How is today's Estée Lauder Azurée?

[FiveoaksBouquet]

The reason I ask—and good news for perfume lovers in Canada—is Azurée is on the Canadian website of Estée Lauder. Don't know how long it has been available there but it has not been available in stores each time I asked. I'm thinking of ordering it but as it is a chypre, Azurée would be particularly vulnerable to reformulation problems. Has anyone worn the current version and can assess its integrity?

I love Azurée and what comes across to me as its raspiness. Years back when I wore it, my nephew's reaction was, "It smells like dry paint peeling off a window frame!" What's not to love about a perfume like that? :happy:

 

[Bonnette]

I'm very disappointed with all of Lauder's current formulations, especially the chypres, but it might still be worth getting since you've had so much trouble finding it where you live - a bird in the hand, and all that. There are people who disagree with me, but I find Lauder's current offerings toned-down, softened, even generic (especially in the drydown). Today's Azurée doesn't seem remotely raspy to me, and I find that to be a very good description of the vintage (which I ended up seeking out after purchasing a new bottle).

 

[cacio]

I bought a bottle last year in the US (the new rectangualr bottles), so assuming there's no further reformulation-the effect is a bit different. The vintage one had a strength given by the oakmoss, it had more body, so to speak. The current one is not as punchy especially early on, but it does last well and I keep smelling it throughout the day. My guess is that they have removed the oakmoss and substituted with some modern aromachemicals that have a slightly different effect. The main profile of leather plus citrus is still there. So I'm ok with it. Hard to say whether it will be ok for you.

cacio

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

Thanks for the current descriptions, Bonnette and cacio. When Lauder came out with Jasmine White Moss, for the chypre effect, which resembled that of Azurée, they used a proprietary aromachemical called "white moss mist." It really had an oakmoss vibe. I was so sad to see JWM discontinued! If that ingredient is still allowed and they have used it, Azurée could retain some of its original character.

 

[yellowtone]

I rather like the current (-ish, my bottle is 4 years old I think) version of Azurée, but I haven't tried the vintage version so I may not know what I'm missing. I don't find it timid at all, and it's quite smashing on a man.

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

I rather like the current (-ish, my bottle is 4 years old I think) version of Azurée, but I haven't tried the vintage version so I may not know what I'm missing. I don't find it timid at all, and it's quite smashing on a man.

Definitely gender neutral.

 

[CookBot]

I'm very partial to the old stuff, but I haven't tried a newer version in perhaps 8 years, so it might be better now than I remember from the early 2000s. And another vote here for men to wear this, it's great on them.

Macy's doesn't carry it in their stores, but does have it available for order on their website. There are 140+ reviews on their website, which my cursory glance seems to indicate are about 75% complaints about reformulation, with a few noting that the very latest iteration is actually an improvement on the prior reformulation.
https://www.macys.com/shop/product/...e-fragrance-spray?ID=2034040&CategoryID=30087

My preferred version is the old lugnut bottle, which fortunately I got before the vintage prices went completely bonkers. It's now running about $100/ounce for partial bottles on eBay.

 

[Wingie]

I noticed too just this past week that Azurée was available on the Canadian Lauder website. The price also seems very reasonable, with free shipping to boot.

I've never tried Azurée as leathers usually don't work on me, but I do have a vintage sample on the way currently. Surrender to Chance carries samples of the modern EDP, but it sounds like there was a more recent reformulation just in the past few years, so not sure if they're carrying the most recent version. FWIW, Fragrantica users have spoken positively about the most recent version as well.

Cook.Bot, those Macy's reviews aren't visible to Canadians so thank you for the summary. We just get directed to a page that says the item isn't available in our country :undecided:

 

[Bonnette]

My preferred version is the old lugnut bottle, which fortunately I got before the vintage prices went completely bonkers. It's now running about $100/ounce for partial bottles on eBay.

View attachment 157449

That's my preferred version, too.

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

I'm very partial to the old stuff, but I haven't tried a newer version in perhaps 8 years, so it might be better now than I remember from the early 2000s. And another vote here for men to wear this, it's great on them.

Macy's doesn't carry it in their stores, but does have it available for order on their website. There are 140+ reviews on their website, which my cursory glance seems to indicate are about 75% complaints about reformulation, with a few noting that the very latest iteration is actually an improvement on the prior reformulation.
https://www.macys.com/shop/product/...e-fragrance-spray?ID=2034040&CategoryID=30087

My preferred version is the old lugnut bottle, which fortunately I got before the vintage prices went completely bonkers. It's now running about $100/ounce for partial bottles on eBay.

View attachment 157449

That’s the bottle I have too. Wearing some now. It’s pretty heady stuff! It also has something nostalgic—the original Lauderade.

