Nos Republic Empire T (Stéphanie Bakouche) Review + Tales of the Future Past Giveaway

Nos Republic Empire T

J’s image of Nos Republic Empire T

Sparkling fresh green fruits with floral facets fizz like champagne. Empire T opens with a sour apple green boozy aroma whose bubbles pop releasing a hint of spice paired with a slightly earthy musky aroma. The bubbles glistening like the lights of a big city on a dark cold night. Subtle intoxicating musks give off an allure of closeness, ambrette paired with the fruity-floral champagne feels flirty and fun as it rises from your skin, you can feel there’s excitement ahead as that bite of green bites into you. First, an icy cool air arrives to summon the flower known as the ‘Queen of the Night’. It adds a cool shiver of excitement as a lovely counter and complement to the playful opening, giving the sensation of space and a vertical feel of being high up. Empire T seems to me like a contemporary take on classic glamour, especially as the tuberose blooms; think the style of Rachael and Deckard from Ridley Scott’s Bladerunner, (one of my favourite films and yes, I’ve seen all the cuts), while capturing elements of its sleek epic futuristic architecture and design bathed in a touch of the faded art deco.

Blade Runner poster and The Bradbury Building in Los Angeles was used as one of the filming locations via wiki

Lustrous tuberose unfurls keeping that apple fruitiness, twisting it into vegetal greenery as the petals reveal themselves. Empire T purrs and whispers its narcotic heady desires rather than screams them. It’s controlled and confident, making the musky opening’s spices grow warm as the sculpted blossoms wrap around you. Subtle waxy aromas add more sensuality to Empire T with soft kisses of floral sweetness feeling tender as it glides over you. The opening has moved into a more personal space now, having found its lover at the party. The green tones turn a pinkish hue as the heat of the tuberose swirls in the cool night air. Nos Republic Empire T becomes a spacious perfumed environment for you to dream in.

Stephanie Bakouche perfumer for Nos Republic

Perfumer Stéphanie Bakouche and her composition Nos Republic Empire T photo via the brand.

The texture changes too as curls of cigarette smoke turn the petals from silk into a crushed velvet, with a fur like texture. There’s something vintage but very contemporary happening, the tuberose with a classic glamour is embraced by tender ,fruity tobacco. Those apple notes fade with earthy almost cherry aromas now haunting the air. It’s all so deft and elegant, like the ghost of a memory swirling round you as its powdery touch glides over your skin. Empire T shifts again here letting the tobacco shine, getting drier as the tuberose’s petals warm from its touch releasing flickers of balsamic excitement. The scented journey Empire T’s perfumer Stéphanie Bakouche takes you on is unforgettable. As another cigarette is lit, it’s if you step outside and feel that cool gust of air ripple under your floral fur. Stéphanie Bakouche captures the magic and the excitement of the big city at night.

Ksenia Golovanova of Nos Republic

Ksenia Golovanova of Nos Republic, photo via the brand.

There’s a sense of calm in Empire T as the dry down arrives. Think early morning in the city, darkness and the night’s cool breeze still adds a chill in the air, that sensation after the city has been covered with a fresh blanket of snow, but here the snow is transformed into a tuberose carpet, now with their greenery removed. Each petal is kissed by sweet whispers of tobacco resting over a powdery smoke with a touch of ash. The ash is more of a texture and tone for me, staining the tuberose a delicate  shade of off-white, with the smoke giving a musky ethereal sensation adding to Empire T’s vintage elegant ambiance. That touch of darkness makes the tuberose glow as if tendrils of smoky moonlight hover above. Nos Republic Empire T is quietly sexy, think of it touching skin with just a wink of something musky and animalic lurking with desire beneath. There’s also a clever counterpoint to Empire T giving it a toughness, you feel that more with the fun bite of the greens from the opening, but even in the dry down there a strength, that classic film noir dame ‘to kill for’ vibe ( although Empire T is unisex ). It’s a beautiful smoky tuberose that’s cool and collected, dripping with confidence and humming with desire.

