John Varvatos (2004)
by John Varvatos

John Varvatos

It must be difficult as a perfumer to be given the assignment to create a designer scent. Probably similar to being an artist working in advertising. You want to be able to show off your artistry but the client has a vision they want to see realized. I think this is why so many times when I approach a designer scent I'm already pre-disposed to yawn because I'm not really expecting anything very different. It is nice when those expectations get dashed, every once in a while. Rodrigo Flores-Roux manages to tread a nice line between commercial and creative in his 2004 creation John Varvatos. In some of the press materials about John Varvatos they trumpet that some of the notes used in this scent were used for the first time. Sometimes there is a reason for that. Happily, in this case M. Flores-Roux uses that novelty to create originality over a base of familiarity and creates one of the better designer scents to be found. According to the note list the top notes are; medjool dates, Mediterranean herbs and tamarind leaves. This combination has a quality of feeling like a dark fruit married to a mix of dry herbs of which rosemary is the most prominent, and it is all tied together with an interesting green note I haven't smelled before; tamarind I presume. The top overall is sweet but the rosemary and tamarind offset it enough to keep it from being too sweet. Sage and coriander are used to transition the scent into a heart of Indian Ajowan, which is a variety of caraway. I have really come to enjoy the use of caraway in colognes, Parfumerie Generale Querelle uses it to stunning effect. The ajowan here carries the same dark spiciness that I get from Querelle but in conjunction with the sage and coriander, in John Varvatos, it feels more herbal overall. The heart transitions to the base on a note of vanilla which carries the scent into safe masculine woody teritory. In the base the unique note is called Eaglewood but it smells like a less-complex version of oud and a more complex version of gaiac. There is also a synthetic added called Auramber and based on the name I'm guessing this is the source of the warm amber feel underneath the intense woods. There is also a hint of resin which also might be coming from the auramber, as well. I find John Varvatos to be very long-lasting with above average sillage, on me. It can be depressing sometime to look out at the sea of designer scents out there and sigh. That's why its nice to wear John Varvatos and be able to turn that frown upside down.

Dates seem to feature promptly for me this month not least because it is the month of Ramadhan when Muslims customarily break their fast with this sweet fruit. JOHN VARVATOS is probably the first scent I know that uses dates; a gamble or more of a marketing gimmick as the fruit is better known for its taste than its fragrance. I find its projection rather 'creamy', mildly fruity even - an aspect which women seem to find appealing. While I do recognize the scent of a biker's leather jacket amidst the ambery vanilla drydown, I just wish the note features more prominently, not as an afterthought. Still a worthy buy in my books even if the scent falls short of delivering what the handsome bottle promises.

This one grew on me, I love everything about it. The deep scents are a nice change from a lot of the sharp citrus stuff going around, the notes are exotic yet familiar, almost reminds me of fragrant rice in a nice Thai restaurant. Very sophisticated, suitable for warmer weather I think, often I'll come home from work and head to the gym and when I sweat a little the fragrance comes right back, very long lasting even when used sparingly.

I really like this fragrance, smells wonderful and works very well with my chemistry. Longevity on me is great and the dry down is top notch, If you haven't tried this yet I suggest you do so or you might be missing out.

This was one of the very first fragrances I had. It caught my attention because it was unique on the Macy's shelves. It had unique elements then, and I still find it unique after knowing a two hundred more fragrances. Dates and tamarind, I still can't name any frags on the top of my head that have either of these. All that aside, its a smooth date-vanilla-leather fragrance, absolutely gorgeous. I can't remember where I saw an analogy about this but it compared Varvatos to a Mustang with a leather interior as opposed to a luxury car - I think that hits it dead on. I can only imagine how well this would go with a leather jacket outfit.

There is alot going on in this one and it really doesn't slow down at all. I definitely like the spice and leather....goes well during the winter months.