Reviews of Original Vetiver (2004)
by Creed

Creed Original Vetiver

Notes: Vetiver from Haïti, Mysore sandalwood, iris from Florence, musk and ambergris, deep wood notes, mandarin, bergamot from Sicily, ginger (from creedfragrances.co.uk)

Lemon, bergamot, amber, musk, and rosewood are the most prominent notes when Original Vetiver is first sprayed. I am wondering where the vetiver is. Even after the fragrance has dried and is starting to settle, I do not smell any vetiver. What I do smell is basically a very woody-lemony cologne with soft amber-musk base. It's really not bad, but I would not classify it as a vetiver fragrance. The ingredients seem to be of reasonably good quality, however, I am having a very hard time getting excited about this fragrance. OV is Boring with a capital "B". It just SITS there, being lemony, woody and a tad spicy--in a nutshell, OV is mostly a soapy traditional scent and a bit thin on the base notes. This fragrance has none of the sparkle and beauty I would expect from a traditional scent made by a prestige house. I hesitate to suggest it as a good, all occasion, light and fresh fragrance because it is too expensive for what it is.

I'm embarrassed to say that when I wrote my initial review of OV, I was mistaken. Stupidly, I bought my bottle of OV from eBay. Little did I know when I wrote my review that I had bought a fake. And not even a good one. I didn't realize I'd been stiffed until a couple of weeks later when I sampled the real thing at Neiman Marcus. Since then, I've bought a bottle of the real deal, and it is fabulous. A beautiful fresh and VERY GREEN scent that at first does seem like a ripoff of the TM Cologne. However, give it some time and you'll see the difference. Whereas the TM is a rather static, linear work, OV truly evolves beautifully over time, starting with a bright green, citrusy top note, then the vetiver slowly creeps in and lasts for a good three hours. After that, OV makes a 180 back to its initial green ways, drying down to a sweet musk. Beautiful work.

Below I've kept my initial review just for laughs and a lesson not to buy Creed from eBay!:

I just bought a bottle of OV blind on eBay, based purely on the positive reviews of it on this site. Am I smelling the same "Original Vetiver" that all of these rave reviewers smelled?! This now is tied with Pinaud's "Lilac Vegetal" as the nastiest, most foul "fragrance" I have ever smelled. All I smell is SOAP - a very LOUD Dial soap. The kind of soap that sucks out every drop of oil from your skin and dries it to a crisp. I don't smell the slightest bit of citrus, "cut grass", or even vetiver in this. This is a totally vile, single-note chemical floral so awful that if you ever wondered what a migraine headache feels like, all you'd need to do is take one whiff of this heinous stench. The Bush Administration could have used Original Vetiver on the prisoners at Guantanamo Bay rather than water-boarding - one spritz of this stuff will make a person confess to anything! If I'm not smelling the same fragrance everyone else on this site is raving about, then Creed needs to get with the program, improve their quality control and start pouring the right fragrances in the correct bottles. Why would anyone want to smell like this? To attract bees?

Lemme start by saying how much I've really, really, really tried to like Creed. Anyway, this one starts out innocuously enough, but by the dry down, you're stuck in soapy/grassy hell for the next 24 hours -- kinda like a really bad acid trip or something. And go ahead and try to wash this thing off! Can't do it! Hey, if you dig vetiver to the extreme, this is the scent for you. Go easy, though. Too much of this bad boy and the sillage gets imprinted on your cerebral cortex, just like The Phone Company wanted to do in "The President's Analyst." Remember that movie? Great flick! I'm neutral on the scent because I just don't dig heavy vetiver, and that's not Creed's fault; it's my problem and I guess I'll just have to deal with it. But a big thumbs up on the movie! Check it out!

At best this smells like a bar of Dial, or a Crayola scented crayon (Baby Powder mixed with Cedar Chest maybe?). At worst it smells like a grass clogged lawnmower. I don't understand this at all. The gradient green bottle is nice though, so at least there's some investment to keep after you dump the $250 liquid out.

What a blast of fresh cut grass!! Uplifting and masculine with a pleasing lack of sweetness. Very good duration and silage. A complex scent with interesting development. Unlikely to offend anyone (unless you over-apply massively).
16/05/06

Edit 21/06/09 - Well I stand by most of that except that I can't wear it anymore because of the everlasting musk in the base. It endures through several showers and interferes with my scent choice the next day. It would be wonderful for somebody who wanted to wear it every day, or several days in a row.
Changed from thumbs up to neutral.

My girlfriend ordered a bunch of Creed samples so I thought I'd take the opportunity to try this. The women's scents were great. This, not so much.

At the leading edge, there's a refreshing clean soapy thing going on. But to me it didn't last, and quickly degenerated into this heavy old man smell. My girlfriend outright hated it and would not come near me. This seemed to spend most of its time in this old man kind of drag-me-down vibe. It almost reminded me of someone trying to cover up a urine smell with perfume.

