FRAGRANCE REVIEW Lubin Black Jade: “Let Them Sniff Spices” + Marie Antoinette Draw

The art of writing press releases for anything is an art form in itself. We certainly read our share of them at the CaFleureBon Home Office and there are some certain things that crop up again and again, particularly fragrance press releases. One of the favorite tacks for a PR campaign is for a fragrance to tie themselves to a historic figure. I don’t know about you but whether the fragrance I am wearing was supposed to be worn by the Queen of Hearts, or The Fool On The Hill, what matters to me is whether it smells good.

The latest fragrance to tie itself to a famous historic figure was Lubin Black Jade. According to the press release Black Jade was the personal fragrance of none other than Marie Antoinette. The idea was Pierre Lubin is supposed to be the apprentice to Royal Perfumer Jean-Louis Fargeon and he took the recipe for Marie Antoinette’s secret fragrance which was kept in a black jade flacon. The recipe for “Jardin Secret” supposedly was kept in the Lubin vaults and now it is time to let us all wear the fragrance of Marie Antoinette and declare “Let Them Sniff Perfume!” Whether all or any of the press release is based in reality the one thing I can tell you is Black Jade is a wonderfully light spicy fragrance perfect for fall sweater weather.  

I am a devout spice lover in fragrance and if asked what my favorite spice note is I would spend a bit of time comparing and contrasting cardamom and cinnamon. The best part of Black Jade for me is I get a double dip of both. Cardamom is the dominant spice at the beginning. Black Jade is a cascade of cardamom as for a good long while I was enveloped in the fresh spicy cloud. Slowly but surely the heat of cinnamon rises up and then my spicy duet was firmly in place. I would’ve been happy if Black Jade never moved away from this but that wouldn’t be a perfume that would be Mark Antoinette saying “Let them sniff spice!” The heart is jasmine and rose over incense which if I must leave my spicy friends is not a bad place to be. The jasmine and rose are especially good together and the incense is a good choice to go with them. The base is sandalwood, tonka, and amber which allows Black Jade to end with a whisper of the spiciness it started off with.

Black Jade has below average longevity and average sillage.

After wearing Black Jade I have to say I’m having a hard time seeing Marie Antoinette raising a black jade stopper to dab on this particular fragrance. On the other hand I am having no trouble seeing me in the mirror dabbing this on my neck before wrapping a scarf around it.

Disclosure: This review was based on a sample provided by Luckyscent.

Thanks to our friends at Luckyscent we have a sample of Black Jade to give away. To be eligible which historical figure's exact perfume would you want  the formula for.  fill in the blank on “Let Them (fill in the blank).” Draw will end on September 17, 2011.

–Mark Behnke, Managing Editor

image vogue.com

 

Editor's Note: it is said that  after  the storming ot the Bastille Even during her imprisonment in the Temple Tower of Paris, Antoinette kept it with her, carrying it in a midnight-colored jade vial before slipping it to her most trusted confidant, the Marquise de Tourzel, shortly before her death.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


38 comments

  • Feliciag says:

    ” Let them eat Black Jade”.
    I could picture Ms. Antionette as a modern day heiress.
    The starvation of the pesants and the lack of “bread” as it was told to Ms. Antoinette by her counsel. The concept of this was simply beyond her scope. TUnderstanding the plight of the masses was not what this lady signed herself up for:) This is still as relevant today as it was then.
    It is one of the best lines in history. I use it all the time to prove the ignorant selfishness path in life can lead to the masses storming you. Its so powerful that statement.
    It shows all of the morals of the story in a simple line. The artwork is breathtaking on this review (says the art history minor). Love this history. Love this draw. xo

  • Judith says:

    Cleopatra’s, of course. A powerful, fascinating woman with access to anything in the world she might want? She must have had a glorious, and unique, perfume!

  • Michelyn Camen says:

    the true story of Marie Antoinette is not that simple. She was a pawn and was purposely used as a symbol of a corrupt French monarchy. Sure then came Robes Pierre, than the first of the great killers in history, Napolean not too long after. I would reccomend reading the book byAntonia fraser which seperates fact and fiction. She was not even French but a Hapsburg from Austria!
    Sheherazade of course !

  • Lisa says:

    First, let me just note that I am delighted and relieved that Black Jade does not smell like cake.

    The historical figure I’d most like to smell like? The Empress Nur Jehan, of India’s Mughal Dynasty. Imagine the enormous range of spices and attars to which she had access!

  • Nina Z says:

    “Let them scent their sleeves.” Lady Murasaki Shikibu, whose great work “The Tale of Genji,” describes how incense was used by Genji to scent his garments, and evokes the delicious smells of orange blossoms and plum blossoms that the he stops to notice.

    “A delicious fragrance of rare incense filled the air, and Genji’s own scent as he passed by was so unlike any other that those in the house must have been overawed.”

  • Alica says:

    Let Them Sniff the Past, I would say. Having read many books about Marie Antoinette, of course I would be pleased to try this scent. Many thanks for opportunity.

  • Wim Janssens says:

    The archives at Lubin are huge and contain some of the oldest documents of the French perfumery.
    Jean Louis Fargeon was the loyal perfumer of the Queen and his apprentice was Pierre François Lubin. After the French Revolution he started to create fragrances at his own premises in Paris. But as the apprentice of Fargeon he also took care of his archive and notes.
    This is not an invented story, it is on of the most beautiful examples how a house that exist since 1798 relaunch back again a creation that was in their collection until the 30’s under the name “Jardin Secret”.
    Historical this is all correct and the most important of all is that Lubin did not saved any costs to relaunch back again this fragrance.
    The result: the most beautiful materials were selected to create Black Jade.
    I love oriental and spicy fragrances, but this one stole my heart.
    Black Jade for everyone!