Notes: Tuberose, Champagne Accord, Cigarette Smoke, Cold Ash, Night Air, Vintage Fur.

Discloser: Nos Republic Empire T was sent to J for this review, his nose, thoughts are his own.

 J Wearescentient, Senior Editor, artist and olfactive writer.

Empire T by Nos Republic

Nos Republic Empire T photo via the brand.

Thanks to the generosity of Nos Republic we have a 50 ml bottle of Empire T for one registered reader from EU, US or UK. You must register or your entry will not count. To be eligible, please leave a comment saying what sparks your interest based on J’s review and where you live. Draw closes 3/26/2026

Empire T was launched in 2023

Check out Nicoleta’s reviews on Nos Republic Bad Wolf, Moon Child and Cor Serpentis.

Queer de Russie was an Art and Olfaction winner 2024 Best Newcomer

For our US readers: Nos Republic is sold at Luckyscent here (you can try the sample set and a sample here)

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34 comments

  • lkali says:

    I like the contrast and how J described the bite of greens at the opening. This sounds like an interesting fragrance and I’d love to try it. I live in Colorado USA

  • Chayaruchama says:

    Between cigarette, tuberose, champagne, and vintage fur, I am thrilled.
    J’s reference to the “smoky tuberose humming with desire” has my name all over it.
    I would be honored to enter the draw.

  • VladV says:

    Interesting, to me tuberose and green fruits are not really conjuring the image of a blade runner – esque future, but I’m curious to be proven wrong.
    Greetings from Romania

  • Jeremi says:

    J’s review sparks my interest with its Bladerunner-meets-noir vibe: bubbly champagne-sour apple opening that chills into Queen-of-the-Night tuberose, then curls into cigarette smoke, vintage fur, and cold ash. That confident, quietly sexy “film-noir dame” dry-down feels like a future-past love letter in scent form. Pure cinematic magic. I live in Poland, EU.

  • StealthECat says:

    That description just screams the excitement of a naughty night, doesn’t it? I’m intrigued to see whether the tuberose plays as indolic vixen, or if it’s more of the quiet green ingenue playing dress-up with smoke and champagne (ContUS).

  • Ramses Perez says:

    I always think when I read some fragrance notes and I see things like cold ash, night air and vintage fur that the perfumer’s artistic vision is front and center. You really have to experience the fragrance for yourself and sample because you won’t be able to dictate what the fragrance will be like based on the notes. That’s one of the goals of the perfumer in mi opinion. Another thing to mention here is the way J described it as being a smoky tuberose fragrance being both a bit floral and dark. This is definitely one you must try to get the full experience. I’m located in the US.

  • brentm says:

    Love the descriptions of this fragrance. The fizzy green apple notes and then smokiness sounds so interesting. Need to give this a try for sure! Arkansas, USA

  • Teresa C says:

    Blade Runner is a favorite for me too, so you caught me right at the beginning there. I’ve also never heard of a tuberose tobacco combination in scent and your description makes it sounds so complex and evocative.It sounds amazing! I live in the US.

  • Ensorceler says:

    J’s review pulls me right into its atmosphere. I can almost feel that sparkling green fizz giving way to a smoky tuberose glow, it sounds utterly cinematic. The way he captures that cool night air brushing against a warm, musky heart feels so alive, like the energy of a city at midnight wrapped in silk and smoke. I’m intrigued by how those transitions might feel on skin, from that effervescent bite to the sultry, smoky calm at dawn. Empire T sounds breathtaking in its contrasts, elegant yet quietly intoxicating.

    – USA –

  • Danniel says:

    I’m always interested in events that are evocative of a place and time. Especially so in cases where I doubt I would ever be able to experience them otherwise and currently Russia isn’t in the cards for me so this could be as close as I’ll get. I’m also interested in the specific reference to cigarette tobacco as that’s a very different scent than what I’ve come to expect when I see tobacco listed as a note. I’m in the USA.

