Rumba Ted Lapidus 2009

This little dance mouse here is my second blind buy alongside the successful Eau de Rochas Fraiche. While I was at it, the Rumba simply made a little shimmy into my shopping cart. Since I not only enjoy something punchy but also Latin American dance, it was somehow no surprise, as it had been on my wish list for a long time. Unfortunately, I am not familiar with the "original" from Balenciaga, although the fragrance pyramids differ quite a bit. Maybe I'll have the chance to test the Balenciaga scent someday. My Rumba is definitely danced by Ted Lapidus.

By the way, the Rumba was crowned Dance of the Year 2013 and symbolizes the flirtation between man and woman. So the atmosphere is allowed to heat up quite a bit. But as this fragrance shows, punch, sorry, oomph is unfortunately not automatically erotic. And so my blood is unfortunately NOT boiling here, caramba! The opening hits hard (bam!) and I am eagerly anticipating what else is to come. But unfortunately, there are no positive surprises left for me. I smell fruity notes, with only old mirabelles listed. There are also many more flowers in it than are mentioned (fraud!). And I strongly suspect that it is once again the orange blossom that, like so many other fragrances, ruins this one for me. Because it has the unpleasant characteristic of developing on my skin not creamy but extremely soapy. No eroticism arises from that. And otherwise: It's loud. It's intrusive. It clings to you and won't shake off.

Whether the basil with the orange blossoms or the fruits with the flowers dance Rumba, Tango, or whatever, I couldn't care less. I only like basil on tomatoes and orange blossoms (exclusively) on trees. Fiery passion and a heated, sultry-erotic atmosphere work differently for me. With a tiger in the tank and a tie in the door... Maybe the Balenciaga is different. For me, this loud fruit-flower mix unfortunately awakens no passion. This Rumba comes across like a sleazy Latin lover with false teeth and hair. Bad breath and sweaty hands...

So, hopefully, someone else will soon invite me. Someone with more glow in their eyes and fire in their butt. For a lively samba. For a sexy mambo. Or salsa. Otherwise, I might just fall asleep...