Reviews of Xeryus Rouge (1995)
by Givenchy

A shade too sweet and crude for my taste, but it is not the worst entrant in its class. I quite enjoyed the rather faux exotic opening, it was not exactly life changing, but it was laudably different and stimulating. The shroud of cloying sucrose descends within an hour, and the whole thing seems a little unbalanced and heavy. That said, on a warm day, in informal surroundings it might just find its place. Its longevity and sillage are impressive, despite my misgivings about the product itself.

Holy Kumquat! I'm in the minority here, giving it a neutral rating. I don't find it cloying, perhaps because nowadays it feels as if every cloying scent is a variation of vanilla with a capital V plus synthetic Joop-like crap.
I can also understand how this could be a favorite for those who like bold, unusual scents. Favorite? This has attained cult like status. Look at its virtues: Strong sillage, great longevity, super-fruity sweet (makes John Varvatos smell astringent by comparison) and a highly unusual accord.
Cactus Flesh?

Perhaps there should be a new category. Forget fougere, oriental or chypre. How about well blended frags that are half-mad?
Peau d'Espagne (tabasco sauce) Nostalgia (motor oil)
Quasar (bananas and newsprint)
etc.

XR is most certainly worth a sniff! You might join me in the minority and shrug, or you might find it appallingly sweet and cringe, but then again, you might also be among those who have discovered their signature love.

About 14 years ago when I was a young guy at school, I had a part time job in a jewellers as an engraver. I remember smelling this from a sample in a magazine and then also realised that my boss wore this when he was in work. It appeared to me to be a sophisticated scent, very grown up and very different from the "fresh and unisex" scents which were about at the time.

I remembered that scent right up till this year when I saw a bottle in a store for about £20 GBP so I decided to test it. Thank goodness I did. To my nose this is nothing like what it used to be in the mid 90's and I felt thoroughly dissapointed.

Neutral rating on the basis that the mid 90's one smelt really nice.

Smells like Old Spice Pure Sport deodorant.

I bought a large bottle of this few years ago along with three 200ml tubes of shower gel. I really liked it for sometime; I especially remember wearing it a lot on Saturday evenings after sauna.

Unfortunately after quite a few wearings, I noticed my nose had become overly sensitive to some aromachemichal that’s in Xeryus Rouge. This has happened with few other scents as well. It didn’t help that I was easy on the trigger….It really started to burn my nostrils and sting my nose. I am not sure if this sounds illogical for some, but it really did happen and it wasn’t surely my imagination.

I had to sell my bottle away. (I kept the shower gels, though)

Xeryus Rouge is synthetically fresh with very sharp tobacco-like edge to it. Red fruits with caramel and crisp green shades. Ambery drydown with smooth musk vanilla combo is very long lasting.

Recommended especially for those who like fruity-sweet fresh fragrances, such as Minotaure, Nicole Miller, Desire for Men, Boss Bottled etc.

This one will give some attention for sure.

I was wearing Xeryus Rouge that evening. My best female friend and me were standing on the street; we were chatting… and laughing… when she suddenly said:”Oh, your scent is making me sick… I’ll throw up.” Only few seconds later she assured me that her statement wasn’t symbolic but literal. That event taught me that I shouldn’t apply more than four sprays.
Xeryus Rouge is fairly sweet, but it is a very specific kind of sweetness that can be pretty disagreeable to some people. Quite often, when I want to describe this scent, I have a dilemma - how should I call it: unusual or weird.
When I read a list of the notes, one note grabbed immediately all my attention: cactus flesh. I had no idea how it smells and I was damn curious. At once, the most brilliant idea came to my mind. Namely, there was a cactus in the entrance-hall of the building I work in. One day, when I was alone in the hall, I cut out, using a little knife, a piece of that cactus. For some unknown reason, a few days later, the cactus didn’t look very healthy. I smelt a cut off piece of the cactus over and over again… However, in spite of all my effort, I haven’t recognized a smell of cactus flesh although I tried with might and main to do that whenever I wore Xeryus Rouge. On the other side, whenever I wear this scent it reminds me of the cactus that I crippled in vain.
Briefly told, Mrs. Menardo created some much better scents in relation to this one.

Upon application of this fragrance you will immediately receive uncontrollable urges to caress yourself all over.
Self Encompassing and never-ending shield that destroys any undesirable public odors attempting to penetrate.
Only for individuals with absolute intensity.

I don't know whether to like this fragrance or not... On one hand it really seems elegant and even refined, on the other hand it's the coldest smell I've ever encountered in a perfume. It's like spraying your refrigerator... That I don't like, I rather enjoy the sweet, warm and balsamic scents that don't give the unpleasant freezing sensation.

Very sweet, and amazingly strong. two sprays can almost overdue it with this one. Basically, you can't wear this cologne without getting noticed by everybody close to you. I like to be noticed, but quietly - i gave this bottle to my 16yr. old brother, and he loves it, and gets good results.
I wish i could like this fragrance more, because the reactions i've always gotten from women were similar in that they all involved some kind of sexual theme. ladies love it, but use in moderation please - or the whole room will smell you.

This fragrance is too sweet, unusual (that would be the cactus and kumquat), almost cloying and powerful. But I must admit I still wear it now and then. It has a come hither quality that I just can't refuse.

Very much like the original, but enveloped in warm and sweet, almost too sweet "candied" notes. What the heck happened to the original bottle? A bit shameful from the likes of a couture powerhouse like Givenchy!

Very sweet and strong. It has a nice smell too it, but it can be overbearing. I think its a good cologne, but its too fruity for some. Fall only, becomes too strong in the summer.

Nothing to do with it's big brother, the black bottle. Rouge is like the name implies very red, smells ike red fruit punch with a distinct cactus note. Extremely sweet and with significant power, extremely strong actually, at Joop!ish levels. The drydown is a conventional woody one, but doesn't appear until many hours after application as the fruity sweetness lingers forever. All in all a pretty cool and original release but to cloying at times.

It's a rich scent, but as MisterK said a bit too sweet... If you like sweet and classy fragrances, this one is for you. Not for me, though.

I think this may be a great scent for the younger crowd or perhaps on a date, but day-to-day, I would find this to be a bit too sweet, which is the same problem I have with Desire (Dunhill).
In terms of a sweet scent, I prefer Allure or Opium. Thumbs up if you're under 30, neutral if you're over 30.

Is it possible for there to be an Oriental/Fougere-Woody fragrance? If so, then in my non-expert opinion, I think Xeryus Rouge is it. When I smelled it on paper in the shop, it seemed clearly like an Oriental. But when I wore it, it seemed far more akin to wearing XS or Black Jeans, both of which I also like a lot.