It stuck for a long, long time, and I didn't use much at all. The interesting thing was when I did a workout later on, body heat or sweat seemed to liven it a little and a nicer sweeter, cleaner scent took over from the urinal reek.

I would only wear this in hot weather, if ever. And it would need to be the right occasion. A funeral, maybe. I could see a funeral director wearing this. Can't see anyone under fifty wearing it, to be honest.

Really great smell it does not seem to last one me that long love the smell but kind of low on the amount of time I can smell it on me .I have sinus trouble allergy though so it may just be me but not that way with others I own with the exception of bois de portugal and git the lasting power on creeds is not as long as I would like but they are all great frags!

This is very nice. I get Limes, Soap suds, and a kind of "Light rain falling on fresh cut grass" touch. I love it. Lasting power is above average on me, and I'd put the silage at perfect "within arms reach" length. If I were a golfer, This would be one I'd reach for often before hitting the course.

It seems to convey class and sophistication, without being in your face about it.

This will definitely be one of my go to frags for spring and summer. And honestly, I could see myself wearing this in the winter too. You won't blow anyone's mind with this one, But you won't scare them away either. I live in a hot climate, and my bottle of Original Vetiver will be getting a lot of use!! Clean soapy limey grassy rainy...yep!

Classy scent for casual encounters. Starts with with a blast of citrus - mandarin, to be exact, but more like the peels than actual fruit - and quickly evolves to reveal a scent of fresh wood reminiscent of cedar. This is the phase that defines the scent as outdoorsy in the leisure class, like a polo player, golfer or a geese hunter - suggestive of the hard work ahead, but never necessarily taxed to a sweaty, physical limit. The vetiver is there, but only as a background note that casually swaggers between the bright wood and mandarin notes until the drydown 30 minutes later, where OV evolves into a rich, consistent and pleasantly one-dimensional texture with the smoothness of a $100 bill. Excellent longevity with better than average sillage. Two thumbs up.

Very much it is pleasant to me Original Vetiver. It is pleasant as fresh pure aroma of citrus, as fresh very green smell. As vetiver - me it seems weak. I love strong aroma vetiver, my favourite - Encre Noir. As a whole excellent perfume.

Creed Original Vetiver: opens with a controlled and refined freshness. it didnt remind me of Mugler cologne for a second but, it did remind me of Adolfo Dominiguez Vetiver Hombre. only this one being much smoother and refined. where one would hesitate to over apply Vetiver Hombre in the fear of gasping, this one serves you just right.
OV has tremendous longevity on my skin, 8-10 hours plus. The midnotes are quite controlled and has that trademark soapy note which makes Mugler cologne the scent it is, however, i would strongly prefer this over mugler for all the extra creed has packed in. something about this one is (dare is say) natural. The surprise element for me was it's drydown. the basenotes evokes smell of dry vetiver leaves (crumbling), not like the soapy fresh one i encounterd from opening to mids. it's quite intense in the base too and adds to the soapy nature of vetiver in a very unique (dry) way. this scent has a very distinct phase , right from the opening notes to mid to the base. thumbs up! summer, here i come!!!

Oh, what I went through to discover Original Vetiver!
I ordered a sample of "GIT" on TPC, and it was great: spicy, green, rather soapy. I loved it so much, I ordered another sample-- and it was thin, clear... and boring! Something was amiss.

I had to go to Harrods of London to sift through all the creeds to find out TPC sent me the wrong scent originally! I recieved Original Vetiver, and boy am I lucky!

It opens with a spicy note-- almost too spicy at first, but fades quickly, leading into a greenish, clean scent. It works perfectly with my skin, and sometimes even leaves a slightly metallic scent (this could just be my skin type, though).

Perfect match for traveling through Europe in the Winter. Recommended.

To 99% of the population, this stuff will merely smell like a bar of soap; to the other 1%, it will still smell like a bar of soap--only the allure of Creed will precede their sense of smell, and a purchase will be made.

Nonetheless, Original Vetiver does smell quite nice; but so does a bar of Green Irish Spring.

Bar of Green Irish Spring soap: .99 cents
Bottle of Original Vetiver: 100$+

Hence, thumbs down.

Oh mama! This encounter was more than a compensation for the legions of saccharin mediocrity that I have had to endure recently. Whereas Guerlain Veitiver takes the scenic route from application to dry down, Original Vetiver takes the express route, and it is utterly delightful. There is a eucalyptus type hollowness on application, but it is muted and a little sweet. There is no sucker punch from the vetiver, it merely remains when other components have faded away. For such a rich composition, this achieves it's goals without fuss or fanfare. Every phase of this fragrance is an utter joy.

