Tubéreuse 3 Animale Histoires de Parfums 2010

When I inquired about this fragrance one day at the well-known Munich perfumery "Brückner," I was outright told that they do not carry this scent, nor the other two tuberoses, as they are too bad.
For my part, I was quite surprised, as I had long possessed a sample that had convinced me enough to visit this store. I was willing to purchase a whole bottle, but then came the Brückner verdict of "too bad." Well then....

I was subsequently astonished at the mishmash of fragrances that were offered to me as alternatives - all supposedly of higher quality than the "Tubereuse 3 - Animale" I had inquired about.
But whatever, I am not one to hold grudges and have since visited the nice little shop in the Munich town hall a few more times, where I was treated very kindly and received expert advice, and I have purchased several fragrances.
Fortunately, there are other sources, and so "Tubereuse 3 - Animale" eventually found its way to me, albeit through detours, or after a longer delay, as after this experience - the urge to absolutely have it was gone - I had almost forgotten about it.
However, when I recently acquired "1725 - Casanova," which completely thrilled me, I dug out the old sample again, and in the "Histoires de Parfums" frenzy, the "Buy" button was quickly pressed...
So the fragrance is now mine after all, and I do not regret it. Next to "Carnal Flower," it quickly became my favorite tuberose scent, which does not quite excite me as much as the Malle creation, but it is more wearable and comes a good deal closer to my dream of a masculine tuberose fragrance.

However, it is not that I have no issues with it: "Tubereuse 3 - Animale" is quite diva-like and also damn sweet. However, the sweetness is bearable, accompanied by fruity-bitter nuances (kumquat) and supported by a leathery-woody base, but it is there, unmistakably, and a bit too much for me.
I find the diva, or divo, in this fragrance to be less problematic; the tuberose is, after all, a diva, and what a diva! Once she is in the spotlight, she turns it up - she can't help it. The little, quiet song does not suit her; her grand contralto is too voluminous, but she compensates with a grand, cathedral-like sound. You have to like that, and I do. But I don't always like it. Often, it is too exhausting for me, too offensive, too overwhelming. Tuberose fragrances tend to bury the wearer (and the wearer!) under their scent cascades. One has to constantly hold one's own, with a strong, space-filling presence, to avoid being carried away - that can be tiring at times.

Nevertheless, I like the scent of tuberoses. I find it intoxicating, even narcotic. And although it comes from a white flower, if I were to assign it a color, it has something deeply red-glowing to it.
Gérald Ghislain (probably with the help of Sylvie Jourdet) groups around this dark, warm red a whole palette of autumnal scent tones: starting with the rich orange of the bitter peels of mandarin and kumquat, through the deep violet of ripe plums, the muted browns of hay, tanned leather, fermented tobacco, and reddish-brown mahogany, as well as the faded egg yolk yellow of immortelles ("1740 Marquis de Sade" sends its regards!).
Especially the kumquats, the tobacco, and the immortelles with their malt-like syrup sweetness stand out alongside the tuberose - they define the fundamental character of this fragrance, which could be described with the terms herb-fruity-bitter-sweet-floral-aromatic-woody-animalic. With this appearance, "Tubereuse 3 - Animale" is much closer to large-caliber classics like Guerlain's "Mitsouko," Lanvin's "Arpège," or Rochas' "Femme," than being a truly modern fragrance.
No, modern in the zeitgeist sense, it really is not. It feels much more at home alongside the aforementioned ancestors, a lineage that could also include fragrances like "Shalimar" and "Diorama." Fragrances that today, in the age of excessive girlishness like "Daisy" & Co., appear almost robustly masculine.
And "Tubereuse 3 - Animale" indeed has masculine potential (which brings me back to my dream of a tuberose fragrance for men), but this potential is quite limited.

By the way, do not take the "Animale" in the title of this fragrance too seriously. There are indeed animalic nuances - probably a bit of civet - but do not expect a presence of animalic exhalations comparable to "Jicky," "Yatagan," or even "Kouros."
Only after a few hours - the fragrance is very long-lasting! - can I detect a faint hint of animalic notes, but they always remain discreet and within the range of what is certainly bearable for everyone.

All in all, "Tubereuse 3 - Animale" is a very beautiful, voluminous, somewhat old-fashioned tuberose fragrance that holds its own well alongside my favorite tuberoses "Fracas" (femme fatale with a heaving bosom) and "Carnal Flower" (erotic, fleshy, and slightly urinous).
You can practically smell the quality of its ingredients, and the fragrance convinces - at least me - with a coherent concept and a competent composition.

Far from being bad, it is still not a masterpiece. But good enough.