La Nuit by Rabanne

The Kiss of the Spider… desires that possess us. La Nuit de Paco Rabanne is the dampness of a kiss between two, an intimate declaration from the inside out. An exquisite floral chypre with a splendid rose oscillating between darkness and light. It is a pheromonal essence that isn’t afraid to say who it is and wrap you in a unique seduction. A rose with light and dark tones, bathed in pheromonal dew with a trio of herbs, leather, and moss that comes and goes in waves. Despite that beautiful base, it never forgets its heart of dirty rose full of desire. Jean Guichard in 1985 was working on Dior’s Poison, and this fragrance, a key year that would seal a decade of successes. For example, Montana Parfum de Peau would take part of La Nuit’s skeleton, but Guichard pushed it towards a more extravagant and exotic side. La Nuit is a beast of fixation with intense projection. Upon application, it reminded me of the stunning opening of Yves Saint Laurent’s Kouros; they would go wonderfully together, their pheromonal bodies functioning like magnetism. I also noted that herbal base with a connection to Magie Noire, though here the rose isn’t eclipsed; it rests on a green bed without hiding. There are similarities with L’Art de Gucci and Gucci No. 3, but Rabanne surpasses them with its musks. Finally, Paloma Picasso: whoever likes one will like the other, but I feel Paloma is darker, centred on the carnation and rose, more haughty, perhaps less human. Who wins on intensity? La Nuit by a small margin. It is a delight that awakens the senses. They say Guichard was based on the honeyed rose of Schiaparelli’s Shocking; there is a connection, but La Nuit runs with an advantage of nearly 50 years. Shocking remains an untouchable icon. So grateful to have come across this beauty from Paco Rabanne. If you like floral musk chypres, this must be in your collection.

@mariLou, it is a pity these works of art no longer exist; nowadays perfumes smell like a chemistry laboratory or a pharmacy.

A friend’s mother had a bottle of La Nuit and, with cunning, would spray a little on me in the bathroom. At ten years old, I preferred adult perfumes to colognes. It was ultra-sexual, furious, and arrogant, yet classy. The yellow liquid promised nothing good and delivered. It is a fragrance dry as glass, scandalous and animal, extremely sexual. I imagine a naked woman in furs or a man by the fire, like Conan the Barbarian. The Art Deco bottle, pure and unadorned, contrasted brilliantly with the interior. As it settled, the potent opening gave way to a wonderful aroma with civet, jasmine, woods, leather, and sweet honey. It is one of the best I have tried, just like the Gentleman by Givenchy, which I have worn since I was eighteen without getting tired of it. Everything I like about La Nuit is in Gentleman: the insolent opening and that animal, wild, calm, warm, and balsamic residue. They smell of skin, pure animal essence, fresh sweat, and life. I adore them.

WOW! A sweet, sexy, and dirty bomb, disgustingly spicy and therefore one of the best I have smelled. I am into rare scents, using things not everyone would use, and less so a man, and despite that, La Nuit made me fear it; I don’t know if I have the personality to wear it, but it is wonderful to smell on the skin. Opening of green herbs, vegetable sap, aroma of cut stems with tints of rose and geranium that give it an air of Rumba, followed by touches of honey that ‘cushion’ the algalia bomb that fills it from start to finish. There is nothing citrusy, soft, or fresh in it; at no moment does it give the senses a breath; I feel it inside my brain… stinging. It is a ‘big monster that steps heavily’, perhaps so much that it overwhelms. It smells of animal… of sex, and I cannot stop smelling it on my wrist. I have an eau de parfum bought from a collector who couldn’t stand it, and it will be a queen in my collection.

It smells of wild beast and passion to the max. I took a 30ml bottle without thinking twice. It has been out of catalogue for decades, but although I don’t use it myself, from time to time I put a few drops on my chest to remember that incredible woman I couldn’t have.