*Currently Listening: Whiskey River by Willie Nelson
Things that even make this Texas Ex-Pat turn her head and go, "DAMN!" (Thanks Mr. Tauer) |
First: Old School....
And Now: New School...
There is simply something about this time of year where I miss my home-state, quite a bit. (It even happened to me when I was living in North Carolina.) I really think it's the change in the seasons. In my little corner of TX, it's not OPPRESSIVELY hot quite yet, crawfish boils and BBQs are starting to be much more plentiful, people are spending more time out on the bayou, and all the snow cone stands are opening. I feel the next to remind you again though, I grew up in what I like to call Texianna (where Texas, Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico meet). Lonestar Memories isn't really about where I grew up, there would need to be added notes of mud and spice! Lonestar Memories makes me think of family vacations growing up and my Dad.
I was pleased to learn that Andy Tauer actually lived in Texas for awhile. Granted it was in College Station doing some post doc work, but it's firsthand knowledge. This I can get behind.
Lonestar Memories isn't super literal, which makes the name absolutely perfect. It's not like you just got smacked in the face by a saddle and cowboy boots. It's very nostalgic, but not in a hokey way. I'm getting ahead of myself, back to MY lonestar memories.
Family vacations growing up. They were road trips. If we left the confines of the TX border, it was a BIG DEAL! There are four main points about my childhood vacation that you need to know.
1) If there was more concrete than soil at a particular destination, we weren't stopping.
2) A few spoonfuls of peanut butter from the jar my mother kept in the glove compartment made for a totally acceptable dinner because we HAD to make it to where ever.
3) If it was Cowboy or Indian related, it was on the itinerary!
4) Allowable music: Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Alabama and the Kingston Trio.
My Dad says that all he's ever want to be is a Boy Scout. I call bull-shit! All that man has ever wanted to be of a Cowboy! His heroes are Roy Rogers and Teddy Roosevelt. His man cave (aka den) looks like a log cabin and is an ode to anything "Western". My personal favorite: a framed picture of his first black labrador Christi, and below that...a framed picture of Roy Rogers and his horse Trigger.
In retirement, my Dad has finally gotten his wish and has two horses to tend to. Ashley and Tonto. So I guess my Dad is sorta getting to be a cowboy after all!
Left - Tonto ridden by my sister / Right - Ashley ridden by my Mom |
From the fragrances website:
"An ode on birchtar: True and unique, rich and lasting
The scent of a lonesome rider, wearing old jeans and leather jacket, after a long day on the horse in the dry woods, preparing his coffee on the open, smoky fire."
The scent of a lonesome rider, wearing old jeans and leather jacket, after a long day on the horse in the dry woods, preparing his coffee on the open, smoky fire."
Before first smelling it, I didn't re-read the notes list, as I just wanted to experience it on my own, without any preconceived notions. I wanted leather, but not TOO MUCH. I want to smells the leather of the cowboy boots as I pulled them on, not to be slapped in the face with them.
First dabbing on Lonestar Memories, I immediately smelled two things: a predominance of sage with leather in the background. *The sage in bloom is like perfume...clap, clap, clap, clap...deep in the heart of Texas* Clever Tauer...Clever!
I enjoy the jasmine and tonka that are woven into the the heart and body notes. It keeps the fragrance from turning into testosterone-pallooza. Almost as if those notes are actually the smell of the cowboy's lady lingering on him a bit...?
To me Lonestar Memories smells like a General Store in small town Central or West Texas. There's a dryness in the air, so all the notes are quite discernible, but some are muted since they've been there for awhile. Coffee on the shelf, perhaps a pot in the back that has been forgotten, leather goods, saddle soap, hints of the perfume that the lady running the register is wearing (her hair and makeup are about 10-15 years behind the times), and the smoke coming from the BBQ pit at the back of the store. They sell BBQ, at my ficticional Tauer-smelling store, it's really good. Make sure you pay the lady at the register, and then there's the tables out back by the pit. I'd go with the brisket if I were you!
Places like this DO really exist! I promise, I've been there....
Andy Tauer manages to capture what smells good and nostalgic about a place that I couldn't wait to get away from, but now can revisit the parts I like....on my own terms. True Lonestar Memories.
One more video. Watch it! (Please)
Is it wrong that I want to sit on my porch drinking beer and listening to country music all afternoon? Can't...have to teach...maybe after....wait...do I have beer?
**Photo Credits: 1) tauerperfumes.com, 2) permanently borrowed from my sister's facebook
Living in Central Texas since 2005 (I can't believe it's been almost 7 years), I do think Lonestar Memories really captures something about the drier parts of Texas. I enjoy this scent a lot but it might be a little too "butch" for me to wear regularly. Honestly I am a huge Tauer fangirl at this point. I love nearly all his creations.
ReplyDeleteThe next time I'm home, I'm going to make my Dad try it on. I'd try it on my husband, but he's so NOT TX...it would smell more like misspent irony than anything else! ;-) I can't wait to try more Tauer fragrances!
DeleteI'm from Texas too! I grew up in El Paso (have yet to find a scent that resembles the amazing smell of the rain there) and went to college in Houston, also lived in Austin briefly. The thing I miss most about Houston is the food. Not so much the stifling heat and humidity or the enormous roaches ....
ReplyDeleteYou know TX in all its incarnations! People here in Boston keep telling me about the humidity...they don't even know! :-)
DeleteI lived in Boston for 10 years before moving to Denver last August. Though it never got as crazy-hot as Texas does, I did my fair share of sweating there, because I never had an apartment with central air. :) I'm still not over how fantastic the weather is in Colorado.
DeleteI think you have to be a gazillionare to have central ac here in Boston! :-) We run our window ac units during the winter!
DeleteYes, dear, we do have beer...granted it's a beer you can't actually GET in Texas, but we do have beer.
ReplyDeleteTHE HUSBAND COMMENTS! I found the beer! ;-) I promise I won't drink it all....in one sitting....
DeleteHUGE congratulations to you!.
ReplyDeleteBrazilian Blowout Keratin