Tam Dao 2003 Eau de Toilette

Tam Dao (Eau de Toilette) by Diptyque
Bottle Design Servaire&Co
We may earn a commission when you buy from links on our site, including the eBay Partner Network and Amazon.
7.4 / 10 460 Ratings
Tam Dao (Eau de Toilette) is a perfume by Diptyque for women and men and was released in 2003. The scent is woody-spicy. It is being marketed by Manzanita Capital. Pronunciation
We may earn a commission when you buy from links on our site, including the eBay Partner Network and Amazon.

Main accords

Woody
Spicy
Green
Fresh
Powdery

Fragrance Notes

Mysore sandalwoodMysore sandalwood CedarCedar CypressCypress MyrtleMyrtle

Perfumer

Ratings
Scent
7.4460 Ratings
Longevity
6.4360 Ratings
Sillage
5.8351 Ratings
Bottle
7.8339 Ratings
Value for money
6.3123 Ratings
Submitted by DirkDS, last update on 08.04.2024.

Reviews

18 in-depth fragrance descriptions
9
Scent
Stulle

11 Reviews
Translated Show original Show translation
Stulle
Stulle
Top Review 55  
Time Travel
In the late eighties, ceramic scent lamps were very fashionable. At the bottom you put a tea light in, at the top you put some water in a bowl to evaporate and then you added a few drops of scented oil. I actually only remember ylang-ylang, which created a numbingly heavy but insanely fascinating and erotic atmosphere.

Now I've smelled TAM DAO for the first time, and it has flung me back to that era unabated - sandalwood was, of course, the most popular scent for those little lights! May contemporaries correct me, but I think 90% of all young ladies had one of these in their chambers. No visit to the adored/adored creatures without a tea light flickering and occasionally, in the heat of, er, discussion, completely forgetting to light a new one after it went out.

It is also entirely within the realm of possibility that a not inconsiderable number of our younger perfumos were conceived to this very scent. Perhaps the sandalwood children could just get this almost incidental information out of their parents for me without any obligation...

But not everything was so romantic at the time. I had a colleague with whom I started an apprenticeship at the same time after graduating from high school. Sympathy at first sight, and M. was a funny, but at the same time also in itself resting person, with which one did not come at all into the proximity of an argument. Night-long discussions about God and the world, as they are just standard at this age.

Since just at the transition to the nineties the triumphant advance of the personal computer began and M. was not quite unfortunate from home, he had of course such a box in the apartment (wow, he had his own apartment, while all friends of the same age still had to live with parents!). So we spent many days and nights with the then brand new game MONKEY ISLAND! With the obsessive potential we both had, weeks went by before we had played through the game (there were no tutorials to be found online yet). And in the background, non-stop, the eternally simmering fragrance lamp with - sandalwood oil!

As life is then, we parted ways. I had my plans, and M. dümpeln so a bit in a "decent" job. Life purpose was not, but good money, and so he could then every weekend a little too much drinking over the villages and through the (small) cities and let it rip. Occasionally and with growing frequency then also on weekdays and in the morning.
At some point they stopped seeing each other, but I heard much later that he had been out too much with strange people. More, much more alcohol and plenty of drugs; his psyche only took it all to a certain point, and at some point he couldn't take it anymore. And then he didn't want to.

*

They say that someone still exists as long as a person thinks about them. That's what I'm doing, and I'm putting an imaginary stone on your grave, which I never saw, dear M.

*

TAM DAO is just that deep and warm sandalwood smell that reminds me of the intense time of that friendship, of growing up, of existential questions, of doubting and guessing, of unbridled curiosity, of an uncertain, exciting future, and also of another very long and very intense love story.
The perfume has a light, cypress and woody tone and remains relatively unsweet on me. Nothing distracting, everything fits and makes sense, to me it seems structured and transparent. Just as when you look back into the past, you can suddenly see clearly the path you have walked until today.

I did not even know until now that I can like sandalwood so well and have also experienced no fragrance of this orientation so emotional and moving. Wat nu? 10 points for the time travel, 8.5 points already for the fragrance - a bottling must be here to trace this fascination even further.

