Lucius Fragrance Du Bois 2024

Lucius is essentially a fresh, spicy, slightly creamy citrus sitting atop a woodier Baccarat Rouge 540 Eau de Parfum accord. Note that I am not saying these two fragrances actually smell similar, but Lucius does have same the ambrox/ethyl maltol/hedione/evernyl combination. It's well done but it doesn't take rocket science to add a nice citrus atop the BR540 accord, and apparently Town & Country has done practically the same thing (I haven't tried that one so I can't do a compare/contrast), and Kalan to a lesser extent. The drydown of Haltane is also practically identical, which is another masculine BR540 take, but Lucius introduces the citrus opening as opposed to the spicy fougere of Haltane.

Lucius opens peppery and citrusy, with the sweetness of the ethyl maltol coming through right away. A few minutes in it really just smells like citrusy BR540, but then the woods start to come in. Cedarwood and vetiver provide a nice masculine bookend to the opening citruses, preventing the "floral" (really just hedione I think) and sweet notes from taking over. "Amber" here is just code for ambroxan, and tonka bean is not noticeable as a standalone note, but I'm sure the coumarin is doing a bit of work here to round things out.

I think Lucius would have been good as a designer flagship release. It fits the zeitgeist, the unisex sweetness of BR540 contrasting with the more traditionally masculine citrus/pepper opening. It's a really nice signature, it just feels too designer for niche, too niche for designer. I guess the closest designer version of this would be Bleu de Chanel L'Exclusif, which is the same idea but much more "transparent," and its amberwood base is a lot more traditional department store fare than in Lucius.

Quality here is decent but even on discounters this is sitting at over $300. And I'm over here saying this would be a good (but not earth-shatteringly brilliant) designer release, which I'd expect to pay ~$150 for retail. So definitely not remotely worth the price. Haltane is available for under $200 (granted, 75ml vs 100ml) and it's similar quality, and I think an even better scent, I'd stick to that one.

So, I wouldn't say I have a huge collection of fragrances, but I have about 150 or so. On first spray I immediately knew that this reminded me of Oud for Glory by Lattafa. Now, somebody might throw me under the bus for that but that's immediately what this reminded me of. Even smelling it on me now, I can tell you that, to my nose the scent profiles are very similar. The differences are minor but make each very enjoyable to my nose. The Lattafa has a touch of sweet and powdery in the opening and the Lucius feels more refined and serious. I find both addictive and I think most men would enjoy Lucius, especially someone in a business/more formal setting. I am not sure yet if this is one of those fragrances that men enjoying smelling on themselves but the opposite sex not so much but time will tell. I do feel like it will make you stand out and be taken more seriously as it evokes a sense of seriousness, class, elegance, basically a mature man smell.

Fragrance du Bois here made a job!
Lucius is a refined and modern fragrance that feels both elegant and versatile (and in my opinion is a masculine scent and not unisex).
It opens with fresh, slightly citrusy notes that quickly blend into a warm and smooth heart. As it develops, the scent becomes deeper and more sophisticated, with subtle woody and sweet undertones that make it very pleasant to wear. The performance is quite good, lasting several hours while maintaining a balanced projection. Overall, Lucius is a stylish fragrance that works well for both everyday wear and special occasions.
Now, regarding the price , retail is quite expensive, but if you find it at 200-220€ , just grab it!

Very fresh start, definitely mandarin and a substantial dose of pink pepper catapults a tingling citrus bomb around you.
It calms down after 5 minutes but maintains a strong projection for another 30.
I can sense the amber base almost instantly and it slow dances with the orange blossom to give the start a sweetness as well. But I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a pinch of maltol in it also. It’s definitely a good portion of Cetalox or Ambrocenide in there (I’m leaning towards Cetalox due to the soapyness and clean aspect - the dryness could be the cedar and/or vetiver).
Gets dryer and more ambery as time goes by. Starts to mellow down quite a lot.
What I do like about this one is the mandarin-orange blossom-pink pepper. Something…mossy or maybe cistus would’ve made it more interesting in the dry down?
But it is crowdpleasing and smells very nice. Very versatile in spring/summer (but would absolutely work as a ”freshie” in the colder seasons as well because of the amberwoods).
Second wearing I get straight up more of the synthetic amberwood. And almost something ”blue”. Kind of get the Sauvage/Bleu connections a few have mentioned…but just kind of.
Not at all as nice when the floral aspects are missing?
Not quite sure of this one… But for now it’s a keeper for when crowdpleasing is my mood of the day.
Thrifted an almost full bottle for 120€ - would not buy at full price.

Man this is a very addictive smell. Very versitile I think for year round use despite the black bottle , it’s masculine, with just enough sweetness. It’s woody and tad bit spicy from pink pepper up top. It’s blended very nice and is addictive in the air. Notes are citrus pink pepper up top Orange blossom, cedar in the mid an Tonka bean, vetiver, and amber in the base. It’s really nice and I’m looking forward to more from the house.