Baptême du Feu

Edit: Two words... Orange potpourri. End of review. I gave this another shot in the heat of summer as someone suggested. It was a festive party. I wanted to make an impression, but not wear a heavy oud, and my other choice just got blown away by the heat. I decided to try this. It wasn't a complete disaster, BUT all night, I was like, WHO smells like potpourri?? It was me. I was potpourri. At the Pride party! Lmao! This, and Fig Tea by Nicolai, made me realize that I really can't stand osmanthus. It's cloying, high pitched sweet fruitiness is a complete no-no for my nose. 🥲

45yr+ Mysterious scent When you smell it you'll be think we're did i smell that Sillage longevity very good I like this perfume but i cant wear it am not 40s yet But if you are an old badass its for you .. Edit i smelled similar scent in herb and spice shop

This really is the holidays in a bottle, but seen through a distinctly gothic lens. If the scent stopped at mulled wine and gingerbread, it would be a cozy Christmas fairytale. Instead, gunpowder, a sharp metallic note, and a pronounced animalic streak completely shift the atmosphere. We are still at a Christmas market, holding a cup of warm mulled wine, but somewhere very close by, something violent is happening. The metallic facet is especially striking to my nose, almost unsettlingly so. I can taste metal in the air when I smell it from the point of application. This is niche perfumery through and through, and one of the most interesting creations from the brand. It's a real shame that it has become so difficult to find. I may not have searched thoroughly enough, but I couldn't find it on the brand's website, which suggests that it may have been discontinued.

At least for me, especially for my nose, Bapteme still has some mysteries to reveal. You read here and there and see that the information differs. What's left to do? Try to unravel the threads. What pyramid do I make out? Something like this: orange and gingerbread in the top, cloves and ginger in the heart, and woody notes and gunpowder in the base. It debuts with gingerbread and candied orange peel, gets a freshly spiced note from the juicy ginger and cloves but passes right past the Christmas gourmands' bed when the woody notes and gunpowder with his metallic mineral tint appear. This whole mix is absolutely original, unique and unusual, I don't think it can be compared to anything. I've encountered this gunpowder note before, just as intense and categorical in Flowerbomb Nectar which is a true gourmand. It's an extremely difficult note to harmonize with the rest, but if you can pull it off, you're a perfumer genius. Bapteme It's definitely a polarizing fragrance, you either like it or you don't.Me , I love it, really. 🤩

A perfume count Dracula would wear. It opens with a seductive thick sweet orange tangerine jammy opening that lures you into the smell of fire, sweat and piss. Gingerbreadman is staring at you. The prince of darkness sucks you dry. But instead of feeling pain you feel poetry like dark red black velvet. I really hate love this juice made by Christopher Sheldrake under poetic auspician of the dark poët Lutens. Discontinued but I will not throw this one in the bin. I ones knew in my youth a girl with enormous breasts without a bra tugged in a huge natural woolen sweater. She didn't wear deodorant and her smell was very strong but unforgetable. So I will keep this in my collection as a reminder of the fascinating side of life and youth memories and will wear this only once a year.

One of my holiday season staples. It’s weird and beautiful. Chocolate oranges, gingerbread and a recently fired 12 gauge shotgun.

Super weird. Not versatile. Not a compliment getter. Not gourmand as one might think after seeing the notes. Spicy and metallic with a touch of sweetness. Yep the gunpowder note is what's throwing this off if you don't like it and if you do like it then it's what makes it. It's throwing it off for me making it unwearable.

نوت نون زنجبیلی باعث شده کار خیلی خشک و ادویه‌ای بشه که خوشم نیومد.

This is such a unique and interesting ginger-based fragrance. It's definitely perfect for holidays. For me it gives me similar vibes to the Saffron by Jo Malone (similar atmosphere and vibe). It's slightly spicy and sweet. I can feel the oranges a lot, but unlike Jo Malone's Orange Bitters, these oranges are sweet, almost like candied ones.