This is a beautiful, perky and cheerful vetiver. Not heavy or excessively soapy IMO. The bottle has a green tint, and the scent seems green to me as well, a kind of leafy-green opening. I love vetiver scents and this is very good. It is not complex, and I can see the alleged similarity to Mugler Cologne. I think the vetiver here is more pronounced than in the Mugler, and the Mugler has a touch more soft musk in the drydown.

The reason y'all like Creed OV better than Mugler Cologne (the better frag.), is that you paid twice as much for half the amount! 'Nuff said!

I think this is a classic fragrance with incredible longevity on my skin, it really lasts all day on me. I also have Mugler Cologne and it's very good, there is some similarity to OV in terms of notes used but in all honesty I haven't touched it since getting the Creed. On my skin, Original Vetiver reveals itself as a high quality, natural-smelling citrus fragrance with a soapy, clean-smelling vetiver that I find completely addictive. From first citrusy blast to the beautiful sandalwood/ambergris drydown and hours thereafter it remains top notch on me. I've worn this in both day and night, in both casual and formal settings and I never find it cloying or out of place. Highly recommended, particularly as a great spring and summer scent.

I must say that i really like this creed, a nice zesty scent & it also has very good longivity to it, Yep a thumbs up for this one.

Sheer class with a hefty price tag. One of the best vetivers I have ever smelt and definitely much better than most of the competition. Creed's achievement should be praised, given the many disappointments one often encounters in the 'vetiver' range. Will stay a classic for many years and outlive this humble reviewer.

Smells pretty soapy rather than grassy, also the longevity is very poor.

The second soapiest vetiver I've ever smelled--the first being Adolfo Dominguez. Good for a summer scent. I agree with those who pointed out that it hasn't the greatest longevity, mildly agree with the comparisons to TM, but OV is far, far better. I don't care TM costs less. Hell I don't care if they'd pay me to wear Mugler, OV is better.

Yes, this soapy vetiver does have that ' Old Money ' smell about it.

If you find a hidden 18th century manuscript in your attic which reveals that Oliver Creed also made a killing with a chain of barbershops , I would not be too surprised. Damn. Too bad about Sweeney Todd, there could have been a musical in this . . .

I have bought THREE bottles of this stuff. One at a discount online store, two at official Creed stores (Neiman Marcus and Holt Renfrew). I think the samplers I bought were amazing but that the bottles I paid for were awful. The product always had very little lasting power. I am weirded out because it smelled so nice years ago when I tried the sampler. Either Creed ran out of good vetiver, or something is wrong with my nose that affects how I smell OV but not how I smell tons of other perfumes.

Other than that, it is one of the cleanest scent I have ever smelled, and I get compliments every time I wear it during it's short duration of 2-3 hours max.

And by the way, I have even sprayed it about 10 times on my shirt, left my shirt at home, came back a few hours ago and you could not even tell that there had been perfume on it. That is not normal as even a cheap cologne should make a shirt smell good for a long time.

For the money it should last longer. I agree it is a lovely restrained earthy soapy vetiver, the Guerlain seems a little drier and certainly outlasts it. I really like the Lanvin and that is the cheapest by a mile, bright lemony soapy grassy and lasts all day.
Returning to add Mugler cologne to the comparison and that is my favourite of them all

After a good start the Creed Original Vetiver collapses within an hour into an unspectacular composition of vetiver and lime, all in all a soapy impression without the extra little kick. It is not bad but just pretty boring, just nothing I would buy.

This smells almost exactly like Thierry Mugler's Cologne. I don't like either. THM Cologne smells like bathwater but this smells like freshly peppered bathwater.

I first tried OV in 2007 and sampled it at least a half dozen times before the end of summer. I felt displeased with it, but I felt more puzzled than capable of stating any reason for my displeasure. I put it aside for many months and recently retested it. My experience is much more positive now than it was and I appreciate the deep green scent, the soapy feeling OV gives, as well as great lasting power (12+ hours on me). Masculine and devoid of sweetness. I learned something valuable here: if one cannot determine why a fragrance is unsatisfactory to them, perhaps it is better to put it aside for awhile and reassess it again (I had a similar experience with Terre d’Hermes): the conclusions may be refined or change altogether. In retrospect, I think my dissatisfaction with OV was because it was unfamiliar and different than anything I had previously worn. While I doubt I would ever wear OV enough to justify a purchase, I do think it is well made and worthy of consideration.

Sorry, but after drydown all I was left was a strong soapy perfumy headache.

Umm smells like soap I used to use back in NY when I was little... Smells very green and not a bad smell, but just can't see myself paying so much to smell like soap.

