Sirocco
Lucien Lelong (1934)

Sirocco by Lucien Lelong (1934) is a very spicy little amber scent in another of Lelong's trademark hobnail bottles, which may at one time have been called an oriental, although it feels more directly amber than anything else to my nose. The name Sirocco, also spelled as "Scirocco" as it was for the former Volkswagen car of the same title, is given to Saharan winds that blow north up and into the Mediterranean Sea. Here we see it applied appropriately to what can be seen as both a "hot" scent from spice, and a "fresh" scent from the jasmine, rose, and coriander. Going head to head with both with the likes of Coty Emeraude (1921) and Guerlain Shalimar (1924), plus the less-celebrated but popular Dana Toujours Moi (1924), Sirocco has more of a direct linkage to Dana's later Tabu (1932) by a far strides, even having hints of Jicky by Guerlain (1889) in its further dry down.

Sirocco opens with aldehydes, cinnamon, bergamot, and bits of lavender crossed with its later rose/jasmine tandem. The coriander comes in to give Sirocco a greener vibe, and further spices alongside amber dominate the later phases. There is patchouli, oakmoss, tonka, incense, and a civet musk dialed lower than Jicky, but enough to give the same slight scatological effect way late in the development. While even further removed from the fougère accord than Jicky, there is enough familiarity with the contents of lavender, rose substituting for geranium, tonka and oakmoss, that the general notion of one emerges under the heavy amber orient-themed blanket of "hot wind" Sirocco provides. People interested in things varying from Shulton's Early American Old Spice (1937) to Avon Bird of Paradise (1969) should have a sufficient feel for Sirocco. Performance is quite long for a "cologne".

Sirocco is a bit of "me too", but the emphasis on coriander is the standout feature that may sway someone to buy it instead of the others mentioned; or at least that might have been the case decades ago when it was still commercially available. As it stands now, Shalimar, Tabu, and up until recently, Old Spice all carried on as hallmarks of this particular period style in Western perfumery, with Sirocco becoming one of dozens that fell through the cracks for being too downmarket or two obscure as would be Lelong's case after his death and the zombification of his house (which just delayed the inevitable demise). I really like Sirocco, but with so many choices on both sides of the arbitrary gender line for this particular style, what remains in circulation of Siricco may only appeal to people who collect this dead house. Thumbs up

A masterful oriental from 1934.

Similar to Emeraude and Shalimar, this opens with Bergamot and Vanilla, supported by Lavender, Benzoin, Amber, Opoponax and Patchouli. Mysterious gourmand oriental. There is the sense of a rich frankincense and myrrh presence as well.

The originals are worth seeking out on Ebay.

First edit: As the pure parfum gets lower and lower in the bottle, there is a distinct pleasant coal-tar presence that makes this more of an oriental leather, than a simple oriental.

Second edit: Lelong currently sells a 4 oz. cologne they claim is the original formula, but it is not. This is a harsh green fresh cut grass scent that is very unpleasant to my nose. I cherish my pure parfum vintage bottle and will give this "new" version away.

Created by Jean Carles and very much related to his masterpiece Shalimar , Sirocco is very under-appreciated . It opens witha lavender-vanilla accord ( similar to Caron Pour un Homme ( released the same year ) but the rich amber-patchouli base soon comes forward . There is a small floral heart , but this is all about the incensey opopponax and patchouli drydown . It is the patchouli that saves this from becoming too rich and sweet , and the longevity is excellent .
The older , twisted bottles of dark jus are much richer , the newer , long necked bottles are a little vapid .