andy
That’s great! They are funny and often spot-on, so the rose scent will be fantastic, I’m sure.
Meg
December 4th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
I love the Incense Rose and would be delighted to receive a bottle!
December 4th, 2008 at 7:13 pm
Congratulations on your good review Andy! I ordered samples of your whole range on Tuesday, and they arrived this morning, beautifully packaged. I’m resisting the urge to try them all in one go, and am restricting myself to one each day. I tried L’Air, and it’s beautiful.
December 4th, 2008 at 7:13 pm
Please count me in!
December 4th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
Incense rosé sounds wonderful. The idea of rose with frankincense and cardamom is delightful to even think about.
December 4th, 2008 at 7:33 pm
Oh, Incense Rose. Sounds like something I would love. And the Rose Chypree as well.
December 4th, 2008 at 7:51 pm
As I recall reading, Luca Turin wore L’air du Desert Marocain on his wedding day. What a wonderful counterpoint to the Apres L’Ondee that Tania Sanchez wore, no?
What beautiful perfumes you make! I’d very much like to try Incense Rose.
Jamie
December 4th, 2008 at 8:43 pm
Day four! Incense Rose! :-) Hope you are having a great day!
December 4th, 2008 at 8:47 pm
I already have Incense Rosé (glorious stuff), just wanted to say Hi!
December 4th, 2008 at 8:54 pm
Bonjour Andy, bonjour tout le monde
J’ ai rĂ©sistĂ© et je n’ achĂšterais le complĂ©ment du guide que samedi, j’ai dĂ©chiffrĂ© pĂ©niblement (parce que l’anglais et moi sommes un peu fĂąchĂ©s lol) le livre de Luca Turin et de sa femme, j’ai Ă©tĂ© ravie de voir que vos parfums leur plaisent toujours beaucoup, mais vous le mĂ©ritez amplement !
Comme Rebecca j’aurais bien aimĂ© 4* aussi au Maroc pour elle que j’ai eu l’occasion de dĂ©couvrir il n’y a pas longtemps !
bonne soirée
Brigitte
December 4th, 2008 at 8:58 pm
Wow, once again such a nice gift for us! Thank you.
I love The Guide! LT and TS are very fun to read, whether you agree or not. I have some 5-star perfumes, but also wear a couple with only one.
December 4th, 2008 at 9:22 pm
I’ve just discovered incense in fragrance, and have been craving rose scents so I would be delighted to try the two together.
December 4th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
i haven’t had time to read the guide yet, but i’m looking forward to it.. in the meantime i hope i’ll be lucky here =)
thank you for a great kalender!
December 4th, 2008 at 9:48 pm
I can’t think but help I’d much rather have a hard copy of their update. I can, therefore, wait for the next book update. I did like the original (more as entertainment, really) but I’m not going crazy wondering what they’re saying these days.
I’m so curious to sample all of your fragrances now. Expect an order sometime in January.
December 4th, 2008 at 11:55 pm
Hi there, I already got my download of the guide and read it from cover to cover. I find that they are a good guide to whether I will like a fragrance as I agree with them at least 80% of the time.
December 5th, 2008 at 12:25 am
OOOOHHH I love incense and this frag sounds perfect (mmm rose without being too fresh rose)
December 5th, 2008 at 12:27 am
I’m so thrilled for you you got a good review! Sure, they’re not the deities of fragrance, but a bad review might still reflect on sales. Congrats!
December 5th, 2008 at 12:45 am
Dearest Andy,
How could I have forgotten to visit your blog on the first day of your drawing ! I’m eagerly awaiting the arrival of my package from Zurich, but It would please me even more to have another on the way that I had won ! I couldn’t agree more with the reviews that your fragrances have gotten from LT & TS, but then I didn’t have to wait until they said your creations were exquisite, I already knew that !
Yours,
M
December 5th, 2008 at 12:46 am
Congrats on your good review and I’m going to cross my fingers here.
December 5th, 2008 at 12:58 am
Hi, Andy,
Please enter me in you drawing today, if I win this one’s for my mom ! You know which one is MY favorite.
December 5th, 2008 at 3:13 am
hi,
I think that this might appeal to my husband, too. He loves deep warm scents. Thank you so much for this fun!!
December 5th, 2008 at 4:02 am
Oooh! I’d love to try the Incense Rose, I’ve heard such lovely things about it!
December 5th, 2008 at 4:40 am
I would love a bottle of Incense Rose! I’m so glad you offer full bottles.
December 5th, 2008 at 4:49 am
Happy Christmas,
How can one not think of Bob Crachett (spelling?) when they think of you? Toiling away at the perfumery, keeping the spirit of Christmas alive, and being that inspiration to all ~ that’s the way I see you.
And Incense ~ oooooooooooh, delight of delights! A far away time, a little girl whose Christmas tradition included a Vigil Mass loaded with incense. I inhaled and inhaled…
Fast forward to Spring and that same little girl would spend loads of time planting, fertilizing, and caring for several rose bushes in the front of the family yard. That little girl had a genuine love for those roses and would daily care for them, longing for the buds to begin to open their petals. She’d race to her father, each morning, and update him. As the one who was instrumental in teaching a love of gardening, Father eagerly anticipated the morning news. Roses flourished and the aromatics that wavered throughout the yard brought an unending bond between Father and Daughter that exists to this day.
Congratulations on your wonderful review, Mr. Tauer. I am thrilled that artisans, such as yourself, are heralded for your triumphs.
Frankincense waved upon the Night of Nights;
A gift of the Magi;
Mary, awaiting the Night.
Mary, Image of the Rose;
Incense Rose~Christmas.
Happy Christmas,
Lucy2
December 5th, 2008 at 6:14 am
Yay! I love roses and I’d love to try this one.
December 5th, 2008 at 6:38 am
I am doubtful of Turin because Bal a Versailles was not included in the book. Anyway, I’d love anything of yours!