To the old times!
24 Comments
8
Sillage
8
Longevity
10
Scent
MisterShaver

9 Reviews
Translated Show original Show translation
MisterShaver
MisterShaver
Top Review 21  
What's that smell?
... asks the nice waitress at the Resturant. I had Tam Dao in my pocket as a sample when I bought it and had it on completely unsuspectingly. It has provided that evening for long conversations.
Now I can see it is slightly woody, it has something creamy and maybe that's why the association with vanilla comes along. The rose is rather in the background, but amber and musk are also perceptible. And all in a nice order. But what remains from the beginning is with me the creaminess.
The thought of a forest clearing is somehow there, but the image of dark woods is also present. All times it is a fragrance that fits very well into a dignified bar with fine gin. A jazz band plays light evening music and a light breeze blows through the open balcony doors, smelling of fresh rain on dry forest ground. Just such a lukewarm autumn evening when summer is still so long in October. In the room you can hear the gentle rustling of the dresses from the ladies, a cigar is lit, some ice cubes clink in the glass, other scents make their way through the room from time to time or pass with their straps ....
Perfect! Perfect! And I feel safe and cozy enveloped by my Tam Dao scent. Sit back, enjoy. Slowly the sun is setting behind the horizon as a glowing red ball ... That's all it takes.
1 Comment
8
Bottle
6
Sillage
6
Longevity
7
Scent
Taurus

309 Reviews
Translated Show original Show translation
Taurus
Taurus
Helpful Review 12  
A lot of fuss about dust-dry sandalwood
Tam Dao reminds me of "Upper Ten" by Lubin right from the first snort. To be fair, it should be the other way around, because the latter came on the market 12 years later. So I'm honestly saying that Tam Dao definitely passed by my nose for 17 years, but I've heard the name more often than not
For all those who do not know one or the other fragrance: Tam Dao is a really very dust-dry sandalwood creation with a good pinch of myrtle and some cedar. It comes extremely woody and spicy, and you think you'll notice some amber, musk and a few drops of rose oil later on.

This would be relatively similar to the Upper Ten, except that the Upper Ten seems a bit creamier and has a good pinch of cinnamon, so that the association with cola is relatively close.

Correspondingly, the upper ten is ahead of me personally, even if this is currently reflected somewhat differently in the overall perfume ratio of 7.5 to 7.3.

Surely a sultry hot day is not the best condition to test the rather autumnal Tam Dao, but my imagination and experience are sufficient to know that it has this nerve potential with me, although it is made of high quality and additionally brings a fine spicy-sweet smoky note into play.
Probably the most people will love this the most, but the whole thing around it is a bit too exhausting for me.

Therefore: interestingly made material for sandalwood species, but I would not overrate it.
11 Comments
6
Pricing
9
Bottle
6
Sillage
6
Longevity
8.5
Scent
Genoveva

14 Reviews
Translated Show original Show translation
Genoveva
Genoveva
Helpful Review 15  
Cabinet
Inside the closet it is dry and warm. All sounds from outside are muffled and her own voice sounds strangely hollow and muffled. The smell of fresh wood calms her, almost makes her sleepy. But there is something else, a distant woodsy-green scent. She hears a door from afar, they are calling her. But they won't find her, she thinks contentedly. The room is not yet furnished except for the new, empty closet. She misses her old room, even though it was much smaller and consisted only of old furniture that had been thrown together. The door slams back into the lock. She carefully unfolds the bag of peanuts she has with her. Actually, she's not hungry. But it's always good to be prepared. She gingerly opens the closet door, which squeaks a bit. The room lies before her, empty and full of untold stories. The evening sun falls through the window, a golden veil spreads over her face....
15 Comments
7
Pricing
10
Bottle
7
Sillage
8
Longevity
5.5
Scent
Loopmer

19 Reviews
Translated Show original Show translation
Loopmer
Loopmer
2  
Memories of the 90s
Diptyque....I love yes the appearance of this manufacturer. The designs, the
Internet presence, the Instagram account are absolutely aesthetic and meet my taste to 101%. However, there is one problem for me and that is unfortunately the fragrances! I have ordered so many samples and absolutely every one reminds me of fragrances of the 80/90s, which I found as a child in the bathroom cabinet of my parents. Also, many scents seem floral and feminine. Not so with Tam Dao, at least that's what I thought for a while. Tested it a few weeks ago in a branch, of a luxury goods supplier. "Nice fragrance" I thought to myself and so I ordered a sample.