Despite the opening is very similar to Thierry Mugler Cologne, Original Vetiver seems to be better in terms of sillage power. If Mugler Cologne feels younger and fresher, the Original Vetiver is the grown-up version of it. Original Vetiver feels more matured, powdery & soapy and has different end notes than Mugler Cologne. Same with Mugler Cologne, Original Vetiver is suitable for office occasion and daytime. It will not offend anyone. Personally, I'll choose Mugler Cologne over Original Vetiver as Original Vetiver is too powdery for my taste, feels too matured for my age (25) and a bit expensive. It smells weird to the extent of making me want to vomit if worn during cold rainy days but during hot sweaty summer days, it smells heavenly. I could even detect a floral hint from the vetiver scent when I'm sweating. Great stuff.

Exceptional. OV is a clean, fresh, soapy vetiver. The vetiver isn't that noticable in the opening, you get a lot of the lime and soap. As it dries down the vetiver starts to blossom and really develop quite nicely and the lime (I believe it's lime) still lingers to add a certain panache.<br><br>Yes this frag is expensive, but it is one of the better vetivers I've smelled and is worth the money (it can be found for very good prices online). I find this frag to be perfect for the office. It's clean, refreshing and not "insulting." <br><br>It wears well with good longevity (9+ hours) and good sillage.

There’s no doubt about it — this is a lovely fragrance. It opens with an excellent citrus accord, made catching because of the bitter orange that dominates the accord in conjunction with the sharpness of the lemon and the sweetness of the mandarin. Even in the opening, there is in the distant background that slightly sharp, possibly bitter vetiver note that I have grown to love, but this desirable vetiver note doesn’t occur in abundance — only in extreme discretion. This reticence might be okay for some, but it is rather disappointing to me, an inveterate vetiver lover. The mild spicy / strongly soapy middle rules supreme over the vetiver, with the vetiver moving even more into the background than it did in the opening. The loss of the citrus notes from the top has reduced the catchiness of the middle accords, and the additional spices are not poignant enough to retain the drama and minor olfactory conflict of the opening: The fragrance has suffered a bit from the loss. The base is a Creed base with the sandalwood exerting a minimal influence and the vetiver acting as a member in abstencia rather than an active contributor. The amber, cedar, pine, and musk completely take over the base to establish an excellently appropriate drydown for a citrus fragrance, which is exactly what Original Vetiver is — an excellent citrus fragrance. OV has good longevity on my skin and its sillage is also quite good. The scarcity of florals in the lineup, keep OV masculine even though there are minimal typical testosterone-inducing notes in the makeup of the fragrance. The comparisons to Mugler Cologne — especially the top notes of both—are accurate, although OV is a better fragrance overall. Thumbs up as a fragrance, but if I had to vote on it as a vetiver fragrance, it would have to be thumbs down.

This, like Creed's other Vetiver, disappointed me. Where the other had a caramel/woody scent that quickly disappeared, this gave me a soapy scent with no detectable vetiver at all. It too disappeared quickly, which was not upsetting as I found it totally undistinguished.

Fresh, fresh, fresh. Clean, just laundered light green with a tinge of foody vanilla(veryvery light tinge).
I am sure I am not the only one that notices OV is a copy of Mugler Cologne. However, the 'hand-of-Creed' is very evident, and I think I would have bought the Creed if I sampled it before the Mugler. There is something about the Mugler that bomes annoying if oversprayed, especially in cold weather. The Creed on the other hand is dynamic enough so you can overspray and not regret it.
But for the money, Mugler is the bvious touch. However, if a bit more sophistication and a better drydown is your desire, spend the money on Original Vetiver.

This is too soapy. To me, it doesn't smell natural, it doesn't smell like vetiver, it doesn't smell like freshly cut grass, and it's not particularly smooth. It smells like a VERY nice soap. Maybe the body wash would be a good investment...this would certainly wake you up in the morning. If you're looking for a nice soap scent with good longevity, this is a top option, but I'm just not a fan of the genre. I was hoping for more vetiver and/or grass.

My favorite aspect of OV is the peppery dryness, but that note is done much better in Ormonde Jayne's Isfarkand, a similar but much more interesting (read: less soapy) scent.

I'm glad my wife got me a sample of Original Vetiver. Smells great, a hint of soapy smell (not as strong as Bois du Portugal) and not too overpowering sweetness and excellent longevity (at least on my skin).

This fragrance is a close second to my all-time favorite, Green Irish Tweed. I think this has more of the "green" (as in "freshly mowed grass") smell than GIT...Oh, the irony! ;-)

Downside? Well, it's kind of hard for a man under 30 to pull this scent off. If you're under 30, look somewhere else, IMO.

Very unlike other men's Vetiver colognes.
Well done, sweet, citrusy, and soapy, but not feminine.
Thumbs up.