  • naheed says:

    Mughal Queen Noorjehan is the one whose fragrance I would love to sniff. She was a perfumer herself and had her great contribution in the world of fragrances but people hardly ever know about her now.

  • Masha says:

    I’d love to know what Chinese explorer Zheng He wore! And what Marco Polo wore once he got back to Venice.

  • angie Cox says:

    Henrietta Maria ( Queen consort of England 1625-1649).She became Queen mother January 1649 when her husband was beheaded ).

  • brigitte says:

    As a lover of classic English literature I would say “Let them read!”. My favorite author is Thomas Hardy, but I doubt he wore cologne! Therefore, I would be curious as to what Jane Austen might have worn. I’m envisioning a perfume with notes of violet, rose or lavender perhaps? Thank you for this draw!

  • Lisa A says:

    Marie Antoinette is one of my favorite historical figures, so I would definitely love to know what she wore. I also love Anne Boleyn, but not sure that she wore perfume. But she was a feisty lady – if she did, I’m sure it was trendsetting and luxurious!

  • DH says:

    Given the number of perfume companies who claim their brand was worn by Grace Kelly, I’d love to know what she really wore.

  • Jane says:

    Hm I wonder how different the original would have smelled, having been made with all natural ingredients. Would musk have been part of it? How exciting, those Lubin archives would make for fascinating reading!

  • Charlotte H says:

    Let Them… get their own d@#! perfume! LOL – all said in fun, of course 🙂 I am really an originalist and don’t particularly want to smell like another person, historical or not. However, I do like the idea of a scent inspired by qualities of people, and I think those of Royalty always inpire the idea of grace, poise, and riches. A scent inspired by Princess Grace or Jackie O, or even the new Princess Kate evokes the feeling of style and classic beauty. “Classic” can get tiresome, but a well done scent is always appreciated. I’m looking forward to trying Black Jade, and i LOVE the bottle!

  • Leslie says:

    I would love to have the formula for WWI-era spy Mata Hari’s perfume- it had to be incredibly exotic and mysterious, as was she…in regard to this elusive woman, “Let them wonder who I really was”…

  • Denise Smith says:

    “Let them rule” Either Catherine the Great or Queen
    Elizabeth the first. Both women knew what it was like
    in a man’s world and rose to the occasion. Spice is my
    most favorite so of course I am curious about Black
    Jade. I wonder what I could learn from BJ.

  • Haunani says:

    Mark, I enjoyed your review! I’m like you – it really only matters that it smells good. I got to try this one recently and it certainly passed that test for me. Yummy! I’m not much interested in the past, anyway.

  • samberg says:

    Judith got here first: Cleopatra

    I imagine her as a forward-thinking queen floating between worlds in a boldly contrasting perfume of water lilies and incense.

  • Maureen says:

    Leslie said just about what I was thinking, Mata Hari…”Let Them Wonder”. I love this bottle and would love to try this fragrance…I like it spicy!

  • Tourbillion says:

    Although I am really curious about the perfumes worn by great ladies of the past, what I really want right now is a bottle of the Violet Water that Eleanora Duse used to order from Harrods back in the day. Since I am on a violet kick today, “Let them eat candied violets!”

  • Isa says:

    I agree with Masha. It would be really interesting to know what Marco Polo wore.
    He lived in so many different countries and learnt from so many different cultures, that he sure had the chance to try wonderful fragrances.
    So, sure he would have said: “Let them smell Asia”.

  • Warum says:

    Let them be stopped in their tracks…
    A famous dancer Matilda Kshessinskaya, a lover of the last Russian tzar, a woman who loved many men, mostly the ones from Romanoff family — I would like to know what she wore.

  • Rebecca says:

    Let them buy shoes!

    What? That’s what I would (be reported to) say, had I been La Antoinette.

    I would love to know what fragrance Queen Elizabeth I wore.
    She was a remarkable woman, brave and strong, and I imagine her perfume reflected this and was created especially for her.

  • Sarah says:

    “Let them dance!”… Martha Graham, a gracefully delicate yet powerful woman, whom I perceive as someone spicy to have reached the top of her profession as well as start her own dance company. Surely put a lot of creativity along with sweat and tears into her work… qualities I highly respect. Thank you for drawing!

  • Nefertiti says:

    I’m afraid that I too was going to go for dear ol’ long departed Cleo’ as my first choice. But in the interest of a little originality, I will go with equally fascinating Queen Nefertiti instead ! (Although, of course it will be a completely different style from Cleo’s. Probably altogether even more Egyptian in style, I imagine. ~ An “Eau du Nile” ;o) (LOL))
    ~ Let them eat loti !

  • Asali says:

    I should like the exact formula of the perfumes for either George Sand or Alma Mahler. I can’t quite make up my mind, since they are both such interesting women. “Let them choose”;-)
    I love the advert for Black Jade, it’s really beautifully elegant and playful. Thank you for this draw:-)

  • Tama says:

    I have a feeling Mata Hari may have smelled pretty interesting. I have been inerested in her since finding out she died on my birthday (before I was born, though).

  • Kim says:

    Well I’d luv one from “Le Cour Parfumee” itself of course. To know which exactly was the very favourite top composition of “Lle Roi Soleil” himself, Louis XIV ! (He probably had one designed daily. But surely he had a special costly favourite ? That’s the one I’m after. I imagine it would be one hell of an ostentatious creation, surely !? (Probably filled to the brim with the choicest Neroli blossoms, and just delicious).

    In which case : … Let them eat gold ! (As I’m pretty sure they probably did in gold-leaf laced deserts !?)

    Thank you for the draw !

  • e.w. says:

    Isadora Duncan…how would her personality and art be interpreted with a scent? Imagine the fragrance in the air as she was carried on the shoulders of her fans through the streets of Paris.