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14.1 Cuir d'Iris Pierre Guillaume 2007

7.2 / 10 50 Ratings

A perfume by Pierre Guillaume for men, released in 2007. The scent is leathery-animal. It is still in production.
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Main accords

Leathery

Animal

Spicy

Woody

Powdery

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Bergamot

Cardamom

Heart Notes

Black iris barbata Cedar

Cedar

Patchouli

Base Notes

Leather

Amber

Perfumer

Pierre Guillaume

Ratings

Scent

7.250 Ratings

Longevity

7.936 Ratings

Sillage

6.035 Ratings

Bottle

7.145 Ratings

Value for money

6.511 Ratings

Submitted by Lila, last update on 06/10/2025.

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Reviews

4 in-depth fragrance descriptions

06/10/2025

ClaireV
969 Reviews

ClaireV

2

Sooty, scalpy leather dust

The secret to Cuir d’Iris is that it is simultaneously sooty and wet. Bone-dry cedarwood and iris kick up dust eddies as stale as the air from a newly-fired radiator. Floating in this thick miasma is the scent of the milking shed, successive days of cow juice coagulating slowly on the concrete floor, soured slightly by the sun. Wisps of charcoal or soot add a grainy dimension that might be interpreted as smoke of some sort.

Add to this Pierre Guillaume’s signature amber-musk combo that smells uniquely intimate, like the sweet, yeasty folds of skin under a baby’s neck or the two-day scalp of a loved one, and you have yourself a result that stands less with the Cuir de Russies and the Knize Tens of the world, and more with the L’Air de Riens. And yet, step back, and this is still clearly leather – freshly cured, curdy, a bit raw and thin. But leather is just skin after all. And human skin is still animal skin. In the series ‘Hannibal’, his therapist tells him that while she admires its construction, what he is wearing is a well-constructed person suit, suggesting that his humanity is something one can slip into (or out of) as easily as one would a pair of dress pants. Cuir d’Iris, with its organic, lived-in human-ness, is the ultimate parfum de peau. Robots and psychopaths, take note.

05/03/2014

2Scent 5Longevity 2.5Sillage

WRoth
154 Reviews

WRoth

1

Cuir d'Iris

This fragrances opens with a particular leather note floating on top of a dry, earthy base. The leather note is very different from the lush and warm suede/leather notes of Daim Blond, Cuir Cordoba or Cuir Amethyste, it is raw and cold. As the fragrance progresses, dark, bitter cocoa pushes in on the vetiver and black iris base. Now the fragrance reminds me very much of Borneo, but it is not as pleasant. The dry down is still lathery and slightly smoky.

07/24/2012

jtd
484 Reviews

jtd

Helpful Review 6

CUIR D’IRIS AND A PLEA TO PERFUME PRODUCERS

Perfume evokes. It doesn’t recreate nature and it doesn’t tell stories. Successful perfumery creates richness and a complexity that allows for many possibilities, for varied experiences among wearers.

At the center of Parfumerie Generale’s Cuir d’Iris is an active imbalance, a contest. From start to finish there’s never a blend or compromise. The oil and the water never quite mix. I’m not speaking about the notes, iris and leather, but the forces that motivate this perfume. Together the potent tannic quality of the leather and the forceful, make-up feel of the iris give the scent a playful cruelty that simultaneously draws me in and keeps me at arms-length. Cuir d’Iris implies the savage civility of a kempt, bourgeoise western woman of the 1950s. Hair, make-up, perfume, attire and fur. Maintenance of appearance is just the stage dressing, a simple part of the toolkit of social ambition. For the woman that Cuir d’Iris pushes into my imagination, the fur is pivotal. It doesn’t suggest the necessities of a cold climate. It connotes a symbolic viciousness, the conquering vulgarity of wearing a prize. It’s the draping of status on the body. It’s a warning.

But forget my insipid fantasy. What does a well made perfume do for you?

I tend to love the bolder leathers that others might call harsh. And perpetually forgetting the logic of Knize Ten, one of my favorite fragrances, I imagine the ‘floral leathers’ won’t appeal to me, since the flower will diminish the boldness. Cuir d’Iris is another reminder of this blind spot. I don’t have a specific test to judge a perfume’s success. I’m willing to be convinced. If I had to find the common thread among the successful perfumes, though, it’s that they remain interesting and appealing over hours and years. Each wearing is an interesting experience from start to finish and the perfume keeps me coming back over the years. I might have a story in my head, as the above fantasy/image. I could be relishing a mood. I might simply be enjoying the pleasures of a well-crafted object. The perfume doesn’t supply a narrative, it’s simply rich and well constructed. It’s loaded. Connotation is the key, not story-telling. Cuir d’Iris has a complexity of construction and a range of dynamic qualities that suggests symbolic violence to me---the threat of a slap to the face. It’s enticing. It’s the lure of dangerous pleasure---that something beautiful that just might come back to bite you.

