Carner Barcelona Sandor 70s (Rodrigo Flores-Roux) 2016~ Perfume Review + Sinner & Saint Draw

Twiggy in Biba, photo by Justin de Villeneuve, 1973 ©

It’s the smell of money on the town. Biba-clad women lean into men who light their Gauloises from cuff linked wrists. That blonde who might be Marianne Faithfull swings by the leather banquettes, the fringe of her embroidered suede handbag tickling the chair backs as she exits. Aristocrats puffing Cuban cigars trade jokes with the bar staff and suddenly the room crackles with laughter. There’s nowhere else to be on a Saturday night in Barcelona, circa 1975, than Bar Sandor.

Sara Carner of Carner Barcelona

Sandor 70s from Carner Barcelona, part of their 2016 Black Collection, is an olfactory snapshot of the landmark bar Sandor back in the day. The creation of Creative Director Sara Carner and master perfumer Rodrigo Flores-Roux, Sandor 70s has the airy chic and delicate intricacy of a Thea Porter chiffon mixed with the denser aromas of suede, Cuban cigars, heady florals and just the right touch of skank.

Master Perfumer Rodrigo Flores-Roux of Givaudan

No one does glamorous, retro-inspired fragrances like 2017’s Fragrance Foundation award-winner Rodrigo Flores-Roux (his homage to 70s Acapulco, El and Ella for Arquiste made  many top 10 best lists in 2016, including ours). He suggestively evokes time and place without ever devolving into pastiche or imitation. Using a vintage jasmine absolute alongside contemporary materials, he lends Sandor 70s a simultaneous vintage and modern feel.

Bar Sandor, 1974, stock photo

The fragrance opens with sinuous, sandpapery suede – the smell of an expensive boho satchel – and a shimmering, dewy, almost aqueous jasmine, with facets of green leaf, like the smell of the blossom just after an evening rain shower. The combination of suede and jasmine = instant prettiness. It would be hard not to like Sandor 70s at this early point.

Jennifer Lawrence in American Hustle, 2013

But hang on, here comes the rest of the gang, and they’re ready to throw it down!  An amazingly realistic cigar smoke note spirals up and grabs the jasmine for an impromptu tango as they weave around each other, earthy ash and creamy flower, chest to chest. Cedar makes a sudden appearance, opening a cigar box smell that mixes with the aromas of herbal, rolled tobacco leaf and damp patchouli. A rather subtle frankincense joins in, which, along with the tobacco and patch notes, grounds the fragrance.  And that girlish jasmine of the opening? She starts to misbehave like a rock star groupie, palling around with a full-bodied rose note and showing off some creamy indoles as the night gets serious.

Thea Porter fashion editorial, British Vogue, 1969

Even later, a spark of apricot Osmanthus lights up briefly, as if a redhead just ran by. A moment or two later, I get a small hit of dry vanilla, and the cigar smoke and woody notes become more emphatic. In the dry-down, Sandor 70s settles down into the golden smolder of low lights in early hours; the redolence of recently smoked Havanas, a breeze of jasmine from the bar terrace, imprints of after shave, kicked off stilettos, and sweat-diluted perfume hanging in the bar haze.

 

Anjelica Huston by Firooz Zahedi 1970s

Carner’s website describes Sandor 70s as a leathery tobacco. To me, it is a dichotomous jasmine – part saint, part sinner – that met up with cigar-puffing leather and decided to make a night of it at the hottest bar in town.

Notes: Suede accord, bergamot, vintage jasmine absolute, Chinese osmanthus absolute, Bulgarian rose, tobacco accord, clary sage, Virginian cedarwood, Peru balsam, Mexican vanilla, Spanish leather accord, patchouli, vetiver, Ethiopian frankincense, oakmoss.

Disclosure: I received my sample of Sandor 70s from Twisted Lily – many thanks. My opinions are my own.

Lauryn Beer, Senior Editor

Sandor 70s

Thanks to Europerfumes, the U.S. distributor of Carner Barcelona, we have one 50 ml bottle of Sandor 70's available to one registered reader in the U.S. Be sure to register or your comment will not count. To be eligible for the draw, tell us what appeals to you about Lauryn's review of Sandor 70s, if you have a great 1970s memory to share,  your favorite famous  1970s icon or if you have a favorite Carner Barcelona perfume. Draw closes August 5, 2017

We announce the winners only on site and on our Facebook page, so Like Cafleurebon and use our RSS feed … or your dream prize will be just spilled perfume.   

 

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20 comments

  • fazalcheema says:

    This Sandor 70s seems quite an androgynous fragrance. One may expect tobacco leather accords in keeping with the social culture of the 70s era but it also has surpises like jasmine and suedey effects. I am a child of 80s so no 70s exstence or memories. My fav Carner is D600. I am in the US.

  • “…just the right touch of skank…”. <—- nice. I too have tried D600, love it. USA

  • Wow, what a great post! I love the way this sounds! I’m in the US, thank you for the draw.

  • I love love the image of the cigar smoke and the jasmine in a tango!! And I think the ingredients sound amazing!! My favorite memory is dancing In discos and the very dance inviting music!!
    I love Tardes by Carner Barcelona.
    Thanks for this wonderful draw!!
    I am in NYC.

