An Exclusive Interview with Andy Tauer: “This Is Not An Interview” (With Apologies To Magritte)

My first personal interaction with Andy Tauer was receiving a dozen roses. The year was 2007 and I had just reviewed his perfume Incense Rose for another magazine. The interview was published and twelve long-stem beauties were at my door, intuitively I thought “this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”

If there wasn’t an Andy Tauer, the world of fine fragrance would have to invent him. He is not only incredibly talented (self-taught perfumer) but he is an open and giving individual. His every day is chronicled on his blog, and he invites one and all to post feedback.

Recently, a particularly opinionated blogger wrote a particularly scathing remark about the "poor quality"’ of Tauer fragrances packaging. Aloft on his perch, this blogger had no idea that Andy has two jobs, limited funds and creates his own packaging (from the artwork to packing the boxes, his fingers sticky with glue). Andy, with his usual humility, invites the snarky blogger to continue to critique his packaging and invites him to his site and voila, Andy has another new friend.

There have been quite a few interviews with and quotes from Andy Tauer in the blogosphere. I hope you read this interview and think, “This is an interview like no other.” 

Thank you Andy, allowing our readers into your private life.


Tell us a tale from your childhood…

Andy Tauer: My childhood? Peaceful as far back as I can remember! A happy family in the sixties and seventies, surfing on the economic boom of the period, with a car that would get bigger from model to model. I am a country boy, and grew up in a little village. Little =380 inhabitants, with lots of dogs. One dog I loved very much, called Leo, a character, independent, quite a butch dog, but he accepted me sitting next to him, talking about life and stuff. Later we had our own dogs. I am a dog man, and love the smell of dog paths.

The only flaw of my childhood: My father died too early.

Did you own a chemistry set as a young boy?

Andy Tauer: Of course! My father had a leading job in the state pharmacy. How could I grow up without? And I loved playing with it, much more than with toy cars. Today things are different:  I have a real car, got a PhD in chemistry (more on the molecular biology side) and my toys got more expensive. 

What is the first ritual of the day?

Andy Tauer: Coffee, and while this is getting ready (I still brew my coffee the very old fashioned way, hot water and coffee in a filter, poured by hand): turning on the computer and then, while drinking coffee, e-mail checking, somewhere in between grabbing the newspaper, writing a few lines, reading bloglines, taking care of teeth, usually not deciding in a useful time what scent to wear and wearing nothing when running out of the house to catch the tramway to the station and as I usually miss it, hitting the road with the bike. My mornings are busy.

What was your last dream that you remember? (6/18/2009)

Andy Tauer: My last dream: this very night, I was dreaming of shopping for clothes, oversize, but not for me. A very famous artist was lightening the scene from behind and projecting pictures to the wall. A fashion designer explained a nightmare of a velvet female trouser to an overweight lady, standing on a chair and asking me what I thought about the trousers. I lied.

If you could have dinner with 3 people, living, fictional, or passed away, who would make for the most lively and fascinating conversation?

Andy Tauer: A nice dinner would be: bringing Moses, Jesus and Mohamed together and trying to come up with one book…

What is the most dominant of your six senses (hearing, intuition, smell, sight, touch, or taste)?

Andy Tauer: My most dominant sense: sight.



How do you balance your two "jobs?"

Andy Tauer: I live in two galaxies, with one being nicer… (For your readers: my “other” job is an IT project manager at three days in the week, financing my non-perfumery toys.)

Which perfume do you wish YOU would have created?

Andy Tauer: Diorissimo. The more I smell this fragrance, the more I admire it. Also to mention: Coty’s Chypre, but in the original formula. Just for the fun of it, using a mind blowing percentage of oak moss (Michelyn swoons) in a composition, something that you can only dream of these days.

Which ingredient/ raw material fascinate you? Which frustrates you?

Andy Tauer: I have an insane affection to birch tar and a love-hate relationship with orange flower absolute from Egypt. It was love on first sight. 

What is the greatest moment of joy you have experienced to date?

Andy Tauer: Oh my, Michelyn… you are challenging my mind!

(thinks hard) You see, Michelyn: The fact that I have to think so hard is not due to missing joyful moments. But which one is the greatest? Hard to say… maybe: when I got out of my second last job. Hell on earth, with a devil in the middle. I was so happy when driving home on my last day. 

