I took the day off yesterday, so to speak, so I don’t have a real fragrance review this morning. I am testing the new Youth Dew Amber Nude, created by Tom Ford for Estee Lauder. It is a lightly spicy oriental scent (see the fragrance notes here) that pays homage to the original Youth Dew but throws in a smattering of modern notes (bare skin accord, fresh tea, ginger, chocolate). It is considerably lighter and softer than Youth Dew, but it isn’t a sheer perfume by any means. It is much, much better than I expected it would be, but I don’t like amber so it is no surprise that I don’t adore it. If you are an amber fan and you have tried it, please comment.
Sincere apologies for this particularly lame post! Perhaps I should have just called in sick? Come back on Monday and hopefully I’ll have something better.
Bonus reading: an interview with Tom Ford in Style.
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I'm dying to smell this, R – the publicity machine has worked on me! But naturally it's not here in the UK yet. So your short review pretty much adds to the sense of 'tease' about this scent…
And I meant to add…”What on earth is 'bare skin accord'???” N
N, hope it shows up in the UK soon — sorry to have brought it up again without offering any new information, LOL!
Skin accord is, I think, just a kind of synthetic musk-like thing. Helmut Lang has skin accord, Lacoste Pour Femme has velvet-skin accord, DK Be Delicious has tender skin accord, Estee Lauder Pleasures Intense for men actually has “masculine skin accord”.
I'm trying it today too, and while not a huge amber fan, I very much like this. It seems a little spicy gourmandy and almost leathery. I always feel nervous about patchouli, but it's done well here and not overpowering. Hope that adds to the conversation! I really do love it, and I wasn't expecting to.
At this point my lemming for YDAN has reached gigantic proportions. Perfume Gods give me strength not to do something silly, like ordering an overpriced sample on ebay…I wonder if they do sell them on ebay? *moan*
Good description –agree completely that the patchouli is very subdued, much more so than in the original YD. And a little gourmandy is right too. I was worried they would overdo the chocolate, but they really haven't. Have been trying to decide if I would even notice it if it weren't listed in the notes. I certainly don't notice the tea.
M, I should not think it was worth longing for, but since I've already said I don't like amber, my opinion is obviously worthless
I am longing for Hermes Osmanthe Yunnan!
I am longing to try OY, too, R! Paul from the SF Hermes boutique promised to call me when it arrives.
However, YDAN sounds intriguing. I will have to test it.
And, by the way, I love your review today. It was short, sweet, and got right to the 'nub' of things!
Hugs!
Thank you, dear R! I am supposed to get a call from Hermes too. Was in the store last week and there is now a fifth, empty slot in the drawer on that wooden column-thingie where they keep the testers…but no OY yet. Drat.
I'm not noticing tea at all either. The Chocolate is subdued, but it is lightly there. I'm going to do a fresh test with an all-over spritz instead of just on the arm.
I'm dying to hear about the OY, too! I expect the London boutiques will get in, ooh, 2007, so I need to hear from you, R!
T just gave me a sample of YDAN. Cannot wait to try it myself!
Sniffed YDAN last night.. smelled a bit like Tabac Blond, couldn't get much chocolate or tea out of it, mostly amber, leather and spice. I liked Laura Mercier's Ambre Passion better – I'm in the mood for a sweet amber at the moment and that hit the spot.
I feel somehow immune to this one. I don't know why, but it just doesn't call out to me at all. Maybe it's just me general disinclination against EL scents. I'm boring, right? Sigh. I guess my wallet will be grateful. The worst part is from your description it certainly sounds like something I'd like!
N, should think you would see OY before we do! It is already in Paris; we are still waiting…
V, hope you will do a proper review of it — I certainly didn't
T, I have seen many comments about the leather, but I don't smell it…again though, don't like amber and always feel that it overwhelms everything else. So you know I didn't love the LM
K, Well, I think you could argue that it is EL & not you that is boring…but that is supposed to be what YDAN is out to cure! Sounds like it didn't work for you.
This scent went nowhere on me: agree with the Tabac Blond reference above. Some rose and carnation, drying down to a perfectly fine amber/sandalwood; I never did get the chocolate, except I'd describe the entire effect as smooth. Gone in roughly 3 hrs.
Re: Osmanthe Yunnan– FYI There's an article in Nov. Vogue featuring lunch with Jean-Claude Ellena at his lab outside Provence, with a multicourse menu inspired by the Hermessences, with discussions of various perfume topics including Osmanthe.
I am wearing it right now. Amber has never really appealed to me before, but I think I like this. I keep catching a whiff of it and thinking, “what smells good?”, then realizing that it is my arm.
Thank you so much — will have to pick up a copy of the November Vogue!!
Ah, so it has converted you to amber! It didn't do that for me — yet.
The tea gives it a “fresher” kind of smell, I think, although it could be the ginger or grapefruit doing that I guess. I was disappointed there wasn't more of a bombastic chocolate actually. To me, this is lighter, more modern “transparent”/fresh than the original, but horrendously overpriced compared to the bargin that is the original. Questionable improvement for twice the price? Also, it doesn't seem to last as well…?
Tigs, I can't seem to find the price online (Saks doesn't even have the fragrance online yet) but it wasn't likely they would do something at the very reasonable price of the original, right? Will be interesting to see how long it takes to hit the discount sites.
I keep reading it smells like Yves Rocher Neonatura Cocoon. Then I read Cocoon smells like Borneo 1843. Has anyone here smelled Cocoon?
I was informed by the Lauder people that it would be retailing at about $80 CAN for the 50 ml at Holt Renfrew (kind of our Canadian Saks).
I Cannot Wait. The build-up of this for me is so enormous at this point that I am destined to be disappointed. And yet, I am >>thisclose<< to ordering it unsniffed, right now. Spare me from ever again knowing about something this far in advance! LOL! Thanks for you review, R.
Have tried all 3 scents, and don't see more than a vague relationship between them — although tried the Cocoon on a card, not on skin. Based on that, Cocoon is sweeter, more patchouli-based than the YDAN, and Borneo is a much more complex fragrance than the Yves Rocher.
G, Agree — sometimes it is best not to know. That explains why I will break out in hives if I don't get Hermes Osmanthe Yunnan soon