Cuba (2002)
by Czech & Speake

Minty-bay rum. Cuba opens with a blast of aromatic and refreshing notes of mint, lime and bay-rum. The overall acidic and sort of balsamic effect brings to mind of Piper Nigrum and other Tiger Balm-inspired composition such as Esprit Du Tigre but where these two stay pretty linear in reproducing this effect, Cuba is joined in the middle phase by an animalic musky/rose accord that winks at classic perfumery. Simply amazing and original.

The drydown is more conventonally classic with the appearance of a woody-tobacco combo that drives the fragrance towards the barbershop type of stuff.

Nice concept - Well executed.

6th January, 2012.

A sharp blast of limes and bergamot in the opening. Pretty intense for a few minutes, but slowly fades and rum with a hint of mint become apparent. This is actually my least favorite part of this fragrance as I love the opening and the dry down. The tobacco comes through after the rum/mint middle and is fantastic, but on me it doesn’t last long. I’ve given this one several wearings and every time come to the same conclusion about the longevity. If the middle contained no mint to my nose and the dry down lasted longer and was stronger, this would be one of my favorites. As is, I can’t give this one high notes because of this.

13rd September, 2011.

Compelling and exotic in a real sense. Each time i smell this juice i feel as having dinner white clothed in the Gran Caribe Hotel Habana, the aura i exude is bold, daring and i'm as a globe-trotter brasilian business man full on energy and optimism. Cuba starts with a citrusy aromatic mentholated blast really important, fresh, dark and medicinal which is in a while followed by a mould of spicy tobacco (tonka) and rum able to reproduce a sort of caribeann enjoyable atmosphere full of dances, beautiful women, cruising ships,  orchestras and beaches. The exoticism is created by the blend of the exotic-liquorous warmth of tobacco (detectable throughout the trip) and rum with the herbal-medicinal coolness of aromatic mint, bay, cedarwood and vetiver. Some mild floral notes (roses) in the middle link perfectly with the herbal-medicinal whiff  bringing with their addition of soapy smell a sort of laundry-barbershop touch. A leathery animalic note is set in the dry down in order to link in a captivating way the warmth with the herbal-smokey freshness while a cool frankincense holds on the dusty cool liquorous kind of freshness. I detect the association with a kind of  Antaeus (bay, mint, leather, animal notes, woodsy notes, a touch of incense etc) with bad breath (the final animalins of juice-civet-castoreum?). Original, persistent and bold. I deeply love this concoction and i'm planning to buy a bottle in order to wear the juice for special occasions of feasts, hot summer nights, cruisings, latin excursions and parties on the sweeming pool's side.

3rd September, 2011.

Of the Cuba type scents available Czech and Speake's (especially the vintage) is by far the best in comparison to the likes of Acqua di Cuba and others. Cuba must be understood as more of a bay rum superimposed on top of a leathery cedar and tobacco base. I will not say that there are no animalic elements to Cuba, but I argue they aren't as profound as many have claimed. The cedar adds a certain type of graphite pencil note (covetous in wine I hear) that combined with civet smells somewhat of bad breath--but what great ones don't--Mouchoir de Monsieur, etc. I find the tobacco note quite profound and reminiscent of an unlit cigar though perhaps La Via del Profumo's Tabac does it better.

25th June, 2011.

The opening 30 seconds is bending down to clean up after a dog. That's no problem. It's the mint, geranium, juniper berries, and rum in combination with these dirty animalics that I find nauseating. Florals and squalor work just fine (Jicky flirts with, but never succumbs to, the gourmand with its vanilla); whereas anything foody combined with shit smells like a grotesque before-and-after gag... and gag I do. Cuba's emerging vetiver note helps, but is too little too late. When people refer to fragrances as smelling like bad breath, it's usually nothing more than a cheap swipe. But Cuba unfortunately does have a whiff of halitosis – booze, cigars and dental neglect – that is fascinating and nasty. I wish this scent had an On/Off switch.

17th June, 2011.

Cuba is a daring fragrance, and that's what I like most about it. It's spicy and aromatic, with a prominent fecal smell underneath it all, and this is what separates Cuba from your average spicy scent.

I'd describe Cuba as the smell of earth, dry leaves, cloves and dog shit. Or maybe Antaeus with bad breath. My description might sound unappealing, but trust me, it smells a lot better than it sounds. The poopy smell adds a lot of character to this fragrance, which otherwise would have been sort of ho-hum without it.

My only criticism with Cuba is that I wish it were a bit grittier and more aggressive. A fragrance with such a strong fecal undertone needs heavy hitting smells to back it up, and I wish the tobacco, cedar and clove were a bit more prominent, which would have balanced the scent out better. Patchouli would have been a perfect addition to this fragrance and would have made it even more powerful.

As it is, Cuba is bold and unique, and should be sampled by anyone who likes wearing fragrances to make a statement.

MY RATING: 7.5/10

13rd May, 2011.