Number 1 for Men (2001)
by Clive Christian

Just tried this at a shop in West Hollywood. It was just sitting there with a bunch of other testers. How much is this again? Seems like it should have been locked up!!!

At any rate, I found this a pleasant fragrance. But it reminded me of a more complex Jovan White Musk for Men -- which costs much less and fits more nicely into my budget.

29th January, 2012.

This could even be the most surprising and pleasant perfume ever created by an human being (and it's not) but there're absolutely no way to spend over 1000 bucks for a scent. It's an ok scent, no more, no less. Do you want a Baccarat crystal /gold / diamond bottle? ok get it, but perfumery is another thing!

5th March, 2011. (Last Edited: 4th April, 2011.)

A powdery, spicy, floral scent with a woody- rooty base and a soapy
temperament. I detect spices, some flower (they list lily of the valley), sandalwood, patchouli, vetiver, amber and benzoin. It's a fresh soapy fragrance. About price what can i add? According with the brand's statement the high price is focused on the packaging and rare quality of ingredients. It's a shame anyway but  according with opinion of some rich people the quality of fragrances is strictly proportional to their price. Boh!

4th February, 2011. (Last Edited: 15th March, 2011.)

This one is the only CC I have smelled with any character. A powdery floral, a bit on the fem side but not offensive. I would say skip this and get prada amber or burberry brit and you get the same concept. Not a very masculine fragrance by any means. For the money they ask you would think you are buying a superior purfume, but you are not. CC might be the worlds most expensive perfume company but they are far from being the BEST. Creed still reigns supreme in my eyes. But if you have the cash , give it a chance, maybe it will work for you.

8th October, 2010.

Ok, I'll say it - I *LOVE* this fragrance, despite the price tag, it's probably one of the most versatile and enjoyable colognes I've experienced.

At first, it's extremely powdery and floral-like - almost reminding me of my grandmother's perfume.

However, as it dries down and settles in, it becomes a wonderfully blended combination of mild floral scents and little bit of vetiver, and perhaps pepper or another spice, I can't quite place it. An hour or two after applying it, Number 1 is a little more subtle, but all of the scents are still there, and for me, last all day.

I have to admit, as another reviewer said, I have a hard time separating the price from the fragrance, but in all honesty, I'd enjoy this regardless of the price.

If you're ever visiting a Nieman Marcus to pick up a Creed cologne, ask for a sample of No. 1. The women at the fragrance counter at Nieman's in Troy, Michigan were a delight to work with, and really loaded me up with samples of a number of colognes.

1st February, 2010.

I am no stranger to expensive scents, which I normally use sparingly on special occasions. However, there is no way I could justify spending almost $1,000 on a bottle of cologne. So, for this review I used a tester of the scent. Even if women clung to me like I was covered in flypaper and every business negotiation I ever entered went successfully because I was wearing this scent, I probably would put the money this cologne costs towards a down payment on a Mercedes. And that is exactly why Clive Christian's marketing team is probably paid so well. Come up with a product so exclusive and expensive, that those who enjoy spending money will buy it. Just as some marketing people will market a product as the cheapest on the market and make money on the volume of sales ... Clive Christian's marketing people know you can be just as successful on the opposite end of the rainbow. If you price something so ridiculously high, people will buy it to celebrate or feel good about being able to afford it. In blindfolded taste tests, Dom Perignon and Crystal champagnes test slightly lower than a $40 range bottle of lower end French champagne.

Having vented about $600 - $1,000 per bottle cologne, I realize that someone like the fictional character Thomas Crown would have no problem splurging on such cologne. The dillema I had when I applied the sample of Clive was ... if I was incredibly rich (and semi-foolish) would I still think this scent was worth the cost of what some would pay for a designer suit.

This, to me, smelled like a much more powerful version of a Prada scent. It has a very clean and crisp scent. I detected a little grapefruit and maybe pepper. There was also a slight scent of baby powder. Obviously, this isn't someone with a chemistry set creating a scent and marketing it as the most expensive scent in the world ... these people know what they are doing. There is no question that the experise Clive uses in blending the notes perfectly. It is simple but at the same time complex. It doesn't stand out and slap you in the face the way some of the Creed scents do ... but there is no question that this smells like you'd expect Pierce Brosnan to smell in the part of Thomas Crown. This is the scent of someone who has everything they want and still feels the need to impress.

I tried to put the thought of the cost of the cologne out of my mind to give it a fair test. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't. Maybe it was the fact that every sample I was given was marked 'the world's most expensive cologne'. Marketing works. I literally don't know if I would love this scent as much if I walked by a perfume counter at the mall and smelled it in a bottle marked Armani or Paul Smith. But what I can tell you is ... I do like this cologne a lot. Maybe its the way it makes me feel about myself when I wear it more than the actual scent. But it lasts a long time (longer than Creed's scents last ... maybe it has more juice) and the notes are blended so amazingly well, it is the equivalent of eating a meal at Gordon Ramsay's restaurant as compared to the Olive Garden. No individual note stands out over the others to me ... but they create a perfect blend or harmony together.

Maybe one day I will be so apathetic to the value of money, I will be able to not worry about the cost of a bottle of Clive Christian No. 1. But until I get to that point, I will remain in awe of the scent's simplicity and perfect blending. For all those people who actually hate this scent and happen to have a bottle hanging around that they no longer want ... I'd be happy to take that bottle off their hands. Perhaps you can claim it as a tax write off? ha ha

29th June, 2009.