An aromatic fougère released in 1982 by Guy Laroche, Drakkar Noir bears the signature of Pierre Wargnye and revives the name of the 1972 Drakkar. Its metallic freshness comes from an overdose of dihydromyrcenol that the trade still discusses. Lavender, rosemary and bergamot at the opening, patchouli, leather and moss in the base, in a black lacquered bottle designed by Pierre Dinand. The label of the bottle sold today no longer lists the same moss.
Drakkar Noir was worn by an entire generation, which makes judging it hard to separate from nostalgia. The 1982 juice and today's are not the same thing, and much of what is written about it discusses the former while believing it discusses the latter. The black bottle, for its part, has not changed. Here is what holds up, and what no longer does.
Olfastory’s review
Forty years of mass distribution blur judgment. Teenagers of the eighties have become grandfathers, and olfactory memory holds here a place that few other fragrances impose on their reader.
What one smells
The opening snaps: cold lemon, lavender, rosemary, over a bed of dihydromyrcenol that gives this impression of an ironed shirt. The middle thickens with coriander and juniper, and the end pulls toward patchouli and leather.
What divides opinion
Two criticisms keep coming back. The soapy freshness reads as dated to those who associate it with the eighties, while others see in it precisely its signature. And the comparison with Cool Water rarely turns in favor of the older one.
The bottle of yesterday and today's
Collectors clearly distinguish the older versions from the current juice, which they judge thinner. The label gives them support: tree moss has taken over from oakmoss, and the house acknowledges a fruity accord that was not there before.
The disagreement concerns less the fact itself than its extent. Some hold the current version to be a success in its own right, others see it as a shadow. Both judgments concern different liquids, which accounts for part of the gap.
Who this still speaks to
Drakkar Noir remains legible for those seeking a straightforward fougère, without detour or sugar. It requires accepting a very pronounced clean scent, and a degree of eighties citation that nothing seeks to hide.