Tambour Sacré 2018

Tambour Sacré by Rubini
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7.6 / 10 74 Ratings
Tambour Sacré is a popular perfume by Rubini for women and men and was released in 2018. The scent is spicy-woody. The longevity is above-average. It is still in production.
Pronunciation
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Main accords

Spicy
Woody
Resinous
Floral
Gourmand

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes Top Notes
Black pepperBlack pepper CardamomCardamom OrangeOrange Calabrian bergamotCalabrian bergamot
Heart Notes Heart Notes
Coffee absolute CO2Coffee absolute CO2 Tuberose absoluteTuberose absolute Sweet acaciaSweet acacia CinnamonCinnamon
Base Notes Base Notes
OpoponaxOpoponax Mysore sandalwoodMysore sandalwood Somalian myrrhSomalian myrrh BenzoinBenzoin Tonka beanTonka bean

Perfumer

Ratings
Scent
7.674 Ratings
Longevity
8.462 Ratings
Sillage
7.961 Ratings
Bottle
8.150 Ratings
Value for money
7.620 Ratings
Submitted by SirLancelot, last update on 14.04.2024.

Reviews

5 in-depth fragrance descriptions
7
Bottle
7
Sillage
8
Longevity
9.5
Scent
Kovex

15 Reviews
Translated Show original Show translation
Kovex
Kovex
Top Review 56  
Pigeonhole thinking - the end of the line
I like difficult scents. Fragrances that don't want to give away the broad spectrum of sensations they trigger. Fragrances that you have to work for. Fragrances that show new facets from time to time, changing and challenging between the poles. Which seem to call out to me: I only reveal my qualities when you have got to know me better. What these perfumes have in common with me is usually the unknown, never before smelled. The range of the first impression is enormously large. So not every one of these fragrances necessarily triggers the desire to test it a second time.

Tambour Sacré starts quite differently than the indicated top notes would suggest. Since I like to categorize fragrances into colors, the contents of the bottle or its color reflects exactly what I smell: brown, here bitter, bulky and completely unusual. The drawer thinking already ends here, because I can't think of any fragrance note that could be responsible for what I smell. What might have been disturbing during the first tests turns out to be a desire to have it over and over again after being worn several times and reminds me of situations in life that one does not want to see, does not want to experience and yet has to stare at it again and again in fascination, although one does not want to.

I understand if the scent is initially a deterrent to one or the other. The disgust reflex is ultimately located in the limbic system of our brain. It's also where emotions and urges are processed. There where scents can touch or disgust us. If the smell is linked to a memory, this can quickly lead to a sensation that is no longer neutral, which counteracts the attempt to objectively assess the smell. Tambour Sacré, however, has such a new effect on me that I can get involved with it completely uninfluenced.

The bitterness runs very gently and carefully during the first half hour, leaving room for a light brown unsweetened mocha note that will determine the fragrance for the next few hours. Here I clearly differentiate between dark black coffee and this unsweetened mocha note here, which skilfully absorbs the bitter beginning, rounds it off and makes it smoother. Comparisons to other authentic coffee scents such as Akro's Awake or Mancera's Aoud Café are hardly possible here, because while the aforementioned ones are more reminiscent of food, to be precise, of sugared instant coffee, Tambour Sacré eludes this categorization and wants to score with natural-looking, but not too present coffee aromas that are beyond the association with a hot drink.

This may also be due to tuberose, which appears here at best in homeopathic dosage and gives the fragrance more depth and volume. A slight fleshiness, but without the typical floral notes of tuberose, adds a touch of animalism, which gives the fragrance additional tension. And here it is again: the fascination of the unknown, the desire to process, sort and put in drawers these new fragrance impressions. But it may not succeed, Tambour Sacré does not fit into any drawer.

In the course of the next few hours it will gradually become more pleasant, warmer and milder. A tiny pinch of cinnamon and an at best implied sweetness hardly noticeably creep in. Light dry woods, only hinted at, because the aroma of the coffee beans, which are also lightly roasted, remains for me for a long time.

The bottle is the simple and common model used by many smaller niche brands, differing only in the cap. A nice detail is the outer packaging made of two Iroko wood shells, which is quite rare and only found in the tropical part of Africa, including Ethiopia (the manufacturer assures that it was made exclusively from recycled wood).

Tambour Sacré - it is also the holy drums of Ethiopia that Cristiano Canali wants to bring us closer to with his fragrance. A land full of strange smells of spices and woods, whose smoke differs from the local scent of burnt wood, adding nuances, readjusting sensations.

Who would have thought that the Tambour Sacré is becoming increasingly conciliatory, and after many hours of playing it still reveals a sensual side, which still has something different in it, as if you were sharing a bed with a stranger.

This is exciting, although it is already lusting to spray again to enjoy these wonderfully bitter first minutes. No, Tambour Sacré is not easy and it does not fit into one of my drawers. What remains is the fascination of the unknown and the knowledge that I have found a fragrance that is beyond the usual taste.