Full of anticipation, I sprayed the fragrance on me tonight. The prelude is like the first test: woody, dry and masculine. This dust-dry fragrance is absolutely what for me. Simple, but still very present. Unfortunately, however, Tam Dao developed today in a direction that again seems somehow feminine to me. The wood moved a bit into the background and a creamy sweetness mixed in. I absolutely did not perceive this in my first test. I've had a few sandalwood fragrances that naturally sprayed the typical creamy notes, but this one is particularly sweet. Maybe it's because of the temperatures, which were around 20 degrees again tonight. Has something of vanilla about it. The mix of soft wood and the sweetness doesn't smell bad, however, it just doesn't suit a strong man like me. Already almost feminine the scent on my skin and remained unchanged after this turnaround. Perhaps it is simply the beautiful designs that have influence on my expectation.

After 6 hours, the scent was unfortunately still perceptible, which is why I was glad to finally lie in the bath and wash it off.

I will definitely try the sample again times, maybe I like it at colder temperatures again as good as the first test.

I leave now times the fingers of Diptyque fragrances and look then but rather the beautiful designs.
1 Comment
More reviews

Statements

6 short views on the fragrance
HermeshHermesh 1 year ago
8
Bottle
6
Sillage
6
Longevity
7.5
Scent
Delicate sandalwood with green notes. Powderiness and moisture of the wood skilfully combined. Delicacy costs sillage and durability here.
0 Comments
PedroCabralPedroCabral 2 years ago
8
Bottle
6
Sillage
6
Longevity
7.5
Scent
This sandalwood is wonderful! Too bad the performance is poor...
0 Comments
GreMuserGreMuser 2 years ago
8
Bottle
4
Sillage
4
Longevity
5.5
Scent
Very light and inoffensive sandalwood, very weak in performances, not worth the price.
0 Comments
Sterben9225Sterben9225 10 days ago
9
Scent
While not real mysore sandalwood it is still beautiful, creamy and spongy. Has a nice spicy/herbal greenness. Performance not that bad on me
0 Comments
Topfpflanze3Topfpflanze3 1 year ago
7
Bottle
7
Sillage
7
Longevity
5.5
Scent
So dry that you think you sniff pure tannins. You get thirsty just smelling it no joke. Dry woody and slightly spicy. A pass for me
0 Comments
More statements

Charts

This is how the community classifies the fragrance.
Pie Chart Radar Chart

Images

25 fragrance photos of the community
More images

Popular by Diptyque

Philosykos (Eau de Toilette) by Diptyque Philosykos (Eau de Parfum) by Diptyque Eau Duelle (Eau de Toilette) by Diptyque Eau Duelle (Eau de Parfum) by Diptyque Fleur de Peau (Eau de Parfum) by Diptyque Orphéon by Diptyque 34 Boulevard Saint Germain (Eau de Toilette) by Diptyque Tempo by Diptyque L'Eau Papier by Diptyque Tam Dao (Eau de Parfum) by Diptyque Volutes (Eau de Parfum) by Diptyque L'Ombre dans L'Eau (Eau de Toilette) by Diptyque Eau Capitale (Eau de Parfum) by Diptyque Oud Palao by Diptyque Do Son (Eau de Toilette) by Diptyque Eau des Sens (Eau de Toilette) by Diptyque Eau Rose (Eau de Toilette) by Diptyque Vetyverio (Eau de Toilette) by Diptyque Eau de Minthé by Diptyque Ilio (Eau de Toilette) by Diptyque