I hear you whisper in my ear, a secret, what is it you are saying?

Andy Tauer: I am thirsty. Let’s hit the bar over there for a drink. (Smiles…) ok, ok… a little secret: In my cellar stands a large bottle of a delicious juice that no one has sniffed so far, except Vero Kern.

How did you meet Vero Kern, the eminent perfumer?

Andy Tauer: I was officially introduced by Pascal, the shop owner of the shop Medieval art & vie in Zurich. This is the shop where everything started, and Pascal knows Vero and he knows me and he made the link. Looking back, I think, Vero and me felt immediately that we share the same passion.

And hence, we fit perfectly together; complementing each other and I for my part enjoy her company, admire her creativity and appreciate any discussion with her.

What grounds you? What gives you wings?

Andy Tauer: The W.-.factor for sure grounds me; my anchor in life, preventing me from eating too many M&M’s or doing other stupid things. 

The wings seem to grow over night….

I start flying quite often, jogging, taking a bath, sniffing a new raw material, you name it. And off we go, quite often just to come down, landing somewhat hard. Flying too high and too often is dangerous.

Since W.-.factor is your closest friend, ally and partner, can you coax him to join us in this interview?  

Enter the W factor: “When Andy started the perfume thing I took it as a temporary disease. But no! It grew into a more than serious matter. I stood helplessly aside because in the beginning it all smelled the same (something like lily of the valley). I haven't become an expert yet and I'm still not very suitable as a guinea pig for Andy's new creations in all their different stages. What I can do for him (and I like doing it) is taking parcels to the post office, doing the bookkeeping, folding and putting away boxes etc. I'm proud of my gifted and creative Andy.“
 


You are so generous with acknowledging the ideas of others, so much so your works are often collaborative. Your packaging, your fragrance names, even the minutest detail is commented on, through posts on your blog. How do you know the difference between "opinion" and "expertise?"

Andy Tauer: Ah… a tough one. Complicated to explain…I would like to bring in a term: “Collaborative Intelligence.” Wikipedia for instance is an example of collaborative intelligence. Collaborative intelligence is partly about groups bringing in expertise. But shared opinions are part of it, too. And when it comes to esthetics, shared opinions often make all the difference; combined gut feelings and simple “I like this, but not that!” form a picture that complements and extends expertise.

And then: I have a tendency to completely fall in love with ideas. I need folks to bring me down to earth again. My blog is my anchor in this sense. And more even: the discussions on the blog are quite often a source of ideas; sometimes I get an input on little details like how to optimize the sample labels. Of course, sometimes it is hard to let an idea go and admit that it won’t work.

There is one theme where I do not ask for expertise: when it comes to the scent. Here, I follow my nose.

In what way are you and your fragrances dichotomous?

Andy Tauer: Oh. Oops. What means "dichotomous?"  (runs off… searches on Wikipedia… comes back puzzled) 

I wish I was so cool and good looking like the Lonestar cowboy!

On a serious note, when looking into my fragrances, you will find a line that is me, I think this line goes like: “I do not care about trend. I want this to be interesting. I want this to be challenging. I want this to be fun. Much fun. Even more fun."

How much did Luca Turin’s powerful five star review of L'air du désert marocain change your perfumed path?


Andy Tauer: I got exposed to a degree that I was not before; and I got exposed to a new circle of perfume lovers. With the exposure came sales, and with sales came challenges. You know: growing is not easy. It is a little bit like getting into adolescence. Suddenly, you are not playing anymore, but everything seems to become very serious. But then, I realized in the mean time, that the fun continues…  Luca’s review changed my life in a positive way, and in a sense it was like a good friend patting your shoulder, telling you “well done, my friend,” and then pushing you forward. Looking back, the timing was perfect, too. I was ready. Now, what I did not change was my approach to new creations. I do not feel obliged to continue in a particular way or follow what seems to be industry law, like come up with clones and flankers or whatever.
 
Yes, yes, yes, we know you are the "nichest." But now Woman’s Wear Daily, four Basenotes award nominees and osMoz.com are recognizing you as part of their worlds. How can you claim you are an outsider?

Andy Tauer: Oh my… sure I am an outsider. I am so small…

But then: wait! Niche does not mean outsider. And outsider does not always mean niche. And maybe we should forget the term niche altogether, as not everywhere where it says niche there is niche. 

