Perfume Serge Lutens is widely revered in the fickle perfume industry, first for his work with Shiseido in the 1980s and 90s, and more recently for the magnificent signature line he has developed since 2000. His work is commonly viewed as avant-garde and many have achieved "cult" status in the niche perfume world. His ideas and approach are often quirky and unconventional. 
Serge Noire, launched in 2008 is an artful perfume rendering of smoke, ash and wood… but one which is resolutely unorthodox - it has an almost Gothic feel. If compelling, mysterious scents are your bag, the Serge Noire delivers. It is a contrast of textures; damp and dry, gloomy and light. 

Its opening is somewhat surprising and polarising… flashes of wood and spice which take on an almost saccharine feel, but then swiftly taper away into a more sinister amalgam that brings to mind decomposition and decay. Some time later, the scent evolves once more and a lovely dry woody incense emerges which inspire mental images of gloomy churches burning resinous stones in concealed censers. There is a thread of warm amber, patchouli and cosy cinnamon that press up from below. Serge Noire feels both threatening and ethereal in equal measures… a "Brothers Grimm" approach to perfume, perhaps. 
Many have come to love the creative brilliance and perfume narratives that spill from the perfumed pen of Monsieur Lutens. Serge Noire represents some of his most challenging and pioneering work yet.