Tau Onyrico 2015

I adore Tau. It’s a very special scent in my collection. Not only because it’s smells so different but also because of its unique way of packaging.⁣
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???????????? is spicy woody aromatic scent that has a slight earthy vibe with Juniper berries, Pine & pepper in the forefront. When I first sprayed it, it made me feel like I was sitting in a jungle next to the beautiful river with a scenic view to the tall pine trees. The green marble cap definitely reminds me of soothing green forests! ⁣
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It starts off fresh with the mix of Bergamot, pine and Juniper with a slight spicy character. It’s the chilli black pepper and leather that shine bright in the mid of the scent. The dry down is as good as the initial impressions. Cedar & patchouli and musk is what I get from it.⁣
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Tau could definitely make anyone feel connected to the nature because of its scent character. A scent that in my opinion one can wear it all year around. My wife likes wearing Tau as much as I do. I wish it lasted a little longer on my skin but I over spray it once again during a day depending on how much and where I spray. Overall, I like it very much and would recommend you checking it out. ⁣

Tau opens with a nose tingling blast of juniper and black pepper, supported by green tree moss with a slight underlying candied sweetness derived from clary sage. As the composition moves to its early heart the green tree moss takes over as star with the juniper and clary sage vacating, now pairing with a co-starring pine-like mastic note and faint rose-like geranium. During the late dry-down the tree moss remains sans its mastic co-star, now moving to a supporting role as a mildly tarry birch wood emerges from the base as star through the finish with additional slightly mentholated patchouli support. Projection is below average, as is longevity at about 5-6 hours on skin.

Tau is one of those compositions that when one reads the official notes list it has "winner" written all over it. That said, it wouldn't be the first time that a notes list looks highly promising but the end result is found wanting. The open to Tau starts things off on pretty solid footing with its mossy greens and juniper that make for a fine pairing. The pine-like mastic in the key heart phase takes a bit of getting used to, and it doesn't quite pair as well with the moss as one might expect, but the subtle floral geranium does bridge the gap between the two players to a large degree, though not entirely. The best part of the composition is the late dry-down as the slightly troublesome mastic vacates, allowing a very nice implementation of birch wood and patchouli to mesh much more effectively with the moss remnants. So, does the end result meet or exceed the lofty expectations this writer had going into the review (leading to a blind buy of a bottle)? I am afraid the answer is "no," but it should be mentioned that I do indeed *like* Tau, it just isn't the "love" expected. Something that also merits mention is the relatively weak strength of the perfume. I am not sure what the official concentration level is supposed to be, but I found the composition just a little more than a skin scent for most of its relatively brief duration. It is obvious that Onyrico spared no expense in crafting what may be one of the finest looking bottles I have laid eyes on with real solid marble caps, I just wish they increased the performance metrics of the composition as well using a bit of that budget. The bottom line is the 160 Euro per 100ml bottle Tau has stunning packaging and is a solid mostly successful effort but falls a bit short resembling a high-end room freshener at times, earning a "good" to "very good" 3 to 3.5 stars out of 5 and a conditional recommendation.

Tau was the surprising hit among the Onyrico samples that Franfan provided us. I tried it twice - fortunately, because during the first time I mainly focused on the heart, and this heart is not what makes Tau special for me. With Tau, the top and the base are standout elements in completely different ways.

Upon spraying, I immediately found myself in a damp coniferous forest. Deep green, refreshing, and a little earthy: very natural and not at all what the name suggested; I had feared a synthetic-looking bluish-green aquatic.

Much too quickly, after 1-2 minutes, the pine forest floor indeed gives way to a distinctly synthetic fragrance blend. At least it’s nothing aquatic, but rather a clear, clean, almost sunscreen-like leather.

Well, and that could have been it, but Tau fortunately turns out to be a wonderfully old-fashioned constructed fragrance. After about six hours, nothing of all that preceded is perceptible anymore: no forest, no creamed leather, and above all, no clean freshness. Tau has transformed into a fine labdanum monster: deep, warm, dark, and quite animalistic. At this stage, I still find it somewhat presentable.

For now, Tau still feels like three different, not clearly connected fragrances. This might be due to the short acquaintance period, or maybe not, but I definitely want to deepen this acquaintance when the opportunity arises.