Noir Tom Ford 2012 Eau de Parfum

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7.7 / 10 748 Ratings

A popular perfume by Tom Ford for men, released in 2012. The scent is spicy-oriental. It is being marketed by Estēe Lauder Companies.
Pronunciation

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Main accords

Spicy

Oriental

Woody

Powdery

Sweet

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Violet

Pink pepper

Vervain

Caraway

Italian bergamot

Heart Notes

Bulgarian rose

Iris

Black pepper Orpur®

Clary sage

Egyptian geranium

Nutmeg

Base Notes

Indonesian patchouli

Opoponax

Benzoin Siam

Styrax

Amber

Leather

Vanilla

Vetiver

Civet

Perfumer

Olivier Gillotin

Videos

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Ratings

Scent

7.7748 Ratings

Longevity

7.6617 Ratings

Sillage

7.1624 Ratings

Bottle

7.3627 Ratings

Value for money

7.0299 Ratings

Submitted by Kankuro, last update on 23.04.2024.

Reviews

15 in-depth fragrance descriptions

09/29/2018

7
Bottle 7
Sillage 7
Longevity 8.5
Scent

SchatzSucher
107 Reviews

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SchatzSucher

Top Review 21

Not deep black but dark enough

Noir, Black, Black... It can't get any darker. Brighter however already.
Tom Fords Noir suggests the inclined consumer by the name Noir and the very simple, I would like to say almost unimaginative, very dark bottle something deep black, abysmally deep, enigmatic. which is to be enjoyed perhaps only with extreme caution and in smallest doses.
But in this case this is almost faking false facts, because I don't think Noir is deep black and dark. I would like to give the fragrance a very dark velvety red with a touch of blackness, that could fit quite well. A bit baroque, because the scent itself is very opulent and expansive.

There is a rather lavishly arranged orchestra playing a melody that is quite loud at the beginning. You get a little shaken up by the first chords. Pepper pricks a little bit in the nose, first sets the tone and then gives way to a very vigorously ruched violet. It is quite amazing how much radiance such a small, normally rather inconspicuous flower can have. It's probably the chords around it that have made the violet so distinct and that it is so present and remains so for a long time.

The other flowery and spicy chords stay a little behind, play second fiddle so to speak and make sure that the melody is softened a little, but still clearly audible. Later the still leading violet is supported by a strong note of patchouli, which fits perfectly to the violet,
Finally, fine traces of civet, leather and vanilla are mixed in, but only in the background and supporting. Violets and patchouli remain in the foreground. But a course in the scent melody from loud to quiet is well recognizable and beautifully worked out.

Tom Ford is well known for his not exactly low self-confidence. You can transfer that to the scent very well. The fragrance is self-confident and expressive.
But one or two small weaknesses cannot be denied. One could assume that such a composition should be a monster of durability and projection. That's not quite so.
You are well noticed but you don't fill an entire concert hall with the scent. And the shelf life is also rather average, it ends after about 6 hours. There would have been some air to the top.
Nevertheless Noir is a successful composition, which I like very much and which I like to wear.
The opulence fits very well into the coming cold season and the quite interesting fragrance does not make Noir boring.
I also find that the fragrance also passes through as unisex. Flowery-spicy I would like to call him also gladly and for evening very well suitably, even if I had him today times again with to the work.

You could have thought of a little more with the bottle. It's a bit very plain. But there are less attractive flacons.
If you are looking for an opulent fragrance that is not too exhausting and overloaded, and a lush violet that harmonizes with strong patchouli, this is the place for you. And if one is not deterred by the somewhat misleading designation Noir as well. If the whole thing might seem too loud or even too feminine to you, you won't enjoy it here.
I like Noir as he is,

09/08/2019

6
Bottle 9
Sillage 9
Longevity 10
Scent

Carpintero
46 Reviews

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Carpintero

Very helpful Review 16

Dark Magic?

In Utrecht, Holland, I first came across Noir from Tom Ford. Actually I wasn't looking for a fragrance at all, I just wanted to drop by this well-known perfumery for fun, to maybe enjoy the one or other fragrance.

What I was looking for, the employee asked me, who, as it turned out, was actually a teacher by profession and works in this perfumery every second Saturday only because of her hobby and her love for the fragrances
After nothing at all, I replied and added, I just want to discover something new that not everyone has.

You know Tom Ford, she asked me.
Sure, of course, why?

She sprayed Noir on a test strip for me. I knew Tom Ford well, I had lived in Arabia for some years in the past, in the boutiques and luxury malls there you simply can't get past TF.

