Diptyque Do Son

There's something about Diptyque perfumes that makes so many of them the benchmark for their respective genres. Tam Dao is the essence of sandalwood and Philosykos is considered the ultimate fig scent. They are like perfect little representations of an idea, neatly wrapped, easy to wear and very straight-laced. It's not that Diptyque never went off the beaten track- after all, there are L'Eau Trois and Eau d'Elide, but neither one of them fared well. What I'm trying to say is that it's no wonder that Diptyque managed to take the great man-eater tuberose and civilize it by creating  Do Son.

I don't think I've ever come across such a clean and well-behaving tuberose that still manages to retain its tropical lush core and bloom spectacularly in the heat. White flower notes in general and tuberose in particular never make a real "dry" perfume (even when paired with ample of spice and woods, like in Serge Lutens' Cedre). But Do Son comes amazingly close to that idea through a composition of crisp green leaves that border on bitter and something that can only be called a musky iris (or maybe an iris-like musk?).

Do Son is east to wear, probably because it lacks both the Audrey II characteristics found in some of its relatives (Fracas, Carnal Flower, Datura Noir) and the weird pairings of my personal favorites- Anya McCoy's tuberose and chocolate truffle of Starflower, Uncle Serge's magnificent Tubereuse Criminelle, Parfumerie Generale Tubereuse Couture and the amazing Tubereuse 3 from Histoires de Parfums. This is both Do Son's strength and greatest weakness. It's nice. It has a good chance appealing to non-tuberose people and converting them to the dark side. But as fond of it as I am, I just can't see a reason for me to get a full bottle when I can wear something a lot more interesting.

Do Son ($88, 1.7oz EDT) and the other Diptyque perfumes can be found at Luckyscent, Aedes, BeautyHabit and also Saks and Barneys.

photos: myvintagevogue.com