Nuits Indiennes
Jean-Louis Scherrer (1993)

Nuits Indiennes is one of a rush of gourmands that followed - lemming like - in the wake of Angel.
Here the gourmand takes an ‘Oriental’ gloss, which leads to a sort of amber and sandal pudding, with - bizzarely - a touch of aldehydes.
To be fair, it gets better - and spicier - with time, but it reminds me of Coty’s complaint :
‘when Jacques Guerlain does vanilla, he gets Shalimar,
when I do it - all I get custard’.
In this case, it's ‘Oriental’ custard.

All the elements come together in Nuit Indiennes EDT in a manner that soothes and seduces. A stunning spiced, floral amber that prominently features benzoin, an overdose even, the only sign of it being a 90s release is the fruity opening, which is actually so well done, nothing plastic-like or cloying, because no sooner than this and the mandarin greets the nose that the benzoin, heliotrope (!) and floral bouquet tide comes in and the seduction truly begins.

Ahhh, benzoin, what is it really? We speak as enthusiasts of it in abstract- but what makes benzoin different from, say, vanilla? This resin can originate from a few species in the styrax family (not to be confused with styrax resin, which actually comes from the liquidambar family of trees colloquially known as "styrax", perfumery can be so confusing). Various benzoin resins are used in everything from medicine, cosmetics, and flavorings, but the benzoin commonly used in fragrance is from the species Styrax Benzoin. This tree has an exudate that is rich (but not necessarily heavy) and of course vanillic. However, what sets it apart from vanilla/vanillin is there is that balsamic quality: animalic, medicinal, unctuous, maybe a bit leathery, balmy, and certainly warm. It also has formidable fixative value. Here, with just a pinch of civet exalting it and the composition in general, makes the composition radiant and opulent.

Keep in mind, with benzoin as the centerpiece of this composition, there isn't an overwhelming density, there is oxygen and atmosphere, which could be refreshing to those who may be a tad bit stifled by traditional ambers. The bottle I have is apparently 'vintage', but newer formulations are rumored to be just as stunning.

I was surprised to see how low Nuit Indiennes was rated here, and so few positive reviews? I have the EdP and I find it magical, but I haven't tried the Edt so I can't speak for that one. Nuits Indiennes EdP is one of few bottles in my collection I will buy again if ever dare to finish these precious drops.

The top begins with a polite puff of aldehydes followed by fruity notes of mandarine and peach. Then the flowers joins the composition adding beautiful notes of lilac, heliotrope, jasmine, Ylang Ylang and rose. The basenotes are woody and sweet from vanilla, benzoin and tonka. Civet adds an animalistic note to the composition, in quite a good dose. It's a warm, sweet, cozy and animalistic fragrance best used in the colder season.

Nuit Indiennes is a well balanced, multi layered sweet and woody floriental with enhanced basenotes and a civet bite. Beeing a floriental, it's not at all spicy but the sandalwood and cedar brings beautiful notes to the composition. I'll give it a 5/5.

This is an amber vanilla based oriental, similar to Shalimar and Emeraude.

Odd that Scherrer should try to resurrect a copy of those greats in 1993, so against the times, and I'm not surprised that it failed.

Barbara Herman describes this as a floral and amber scent supported by a civet dominated woody base - a powdery, sweet gourmand.

For me, it never gets beyond the amber vanilla stage, so is rather simplistic. As a copy of a category of greats, it's not bad. It's just not good enough to hold its own or strike new ground.

Top: Bergamot, Lemon, Mandarin, Peach
Middle: Jasmine, Muguet, Rose, Ylang Ylang, Lilac, Heliotrope
Base: Sandalwood, Cedar, Vanilla, Benzoin, Ambrein, Musk, Tonka, Civet

This has civet? Huh. Well, I don't get any hint of that, which is probably a good thing. To me, this is a typical 90's version of a scent intended for older, monied women. A brisk, intense beginning of citruses and spices that fades quickly into a rich floral powder-amber. I agree that the lasting power on this isn't so much, and it does remind me of a lot of fragrances that have already been done - Raffinee, L'Heure Bleue, Byzance without the slightly harsh-narcotic white flower note, even Shalimar somewhat. There's not really anything that sets this apart that I can tell. I suppose that if you like the powdery-orientals but find them too strong and after a while they suffocate, this might be a nice alternative that fades before it becomes too much.

I finally got my Scentagious sample of this & I was so excited. The bottle of this is so very pretty. I thought I was going to love this one, but I didn't. This scent was inspired by the 1908 painting 'The Kiss'. It was described as a floral oriental. I found it lacking in the oriental base- and with little depth. The base notes just didn't develop at all.On me it had no tenacity; the spices & citrus notes didn't come alive. It had more of a powdery drydown with lily of the valley, rose & violet. A little reminiscent of Byzance and L'Heure Bleue mixed together in my opinion. The lasting power is terrible as well on my skin. When this drys down it stays close to the skin ie no sillage on me. Notes as listed by Scentagious.comTop notes: bergamot, mandarin, peach, boise de roseHeart notes: jasmine, lily of the valley, lilac, heliotrope, cedarwoodBase notes: sandalwood, vanilla, benzoin, tonka, civet