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

I noticed too just this past week that Azuree was available on the Canadian Lauder website. The price also seems very reasonable, with free shipping to boot.

I've never tried Azuree as leathers usually don't work on me, but I do have a vintage sample on the way currently. Surrender to Chance carries samples of the modern EDP, but it sounds like there was a more recent reformulation just in the past few years, so not sure if they're carrying the most recent version. FWIW, Fragrantica users have spoken positively about the most recent version as well.

Cook.Bot, those Macy's reviews aren't visible to Canadians so thank you for the summary. We just get directed to a page that says the item isn't available in our country :undecided:

Hoping for the best reformulation, I’ve decided to order it. The comments here and other reviews make it sound interesting enough to explore. Looking forward to trying the old and new side by side. Besides, regardless of result, I think Lauder deserves to be rewarded for bringing it to Canada. :smiley:

 

[Wingie]

Hoping for the best reformulation, I’ve decided to order it. The comments here and other reviews make it sound interesting enough to explore. Looking forward to trying the old and new side by side. Besides, regardless of result, I think Lauder deserves to be rewarded for bringing it to Canada. :smiley:

Congrats - I look forward to reading your thoughts on the modern version FiveOaks! Especially as you have the vintage on hand to compare it to.

 

[CookBot]

Cook.Bot, those Macy's reviews aren't visible to Canadians so thank you for the summary. We just get directed to a page that says the item isn't available in our country :undecided:

I just looked into buying a gift at Macy's and having them ship it internationally, and it turned out one of the very few things they won't ship is fragrances. Grrr.

 

[CookBot]

Congrats - I look forward to reading your thoughts on the modern version FiveOaks! Especially as you have the vintage on hand to compare it to.

Yes, me too, FiveOaks. Do come back and tell us how they compared.

 

[Redneck Perfumisto]

Loving this discussion!

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

Definitely intend to share my impressions! Order made. Is it here yet???

 

[Bonnette]

That’s the bottle I have too. Wearing some now. It’s pretty heady stuff! It also has something nostalgic—the original Lauderade.

This thread gave me a hankering to wear my lugnut version again, after a long time away (have been so focused on white florals, Guerlain and Caron). What a stunning creation! Sharp, green, exotic - it fairly hisses! And it lasts forever. Back in the day, before regulation was even a flicker in anyone's mind, Lauder really knew how to hit it out of the park. *swoon*

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

This thread gave me a hankering to wear my lugnut version again, after a long time away (have been so focused on white florals, Guerlain and Caron). What a stunning creation! Sharp, green, exotic - it fairly hisses! And it lasts forever. Back in the day, before regulation was even a flicker in anyone's mind, Lauder really knew how to hit it out of the park. *swoon*

I love “it fairly hisses!” So true! And a shower didn't even put a dent in it! Generally, I am not a proponent of the spray-it-in-the-air-and-walk-through-it method of application but in the case of her perfumes, it looks like Mrs. Lauder knew what she was talking about!

 

[cacio]

Indeed, Lauder's plan was to bring luxury perfume to the masses-also convincing them that it was good bang for the buck. That is, something that you put on in the morning and it would last until the next shower. Starting from Youth Dew oil, which was supposed to be used in the bathtub and yet be stronger than a perfume.

cacio

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

Indeed, Lauder's plan was to bring luxury perfume to the masses-also convincing them that it was good bang for the buck. That is, something that you put on in the morning and it would last until the next shower. Starting from Youth Dew oil, which was supposed to be used in the bathtub and yet be stronger than a perfume.

cacio

A noble goal, and she succeeded! As for lasting, I usually carry in my purse a 5 ml vial of the perfume I am wearing for refreshing if necessary during the day. Wearing Azurée, it would not be necessary to carry reinforcements. (But I will anyway. You never know…)

She also wanted to encourage women to buy fragrance for themselves (or to put it commercially, to open up the market of selling to women), rather than having women dependent on receiving perfume as gifts. Definitely succeeded there also!

 

[Bonnette]

The business model she created was pure genius. I love seeing photos of her at those wonderful department store perfume counters, thronged by eager smiling customers.

 

[CookBot]

I decided to wear Azuree today too, to reacquaint myself with it before FiveOaks' big reveal of her new bottle.

I took y'all's advice about mist-and-walk-through-it, which is very sensible with such a heavy hitter (and I tend to be an oversprayer, which is deadly with Azuree).

This method seems to bring more attention to the floral elements, especially what I think are cyclamen and hyacinth. I'm not real clear on distinguishing those two notes, especially cyclamen. Tania Sanchez calls Azuree a citrus leather, but I'd have to say what I have on today is more of a green-floral leather. Of course, that might be because the citrus in my old bottle has degraded.