On the strip I found the scent good, yes, even very good, but I couldn't imagine how such a scent would work on my skin.
The lady filled me a sample, which I tested extensively when I arrived home. Applied to the skin, I immediately fell in love with this fragrance, durability and Sillage striking for a good 8 to 10 hours. So a few weeks later I bought the 50 ml bottle of TF Noir - the 100 ml bottle was no longer available and that evening there was a full 20% on all the fragrances in the perfumery I trusted, so I only had the 50 ml bottle of this enchanting fragrance.

The term 'enchanting' is deliberately chosen, as the fragrance definitely has some dark magic. I would like to renounce the name 'black' consciously at this point.

The fresh start in this magic show starts with intense bergamot, sweet violets and a hard load of pepper. The fragrance is so fresh and so breathtakingly cold and at the same time cuddly warm and loving. The pink pepper mixed with this strikingly intense bouquet of flowers is new territory, quite unusual, surprisingly fresh and detached, and yet it radiates security and love.
The intensive, fresh start lasts for some time.

The bright pink pepper is replaced after about one and a half to two hours by the smooth black pepper, the flowery freshness turns at the same time into a now flowery mystery, whereby I cannot say whether it is the iris or the Bulgarian rose that triggers this dark profundity, or whether it is probably more the interplay of pepper, iris, rose and clary sage, that enchants me and everyone around me so unbelievably loud and yet lovingly and gently.

A few hours later it gets deeper, darker, more mysterious. One would think that the scent would have to slowly fade, become shallower and closer to the skin. But it won't, it will, as I said before, be much deeper than one could ever assume. Pepper in all its forms has vanished, as have rose and iris. Now the woods together with patchouli and vanilla start to set the tone for me - but the vanilla doesn't become any more pompous or boring but makes this scent even more exciting than it was before.
To the end this incredible scent enchants, it is loud and profound at the same time, it is magic, whole, very dark magic - but not the magic of death or even a curse, but exactly the mysterious and mysterious, deep dark and enchanting magic, which one also experiences in the moments of indescribable happiness: the longing of Eichendorff's Moon Night paired with the tension of the Panther von Rilke: a mild summer night, in which one walks barefoot alone at full moon over the damp grass of the meadows swimming in the moonlight, the security of the home paired with an inescapable longing for distance, completely freedom-loving and completely happy about this wonderful and yet so imperfect moment, no longer searching but only excited and tense, what would happen in the next moment, if one meets exactly then his great love.

05/03/2020

8
Bottle 8
Sillage 8
Longevity 9.5
Scent

KnowThis30
12 Reviews

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KnowThis30

Very helpful Review 13

The nocturnal shadow

Intention:
Noir...the dark, the black and the night...depending on the current state and situation maybe even the abyss, are words that are often used for fragrances with this label.
Surely not fundamentally wrong for this work from Tom Ford, but it would not do justice to the actual depth - which does not go far or exactly right. Because when I think of really "dark" scents, I think of Noir de Noir - also by Tom Ford - or the Encre series (not all) by Lalique. Yes, the bottle might suggest it, but "Noir" is bright enough for everyday use, the small, shadowy light in the night room.

Relation:
Let us clarify in advance: No, "Noir" bears a resemblance to almost none of its namesakes from the "Noir" series! While "Noir Extreme" is a sweetish gourmand and "Noir Anthracite" has a rather woody touch, only the "Noir EdT" resembles the original EdP to some extent. Unlike the EdP, the EdT reduces its floral notes and instead focuses on citric and minty components. An equivalent fragrance with a relevant financial saving compared to an eau de parfum? No! As the bottle also suggests, it's a fresher version for those for whom EdP is "too much".

Scent:
But what does "Noir" smell like? Well, first of all I have to say that I was able to experience like no other of my fragrances how differently testers in my environment perceived "Noir"! From "slightly sweetish" to "I find the smell of leather nice" to "smells somehow old-fashioned" there was almost everything to hear, which is why I will stick to my own perception here.
While in the top note the violet in particular reigns with a splash of freshness due to the bergamot used, the base is made up of the combination of components such as amber, vanilla and
Patchouli creates and forms a pleasantly sweet, but also rough - here especially the vetiver, leather and styrax - base helps.
The violet can give a feeling of the teeth of time, especially with younger noses, while the violet for
this house gladly used basis with fans and enthusiasts will not necessarily provide for joy jumps.
It is the heart note that makes this fragrance so special to me!
It is the rose geranium, the iris and the Bulgarian rose that are allowed to play the largest and most long-lasting chord in this fragrance creation for my nose, especially since it is allowed to creep into the base note for a fraction of its life span.
If I were forced to describe "Tom Ford Noir" in as few words as possible, it would be: "Noble" and "Floral"!