35 Comments
10
Bottle
9
Sillage
10
Longevity
10
Scent
Profumo

59 Reviews
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Profumo
Profumo
Top Review 33  
I may be a ghost driver.
Oh yes, I can certainly understand why this fragrance meets with so much rejection: the start is really adventurous!
Anyone who has always wanted to know why Frédéric Malle called his tuberose fragrance "Carnal Flower" should take a sniff of "Tambour Sacré": the carnal facets of this narcotic flower cannot be more clearly defined. They also come into their own in Malles fragrance, but are kept in check by the entire scent spectrum of tuberose - the intense floral white-flower note, the carrion-like indoles and green nuances. In "Tambour Sacré", however, combined with an unsweetened coffee note, they burst forth uninhibitedly, as if the carefully balanced balance in the tuberose cosmos had suddenly shifted. Apparently the dark and sourly smelling coffee here eliminates large parts of the flower kaleidoscope, leaving the tuberose strangely naked, almost physically, in other words "carnal". Even the squeaky pink chewing gum hints are quite unpleasant without the robe that normally covers them and spray a penetrating hairspray aroma - you have to be able to stand all this!
I admit that this is difficult, because this prelude, this clash of the two main actors, who are supposed to shape the entire scent of "Tambour Sacré", really is an imposition.
It does not smell nice, at least not in the sense of 'harmonious', 'pleasant' or 'flattering'. No, this juxtaposition of harsh coffee and diva-like tuberose has more of an olfactory carnage that bathes both opponents in an unpleasant light. May they smell wonderful on their own, here they do not smell good anymore, neither coffee nor blossom.
Fortunately, there are more actors entering the stage and put an end to the confrontational hustle and bustle. Cardamom and cinnamon spice up the coffee, bitter-peeled fruit and the sweet scent of acacia drag the hysterically behaving tuberose from the battlefield.

The plump, warm base, characterized by resins, woods and balsams does the rest, and the fighting cocks calm down visibly. After about an hour, a complex, dark-toned, tangy-spicy and only slightly sweet oriental aroma has developed, which for a change gets by without the obligatory vanilla and fashionable oud.
Now "Tambour Sacré" smells wonderful! And as if it wanted to compensate me for all the inconveniences I had suffered before, the fragrance lasts for half an eternity thanks to Extrait de Parfum concentration.
Normally I am not such a friend of endless long lasting fragrances, but in this case I really have to make an exception, because this uniquely beautiful orientalism, with the now reconciled in the arms lying tuberose-coffee-team in my heart, I can enjoy hour after hour.

The team around Andrea Bissoli Rubini, perfumer Cristiano Canali and Francesca Gotti, the product designer, have created an amazing fragrance again after "Fundamental", but one you have to work hard to create, even more than its predecessor. "Fundamental" with its strong character, fruity and waxy grape accord was not an easy task, but "Tambour Sacré" goes a few steps further in terms of bulkiness.
For me this is art, really great, admittedly modern fragrance art. But ones that I cannot recommend with the best will in the world. I could just recommend "Fundamental", provided the addressee has an open nose for an unusual scent adventure. With "Tambour Sacré", however, I know that I would encounter complete incomprehension - at least at times, the fragrance is an olfactory hell ride that I would not like to impose on anyone.
And yet, I may be a ghost driver and think that everyone else is going in the wrong direction: I like everything about "Tambour Sacré", even the weird opening
In the meantime, I have noticed that the more often I wear the fragrance, the more I look forward to this wild start: to the unleashed tuberose screeching into the freshly brewed, unseasoned and unsweetened coffee - great!!!
12 Comments
8
Sillage
10
Longevity
5
Scent
Naimie54

58 Reviews
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Naimie54
Naimie54
2  
Spiced coffee with wood
Tambour Sacre' starts fruity and sweet with a chewing gum note, I don't like that at all.

But soon coffee with a light cinnamon note replaces the not exactly successful start. The coffee is very sweet and the cinnamon is already gone again, flowery is to be smelled.

After about two hours, the coffee is gradually receding into the background. Tambou Sacre' is pleasantly woody with a beautiful, albeit too sweet, sandalwood note for me, even though it has benzoin and tonka bean.

Unfortunately, myrrh destroys the beautiful scent for me. The interplay of sandalwood and myrrh gives me a very unpleasant spicy, resinous scent.

Tambour Sacre, is a niche scent that didn't convince me. You have to use it very sparingly, two sprays are almost too much. The best time to wear the scent is at cool temperatures and I see 'Tambour Sacre' more as a masculine scent.

The radiation is very strong for several hours and the shelf life is more than 10 hours. Even after the shower I could still smell the scent.

I thank Morgaina, who made it possible for me to get to know this fragrance through a letter.
1 Comment
8
Sillage
9
Longevity
8
Scent
Kurai

375 Reviews
Kurai
Kurai
3  
Holy moly!
I thought gourmands were hard to swallow, but this stuff is next level. Rarely have I got such a sticky and gooey experience as with Tambour Sacré. There is not much gourmand here, though. At least not in the usual way. Even though the coffee note is very prominent, it is presented in a completely unique manner.

Right from the opening you get this dark and bitter coffee residue, with a smoky or even burnt nuance in the background. At the same time there is an immense tuberose note stumbling in and things get seriously wild when she unleashes all her indoles. After that highly dramatic start, things develop into a resinous-woody blend that gets more wearable along the way.

This one is hard to pull off in any 'real-life' situation, but for this one time it was a great experience. Anyone who is looking for an insane take on coffee, get your nose on this.
0 Comments
Art

68 Reviews
Art
Art
0  
A mineral woody Coffee
It is non-gourmand take on coffee. The coffee note here is very prominent from the start to the base, but there isn‘t any sweetness in it. On the contrary - there is some unusual fresh, natural, a bit “mineral” nuance that reminds me of the smell of sunflowers. And, all this is masterfully enveloped by transparent greens, spices and wood.
0 Comments

Statements

2 short views on the fragrance
HolscentbarHolscentbar 1 year ago
10
Bottle
8.5
Scent
beautiful creation. even if you don't love coffee, don't be afraid to land here. complex and very usable
0 Comments
BoBoChampBoBoChamp 2 years ago
7
Sillage
8
Longevity
8.5
Scent
Initially bitter/sweet and fruity-spicy, a warm and earthy, oriental spicy-floral Fall fragrance, on a dry and resinous, spicy-woody base.
0 Comments

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