It's still a monster, though. I can't imagine what Lauder was thinking, trying to market this is as a sunny, beachy sport scent. This is a killer leather if there ever was one, right up there with Bernard Chant's other leather masterpieces.

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

I decided to wear Azuree today too, to reacquaint myself with it before FiveOaks' big reveal of her new bottle.

I took y'all's advice about mist-and-walk-through-it, which is very sensible with such a heavy hitter (and I tend to be an oversprayer, which is deadly with Azuree).

This method seems to bring more attention to the floral elements, especially what I think are cyclamen and hyacinth. I'm not real clear on distinguishing those two notes, especially cyclamen. Tania Sanchez calls Azuree a citrus leather, but I'd have to say what I have on today is more of a green-floral leather. Of course, that might be because the citrus in my old bottle has degraded.

It's still a monster, though. I can't imagine what Lauder was thinking, trying to market this is as a sunny, beachy sport scent. This is a killer leather if there ever was one, right up there with Bernard Chant's other leather masterpieces.

Scent twins! Yay! In the late 1960s there were a lot of gutsy chypres coming out of France and they were marketed as youthful and optimistic.

 

[Bonnette]

Lauder seems to have had her tongue in her cheek when she marketed and named some of her perfumes...like calling that other heavy-hitter Youth Dew! :laugh:

I get spiky green leather with hints of flowers from Azurée - if it were citrus-y, I wouldn't love it so much.

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

Lauder seems to have had her tongue in her cheek when she marketed and named some of her perfumes...like calling that other heavy-hitter Youth Dew! :laugh:

I get spiky green leather with hints of flowers from Azurée - if it were citrus-y, I wouldn't love it so much.

I never cared for the name Youth Dew but the fragrance, yes.

If there are any flowers left in my Azurée, I can’t smell them. The citrus doesn’t last long either. But this juice is 23 years old.

 

[12catcrazy]

Following this thread. I have a lugnut bottle I bought at Ulta about 10 years ago. It smells very much like what I remembered in the 70s (my mother had a bottle of this way back then). It certainly is something that you don't take a bath in and less is more. It will be interesting to read Fiveoak's opinion of the most recent version.

For the younger folks on this board - "heavier" scents were very popular in the 70s and 80s. I don't remember much about what the 60s smelled like (other than Chanel No 5) but the 70s and 80s were the Stink Bomb decades. Also, remember, most people smoked back then, and I think that people's sense of smell was blunted because of that. Even if you were a non-smoker (like myself), cigarette smoke was so all pervasive that it was just part of the background of life and perfumes had to be pretty heavy to be noticed.

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

Following this thread. I have a lugnut bottle I bought at Ulta about 10 years ago. It smells very much like what I remembered in the 70s (my mother had a bottle of this way back then). It certainly is something that you don't take a bath in and less is more. It will be interesting to read Fiveoak's opinion of the most recent version.

For the younger folks on this board - "heavier" scents were very popular in the 70s and 80s. I don't remember much about what the 60s smelled like (other than Chanel No 5) but the 70s and 80s were the Stink Bomb decades. Also, remember, most people smoked back then, and I think that people's sense of smell was blunted because of that. Even if you were a non-smoker (like myself), cigarette smoke was so all pervasive that it was just part of the background of life and perfumes had to be pretty heavy to be noticed.

That’s a good point about the smoking. Very true. The lack of pervasive cigarette smoke in the environment could also explain why today so many people complain about sensitivity to perfume. It is not masked by smoke any more.

 

[Bonnette]

I was a heavy smoker in the 70s and 80s, but even then I didn't like the miasma created by mixing cigarette smoke with good perfume - it never seemed to me that one masked - or even complemented - the other, at least not in the way that Tabac Blond and Habanita were intended to do. I was a hairstylist in the 80s, and often shampooed fashionable ladies whose wet hair reeked of tobacco and heady perfumes that I actually loved (Opium, Poison, Giorgio and so on). I remember thinking, with horror, "Good lord, I must smell like that!"

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

Double post.

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

The eagle has landed—so to speak. Azurée arrived this a.m. and I am wearing it now. Initial impression: It's definitely redolent of the original "Pure Fragrance Spray" version, minus some depth in the drydown. A person looking to duplicate the original could be disappointed but if you think of the current version as an edt to the earlier parfum or edp, it holds up well.

The new Azurée need not be applied sparingly. About six sprays lasted, where I could smell it without nose to skin, about four hours, whereas two sprays of the original could last about all day. It's early times yet and this is only my first impression but as a refreshing citrusy chypre, still having a bit of leather but not heavily, it smells good to me. A lighter version of a very uplifting aroma.

