Cuir Mauresque Eau de Parfum

Each release of Serge Lutens’ Palais-Royale exclusives into the export line is an eagerly awaited event and with this season’s Cuir Mauresque, aficionados will, at last, be able to revel in the definitive Oriental leather, in the line of Caron’s mythical Tabac Blond with spices added.
This isn’t the tough, rawhide pungency rising from Marrakech tanneries, but the smoothest, fatty-rich leather rubbed in flowers and a sweet spice blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, cumin and clove infused with the fragrant smoke of incense and myrrh rising from censers. Sweetened by orange blossom, mandarin peel and amber, Cuir Mauresque gives off a tawny, ember-like glow. The leather accord itself is produced by burnt styrax, a balsamic material with tarry, animalic facets; clove, incense and aloe wood add a dark, burnt edginess to the accord, while civet pulls it towards the animal.
With its spiced dried fruit accord, resins and white flowers, Cuir Mauresque, originally launched in 1996, is perhaps the quintessential Lutens: the master himself has gone on record saying he doused himself in on the rare occasions when he goes out. And considering the choice he’s got, that’s saying quite a lot. What We Think Spicy, powdery, and animalic, this is a delightfully sexy secret weapon of a fragrance.