Eau Tropicale Sisley 2014

Don't be fooled by the burst of tropical flowers.
With a puckering acidity, this fruity - woody combo is more
blue stocking than blue lagoon.
Sulphurous blackcurrant, musky flowers and grainy wood, it's boring and not very nice.

My bottle was a birthday gift and the Sisley name with the promise of a tropical scent intrigued me at first glance.
At first spray a blast of fresh mint & peppery spices seem to welcome my nose - I assume the ginger is a spicy one and works well with the bergamot note to provide this burst of freshness. After about 20 minutes it mellows and becomes smooth and sweeter, I can now sense the passion fruit, hibiscus & cedar also coming through the spices. And even a hint of patchouli is not amiss to my nose.

"Eau Tropicale" has definitely an unusual beginning and it's a hard scent to classify. I like it because it's not like anything I can recall owning. Its supposed to emulate a tropical forest after a rainstorm, but to me it smells more like a botanical garden in the early morning hours of dawn when the dew covered fauna is getting ready to welcome the first rays of sunshine. It's a fun & unusual scent, but not unusual enough for me to justify its price tag.

Silage is: Minty flowers about to bloom - Longevity is: A bit disappointing with a 4-5 hours in which it mellows out significantly and becomes a close to the skin whisper of flowers & spices that are a bit sleepy.

A must try if you're looking for something that doesn't smell mainstream and your birthday is coming up - Enjoy! :)

A clerk at Neiman's insisted I try it so I came home with a sample. Testing it cements a genre I'm new to: fruity florals. My first experience of it was a knockout: Lalique's Amethyst, followed by Guerlain's Aqua Allegoria Flora Rosa (only available at duty frees]. Both are berry/floral creations. Though Eau Tropicale only has one fruit, it has blossoms that enhance the tropical fruitiness of the scent: hibicus (I drink the tea) and frangipani, the flower Hawaii uses for leis. The woody base lends more substance as does Ambrette seed, which to me smells like a musky, honeyed peppermint/rosemary combo. This is an interesting summer fragrance, if not one that compels me to buy, given that I have the other two. If I didn't, I just might fall for this exotic, fruity, lightly musky/woody scent.

Tropic, when I think of it...
...I think of Thomas Gottschalk offering a bag of Tropi Frutti in safari attire
...of sweet multivitamin drinks, somewhere between pineapple, passion fruit, and orange
...of strange artificial flavors for jelly, effervescent tablets, etc.
...of cocktails with way too much decoration
...and in the background, Wham! blares "Club Tropicana, drinks are free..."

So I was understandably not spontaneously thrilled when a fragrance of this name was presented to me as a potential companion for spring and summer.

But Sisley interprets Tropic completely differently: Not freshly pressed tropical fruits, but rather mist that gently beads off the surface of tropical fruits and flowers. Not Club Tropicana, but more of a tropical garden. And as befits a tropical garden, there are also noble woods present. However, I doubt I would have made the association with the tropical garden without the name "Eau Tropicale."

In my opinion, the fresh, floral, fruity, and herbal notes are pleasantly balanced. The scent feels absolutely natural. It is light, yet lasts quite long for a spring or summer fragrance. And it is different, it has its own recognizability - at least if you are close enough to perceive it.

Unfortunately, Tropi Frutti and Wham! evoke more emotions in me than "Eau Tropicale." However, I wish Sisley that there are enough people who do not feel the same way as I do, because "Eau Tropicale" is actually well made.

Today, the little bird on the Eau Tropicale box chirped cheerfully at me.

Well, there was still an unpleasant eye doctor appointment coming up - why not strengthen myself with a spritz?

And the little feathered friend fluttered lightly around my nose and settled gently on my hand.
Its plumage sparkles and glimmers like a jewel.
It tells of distant, untouched islands where ripe passion fruits grow and hibiscus stretches towards the sun.
An enchanting tuberose scent hangs in the air with a spicy hint of ginger.
The violet adds its bitter note, and the ambrette seed takes on a marzipan-like quality.

Where might this tropical island be?

I would love to accompany the colorful paradise bird on its journey home.
The oldie "on the wings of a nightingale" by the Everly Brothers comes to mind.

The colorful little bird is in no hurry to take off again - and the doctor’s appointment passes "in a flash".

A balanced, pastel-colored scent, full of joy and floating elegance, yet long-lasting.

On the wings of a nightingale I`ll fly.