Must de Cartier Cartier 1981 Eau de Toilette

Must de Cartier (Eau de Toilette) by Cartier

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Must de Cartier (Eau de Toilette) (Cartier)

8.3 / 10296 Ratings

Must de Cartier (Eau de Toilette) is a popular perfume by Cartier for women and was released in 1981. The scent is oriental-spicy. The longevity is above-average. It is still available to purchase. Pronunciation

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Perfumer

Jean-Jacques Diener

Fragrance Notes

Top Notes	Galbanum Mandarin orange Neroli
Heart Notes	Jasmine Narcissus Rose
Base Notes	Musk Vanilla Vetiver

Ratings

Scent

8.3296 Ratings

Longevity

8.8224 Ratings

Sillage

7.7216 Ratings

Bottle

7.2205 Ratings

Value for money

7.816 Ratings

Submitted by Sani, last update on 02.03.2022.

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Reviews

02/14/2022

5.5
Scent 10
Longevity 8
Sillage 8
Bottle 6
Pricing

Anamandy
45 Reviews

Anamandy

A Cozy Scent

The present-day reformulated Eau de Toilet is very nice. I used to have a vintage Eau de Parfum but my niece liked it so much I gave it to her. It smelled great on her too.

Missing it, I purchased the latest edt and couldn't be happier. Scent-wise, it isn't much different. Lighter yes, but composition, the same. Sure, it's not as rich as the vintage, especially since I had it in edp strength before, but it isn't as terrible as I was expecting it to be. Actually, for a reformulation I think it's very well done as it doesn't smell synthetic at all. I don't think it's outstanding or earth shattering, nor do I feel it's sultry or seductive, but to be honest, I never thought of it that way even when I had the vintage edp. I always thought of it as just a nice cozy scent perfect for chilly days.

Honestly, this really isn't my house as not many of their perfumes are appealing to me; but out of all the Cartier scents I've tried to date, (and I've tried quite a few), I think this is one of my favorites. Considering that this is a reformulation I think Cartier did a great job, especially in light of the restrictive confines they've had to work within today.

If you must get a vintage there are plenty of bottles available online; but if you like the overall scent and are not particular that a few little nuances might have been lost in the reformulation, this is a nice alternative.

08/16/2021

Doctorflower

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Doctorflower

Megabanger

The eau de toilette is a statement, a distinctive one. I don't even want to know how the perfume is, it probably goes in the direction of miracle. So it's been on the market for quite a long time and was declared as a women's water at the time. I am a man and it makes me feel masculine. Don't feel like I'm the only one either. The musk is a supporting pillar, not for nothing so often a base, and be careful with musk! If the surrounding doesn't tame it or include it, it becomes more of a problem. Here it gives the rest something immortal, mysterious, forcing the actual sunshine of the water into a melange and symbiosis with time, and so there are no real words to describe what the eau actually is. A wonder. A reaction to God, and he perceives it.

6 Replies

01/01/2019

10
Scent 8
Longevity 8
Sillage 9
Bottle 3
Pricing

Jazzy76
320 Reviews

Jazzy76

Must ...wear!

This fragrance is a piece of my memories of child. I remember that it was my mother's scent in wintertime and she sprayed it mainly when she wore her mink coat, status symbol of the glorious Eighties.
I was too Young and my nose didin't like so much this fragrance so opulent and warm-spicy...but time goes by, tastes changes and after many years I would smell again this scent I've found on my favourite drugstore's shelves . The result? love at first smell. I immediately knew the reason of its name: this scent is a MUST and you cannot stop smelling it after you've sprayed it on the mouillette and on the skin too!
The first notes are soft and fruity: mandarin and a neroli not too bitter but very round and feminine. The Galbanum touch is noticeable and gives a stronger character to the opening accord. Then, at athe heart, a true garden of delights: rose, vibrant Jasmine and rose. The quintessence of feminity and sensuality. Finally, an almost "masculine" musk-vetiver base madre warmer, sweeter and rounder by a wonderful vanilla touch.
It's a perfect symphony staying on your skin for hours and hours even in this edt version, with a very satisfactory and charming sillage. I'd recommend to wear this edt by day with a fur or in the mid season by night too.
Extremely refined in its simplicity the bottle recalling the oval shape, one of symbols of the Maison Cartier.
The price is high but not impossible (Chanel's,Tom Ford's and Eisenberg's creations are more expensive!) for this myth of the Eighties that to me remains an evergreen in the contemporary perfumery. I love it and wearing it could be like felling my mother 's scented hug.