Sillage and shelf life:
Shall we make it short? Sillage and durability are good! Just good? Yes, actually "just" good! Within its fragrance range it is - on my skin - "Noir Extreme", which has the longest shelf life. Nevertheless, "Noir" does much more than the EdT and "Noir Anthracite" can do! Although the EdT is able to radiate more strongly in the top note because of the citric components, it is very weak in the middle note compared to the EdP!
And the "anthracite"? Let's just drop it, okay? It's a beautiful scent, but unfortunately it doesn't stand out more on my skin in any category.
In terms of time, we are talking about about 15 minutes for the top note, about 2.5 to 3.5 hours for the heart note and another 4 hours for the base note - a total of about 7 to 8 hours of pleasure.

Application:
When it comes to the possibilities for use, the bottle should not be deceived. Gladly also used for work, "Noir" has not yet managed to attract anybody's negative attention. But in general, this bottle does attract attention
Smell wonderful! Modern enough for today's time, this fragrance still retains enough of the characteristics of the last decades and is able to peer through the - soon to be felt only appearing - aquatic and "blue" fragrances! For the summer or warmer months: no problem! At least if you reduce the number of sprays, as the heart note in particular with its floral components reacts a little differently to the temperature and the sweaty skin. Not unpleasant or bad, but just a little different!
Flacon:
Opinions about the flacon can be divided! Even if the fragrance isn't as dark as mentioned at the beginning, the bottle with its dark glass and cap sells this intention excellently. The lettering - both on the bottle and in initials on the cap - is easy to recognise and read, but does not stand out from the overall picture The spray head does its job - there is hardly more to mention here. It does what it is supposed to do, but is inferior for miles to those of Dior or Chanel.
And you can hold whatever you want over the cap: while the bottle is valuable and stable, the fluted cap is made of the simplest plastic and its light weight alone suggests its lack of value. However, the extent to which you would like to evaluate a fragrance on the basis of the bottle should be decided by each individual. Surely there would have been more in it, but that would have had a direct impact on the price.

Price:
In terms of price, "Noir" is - in the meantime - ranked in an acceptable category for designer fragrances. Represented in the company's own Signature line and now almost eight years old, "Noir" may still cost 80 to 90 € for 50 ml in the local store, but due to its "age" it can be obtained for much less money from an online discounter. Without guarantee, but still for orientation: I could buy my second bottle for 54,90 € incl. shipping!

A special thanks:
Even if she will probably never read it, I would like to say a small thank you to the competent specialist saleswoman (who in the meantime may enjoy her pension well-deservedly), who suggested this fragrance to me. Amusingly enough, with "Habit Rouge" by Guerlain as a present standing at the cash register - it was shortly after shop opening time on a dreary day with already little public traffic - she went without further ado to the back of the warehouse and brought out a tester of "Tom Ford Noir". Without further ado explained
she, the fragrance had not sold very well so far, which is why it should now elapse in the warehouse and leave room on the shelf for another fragrance.
So I still left the shop with "Habit Rouge" as a present under my arm and a half-full 50ml test bottle of "Noir" for a symbolic price of a few Euros.

10/06/2020

8
Pricing 9
Bottle 7
Sillage 8
Longevity 8
Scent

ChrisG86
10 Reviews

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ChrisG86

Helpful Review 12

Noir - A Detective Story

Darkness. Rain. Shadows on the streets.

Allow me. Thomas McFord, private investigator.

For days I've been holed up in my little dark office in Chicago. An occasional glance through the windows, which were darkened by blinds, was my only contact to the outside world. Now and then I saw people walking across the street like passing shadows. The light from the lanterns and car headlights reflected on the rainy paths. In my gloomy office I could no longer distinguish between day and night. The smell of darkness was in the air. It smelled strongly of exotic spices, even oriental. Was it my coat that gave off this smell? Probably, because a few days ago I visited an old friend in the Orient quarter not far from here. He runs a grocery store there with a wide selection of oriental spices. Anyway
Actually, after my last assignment I wanted to take a vacation with my wife Jessica. See something different. For too long I'd been neglecting our marriage. My job was too important to me. And now she's gone. I don't blame her. She's gone to live with her mother for now. She must have left sometime while I was at work. In a farewell letter she told me that she had imagined our marriage differently and that she couldn't bear to look me in the eye to say goodbye. She took her belongings from our apartment. The only thing I had left of her was a scarf hanging from my wardrobe in the office. She must have left it here on her last visit months ago. It had a faint smell of patchouli. She always put some of the oil on her clothes.
A last memento of a person who became a stranger to me a long time ago.