 

[Bonnette]

Very hlepful info and impressions, FiveoaksBouquet. I'm glad you're not disappointed, and in general recognize the DNA.

 

[Subhuman]

This thread prompted me to blind-buy the current Azurée, since I've been curious about it for years and have never been able to find a tester at a Lauder counter. $70 Canadian with free shipping, I mean...I've made more expensive gambles, and I haven't yet met a chypre I outright hated.

It's really, really nice. Not as aggressive as its reputation suggests, so I imagine reformulation has toned it down, but it does contain noticeable oakmoss and the overall effect of of the heart accord is beautiful. Crisp, green, dry and yes, summery - the Lauder website calls it "Radiant, Sunlit, and Warm", and that's how it strikes me. Not exactly relaxed and chilling on a Mediterranean beach - it's a bit too brisk and put-together for that, at least to my nose - but very easy to wear. A pressed linen shirt scent if there ever was one. I like!

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

This thread prompted me to blind-buy the current Azurée, since I've been curious about it for years and have never been able to find a tester at a Lauder counter. $70 Canadian with free shipping, I mean...I've made more expensive gambles, and I haven't yet met a chypre I outright hated.

It's really, really nice. Not as aggressive as its reputation suggests, so I imagine reformulation has toned it down, but it does contain noticeable oakmoss and the overall effect of of the heart accord is beautiful. Crisp, green, dry and yes, summery - the Lauder website calls it "Radiant, Sunlit, and Warm", and that's how it strikes me. Not exactly relaxed and chilling on a Mediterranean beach - it's a bit too brisk and put-together for that, at least to my nose - but very easy to wear. A pressed linen shirt scent if there ever was one. I like!

:thumbsup: In fact I’ve been noticing that that crisp freshness seems to last longer in the new version because its heady floral notes are less pronounced than in the original.

 

[maksidrom]

I've been frequently seeing bottles in Ross stores recently - is it really wearable by men? I know guys wear Knowing and Youth Dew, but I didn't get that impression reading reviews for Azuree. How's the rose note?

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

I've been frequently seeing bottles in Ross stores recently - is it really wearable by men? I know guys wear Knowing and Youth Dew, but I didn't get that impression reading reviews for Azuree. How's the rose note?

Personally I don’t get much in the way of floral notes in the new version and haven’t really noticed rose. Maybe others are more tuned in to that aspect. But to me Azurée has always seemed gender neutral.

 

[Wingie]

The eagle has landed—so to speak. Azurée arrived this a.m. and I am wearing it now. Initial impression: It's definitely redolent of the original "Pure Fragrance Spray" version, minus some depth in the drydown. A person looking to duplicate the original could be disappointed but if you think of the current version as an edt to the earlier parfum or edp, it holds up well.

The new Azurée need not be applied sparingly. About six sprays lasted, where I could smell it without nose to skin, about four hours, whereas two sprays of the original could last about all day. It's early times yet and this is only my first impression but as a refreshing citrusy chypre, still having a bit of leather but not heavily, it smells good to me. A lighter version of a very uplifting aroma.

Thanks for sharing your impressions Fiveoaks! I'm not really one for powerhouse fragrances so I'd probably be ok with the modern version too, especially as I never owned and got attached to the vintage version.

 

[Ken_Russell]

Seconding the opinion of this remaining in its current version still close to its vintage/initial formulations

 

[CookBot]

:thumbsup: In fact I’ve been noticing that that crisp freshness seems to last longer in the new version because its heady floral notes are less pronounced than in the original.

Thanks for sharing your impressions Fiveoaks! I'm not really one for powerhouse fragrances so I'd probably be ok with the modern version too, especially as I never owned and got attached to the vintage version.

All of FiveOaks's comments about it are making me think that a slightly toned-down version of Azuree might not be such a bad thing. Some days, the vintage version is just more than I can handle.

I think I might give the new one a try soon.

 

[FiveoaksBouquet]

All of FiveOaks's comments about it are making me think that a slightly toned-down version of Azuree might not be such a bad thing. Some days, the vintage version is just more than I can handle.

I think I might give the new one a try soon.

It’s toned down in intensity but actually has more zing into the drydown—such is my impression anyway. If you do, Cook.bot, love yo hear your take.

 

[Subhuman]

Wearing the current Azurée today, on the first rainy, blustery and cold day of the season here, and it's perfect. My initial impressions were that it's a summery chypre, but now I think it's actually more suited to transitional weather. It's giving me forest floor, woods, moss, and leather, with a bitter herbal haze. Very strong - the one spray I put on almost feels like too much. I can't imagine what a bomb the vintage Azurée must have been. All I know is this new version is a bulls-eye, and I might need to get a backup bottle, which I never do.