2 Replies

11/10/2018

10
Scent 8
Longevity 7
Sillage 8
Bottle

Whiff

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Whiff

Top Review 25

I don't even know...

...how long it's been since I've even noticed Must de Cartier.?

It is a revelation to explain how different and special this fluid works in my nose.

Earlier, 30 years ago, there was an acquaintance and a friend alike who wore this fragrance frequently:
Detlef was a popper, and liked Depeche Mode and other pop bands at the time. A cool guy who was soft somewhere.

My girlfriend Moni (who I have known for 35 years) always played the violin. Always loud, always in a hurry and always up to date. At that time we were 14 years old and full of the desire to experience. - and we were out with Detlef a lot.

We didn't know anything that was too dangerous for us to get into our favorite disco. Some of us hitchhiked about 45 km. Once there was also a Turkish bull with us; with Mustafa and Fatmah; they took us with them. They were the most humane in the country, because there was no one else who drove long. So you were our salvation!!! Yeahhh!

Now we come to the point:
The smell of Cartier must de; is so horny that you don't get off...
You don't smell it in places where you sprayed it on, but it envelops you like a silk cape and it surpasses your most foolhardy thoughts. It becomes your own aura, so to speak.
Must really is a must because you can't vote it out once you've sprayed it on. He sticks and stays with you... Deep, deep, animal earth.

If you foolhardy perfume junkies want to read something I can't offer, because of its ingredients, then forgive me, because I know what feeling it triggers in me.... deep security and home, then be aware that I am not an omniscient. ;-D

I had some respect for him, because I've never had a Cartier before... i've always dismissed watches and jewelry in general, but never knew what beautiful fragrances Cartier created.
How special every single minute can smell if you consciously use your nose.

I can say a lot about the fragrance, but the most important thing I think is the feeling of having arrived home and a hunt that took years, where you compared and tried and yet nothing was good enough for you... Yesterday when I intoxicated myself with this fragrance, I felt how body-hugging and lovable this fragrance is.

So Cartier doesn't stand for cold stones and show, but has a very special way to enchant.
I'm flying high right now and you're all in!

Thanks to the condition that I liked to sniff at a Cartier from the 90s, I also thank Detlef, who gave me this memory.

We lived our time in the disco and we slept during the day - while we danced at night - and smelled good.
And I like to smell good today just like I used to.

The best thing is to go to bed with a scent that envelops your memories and your future.
I love Must de Cartier.....

7 Replies

10/20/2018

Byronia

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Byronia

Helpful Review 17

Copies - or the expulsion from paradise

I've known MdC since the '80s. At that time I took this fragrance for granted. In a world of Kouros, Eau Sauvage Extreme, a decade that wanted to be just that: extreme!
Only Bowie weakened in those days and left a mainstream cloud behind, which probably celebrated the masses as a hit (Chinagirl e.g.), but the fans as a tear. You could buy Jean Louis Scherrer for 29,95 DM, it was a better Ellen Betrix perfume and Guhl Harrshampoo was still available in the small glass bottles with the ingenious peach scent. But Must de Cartier was in Olympus. Not so much because of the price - although 100 DM was already a house number at that time - more of its noble presentation and packaging and of course because of its scent with its beguiling heaviness...there was nothing comparable point. I was able to save a pitiful remnant into modern times and the bottle bobbed a shadowy existence in the truest sense of the word next to the original Vintage Dioressence...until - yes, until a coincidence - some call it cleaning up in old boxes - brought the bottle back to the surface. I closed my eyes and there it was again, that magic, that hunch of a paradise that had to lie on this side.
In short, I wanted it. When I rushed to the perfumery, I was struck by the blow...THE CONNECTION OF NOT BEING CARTIER'S SERIOUS...the copy of something that was once perfect is even worse than a cheap Rossmann fragrance, which doesn't necessarily have to be bad, by the way. Then you'd better stamp it and reminisce!
I found what I was looking for on the internet, where else, and got hold of the Vintage EDT. I'm grateful for that. And - I'm currently in the MdC madness. I also bought the vintage perfume, only a few ml, are unfortunately not there yet. But I will sign it with perfection! I refuse to rate the new EDT, I am just extreme - either completely or not at all :-)

3 Replies

10/11/2014

8
Scent 7.5
Longevity 7.5
Sillage 8
Bottle

Fanny
66 Reviews

Fanny

Helpful Review 3

I Must, You Must...

For some time, about 8 years back, I tried, and then dismissed Must for being too easy, as I did with a couple of other big perfumes (L'Heure Bleu par example..., which is now a favourite) : I was still on a long term quest for 'something really special' to replace Opium.
Now, out of curiosity, I ordered Must, because I could not remember exactly how it smelled, the quest is over and I know my taste fluctuates:

It is sweet, but it is with leather and a fine citrus!
It is sweet, but it is heavy!