Serge Lutens #21 – Two masks in the theatre After Muscs Koublai Khan and Serge Noire, Bapteme du Feu joins in for a trilogy of polarising perfumes done by Serge Lutens. If Muscs Koublai Khan indeed is a more challenging composition because of the fecal animalics, i believe Serge Noire is only polarising through its bold use of clove rather then itself being a challenging scent. Altho, admitedly boldness itself is challenging in many cases. I was curious to see if Bapteme du Feu requires a certain palette of tastes to appreciate it or its simply bold and likes to put up a fight. Perhaps its both, afterall the name describes a soldier’s first encounter with real combat and the initial shock of war. Indeed Bapteme du Feu falls on both sides, a bold smelling scent and one difficult to aproach, thus making it a very polarising perfume. One could say there’s a battle going on in this composition, altho i’d rather call it two faced, kinda like the happy-sad masks seen in theatre. As far as im concerned, the perfume doesn’t evoke the image of war so i’d rather abandon that narrative. On one hand there’s the smiling mask. Its warm, comforting, inviting, sweet and pleasant. Others placing the perfume in the context of the winter holydays are right to do so. There is an element reminiscent of bakery, in the form of the gingerbread and i could swear it also has cloves or cinnamon, which again are spices often used around the holydays. Then there’s tangerine, but more like the peel of it. If you ever fooled around as a child and tasted orange/tangerine peel then you know it has a bitter taste and i get some of that here. On the other side, there’s the frowning sad mask. This side is represented by a stale and funky accord peeking through the scent. I recall seeing a lady on youtube describe the perfume in the following way, and i paraphrase: “Its like sitting at the Christmas table where your dear grandmother is bringing you cookies baked by her. Everything in the room and at the table is perfect, in theme with the holydays. The only problem is, granny has incontinency issues and she wee’d herself. You know this because you are catching whiffs of it.” With the description above being an off-putting one, i thought perhaps i get that impression due to autosuggestion but its not the case. I cannot dismiss it because as silly as it sounds, its kinda true. The general powderiness helps bring that imagery to life too and i can already imagine granny’s overly powdered oldschool makeup routine. On a personal level, on one hand it saddens me that Bapteme du Feu is discontinued because its an interesting creation. On the other hand, i can see how few resonated with it because its as niche as it gets. To me, personally, purely scentwise its not as bold and in your face as Serge Noire but the oddity of the skank accord is more challenging then Muscs Koublai Khan, but then again, im used to dirty musks.

Let me start by noting that I’m reviewing the vintage version; an important detail for anyone reading this. This magnificent, animalic, room-filling beast is lightly sweet, complex, citrus-kissed, bold, and undeniably feral. Ginger, in certain compositions, can cast a deeply gothic shadow, and here it absolutely does. A strange duality takes shape: nocturnal freshness intertwined with darkness. It feels like tossing a strip of mandarin peel onto the last dying embers of a fire on a freezing night; the brief flare, the hiss, the smoky glow before it all falls silent. I’m genuinely grateful to have tracked this down pre-dc; experiencing it in its vintage form feels like a rare privilege. The drydown is powdery and soft, yet it never loses even the slightest bit of its core character! Tag(s): gothic, erotic, edgy, rich, animalic

Spiced orange potpourri with a little bit of funky powdery notes, probably a mix of the gingerbread and castoreum. I don’t hate it but it feels a little incomplete, like it doesn’t feel like a full-bodied scent. It only feels like you’re smelling parts of the fragrance and there’s one quarter of the scent you can’t pick up. Hard to explain, it’s thin or transparent smelling to me. Honestly unless you got it for a good price I wouldn’t bother paying discontinued prices for this, I got it for £68 for 100ml and I would feel annoyed if I spent more than 70 on it. May change my mind on it as I don’t hate it, or even dislike it, but I don’t love it either

All three of scrooge's ghosts at once, BDF is eerie and cosy. I found this challenging at first, but now I cannot get enough.

Tangerine with extra pith, dried and ground to a powder. Heaps of ginger, a smidge of baking spices. Plenty of incense smoke. This one is beautiful and atmospheric. I actually find it cooling on warmer days. It’s perfect for the high eat of early autumn where I live.

smells just like chicken broth on me, i wish i knew what went wrong

BAPTEME DU FEU In production for just over two years, this gem by @sergelutens and Sheldrake is unfortunately sadly discontinued, but still available in some small shops. Here we have a return to form with the expected balance between sweet abd sour to which the dynamic duo (Sheldrake and Lutens) accustomed us. It is difficult to convey into words such a beauty; I will say that the unripen tangerine of the opening is soon covered by an hot kinda incensed steam so realistic that is ebullent as that of a smoking gun. The tangerine will turn into a succulent ripen apricot; there is a high dosage of osmanthus absolute at play here. Thanks to the textured layering of the components Bapteme du Feu feels as tactile as gustatory: this really reminds me in a sense to Jeaux de Peau. Don't be scared about the castoreum: there is just the tiniest balanced amount to give depth to the composition. A must have in my Lutens collection. Please, consider following me on IG @alexolympia6

Smells just like my grandpas hairspray he used to use

Night time citrus!

The first seconds of the opening are a purple-drank, stewed-prunes scent, but then it rapidly dries to a candied, almost burnt orange-peel. There are really two contrasting scent chords, which oscillate in dominance over time. The first is the aforementioned candied-orange-peel chord, which is also a bit “spicy” or “burnt”. It’s bright and tangy. The second is a savory, rather masculine animalic chord around castoreum, smoky and woodsy and mammalian, with a bit of a “bonfire” or “extinguished-fireworks” effect. Underneath both chords, subtler and softer, is a rich, molasses-y, gingerbread base. I honestly wish there were more of the smoky-woody castoreum than the candied orange peel, but the combination is fascinating. At the 4-hour mark, it’s basically a skin scent and all you get is cozy gingerbread for the next four hours.

