Acqua di Giò pour Homme (1996)
by Giorgio Armani

Not terrible, but largely uninspired though. AdG is a typical aquatic with all the usual hallmarks. I do find this more complex and smoother than Cool Water. I suppose every guy under 30 ought to have one aquatic in his collection since the media tells women that this is how guys are supposed to smell. And if you have to have a fruity aquatic, this is the one to get (or Creed Millesime Imperial if you want to splurge for top notch). AdG is relatively cheap but has poor sillage and poor longevity. But hey, everyone else in America is wearing it, so why not?

Notes:
Top: Bergamot, Neroli, Green Tangerine
Middle: Jasmine, Rock rose, Marine note, Rosemary, Persimmon
Base: Cedar, Patchouli, Musk

Formulated by nose Albert Morillas, Aqua di Gio homme (AdG) is Armani Parfums biggest cash cow and one of the progenitors of the fruity aquatic genre. Much has been written about its ubiquitous presence in hang out spots all over the world, but its hard to deny that its a well made fragrance. Inspired by Giorgio Armani's vacations in the isle of Pantelleria, the aim was to evoke "the voluptuous rush of wind and water, brilliantly combining sweet and salty flavors, with the bittersweet power of of sea water on sun-drenched skin."

The opening hesperidic blast is pleasant and invigorating, and soon after the salty-floral-fruity heart appears. Things are kept light and pleasant, with hedione (synthetic jasmine) lending a pleasant floral aroma, a bouquet of fruits (melon, etc) gushing in the accord, and a very well integrated aquatic note imparting a slightly salty tinge. There's also a spice accord hidden in there somewhere...if you smell closely enough you can detect a coriander note warming up the proceedings. The whole heart notes phase is expertly balanced with none of the various facets feeling out of place. It is however rather fleeting and within an hour or two the woody-musky base rears its ugly formulated head (AdG used to feature a better musk and cedar note in its hey day).

Yes its ubiquitous...yes its nothing outstanding (it ain't 1996 anymore)...yes there are a zillion other fruity aquatics on the market...and yes it has been done better before (1995s Creed Millesime Imperial). But credit is due to AdG for being one of the early fruity-aquatic trailblazers, and for opening up the genre for other fast-followers (it also outsells Imperial by quite a mile). And despite the inferior reformulated base, its still smells good. Like it or not you will still be seeing AdG ads in Vogue or Forbes 5 years from now..

Rating: 7.25/10.0

Armani Acqua di Gio pour Homme

Acqua di Gio, the 1996 scent created for Giorgio Armani, is the most popular scent in terms of sales in the world as of 2008. Popularity and sales do not automatically confirm greatness on any artistic endeavor. Conversely those attributes shouldn't be made to seen as detriments, either. Acqua di Gio is popular for a reason and that reason, I think, is Wonder Bread. I love bread of all kinds, a fresh-baked croissant, a crunchy baguette, savory whole grain loaf, you get the idea. If you put down a jar of crunchy peanut butter and grape jelly and ask me what bread I want it on, I'm going to choose Wonder Bread. Wonder Bread just tastes great in that situation. I really like the other breads I mentioned, more, but for a good old PB&J I'm going to choose Wonder Bread. Acqua di Gio falls in the same category. It isn't my favorite fresh scent out there in fact it probably doesn't crack my top 20, although that's probably close. Yet, on a sunny summer day there are just days I want to wear Acqua di Gio for all of the things it does right. The one thing Acqua di Gio gets very right is it is composed in a light style which keeps it from ever becoming cloying or heavy on me. Right from the beginning the lightness of touch is evident as a breeze of jasmine on top of other florals lead this into a fruity heart paired with a very typical aquatic heart. This would be the ideal description of many feminine fruity florals but because Acqua di Gio keeps its composition so muted this works well as a masculine and if someone is getting nervous about wearing a fruity floral the base is full of strong he-man accords. Starting with cedar followed by patchouli and a sheer white musk. Acqua di Gio is that very easy-to-wear scent that owes its popularity to that quality, I think. There is nothing challenging here but there is also nothing to make one want to turn away either. As many scents in this class Acqua di Gio has average longevity and a decent amount of projection. Acqua di Gio is perfect for that sunny day I'm in the mood for a little PB&J on Wonder Bread.

I guess if one cologne had to be overdone, this isn't a bad one for it to be... Way too light for me, Lemony, can barely smell anything upon spraying, and after 15 minutes, have to literally inhale my wrists to get anything.... I mean yeah if you don't want to overpower or offend anyone, this is probably the best cologne, but be prepared to respray often if you want to smell it.

This scent is ridiculously good. Although everyone and his brother has or does wear it, the ladies go crazy for it. We all want our individuality, of course, but I can't help but spray this one on here and there before going out. The ladies know it by name, and don't care if theres 10 other guys in the bar wearing the same thing, as long as they can smell it on you.

Do I think it smells good? 5/5
Compliments from the ladies? 5/5
Overall 5/5

Magaluf 1998!!!! Great Scent!! Freshest fragrance you can buy but at 29 I think i've outgrown this. More suited for teens to early 20s. Still love this everytime I smell this though!