Since getting into fragrance a year or so ago, I have accumulated maybe a couple dozen bottles of scent. Many of them gather dust having been spritzed once or twice, but failing to make the cut. The better ones show clear usage, but are still over 75% full. My 4 oz. bottle of Original Vetiver was my second to most recent purchase 4 months ago and it's nearly gone. I just love its clean, natural, kind-of-soapy-but-in-a-good-way smell.

Really, really, nice scent, but I think I prefer the Guerlain Vetiver just a tad. A bit softer and you get a lot more for your $$$$.

Citrusy green, with a head tilting oddness that is so intriguing. After the opening dries down, the ginger and ambergris add a not-offputting sour saltiness that gives this vibrancy. The vetiver is revealed more prominently on my skin after about an hour. I love that this is never really sweet, and on my skin retains that sort of sour citrus note through to the VERY end where the musk smooths things out. There is something so natural about this, so out doors: citrus, grass and leaves, fresh water puddles after a rain storm in the forest. Very well done. p.s. Mugler Cologne? Distant 2nd cousin thrice removed at best.

Attempting to blatantly rip off Mugler Cologne, the Creeds messed up and wound up with a similar but superior fragrance. A wonderful citrussy opening turns into a soapy-fresh barbershop middle and a somewhat familiar sandalwood-amber-musk base. The Vetiver is there, but not as prominent as in Etro's, Villoresi's or Malle's offerings. It might not be worth the higher price to you if you enjoy Mugler, which is really quite nice, and I personally like Dominguez' Vetiver Hombre even better, but contrary to Original Santal and a number of other modern Creeds, I did fall for this one. And one can never have enough good vetivers, with global warming and all that...

I've been wearing this a lot since it's release in 2004. Although slightly anoyed at first by it's resemblence to TMC I tried to ignore OV ,but I stil couldn't let this go. I kept on using it and bit by bit I've grown to love it big time. Also the difference's to TMC are more obvious to me than they were then. I prefer this one.It's a superb, green,clean smelling vetiver. Not earthy, but fresh leaves. It's springtime in a bottle. Wonderfull!

Well, first time I smelled this I did not want to buy it.

Then, since I have visited Creed counters frequently, I have been noticing many women in their 30+ buying this fragrance for themselves, time after time.

I don't know why women would choose to wear this, must be the some aphrodisiac in this one.
I have also noticed the counter women from other departments comming just to get a spritz of this on their skin...one of them even rolled her eyes in passion as she described to me how she loves OV.

It smells like a Ivory soap and very soft, smooth and rich shaving cream. It is never overpowering and it just vanishes at the point where comparable synthetic cologne would start being persistently annoying and too strong.

When I smell it now, all I can think of are words like "solea", "savon" and "toledo".

It can be worn to the office and everywhere else. My all time favourites are: Virgin Island Water (light brown colour drydown), Bois du Portugal (best pound for pound cologne), Cuir de Russie (out of this world concept cologne) and Selection Verte (fresh and very light burst fitted for every occasion)....and now OV as well !

The best song that goes with OV cologne according to my mood just recently is the background preppy melody of the song by "T-pain--Buy U A Drank ft. Yung Joc" (check it out at Youtube).

This song just reminds me of the wonderfull invisible fumes of this rich fragrance that are radiating outwards from your neck after spritzing yourself with OV.

The thing is that I like to shower in it as you can never overdo it with this one, you always want more.

Buy it...its an all time classic!

The fresh smell of green grass, freshly mowed. Ah, verdant lawns, and spring air. Nice, really nice. Oh, but where's the vetiver? Could it be that OC didn't want to call this Original Grass? Nice, polite, country fragrance. Not what I would be looking for in a vetiver.

The first time I smelled this, I didn't like it. For some reason I crave the sent now and would willing shell out the cash for it, but for the longevity and sillage. I've tried to like Guerlain's Vetiver and just can't; it has this smoky base to it I can stand. In contrast, this is a very fresh zesty green vetiver, that just doesn't last. You would need to constantly shower in this stuff to retain any sent. Like most things truly beautiful, it's fleeting. As for the mugler cologne comparisons, i don't sense it. Mugler is like doing your laundry, while OV is going on a fox hunt in the english countryside.

OV smells so good in the spring time. It´s smells like cut grass. It is so fresh and clean. Buy this one in the spring.

Lime shaving cream.

Period.

Notes:

Top notes: Bergamot, Bitter orange, Mandarin, Leaves of Vetiver
Middle notes: White pepper, Coriander, Rose pepper, Ginger
Base notes: Sandalwood, Haiti Vetiver, Amber, Musk

Revisiting Original Vetiver (OV) after wearing it in both temperate and harsh weather, and I am glad to report that it wears equally well year round.