I would rather like to talk about high perfumery or fine perfumery or hip or punk or whatever instead. I work as an artisnal perfumer, and maybe I am an outsider when it comes to how I do some things, like how I talk to clients, how I discuss my thoughts and developments. And how I create my compositions! 

Would you like to ask me a question? 

Andy Tauer: As a journalist, you have quite an insight into the industry, the buzz around perfumes and their creators and you have talked to the major players. Please, please: tell us what you think of this scene. Is there any hope left for perfumery as an art? What would you wish the consumer, the perfume lovers to do in order to change this industry?

Michelyn: That is two questions:

1. There is hope; Art can flourish with very little nourishment; an example, Edmond Roudnitska, as a perfumer/worker (like you) produced the masterpiece Rochas Femme during Nazi-occupied France, creating a new raw material from the rubble.

 2. First become educated; understand the tricks of top loading, and do not buy a fragrance because it smells wonderful on your best friend or because a critic gave it a great review. Buy a fragrance that "sent bon" ("smells good") on you.

Perfume lovers are already changing the industry; groups like Sniffapalooza--500,000 strong--have raised their voices and you bet the industry has taken notice. The industry now must open its ears. Sites like Fragrantica that encourage intelligent conversation among consumers to share information are encouraging new ideas and exposing more people to quality scent. I think it will never be perfect. We are only a small percentage of the overall perfume consumers. Look how the industry is floundering… they will either change or some other companies will take their place.  

What dance would Vetiver Dance be performing?

Andy Tauer: I feel clearly it is a soft after-hours Goa trance inspired revolving around its own axis.

You are launching une Rose Chyprée, the first in your new line named "Les Memorables," 15 ml flacons. Please tell us about this revolutionary/evolutionary concept.

Andy Tauer: Well, I guess, it is not really revolutionary. Others have small size offerings, too. For me it is a logical step. I realized that it is time to come up with this “sub-brand” when pouring and mixing batches. It is simply ridiculous how much rose absolute I use these days and I did not want to offer 50 ml sizes of what was later baptized Une Rose Chyprée: for practical reasons and because I want to make a statement. A perfume that is built around natural roses, with a lot, really a lot of natural absolutes and oils, that are more troublesome to work with for regulatory and reproducibility reasons, such a perfume is precious.

Une Rose Chyprée is an offer to the connoisseur.

Une rose chyprée is a rose that grows only in the Tauer garden (and on my pillow). Please speak in depth about the planting and the blossoming of this "rose like no other?"

Andy Tauer: This rose is a rose that was planted originally by Maria from CA. It was she who told me, on the side once, to think Rose and a Chypre background. As I happen to love, love, love working with roses this little kick at the right time started me working on the theme. It was rather a painful journey, as roses have thorns and many paths lead from the most expensive rose oils to the cheapest soap; rose fragrances tend to turn soapy in my hands. Thus, I was sweating for about 12 months. Now, I think, this rose blooms in a citrus garden, an old garden, with lots dark earth, exposed to the sun after a rich spring rain. I love this fragrance a lot. 

Is it a classic Chypre? 

Andy Tauer: If you aim at something as classic as the Coty Chypre, original formula. . . no. You can not bring back a real classic chypre to our days, a Chypre like you know it from a time when men and women were free to spritz what they liked. This world is gone. For sure. 

But Une Rose Chyprée has a "chypree" background; one part of its complex story line is a chypre line.
 
What new fragrances are in the works for 2009?

Andy Tauer: Oh yes, baby. 2009 will be very exciting.  (Walks away with a smile…)
 

Images: Andy Tauer Parfums,  Living in Monrovia, eviltomthai


Michelyn Camen is New York City based fragrance writer and specialist. Michelyn is a Senior Contributor for Fragrantica.  In addition, she is the Fragrance editor for www.fashiontribes.com, a top ten beauty blog, and the Fragrance Columnist/Diversions for http://www.uptownsocial.net. 

Michelyn is the former Senior Contributing Writer for Sniffapalooza Magazine, New in Niche Columnist for Basenotes and Editorial Director/Fragrance Editor for Beauty News NYC & LA 

Ms. Camen is the owner of Fifthsense N.Y.C.  which provides personalized fragrance consultations based on body chemistry, fashion and lifestyle and consults for luxury, media and fragrance companies.