Hommage à L'Homme Voyageur
Lalique (2014)

The opening is sour and very spicy in the same time. It's one of the very few fragrances, where cardamom is a backbone. I could swear I feel violet, the same one that is present in original Hommage a L'Homme. It reminds me of kind of a sharper, more sour and more mature (I would say) flanker of YSL La Nuit de L'Homme at that moment (however, both contain a big amount of vanilla). Then it starts getting more and more bitter with every minute. That is when dusty patchouli, woody and inky vetiver and dry papyrus come in. But that's not just it. In the same time Voyageur is changing into a mossy scent. Yes, spicy, woody and mossy - that is how I would describe it.

Longevity is good, around 9 hours, sillage is a little below average.

IMO Voyageur is better than its predecessor.

The opening is a blast of bright and slightly harsh papyrus and clean vetiver. Almost comes off like synthetic cedar. As it dries down, I get more mossy, wet, green notes over the papyrus. The harshness fades and it becomes cleaner and sweeter, almost has a barbershop feel in the late drydown.

For me, this is a fun scent that I would wear for myself because it's unique and has interesting development. I would not necessarily consider this to be appealing to ladies. The chemical harshness of the opening could also prove to be offensive. I get medium-strong projection during the first few hours and then it fades. Still better than a skin scent for many hours after. Good all-day longevity.

Voyageur is an entirely different feel from its progenitor, Hommage à l'homme; equally distinctive, graceful and exclusive. Here, the signature, largely, is a nebulous green accord where the helm of vetiver, patchouli and papyrus strictly navigates with a steadfast grip, resulting in another fascinating steer from Lalique. Despite the nautical theme, Voyageur is far from any aqua-marina scent; its journey is more in line with the bulletproof ink of a captains' log that is encased in ghastly leather binding. It opens with a sharp breeze of bergamot and cardamon, quickly engulfed by a mast of vetiver, patchouli, and papyrus, that weaves back and forth for an entire sail before soaking in the subtle, sweet moonlight of vanilla, amber and oakmoss; simply a finish for jotting. Primarily, Voyageur is an insular trip, shaped beautifully by its wooden wheel of vetiver, patchouli and papyrus, resulting in a steely green composition that has the essence of a camphorous inkblot ejecting from the delicate press of a feather shaped nib on arid paper. Surely, this is a captain's signature of depth and flow and one for exploring. Enthralling!

Wow. Lalique's 'Hommage Voyageur' was a surprising pick up, as I expected it to be a typical tonka bean based safe office scent, but it is completely different. This was a blind buy, and from the initial blast, you immediately get a huge and weird burst of citrus, dark vetiver and cardamom. It smells unlike anything you've ever smelled and nothing else out there smells like it.

As the citrus calms down, it really gets fairly difficult for non-collectors (the general public) to appreciate or understand. A mix of dark vetiver, patchouli, cardamom and woods becomes a very dense, earthy, almost muddy smell. As patchouli is here as a middle note, it is very strong and can be off-putting to most people. A vanilla base sweetens the deal and closes it nicely, but this is patchouli bomb through and through. Unfortunately, women seem to hate it, and I've had to wash it off due to complaints that it smells awful and unappealing.

With eight sprays (neck, chest, shoulders, and forearms), I get a very impressive 7-10+ hours of longevity, with excellent projection. People will clearly smell you, even eight hours after you've applied this. They may not like it, but they will smell you and likely comment on it. It digs into skin nicely and stays on clothes for 15-18+ hours and can be detected several days later.

This is not a safe blind buy, and don't be surprised if you wear this and women become offended. Its not very mainstream appealing, more for the collectors and niche scent finders specifically looking for weird or unique and unusual scents. No one will smell like this out there, which can be good or bad depending on you and what you're going for. For me, its definite no unless I'm wearing it for myself at home alone or in the woods on a hike or something. If you love patchouli, grab this. Otherwise, order a sample or test it first before spending money on this one.

Hommage a L'Homme Voyageur is a smart contemporary fragrance, with lots of green notes in the form of patchouli, papyrus, vetiver, with some vague/fleeting bergamot, hints of cardamom, and a cosy, slightly warm dry-down. Patchouli is the star here, together with vetiver. It appears a bit dark, but soon mellows out during the mid-phase; a hint of smoke in the first couple of hours. The base patchouli and vetiver, plus some soft, warm vanilla-amber in the far background. The overall style is dry, woody.

This is an interesting modern take on patchouli, and reminds me a bit of darker vetivers such as Private Label by Jovoy. I find it to be moderately long-lasting but sitting a bit too close to skin, as with most Lalique stuff. It could have been a bit more distinctive, but there's much to appreciate here (especially, considering the competition), and it could work as a work scent. Definitely not for those who can't get along with patchouli, or vetiver.


3.5/5

To me, the opening of Voyageur faintly recalls Interlude Man, but it vanishes quickly, giving way to a soft vetiver and musty patchouli that makes this feel like more of a sequel to Encre Noire than the original Hommage.

That central accord is an interesting one, and it's presented here without much outward adornment. There's just enough in the background to fill in the gaps and keep it smooth. Still, I get the sense that this is more of a rough draft than a finished fragrance; it's either too minimalist or not quite minimalist enough.

The ad campaign and name suggests that this scent is meant to be a kind of seafaring scent for the distinguished, modern man, though there's nothing especially aquatic here (ambroxan does supply some airiness to this blend, but that's about it). Some more prominent saltiness might have balanced out the other ingredients and helped fulfill that concept.

So while it's decidedly unique, this doesn't really stand out in the lineup of largely exceptional Lalique masculine releases either in terms of its aromatic effect or the complexity of its architecture. In this way, it's a victim of Lalique's considerable success.