★ ★ ★ ★ ★ — masterpiece

Many people have probably heard of Tauer Perfumes because of Andy Tauer’s cult hit, L'Air Du Désert Marocain, originally released in 2005, and which soon garnered a five star rating from Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez’s Perfumes: The Guide in 2009.

Au Coeur du Désert was released in 2016, and it’s no surprise that Turin and Sanchez, in Perfumes: The Guide 2018 gave it five stars.

Tauer’s official page for Au Coeur du Désert notes:

Au Coeur du Désert is the metamorphosis of L’air du désert marocain into a luxurious extrait de parfum. The richness of the extrait concentration accentuates the sublime elegance and natural beauty of warm woody amber notes.

I really like that this fragrance is not simply called L'Air Du Désert Marocain intense or L'Air Du Désert Marocain extrait de parfum because both scents, though they share a lot of the same DNA, warrant being looked at for what they each are. To be clear, they have a lot of similarities – particularly the top notes, but on my skin L'Air Du Désert Marocain feels a tiny bit lighter and also evolves over time, while Au Coeur du Désert lingers on more or less unchanged.

It may not be to everyone's taste, but most people probably agree that L'Air Du Desert Marocain is a masterpiece of a composition, and if you like it, it’s very likely you’ll like Au Coeur du Désert.

Many fragrances create familiar accords (leather, for example), while others take you on an olfactory journey through familiar notes or accords. But few manage to create whole new olfactory sensations that are at once familiar, evocative, transportative, and yet completely mysterious – Au Coeur du Désert is one of them.

Notes

Au Coeur du Désert, classified as a woody oriental, is spicy, soft, airy, and feels dry, almost arid, sitting on a bed of lightly honeyed, sun-kissed amber. Amber-heavy perfumes often turn powdery on my skin – and it’s unclear to me if there is actually any amber in here – but on my skin, this turns dusty, which I quite like. Tauer’s official description conveys the woody amberiness quite accurately:

… Au Coeur du Désert is a statue carved out of sun beaten timber, softened with a gloss of aged patchouli, and a patina of ambergris, coming to life with a balsamic glow.

That balsamic glow is exactly that, a hollowed-out luminosity: a light and airy sweetness.

Emily’s Scent Scape

Au Coeur du Désert feels like you are walking in a desert aglow with red-orange light, a warm, dry wind signaling a gradual lifting of the day’s heat... You are on your way (in a calm, but jovial, small group) to a lively gathering of friends. It’s early evening; someone is making chai in the distance; the festivities have started but you’re not so late that you’ve missed anything. You have a bundle of dried flowers in your hands as a gift. You may meet a new friend. 

When to wear

I wore this on sunny spring days and cool nights in Lisbon (when I was actually able to be out in the world!) and Brooklyn (during quarantine). I find it more suited for cool spring and fall days, but probably not for warm summer days.

Projection, Sillage, and Longevity

On my skin, the projection is initially loud, but quickly turns soft, perhaps not quite just a skin scent, but maybe somewhere in between skin and arm’s length. Sillage feels equally soft. But Au Coeur du Désert has pretty good longevity, on my skin I get between 7-9 hours, depending on weather outside.

Where to buy

Au Coeur du Désert comes in a 50ml bottle, and is an extrait de parfum concentration.

I bought mine at Embassy Niche Perfumery in Lisbon. Ricardo and Beta are extremely welcoming and helpful, and I highly recommend them if you find yourself in Lisbon. Perfumes are almost always cheaper in Europe, and if you don’t live in Europe you can get a tax refund at the airpot that makes it absolutely worth it to purchase abroad if you’re traveling. Embassy Niche Perfumery is at R. Rodrigues Sampaio 89, 1150-006 Lisboa, Portugal

Luckyscent sells Au Coeur du Désert for $185.