  • LindenNoir says:

    J’s review immediately hooked me with the Blade Runner reference Rachael and Deckard, the sleek futuristic architecture, the faded art deco, the “spacious perfumed environment for you to dream in.” I’ve watched every cut of that film more times than I can count, and the idea of a perfume that captures its particular mood that tension between cold, gleaming surfaces and deep, aching humanity is utterly irresistible. The way J describes Empire T as having “an icy cool air” that summons the tuberose, then shifting into something warmer, more intimate as “the heat of the tuberose swirls in the cool night air,” mirrors exactly that Blade Runner atmosphere: futuristic yet nostalgic, controlled yet yearning. The evolution from “fizzy champagne” opening with “sour apple green boozy aroma” to “curls of cigarette smoke turning the petals from silk into crushed velvet, with a fur like texture” sounds like watching a scene unfold in real time. And that final image “each petal kissed by sweet whispers of tobacco resting over a powdery smoke with a touch of ash,” staining the tuberose “a delicate shade of off-white” is pure cinematic poetry. I am a registered reader in Germany

  • AromaAdventurer says:

    As someone who loves tuberose but sometimes finds it overwhelming or one-dimensional, J’s review of Empire T offers exactly the kind of complex, unexpected interpretation I’ve been craving. His description of the tuberose as “controlled and confident, making the musky opening’s spices grow warm as the sculpted blossoms wrap around you” suggests a floral that doesn’t scream for attention but commands it through sheer presence. The way he traces its evolution—from “lustrous tuberose unfurling, keeping that apple fruitiness, twisting it into vegetal greenery” to the moment “curls of cigarette smoke turn the petals from silk into crushed velvet”—promises a fragrance with real narrative depth. That shift from “fizzy champagne” playfulness to something “quietly sexy” with “just a wink of something musky and animalic lurking with desire beneath” is the kind of transformation I want to experience on my own skin. Stéphanie Bakouche’s ability to create a tuberose that “glows as if tendrils of smoky moonlight hover above” sounds like olfactory magic.
    EU

  • FragranceFrenzyS says:

    J’s review of Empire T transported me to a world of late nights, cigarette smoke curling in dim light, and the particular glamour of a city after dark. What sparks my interest most is his description of the fragrance as “a beautiful smoky tuberose that’s cool and collected, dripping with confidence and humming with desire.” The notes themselves are unlike anything I’ve encountered—champagne accord, cigarette smoke, cold ash, night air, vintage fur. J’s interpretation of “ash” as “more of a texture and tone, staining the tuberose a delicate shade of off-white” is the kind of nuanced observation that makes me trust his nose completely. The way he traces the journey from “sparkling fresh green fruits with floral facets fizzing like champagne” to that final, intimate drydown where “tendrils of smoky moonlight hover above” promises a fragrance with real evolution and presence. That reference to “that classic film noir dame ‘to kill for’ vibe” while noting it remains beautifully unisex is exactly the kind of timeless, sophisticated energy I want to carry with me.
    I am from the EU

  • Dof1024 says:

    This sounds like going out on a slightly chilly spring or autumn day to the happening side of town for an evening festival. Leading up to the bar or lounge where you have you space but are approaching others and the smell of nature starts to fade and the smoky nuisance begin to show. The sweetness has settled and like its wearer, they will be acclimated to there surroundings and the evening ends and nightlife begins. Makes me think of a phase in my life going out and enjoying the club scene. From USA.

