01/03/2017
Below is a fantastic review of Tabac Blanc by my client John McCoy! Thank you so much John , I am flattered and honored by your words. ❤️
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Please forgive the bumbling fool in the video below, but I made a very talented perfumer a promise, and I wouldn't dare not follow through!
And now, to sing the praises of a woefully neglected perfume...
Text version: According to Roberta’s own site, Tabac Blanc has top notes of bitter orange and fig, heart notes of to***co flower, leather, and exotic spice, and base notes of cedar, tonka, cocoa, castoreum, and deep musk. It was launched in 2010 by Roberta Andrade, who is the artistic director and perfumer at Roberta Andrade. You can find her site at RobertaAndrade.com.
Tabac Blanc is one of the scents that Roberta has made for men under the Elemental Scents collection, along with another gem called Monsieur which I will review in the very near future. Tabac Blanc is stunning, beautiful, and completely honest about what it is – white (or blond) slightly leathery to***co. I was introduced to the perfume in a Scent Trunk box last year, and after Imaginary Author’s The Cobra and the Canary (another leathery to***co flower scent), it was the second full bottle I knew I would eventually buy.
The initial spray of Tabac Blanc opens up with a burst of lively bitter orange and while I usually don’t care for fig, I can detect it here and it undergirds the elegance of the whole opening. After several seconds, I can start to get the utterly seductive notes of cedar, spices, to***co (flower), and leather. I love to***cos of all kinds, but the genre usually limits you to certain seasons: they’re usually heavier perfumes, and better for colder weather – but this would make a superb scent, with its zesty, tangy orangey opening even in the warmest of summer days. The to***co, even as it dries down, never becomes dank, dark, or ashy. All the way through the dry down, it retains this bright, airy, aromatic quality, thanks to the to***co flower and the cedar – the two most prominent notes later in the perfume’s life.
As far as lasting power, the EDC sample that I received through Scent Trunk lasted maybe 3-4 hours on my skin. As I’ve mentioned in reviews, as long as something can hit the four hour mark, I have no problem with re-applying. (Who really wants a perfume to last for 12 hours anyway?) However, this enhanced EDP version gets me a couple of extra hours, and to my nose has a bit more of depth of to***co, cedar, and that wonderful suede-y leather. You can get the upgrade for a pittance on many men’s selection in Roberta’s collection (see below), and it’s very much worth it.
A note on the names that you’ll find on Roberta’s site: you’ll notice that all of her perfumes marketed for women come in eau de parfum, while the ones for men come in eau de toilette. I asked her why this is, and she said it was because men often see the word “parfum,” and think it’s for a woman, even though it’s under the men’s section on her site. I asked her to upgrade my personal purchase of Tabac Blanc from the EDT to the EDP strength – a favor that she will gladly do for any customer. Another spectacular thing is that even with that increased concentration, my bottle still only costs $55 for 60 ml – still less than a $1 USD/ml. I can guarantee you that you can search the designer, niche, and independent perfume markets for a to***co of this quality at this price point, and you will end up empty-handed. If you’re looking for a year-around, bright, dusty, masculine, complex to***co scent, this is perhaps one of the safest blind buys that I could ever recommend.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoWPtzZjKYY
Shop Now! We are a boutique fragrance house located in Boston creating original artisan fragrances, perfumes, colognes and body care for women and men. All of our fragrances are created, manufactured and bottled in Boston by the Roberta Andrade Fragrances team.