With OV, Creed's motive was to provide a fresh interpretation of the beneficial but difficult-to-wear vetiver note. A more earthy and mineral vetiver offering can be found in their classic Vetiver '48, but OV was created to appeal to the modern consumer who doesn't like raw vetiver roots dangling near their noses (not that Vetiver '48 smells like that). A soapy, fresh, citrusy opening draws in the vetiver wary wearer (try saying that fast!) - many draw parallels with Mugler Cologne, and for the first 15 seconds, yes, OV does smell similar. Nothing wrong with that, Mugler Cologne is a quality fragrance in its own right. After that though, the two take different paths to their respective drydowns. OV's heart notes provide a peppery edge to the composition - the main accord of OV is a peppery vetiver scent. This is not the caveman armpit lotion-like earthy vetiver of Route De Vetiver, nor the linear straight from the farm interpretation of Vetiver Extraordinaire. Creed have created the sugar-pill or the fruity vitamin chewables of vetivers. This is a smooth, easy to ingest vetiver with all the hard earthy rooty edges eliminated. The citrus notes, in concert with the pepper and vetiver provide an extremely pleasant smelling fresh and uplifting accord suitable for all situations. Longevity is very good, clocking in around 7 hours.

OV is a modern and dramatic reinvention of their original Vetiver '48 classic. It has been specifically designed to make the harsh note of vetiver more accessible to the modern fragrance crowd. The initial soapy blast mixed with pepper and vetiver notes creates a fresh yet complex fragrance which I would guess is about the only vetiver on market you can wear to office. You might be disappointed if you are looking for a rich and earthy vetiver here - Route De Vetiver or Vetiver Extraordinaire are what you should be looking at then. Or Creed Vetiver '48. Eitherways, with Vetiver '48 and OV, Creed have you covered whether you like your vetiver straight from the soil or clean and well behaved.

This one is more than a fragrance, a non-verbal language and artform, an olfactory delight which makes words seem useless. Compared to Guerlain's Vetiver( which i also love), the latter creation seems less masculine, more eclectic and sophisticated compared to Creed's Original Vetiver. This one is just potent, simple yet undisputedly elegant in its simplicity. Almost a " soliflore", excluding the fact that vetyver is not a floral ingredient, but his scent almost smells only of vetiver- and this is good, unlike other scents in which one or a few notes render it far too onedimensional, in this scent vetiver is suffieciently powerfull and complex in itsself, in its pure, simple form without anything added( or if it were, i couldn't have smelled them)- a statement per se.
First, it smelled just a little too antiseptic, bearing a medicine-like quality, hinting at toothpaste, "fresh out of the shower" and, of course, medicine( somewhere in between mint-scented ointment, cough syrup, night cream and spritous tincture: all these multilayered associations suggested my only one perceptible note, and it's only the beginning). The drydown was much more surprising and spectacular, even tough it didn't derail from the strong vetiver notes.
It included something extremely martial and masculine( yet neither agressively macho nor dark, " gothic"), just sheer, crisp energy and elegance- a both spicy and cooling, both warm and still crisp note of earth, moss and fragrant roots( ginger, ginseng?- yet sitill smelling much closer to vetiver than these tweo ingredients) . Raw, yet understatedly but also energetically masculine style. It is still a mystery to me how sduch a simple, puristic indgredient can be that elaborate at the same time, as it also never fails to smell so natural and authentic. This must be the true art of perfumery at its best- recreate nature's most simple and most accomplished sensations without ever being artficial or overblown, as this scent will out last many of today's trends with it's sheer, no-nonsense timlessness.

I have grown to enjoy vetiver. My first experiences with it in other scents were challenging--it made the herbals notes too harsh it made the flower notes too dry or sour. Then I smelled a lovely bitterness, like rustling dried grass (in Lorenzo Villoresi Sandalo) and decided to try it as a "soliflore" fragrance. In Creed Original Vetiver, this herbal lovliness shines through, supported by notes such as bitter orange and cedar. Vetiver, like patchouli, depends upon its quality for its palatability. Cheap vetiver, like cheap patchouli, is harsh and leaves a lasting bad impression. Quality vetiver, like quality patchouli, is a note that can elevate fragrance from merely good to exceptionally fine. The only problem that I continue to have with it as a solo fragrance is this: People in our culture, in our climate, have no reference point for vetiver. We cannot say, "ah, it smells like newly-woven baskets" or "it smells like a freshly-thatched roof." Instead, the guy at the check-out counter at the convenience store looked at his co-worker with the spritz bottle and rag and said, "What's that smell? Vegetable cleaner?" I paid and walked out the door without explaining. I will be the first person to admit that my tastes in perfume are far from the norm, far from popular tastes. But when it reaches this point, I wonder if I should stay home and enjoy it myself.

To love Original Vetiver, you really have to love vetiver, and I don't. But, it is the best vetiver fragrance I've tried. It's darker and less soapy than most. Probably not coincidentally, it's also the only vetiver scent I've tried that has decent longevity. I don't think the comparisons to Mugler are justified.

best vetiver on the market.some similarities to TM. OV is more sophisticated summer scent.