  • wonderscent.mari says:

    Thanks for the great writeup! Of all the things, I really liked the cinematographic description of this film noir ‘Queen of the Night’ tuberose, sparkled with green hues of sour apple green boozy and spicy aroma, gathered by a narcotic velvet cigarette smoke and smelling the cold ash in the air. “Nos Republic Empire T is quietly sexy, think of it touching skin with just a wink of something musky and animalic lurking with desire beneath. There’s also a clever counterpoint to Empire T giving it a toughness, you feel that more with the fun bite of the greens from the opening, but even in the dry down there a strength, that classic film noir dame ‘to kill for’ vibe” this description sparked my curiosity to experience this beautiful smoky tuberose full of confidence.
    This is the kind of fragrance review I love to read! I would love to try it!
    Thank you, a marvellous read and for the draw.
    I live in EU, Germany

  • Amaziz89 says:

    There’s a sense of calm in Empire T as the dry down arrives. Think early morning in the city, darkness and the night’s cool breeze still adds a chill in the air, that sensation after the city has been covered with a fresh blanket of snow, but here the snow is transformed into a tuberose carpet, now with their greenery removed. Each petal is kissed by sweet whispers of tobacco resting over a powdery smoke with a touch of ash. The ash is more of a texture and tone for me, staining the tuberose a delicate shade of off-white, with the smoke giving a musky ethereal sensation adding to Empire T’s vintage elegant ambiance. That touch of darkness makes the tuberose glow as if tendrils of smoky moonlight hover above. Nos Republic Empire T is quietly sexy, think of it touching skin with just a wink of something musky and animalic lurking with desire beneath. There’s also a clever counterpoint to Empire T giving it a toughness, you feel that more with the fun bite of the greens from the opening, but even in the dry down there a strength, that classic film noir dame ‘to kill for’ vibe ( although Empire T is unisex ). It’s a beautiful smoky tuberose that’s cool and collected, dripping with confidence and humming with desire.

    Notes: Tuberose, Champagne Accord, Cigarette Smoke, Cold Ash, Night Air, Vintage Fur. A beautiful piece really interesting intrigued by the tuberose, smoke, ash and vintage fur notes. Thanks a million from the UK

  • Ozzyaziz says:

    Each petal is kissed by sweet whispers of tobacco resting over a powdery smoke with a touch of ash. The ash is more of a texture and tone for me, staining the tuberose a delicate shade of off-white, with the smoke giving a musky ethereal sensation adding to Empire T’s vintage elegant ambiance. That touch of darkness makes the tuberose glow as if tendrils of smoky moonlight hover above. Nos Republic Empire T is quietly sexy, think of it touching skin with just a wink of something musky and animalic lurking with desire beneath. There’s also a clever counterpoint to Empire T giving it a toughness, you feel that more with the fun bite of the greens from the opening, but even in the dry down there a strength, that classic film noir dame ‘to kill for’ vibe ( although Empire T is unisex ). It’s a beautiful smoky tuberose that’s cool and collected, dripping with confidence and humming with desire. I am particularly interested in the musky and anomalic aspects of this fragrance. Thanks a lot from the UK

  • Patricia R. says:

    An interesting take, an interesting inspiration. Tuberose sounds a stately metaphor for a tall empire state type of building. Gives the vibe of the forbidden, cold city, together with the tobacco. I like in this review the use of the word “summon” as … an icy cool air arrives to summon the flower known as the ‘Queen of the Night’ . I live in the EU. Would be delighted to try this.

  • opalbear says:

    Oh this sounds right up my alley and I’ve been wanting to try a fragrance from Bakouche. I love a smoky melancholic floral and usually it’s Lily that’s used and rarely Jasmine, so I’m super keen to try it with tuberose! I love the way ash was described as a texture. I am in California. Thank you for the generous give away.

  • TheScentedPage says:

    What a fantastic review. The way J describes Empire T instantly put me in that film‑noir, Blade Runner state of mind. All neon haze and shadowy futurism. Stephanie Bakouche’s composition sounds like it was made for that moody, cinematic universe.

    I’ll pass on the giveaway this time, but only because I’m grateful for my recent win!