And so, my plea to the perfume producers. Give us perfumes with a richness of ideas. We’ll take care of the rest. I’m far more likely to respond to (note: and buy) a perfume that springs from artistic creativity. I want to get taken for a ride by the perfumer, not the test-marketing group. There is a place for formula and strategy, but they should be tools and not goals. Forget briefs that boil down to: ‘find the balancing point that offends the fewest and that a majority will tolerate.’ Give me the arresting, give me the subtle, but give me a perfume that instigates and inspires. I want a perfume that says more than, “Hey.” I want legibility and nuance. Maybe the preliminary threshold in producing a perfume should be a riff on Tania Sanchez’s rationale for wearing perfume: that it be significantly better than nothing at all.

My plea is for better perfume, not more elaborate marketing. I love Cuir d’Iris though I’ve never seen any advertizing for it. I’m very impressed with Calvin Klein’s CK One Shock for Men despite its perfunctory, factory-formula promotion strategy. Niche perfumery doesn’t solve the marketing dilemma of the mass markets. I see no distinction between the marketing of Beyoncé Pulse Summer Edition (“Life is a flirt. Love is a game.” ) and Penhaligon’s Sartorial, with notes that, “create the perfect illusion of a tailor’s workroom. ” In both cases: words and perfume, no intrinsic association.

I recognize that there are market considerations and that on one level, Parfumerie Generale likely wanted a floral leather in their line. Iris aromachemicals were readily available and iris perfumes were in demand. But Cuir d’Iris works not because it filled the right slot. It works because perfumer Pierre Guillaume was in the position to make a perfume composed of precision-made parts and dripping with ideas. Cuir d’Iris is a gorgeous perfume that embodies both the steely and the extravagant. It lunges at you at the outset and although it cozies up to your skin quickly, it growls at you when you don’t expect it.

To summarize, thank you Mr. Guillaume. As I hope you can tell, I’m having a blast with Cuir d’Iris. It captures exactly what I love about perfume.

05/15/2012

9Scent 10Longevity 7.5Sillage

Deefree
5 Reviews

Translated · Show original

Deefree

Top Review 12

Because Heidi knows who Peter is....

About a year ago, I acquired this fragrance. It all happened quite in a rush. I bought it without even inhaling a whiff. That would later give me a headache. I actually wanted the 50ml, but they didn’t have it anymore and only had a 100ml bottle left. So I bought it and left, as I had meetings and didn’t want to be late.

The next day, I was excited to finally sniff the fragrance. Normally, I spray something directly on my skin, but God knows why I had to use the scent strip first.

Heidi: Why were you so long on the alp today again?
Peter: You know, herding Bärli and Schwändli?
Heidi: They must have always been near you?
Peter: Why (rolling eyes)
Heidi: You smell like a billy goat
Peter: hmmmm..... Could be ;-)

At first, I felt like I was being ambushed by a herd of goats. I know what I’m talking about; I know goats and bucks. What I’m offered here is quite a spectacle. I change the distance to the scent strip and lo and behold, the extrait takes on a completely different form of fragrance aura. The leather is immense, a brutal, really thick, coarse leather. Not cuddly leather like in Cuir de Russie by Chanel. No, this is a fully grown affair. The animalistic note is omnipresent, not a kitten purring, but the billy goat showing its horns and defending its territory. But even bucks get tired from time to time, and you can sense the chocolate with the tannin. It’s a dark chocolate, 90% cocoa content. Here too, it scratches when you indulge in a piece. Old Black Iris holds the structure of the fragrance together. A hint of grape resonates throughout. Not as strong as rum like in Frapin 1697, less gourmand, dry and dusty. Frankincense and vetiver occasionally make an appearance, like the stubborn billy goat.

An absolute must for leather fetishists, or those who are yet to become one.

The fragrance is rather linear. Nevertheless, I was able to enjoy it after an initial strong rejection of the juice, and even more so, it is truly a candidate that cannot be missed for me. A rare, wonderful fragrance that keeps me on my toes time and again. I enjoy engaging with it, as it’s not the simple, pleasant scents that are the challenging ones... They fit, but those that hold up a mirror to you. When you take your time, believe in them.... It’s like in life.

And by the way, I’m happy to be the “goat” when the “goats” get on my nerves again,