Louis Vuitton Rouge Libertin Ink

I remember the first time I heard Louis Vuitton had fountain pen ink, I chuckled to myself because I was 100% sure there was no way I would be willing and able to spend $52 on a bottle of fountain pen ink. A generous reader sent me a sample of Bleu Rêveur and I did a review of it - way back in 2015! Looking back at that review, I also cringe at my handwriting but I guess that's part of the journey.

These bottles are very much like the Caran d'Ache Colors of the Earth bottles with their square shape and heavy glass base. I really like how stable they are because there's no way I want to knock this bottle over while filling my pen because I'll be sucking it off my desk with a pipette to return to the bottle. Or my mouth in desperation if there is no pipette nearby. When it was released, it was basically $1/ml so it's probably the most expensive 50 ml of ink I have. I have several of these LV inks to check out and share now because I borrowed them from a friend so while they are not my inks, its still fun for me. Hopefully it'll be fun for you, too!

The box is very light and elegant and I really like the simple, clean branding and label. The bottles all match each other with all their labels being just as clean and tidy. I love how they match when they're all lined up. The bottles have wide mouths and are easy to fill from. I have not reached the halfway point in the bottle and I imagine when the ink level is lower, it'll be harder to fill big nibs from but for now there are no issues. Eventually I'll have to switch to just inking the cartridge or using a syringe to fill a converter/piston/eyedropper. This is not a deal breaker for me. A little dip in the base of the bottle would make it easy to get to every last drop.

Mmmm that red! It's a gorgeous deep red with medium saturation so it still can show some shading. There is no shiny sheen, rather the saturated spots dry down to a matte red. Rouge libertin, or libertine red, is a very interesting name. Obviously it's red. Wikipedia says a libertine is, "A libertine is one devoid of most moral principles, a sense of responsibility, or sexual restraints, which are seen as unnecessary or undesirable, especially one who ignores or even spurns accepted morals and forms of behaviour sanctified by the larger society. Libertinism is described as an extreme form of hedonism."

It gets better. Oxford's definitions are as follows: 

Noun: libertine
1. a person, especially a man, who behaves without moral principles or a sense of responsibility, especially in sexual matters.
Similar: philanderer, ladies' man, playboy, rake, roué

2. a person who rejects accepted opinions in matters of religion; a freethinker.

Adjective: libertine
1. characterized by a disregard of morality, especially in sexual matters. "his more libertine impulses"
Similar: licentious, lustful, libidinous, lecherous, lascivious, lubricious

2. freethinking in matters of religion.

Late Middle English (denoting a freed slave or the son of one): from Latin libertinus ‘freedman’, from liber ‘free’. In the mid 16th century, imitating French libertin, the term denoted a member of any of various antinomian sects in France; hence libertine (sense 2 of the noun).

Well, that certainly gives one something to think about. I remember seeing a bottle of shiraz from McLaren Vale called The Hedonist and the color certainly makes me think of this ink. I'm clearly overthinking this but it's part of the fun of inks with interesting names.

It's a little on the dry side but I have no issues with its flow when writing. It's well-behaved - easy to clean because it's not super saturated, performs well on various papers although I really only use fountain pen friendly paper like Rhodia, Clairefontaine, Tomoe River, Midori, and Maruman, and the I like the color a lot. My go-to red is Montblanc Corn Poppy Red but now that it's discontinued, I'm expanding my palette a little. I'm happy to say Rouge Libertin falls into the true red category for me - not orangey red, thank goodness! - because that's what I want in my reds.

I'm just having fun with my inks as of late and it's been a nice spark of excitement for me in the hobby.

Pen: Esterbrook JR in Carmine Red + medium steel nib
Paper: Tomoe River

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