  • Again, I’m into smokey dark leathery scents in general, and a big plus is that the nose, brilliant Mr. Rodrigo Flores-Roux is among my most admired perfumers, and the creator behind my recent new love — Dark Rebel Rider from John Vavatos! Carner is a house that draws my full attention too, unfortunately havent got a chance to try it out, this one could be a winner to me, notes are great and all spot-on to me, come on, roll the big leather/tobacco/woody ball to me please!
    Hope to win, U.S Texas here! Thanks!

  • ntabassum92 says:

    I like the mention of Biba girls, this perfume seems to match their aesthetic so well – a little hard and smoky but also softened and feminine. I wasn’t alive in the 70s so no memories but I loved the style! I do love Farah Fawcett. I haven’t tried Carner Barcelona but I will put them in my Scentbird queue 🙂

  • I love the smell of plants and flowers after rain. It fells more fresh and clean. I have tried D600 and have like it, but this one sounds more wearable and to my taste.

    In USA.

  • I love jasmine perfumes and the tobacco and leather sound wonderful. Although I haven’t tried Carner Barcelona I think Rodrigo Flores Roux is a great perfumer and own three John Varvatos- Vintage, Blu Artisan and Dark Rebel. Burt Reynolds is a great 70s actor as I recently saw deliverance and it was amazing
    This review of Sandor 70s is incredible !

  • Sandor being an iconic and trendy bar in Barcelona in the 70’s. The cigars… the Leather.. hints of jasmine and rose… Sounds interesting! An new take on chunky leather. I do live in the US. THANK YOU

  • I love the 70s, unfortunately I am still too young to have my own memories. I love flower power culture and music, which had in my opinion great influence for whole end of XX century. Icons of the 70s like Jim Morrison, Twiggy, BB, Steve McQueen Frank Zappa will be always in our memories. Description of this scent sounds very intriguing, especially that inspiration was a particular place. That is always fantastic for me when the the composition has clear connotation with places, situations, persons or events, not only for scents, but in any kind of art, like music, photography, paintings. Huston, TX

  • Tom Schroeder says:

    I enjoyed the opening background of master perfumer Rodrigo Flores-Roux, but then Lauren’s sultry description of how the perfume unfolds to her whisked me away and totally captivated me. I will have to start exercising some of my creativity next time I describe a scent so evocatively, and provocatively. Love the description, and I’m a big fan of leather and tobacco scents. This one sounds quite unique and perfect to create a real-life story. Thanks for the great review and illustrations. San Jose, CA

  • roxhas1cat says:

    Fragrance notes doing a tango, with osmanthus popping in…..nice. I love tobacco in fragrance, brings back a lot of memories. 1970’s memory, there are many….first boyfriend, prom, drivers license, etc. I think what I miss the most is being carefree. Thanks for the chance. I live in the US.

  • I like discribtion of perfum’s start- sinuous suede and shimmering jasmine. I like suide very much. I like Carner’ Cuirs as inteligent version of Black Afgano.
    I like Jack Nicholson from 70′.
    USA.

  • Very beautiful and passionate review. I was about to miss the review because I thought this one is another feminine and flowery perfume. Right now, I am so happy and eager to try this gem made of my favorite notes.
    Thanks to Cafleurebon and Carner Barcelona for the opportunity.
    I live in the USA.

  • Hikmat Sher Afridi says:

    What appeals to me about Lauryn’s review of Sandor 70s is the conclusion in the end “a dichotomous jasmine – part saint, part sinner – that met up with cigar-puffing leather and decided to make a night of it at the hottest bar in town.” My favorite Carner Barcelona perfume is CUIR.
    Thanks to Europerfumes, the U.S. distributor of Carner Barcelona and CafleureBon for the opportunity by letting my relative address in US.

  • hi what appealed to me about review was the fabulous plethora of notes i love for carner sandor70’s.
    And wasnt alive in 70’s so no special memory or 70s icon.
    Fav carner is elborn.
    Live in u.s.

  • ” In the dry-down, Sandor 70s settles down into the golden smolder of low lights in early hours; the redolence of recently smoked Havanas, a breeze of jasmine from the bar terrace, imprints of after shave, kicked off stilettos, and sweat-diluted perfume hanging in the bar haze.” After reading that, you really want to try it. No special memories of the 70s other than getting married and having my kids.Thanks for the draw. I live in the USA

  • Sounds like a really mysterious and smoky fragrance!
    I was very, very young in the 70’s but one of my favorite memories was going to see the movie “Grease” with my parents and listening to the soundtrack of it all summer long.
    I live in the USA

  • doveskylark says:

    This review had me at Marianne Faithful. You just have to look at her album cover for “Broken English” and you can get the vibe of this fragrance. I love anything that conjures a saint and sinner juxtaposition. My memories of the 1970s are many, but music plays a big part. I remember listening to Fleetwood Mac and Donna Summer and David Bowie and Cher.
    I haven’t tried anything from this line, but Latin Lover sounds amazing.
    I live in the USA.