The comparisons to TM Cologne are not true AT ALL. It does smell a little like TM Cologne if you only smell it straight from the bottle but actually applied this is a very different frag. I love TM Cologne and I really like OV also. OV has greater longevity is a lot more dry and grassy.
You can savely have both of the in your collection.

Green. Fresh. Cool. It smells like Spring. Smooth, but rich. Beautiful, though not sexy like GIT, with which it shares some notes. This is a paradoxical scent. Sometimes it is a soft citrus, sometimes fresh cut grass, sometimes a creamy vetiver and sometimes powder. And sometimes a single accord of all of these. This accord is both profound and elegant. It can be addictive.

If it had the sillage and longevity of GIT, it could contend with this sibling. But OV is puzzling. I have received compliments when I could no longer easily detect the scent. And while the sillage might be extensive, the total effect is of a beautiful, fresh, clean aura, rather than a definite scent. Ladies often like to get close to someone wearing GIT. These same ladies seem drawn to the aura of OV almost unaware of the wearer.

OV has been a spring and summer scent for me. It is lovely, and suitable for most any occasion. While casual, it’s also elegant. But the despite the paradox and mysteries of its sillage and longevity, it’s mostly gone from my skin after a couple of hours, which is just too short lived for me.

Most excellent summer scent. I bought a bottle last week and have been enjoying my new found friend, vetiver. Guerlain's is quite nice as well.

Today I spent the day working outside, building a cedar picinc table. OV is a great compliment to woodworking with cedar and summer sweat under a canopy of maple trees.

OV goes from a modest blast of vetiver to ginger sweetness, refreshing and mildly grassy, then alternates back and forth between vetiver and sweetness during the drydown. Add some Bulgari Pour Homme as an aftershave and you're set.

If you don't like a lot of vetiver in your vetiver scents, but you do like the crisp, citric and clean types of scents, then check out OV. I find that it's a little too soapy for my tastes, and I get nearly no sillage or longevity - one of the few Creeds with which I do have serious longevity issues. All-in-all there's nothing all that distinctive or interesting going on here to keep me coming back for more. It's a pretty typical clean, sharp, somewhat soapy, barbershop-type scent with a boring drydown. I still like the clearer, more mineralic 1948 Vetiver better from this house, and also like a few other vetiver scents better than either of those.

The comparisons to Mugler Cologne are justified. At first whiff this scent is a striking clone of it. However, there are a great deal of differences that warrant having both in your wardrobe. After the first half hour, the basenotes of vetiver comes into the fray and makes this a very nice, if unspectacular, scent that works in most situations. I didn't care for it at first, but it grew on me after awhile. Typical nicely made, safe, unoffensive modern Creed.

Amazing stuff. I think it is quite fresh. And it's not that high priced, either. It may smell like other fragrances, I am unsure, but it lasts forever. It's a very fresh fragrance which lasts a long time. Amazing stuff, high quality. You can get a tester of this from scentiments.com for much cheaper than Mugler.

Initially it smells like the hot lemon towels they serve after dinner at an Indian restaurant close to where I live! A citrusy scent for warm breezy days.

It's too light and really lack of longervity. I recomend guerlain's Vetiver instead.

It is one of the scents I keep smelling on myself. My nose is ceaselessly attracted to the sources of it; throughout the course of the day. At first there is not much vetiver itself into it - just happy green grass thing. Soapy? In a way yes. The day gets tired, my clothes saturated with all the scents I had contact with... Usually not a particularly satisfying mix. Yet my shirts remain reminiscent of the morning bathroom labour. The note of the house of Creed still there. Be it soapy or not, I still like it.

The most blatant rip-off of Mugler Cologne. " Old English" Creed seem to sell fragrances by giving the false impression that their products are of superior quality, which they are not. They are all highly priced and poor lasting. Americans seem to fall for this cynical marketing ploy more than most. There isn't any detectable vetiver in this anyway. Buy the utterly marvellous Mugler Cologne and avoid this overpriced rubbish.

I tried OV when I bought SMW and OS. The first burst smelt like freshly cut grass,moss,water and the odour of a billy goat. Then it smelt exactly like a barbershop, actually it reminds me of Pinaud,Talcum powder,and Barbicide! One of those old fashioned but immaculate barbershop that you might find around New York City. I don't really know what Vetiver smells like, but I kind of like OV. I sprayed it on my wrist and couldn't stop sniffing it all day. Very fresh/antiseptic/soapy smell!

I dunno, smells great, but 3 x the price of Mugler Cologne which I enjoy more. I don't get it...

A nice pleasent smell, Mostly for the spring, but you can get away with it on cooler summer days as well. DOESN'T LAST LONG AT ALL! It has a perfect bottle, and Adds alot to your collection, but if you're looking for a signiture scent, then I'd advize a grassy scent with more oomph to it.

