Reviews of DK Men Unleaded (1995)
by Donna Karan

A stunning tobacco & suede leather composition with a slight sweetened edge to it. Not unlike the composition of vanilla and cardamon ice-cream but not as gourmand . The basil is not as outstanding which I enjoy worried that it might make this scent a little too green but the warmness of the sage is quite appreciated. For a tobacco, suede fragrance, I am surprised that it smells clean (slightly soapy: L'Occitane bath gel) and very smooth.

My first reactions to this were synthetic-rubber but it smelled so very different from the rest, which made it the first ever perfume in my collection. I still find this a very sophisticated scent, much better balanced than the overly sweet Le Male by JPG which was all the rage in my teen years.

This scent makes a strong, dramatic entrance, almost domineering, quickly mellows down, yet retaining a very masculine and charismatic presence. It remains in the background most of the day, but fully in control. Think of a smoking room when the male ego is at play from the beginning but relaxes as the conversation and the night progresses.

Now, if only I could get my hands on DK Leaded...

This is touted as a bracing skin spray. How apt. It's bracingly seductive, uplifting but like most skin sprays, cast only a brief spell on its wearer. But during its short period where it weaves its magic, this is one potent stuff. One of DK's best offering.

While DK Men Fuel tops my list of favorite colognes, DK Unleaded doesn't make my top 10. It's a nice cologne to be sure, but it's missing the notes that make DK Men Fuel the classic that it is.

DK Unleaded is sold as a "Bracing Skin Spray," and honestly I'm not quite sure if that's an EDT or Cologne, or neither. At any rate, it doesn't last nearly as long as DK Fuel, so I'm guessing that it possibly approaches the concentration of a body spray (?).

The smell reminds me a lot of a men's facial scrub product, specifically one that I used to buy from Bath & Body Works in the early to Mid-90's (and long discontinued as well).

I have a 1.7 oz bottle of this and honestly just keep it because it's related to DK Fuel. But I'm not in a rush to wish or campaign for a re-release.

DK Men, on the other hand....it deserves it's recent relaunch!!!

I LOVE THIS FRAGRANCE a 10 two thumbs up please bring this back

A worthy younger sibling to DK Leaded Men. It’s lighter than big brother, but just as unique. This is one of those rare cases where the sequel is as good as the original. Unleaded is lighter, smoother, a tad dryer, a noticeable bit fresher. Where DK Leaded is aggressive and edgy and unique, DK Unleaded is smooth and edgy and unique. They definitely are kindred, both filled with passion and talent, but Leaded is raw, and untamed, while Unleaded went to a very good prep school. Leaded is heavier and sharper—it is saddle leather to Unleaded’s suede. I’m not sure what the notes in Unleaded actually are: they could be leather; they could be tobacco. The accords in which they are presented do not seem to aim for clarity; they aim for texture—silkiness. And this unique, silky smooth, exquisite fragrance is as brilliant as the texture of its big brother.

Having never tried the Original, i do not know how to compare this one with the Leaded. This is truly one of a kind, never smelled anything like it. It's powdery, fresh and sweet, but not sweet in a sense of a gourmand way. It's rather sweet like a quality cigar, in other words, it has a sexy sweet tabacco note to it. I also smell the suede. It's a bit on the light side, but quite subtle. An excellent fragrance!

This was a wonderful followup to DK Men. I appreciated this interpretation of a fresh leather scent. Never smells heavy, but has a wonderful masculine, sophisticated presence.

Hi, I just wanted to say that I don't know why they decided to take this great fragance off the market. In the mid '90's I bought this fragance twice, and I normally I don't buy a frangance twice because its smell changes on my skin with any other perfume, apart from this one. They took it off the market in the US a bit later then in Europe, but now, when I ask someone to look for it in the States, they come back empty handed aswell. I even heard in the perfume stores that Estée Lauder would come out with the same fragance, but under a different name, but so far (over 5 years) I haven't seen Estée coming out with somthing that smells close to Donna Karan Unleaded for man. I would love to get my hands on a big bottle, so if anyone knows about it, please let me know! I give this fragance 2 big thumbs up!!!

Ciao Maurizio, Barcelona, Spain