This march it is floral and slightly soapy. Very pretty. Powdery-osmanthus-woods. Gingerbreads in the backgroud, the same with tangerine. It is a bit fiery, but maybe I got used to this effect? Floral notes dominate today. Upon application, I love it, but today I lowered it to solid like, because I have more lovable Lutens - Louve, Datura Noir, Cedre, La Fille de Berlin. This one is lovely as well, close to love.

A unique fragrance: orange and ginger at the opening, red and metallic at dry down, with a smokey note that is not greasy like incense could be, more on the dry side like gunpowder after a shot. It smells like orange fanta tastes, a bit pungent but not in a bad way. I would not recommend a blind buy, even though it is a very interesting it is not for everyone.

Don’t think I have smelled anything remotely like this: picturing a dried citrus rind spiced gingerbread house made by a little beaver. Slightly sour floral animalic edge that could put some people off, but it adds interest and isn’t overpowering to my nose. The dried citrus is persistent and vaguely reminds me of chewable vitamins. Smells noticeably different off of clothes with a more carnation element and the sour elements toned down. Definitely not a mass appealing perfume. The scent changes a lot throughout the wear too, far from linear. Blind bought this due to the deal and fortunately don’t regret it, but this is weird enough that it could have gone the other way.

I get an opening of bitter orange and a slight ginger bread, then it dries down to this smooth blend of gingerbread, castoreum & gunpowder (Its not listed but i can smell it slightly as well), i conclude this to be bitter citrus with warm fiery scent of castoreum & gunpowder which is not too overwhelming, Overall its a great scent for going to a hangout at spring, formal parties and nighttime

This is very unusual. Opens with a cheerful sparkly tangerine and ginger - this part is lovely. However, after 30 minutes or so all I smell is cold, cold sterile metal. I worked in the operating rooms and this is what this smell reminds me of - cold, sterile environment with lots of metal... and some blood. I can't say it smells bad, but certainly not like something I want in my perfumes. I wouldn't wear this outside the house, to ne honest. Interesting thing happens with me when I am wearing it... I can TASTE this perfume, I taste metal and ginger, and I wouldn't say that I enjoy it. Addendum a month later: yea, you know what, it does smell bad. I do not like it at all, unfortunately. I consider myself a Serge Lutens collector, and this is one of a few that I will never buy a full bottle of.

everyone is saying this is a winter/fall scent but on this summer day it's absolutely brilliant... the first time i sampled baptême du feu it brought to mind the bustling markets in palestine... sweet like loqum and candied orange peels. powdery, bringing to mind tall mounds of spices. perfectly smoky. it's slightly funky and dirty on my sun warmed skin. comforting and just lovely.

A very unique scent that was a blind buy for me. Not something i would have picked in stores, when there are other serge lutens masterpieces to choose from. Its’s calming and it’s warm. It gives MAJOR OLD MONEY VIBES. The main note I get is smokey gingerbread. Definitely a perfect scent for the winter/fall.

What an outstanding gem, Sheldrake continues to amaze. I always love translating these names and trying to put together the story. This being "Baptism by Fire." This baptism by fire is actually gunfire, which oddly enough makes even more sense. I get the vibe of a desert that was blazed by gunfire. First whiff it smells very fruity and citrusy. This gives off a playful vibe. Osmanthus can often go in a fruity direction. It smelt like a fruity red wine. Once that settled down the gingerbread note warms everything. I wouldn't be too scared of that Castoreum note. I'm not picking up anything too particularly funky/animalic or atleast it's tolerable. All of this sits on woody backbone. In the air it does smell a little powdery with some ginger/cinnamon spice that actually does put this desert gun fight image in my mind. It also simultaneously puts the image of baked goods around Christmas time. Only a Sheldrake fragrance can pull off that level of nuance. This might just become one of new favorite Serges that I've ignored for way too long. You should sample as always, maybe not for everyone. But dam as of right now this is banging. This thing has layers and layers. Serge Lutens is so creative and artistic that it makes your average "niche" brand look like a bargain bin designer.

One of those scents that tells a story, unique, definitely not for everyone, this is a creative scent that is sharp, strong, zingy sultry sweet concentrated spiced wine, powdery, old school castoreum, warm. Like someone has mentioned, this indeed is a fairy tale scent, elves, snow, it's amazing how the smell just draws these pictures in the mind. Not a modern scent by any means, but this is one that can definitely be appreciated, artistically conceptualized perfume.

First impression: smells a lot like Lagerfeld Classic

gothic! smells like mulled wine.. ginger, citrus, osmanthus, castoreum...all very strong it has an aftershave feeling that made my wearing experience too harsh and unpleasant. this is the first lutens that i had to wash off.