On top of that, Betty, my longtime assistant, had quit. She had found a better position. Her desk in the anteroom had been cleared out. I could still detect the powdery scent of her make-up. Betty always set great store by a neat appearance.

You might think of me as leading a lonely and dreary life. But why don't I feel that way myself?

This morning, it must have been about 7:00, someone knocked on my office door. "Come in," I said.
A young lady in a beige coat and sunglasses came in. She was wearing black high heels. She wore a black collar. Her hair was black as the night and short to the neck.

I asked what I could do for her. She said she was looking for an old friend who'd been missing for weeks. She needs the help of a detective.
When she took off her glasses I was captivated by her gaze. She was beautiful.
"You should go to the police, sweetheart," I said, not letting myself think that I had briefly faint at the sight of them. She replied that she had already been there. But they could not help her. "All right," she said. I took off her coat and suddenly a beguiling scent of roses surrounded me. Such magic. The sweetness of vanilla was added to it. How tempting. With every move, she scented my office.
Under her coat she wore a tight red dress, which perfectly set off her fabulous figure. Everything about her was incredibly attractive to me
"Please, just sit down and tell me what happened," I said
I sat down behind my desk, closed my eyes and while I listened to the beautiful stranger, I heard all these smells in the air, which merged into a harmonious unity and illuminated the room at once.

The End...
------------------------------------------------------------
When scents fire the imagination.

See you soon.

Peace!

01/18/2013

6
Scent

Greysolon
74 Reviews

Greysolon

Top Review 9

Noir or Soir?

We often speak of the aesthetics of perfume and music as being analogous. The two arts even share descriptive terms. For instance, we speak of notes and accords (or chords). There is also the analogy of the scent pyramid functioning as a complex triad of notes just like a musical chord, arpeggio or even an entire composition. I would like to add one more item to the list of analogies: the similarities of naming a piece music or a perfume. One could go into some depth on this topic but I’ll stick to the genre of musical works known as “character pieces”. Don’t worry, this isn’t a music lesson! I’ll get around to how this applies to Tom Ford Noir very soon.

In music, character pieces have titles meant to evoke a general mood, feeling or character. If you’ve ever been to a classical concert or taken music lessons as a child you’ve probably heard of these titles: preludes, caprices, nocturnes, impromptus, arabesques. These names have nothing to do with a specific musical form, like a symphony or a sonata. They are simply meant to place the listener in a broadly understood musical environment.

By analogy, character pieces also exist in perfumery. Think how often the words soir, nuit, sensuelle, fraiche, sport and noir are used in the name of a perfume. These words don’t tell us the specific genre of a fragrance (like a chypre or oriental) nor do they tell us the dominant ingredient or note of the scent. The “character piece” word in the name of the fragrance simply indicates a general mood or enviroment the perfumer would like us to experience while wearing a fragrance: Allure Sensuelle, Rose de Nuit, or Tom Ford Noir. Unfortunately, Tom Ford Noir is far from what I’d describe as a “noir" character piece.

Our present day usage of the word “noir”, with its strong connection to French and American cinema of the 40's and 50's, has come to imply a sensual, moody or mysterious quality. Think of the movie Double Indemnity with Fred McMurray and Barbara Stanwick and how they are drawn to each other by a dark, lascivious obsession that is dangerously beyond their control. With that in mind, noir doesn’t simply refer to some general tonality or feeling of darkness. I imagine a stereotypically noir perfume as a character piece consisting of notes such as smoky vetivers, tobacco, patchouli, dark florals, animalics or perhaps bitter, pungent herbs and spices. Notes that would give a carnal edginess to an overall dark tonality to create a sense of intrigue and desire.

In fact, Tom Ford Noir has some of those darker, edgier elements listed in its notes: Civet, black pepper, patchouli. But those notes, rather than providing the elements of the noir character piece, simply supply a pleasant depth and warmth to the fragrance. It is a perfume ruled by homogenous, dark florals (another "noir" opportunity missed) tempered by an equal dose of amber and vanilla. Kind of a lite version of Noir de Noir from Tom Ford’s luxury line which, by contrast, has a dark, decadent, sensual noir quality.

Honestly, Tom Ford Noir is not a bad fragrance. It’s warm, pleasant, comfortable, and conventional. In a way, I can understand its attraction. I liked it enough that, while testing it, I wore it to a concert last night. I felt certain it would not bother those in the audience seated next to me. It was nice and mannerly; not noir.

So why all the fuss about calling it “noir”? Because last night I could have picked from many other fragrances that would have been just as nice, conventional and mannerly. However, some of those fragrances might have had the descriptive word “soir” in the title. Soir, with its connotation of a pleasurably warm and gentle evening, seems more fitting to the truly benign character of Tom Ford Noir.

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