Orange fluid rules and so do the late seventies!
(1981, to be precise and the fluid really is orange, not at all like the picture)

09/24/2014

6
Scent 7.5
Longevity 2.5
Sillage 10
Bottle

Sleuth
30 Reviews

Sleuth

Disappointed with the EDT

I'm disappointed with the (current) EDT because the dry down doesn't have enough sillage. It smells watered down. Also I smell very little amber. I have to apply 6 or 7 sprays (drenched) to get acceptable sillage. It's mostly a nice vanilla scent.

Having said that, and considering the low price I paid at a (reliable) online discounter, Must de Cartier EDT still has quite a lot of interesting notes: Short-lasting amber nicely combined with galbanum, warm spices, a very small amount of carnation, a nice vanilla that seems woody, and in the end vanilla plus some patchouli.

I find it interesting but not satisfying. Be aware of what you're buying.

08/29/2014

8
Scent 10
Longevity 7.5
Sillage 7.5
Bottle

Tessa
81 Reviews

Tessa

No if, no and, no but! It's a Must

You MUST let this scent perform its magic without, necessarily , following the pyramid of notes.
You MUST listen to it calling you to enter other dimensions of the world. It is spring and winter at the same time. It is dew and dust. It is rock crystal and opac onyx. All in one .
A dusty rose transports you in an italian palazzo and its vaulted ceilings. Inhale the aroma of mandarines piled on the corner table and open the windows to let the warmth of the last autumn days welcome you. Who said it was autumn? It is summer and the deep scent of flowers is the proof. What a beautiful summer morning! Who said it is a summer morning? You MUST be dreamming! It is a cold winter day, the windows are covered in mystical drawings . I am in Denmark , in Andersen's fairy world and feel like the little girl who was creating her dream places at the spark of a match stick.
One MUST keep the dream alive.

11/15/2012

LiliumLibido
51 Reviews

LiliumLibido

Helpful Review 5

When wealth brings comfort, you get Must de Cartier

Reviewing the parfum and the EDT, both bottles from the mid 80s and late 90s.

The parfum and EDT are two very different animals. The parfum was created first, marketed as an evening scent, so Cartier eventually decided to create an EDT and call it "Must de Jour".

Where the parfum is opaque and narcotic, the EDT is gentle warmth and golden light. Both are unparalelled stunners, each in its own way, and both have their place in any life situation.
The parfum is a take no prisoners ambery-vanillic oriental, which chooses pineapple and labdanum as its chief top notes, while the EDT is a more subtle, but no less impactful floral-oriental with bergamot and mandarin as its main citrus notes.

One is dense and slow moving, building up to a crescendo of dark, mystery laden notes, underscored by a superb sandalwood accord, whispering on the skin with a smoky-vanillic fugue created with the addition of galbanum. Along with the civet, this helps give the scent a subtle leathery edge, just enough to impart a deeply sensual and lingering touch.

The other is almost mouthwatering, glowing and definitely more sheer, with an emphasis on gentle citrus to tie in with the floral notes, and a gorgeous neroli filigree throughout. Less vanilla than the parfum, it relies on amber, musk and vetiver to complete the impression of veil like transparency: If it were a fabric, this would be a silk backed burnt out velvet, fluid and luxurious, in deep copper tones.

Both are profoundly expressive scents, but I find the EDT far more versatile: I love the parfum, but I have to really be in the mood to match its intensity, whereas the EDT seems more agreeable for a broader variety of occasions.

06/22/2012

9
Scent

Coutureguru
223 Reviews

Coutureguru

Very helpful Review 5

Just a little wanton!

Fantastically good!!! I tried this many times in the 80's and thought "peeeyew" ... oh the misguided mistakes of an immature nose :o). I recently rediscovered this gem, and I am happy to report that it is JUST WONDERFUL ... still!! The best thing about this fragrance is the superbly blended Vanilla, Amber and Sandalwood base lifted by the Aldehydes up top and just the smallest hint of skank from the Civet. I'm sure the florals and fruits enhance the overall beauty of Must ... but they are such soft players as to be hardly there at all. Definitely not a "hip" frag but alarmingly unisex and ever so cultured! I see a few comparisons with Obsession ... comparing Must to Obsession is like comparing a thoroughbred arabian to a pack mule!! IMHO of course ;o). Smells of wealth, prestige and luxury.

Show all reviews 13