  • Sorohan Adriana says:

    A wonderful tuberose that came especially for me who loves tuberose! I am from EU

  • mleenstra says:

    Deckard from Blade Runner, smokey tuberose and bubbly? Say no more, this sounds lovely! I’m also a fan of Bakouche’s work and would love to experience this. I’ve never come across Nos Republic but they sound like a great brand. Marit EU

  • Salem says:

    Empire T sounds absolutely unique and ahead of our time! Such unique notes – fur, ash, smoke, champagne – but, with the queen of flowers as a center figure (sorry, rose, it’s your sister tuberose for me), I can totally imagine the film noir diva smoking a cigar, clad in ankle length furs, stilettos, dark violet lipstick and of course a diamond necklace, as the recipient of this perfume. J managed to create a fantastic image of excitement, seduction and danger depicting this fragrance.

  • Trinity33 says:

    I get the Bladerunner reference because Empire T seems to have that techno/futuristic vibe with the fizzy aldehydes and gray ash and cigarette smoke accords. I know tuberose can be polarizing, because it’s usually so dominating in a fragrance. It sounds like it’s used judiciously here with a soft, green muskiness predominating. USA

  • Marcia L says:

    You had me at Blade Runner, to be honest but the way you weave the words around the scent to describe how it evokes that mood is excellent.
    USA

  • crownroyale47 says:

    I’m a fan of how cinematic this review feels. The mix of green apple, tuberose, and smoky tobacco sounds smooth, confident, and a little dangerous. I’m especially drawn to that transition from fresh and playful to dark and intimate. It feels like a full night out in a bottle. I would be very critical with the green apple smell since my favorite fragrance has the same top note. I live in New Jersey, USA.

  • Shibuichi2000 says:

    Empire T sounds very unique – the olfactory pyramid, the way the scent progresses and the fact that the tuberose in it whispers, not shouts.
    Having worn Rose Gambit the other day makes me even more curious about Empire T, as I’m inclined to believe this is definitely a profile scent one doesn’t find it in every other bottle out there.

  • mmerline says:

    This combination of boozy green apple and tuberose is quite unique, opening this spiced white floral with dramatic flair. I’m also intrigued by how the green aspects of that fruity opening “fade with earthy almost cherry aromas” and cigarette smoke lingering in cool evening breeze. Lovely concept. Would love to try a few fragrances from the Nos Republic line, which seems very compelling.

    I’m in WI, USA.

  • flyingfox says:

    Oh I always get intrigued by the mention of tuberose, more so when an icy cool is also associated with it. Not to mention the mention of “quietly sexy” and I am sold already. Fingers crossed I win this time!!!! I live in Sweden.

  • melipone says:

    Nose Republic is a brand that’s been on my “to try” list for a while and this sounds like an opportunity to finally get to know it a little bit – if I’m lucky… 😉 Plus I’m always excited for tobacco perfumes 🙂
    Greetings from Germany!

  • foreverscents says:

    Empire T sounds like one sexy fragrance. I loved J’s descriptions. I am very much enticed to try this fragrance. I am a big fan of tuberose, and that note combined with the sparking champagne note and cigarette accord sounds seductive in a vintage film noir way. I’d love to wear this at night in the big city.
    I live in the USA.

  • goknitintheocean says:

    Hi there,

    Empire T’s story is very compelling, and in this time of fast, up-to-the-minute prduct launches and marketing, it is useful to take a look at creations from a few years ago(or as we say in book publishing, “the backlist”). Tuberose is always compelling to me, as it is so often tweaked in fragrances by the admission of other fascinating notes. “Cold ash” and “night air” leave much to the imagination, so it would be cool to check this one out for myself, as we slowly let go of winter weather here in NYC.

    Thank you!
    Deborah
    NYC/USA

  • paulaS says:

    Great review. After reading Cor Serpentis review from Nicoleta. I ordered a sample from Luckyscent.
    Empire T purrs and whispers its narcotic heady desires rather than screams them. And tobacco. And Bladerunner.
    Yes please. USA