Boxeuses 
Serge Lutens (2010)

Leather and wood - the dyad that rules the opening . A sooth, dark leather - an allusion to boxing gloves in the name maybe - that is not harsh and without much smokiness on me. The wood is not very specific, but I get some sweet wood and touches of cedar at times. A bit of licorice is present, but very briefly only.

In the drydown an impression of ripe black plums is added, quite rich and mixing well with the leather. The vanished licorice re-emerges at a later stage, and in unison these notes result in a rather unusual and pleasant overall olfactory experience.

I get moderate sillage, excellent projection and nine hours of longveity on my skin.

A nice autumnal, creation that display some original concepts and combinations, but thge wood note is a bi too generic at times. 3/25

Leather, plum and frankincense to my nose.

A very nice combination, dark and sultry, subtle, and for once, thank goodness, Lutens does not drag out that bitter wood note it is so fond of. It's hard for me to detect any woods here at all, nor do I get any licorice.

It's pure smoky, sweet leather and one of the best leathers I've encountered.

Good news for lovers of leather fragrances.

Boxeuse is basically Daim Blonde, done in a darker, more interesting manner, with a base of Feminite du Bois. It could easily have been called Bois et Cuir, or Daim Noir.

I hope this gets added to the Vaporisateur Tout Noir collection in the future...it's high on my want-list, but not at Barney's ridiculous pricing.

I read a number of reviews prior to sampling this, and they all mention jammy plums and leather and powder. So far, so good. However, about an hour after applying, I was struck by the same dry, dusty spices used in Ambre Sultan. I happen to adore this element (in both scents), but AS haters might want to think twice about this one.