I was in Neiman Marcus sniffing around the Creed testers when the saleswoman insisted I try the OV. After she sprayed in on my arm, my initial impression was that it was too green, too grassy and too "one-note" strong. However, while I did not particularly like it at first, there was something in it that took ownership of my nose and would not let it go. All night long, I was sniffing my arm and enjoying the soapy freshness and subtle tones that were emerging. Over the next two days, my mind kept drifting back to the scent and I could not let it go. I think that I began to understand the incredible hold of crack addiction after just one hit. After several days of this new fixation, I found a reasonably priced bottle on eBay. Now, upon repeated wearings, I can say that OV is a simply tantalizing scent that wafts ups repeatedly throughout the day, subtly changing and softening, then bursting forth again, seemingly ever new. My taste is eclectic and I can't say I like the fragrancet in the same way that I enjoy the smoky inscence of Michael by Michael Kors or the tabacco hints of Tabarome Millesime by Creed. To me, it is more off-beat in the style (not the smell) of the rose-based Penhaligon's Hammam Bouquet. Yet, while I can't point to why I adore it so, OV is the scent I reach for most often lately. It is truly intoxicating!

Another scent with Vetiver in the name that doesn't have any in the bottle. I think OV and Carven's Vetiver lost their vetiver to Guerlain in a poker match. It's a pleasant creamy soap type smell, with zero longevity on me. It's also bears a startling similarity to TM's Cologne.

Agree that this resembles Mugler Cologne, but OV is much deeper and longer lasting with a sharp grassy edge. Oustanding sillage and longevity for a scent of this type. My most often worn warm weather scent. Always attracts compliments.

It seems to be an everybodys darling. It´s not for me.

"Going old school today, eh Sir, with the old soap-beneath-the-armpits-for-deodorant-trick?", to which I replied "You'd think so, only this is a highly regarded recent frag from our dear old friends at Creed!"

OV on my skin is a soapy citrus frag with only a modest hint of vetiver. After the first 15-20 minutes the soapiness starts to recede and the vetiver steps forward, only to reverse course after another 20 minutes. The soapiness is intriguing, and on initial application I didn't think it would last very long. However, it acquitted itself very well, as it deepened and hung on nicely with excellent sillage; truly a well-crafted scent. Overall, however, there is not much vetiver. I do not like it as much as my dear Guerlain Vetiver, but any vetiver fan should search this out to try it, based on its depth and sillage alone.

Wicozani

OV is a blatant rip off of Cologne by TM. The originality is lacking just as much as the Vetiver is. This is absolutely not worth the price, nor does it deserve the Creed badge. A serious let down, along with Creed Original Santal.

I'm not a fan of citrusy, green almost overly fresh fragrances and this one is that to a tee. Its similarites to Mugler's Cologne are certainly well documented and while that is certainly true for the first several wearing I still believe that this fragrance is a bit better in its composition and there are certain very subtle nuances that are pleasantly different, but those will exhibit themselves only over several wearings and most people just don't want to wait that long. One great thing is that the stuff lasts a very long time and that is one fault certain more recent Creeds get heavy criticism for. Development is rather narrow, but that in itself is not necessarily bad. If you are die-hard loyal to Creed I suppose you might have to have this, but as a long-time Creed fan, I'll pass.

So i purchased a bottle of OV off of a fellow basenoter and my impressions are as follows: 1) This scent does have a nice package of classic "vetiver" in it. I saw a few reviews explaining that it does not have the smack that Guerlain Vetiver has, which is true.. but you can definitely pick up the vetiver in this. 2) EXTREMELY LONG LASTING, must be my body chemistry but i put this stuff on (1 spritz on each wrist) when leaving to work at around 8:30am one morning and before i showered at 10:30pm i could still pick it up.. and pretty strongly i might add. Amazing longevity on me. All around (even the bottle is very cool looking) this beats out my GIT, and that is extremely hard to do imo... darn near perfect... if any creed is worth the retail price, this one would be the closest.

Creeds tried prior:
GIT
Imperial
Himalaya
SM


Regards

I like it a lot, but it's too similar to Mugler Cologne, a scent that I already have (and is also 1/3 the price). Sorry...no OV for me.

This stuff is just fantastic, puts me in a good mood, highly recommendable!!!!!

A classic fresh, grassy, citrusy scent. Better scent, overall, than Guerlain's Vetiver. Worthy of a "signature" scent, especially good for Spring/Summer. My wife loves the smell of this stuff. Long lasting too.

My new absolute fave, the house of creed has created the most unusual (and wonderful)vetiVert scent. I have been wearing vetivert extraordinare by frederic Male for a couple of years. This however is very different, starts of with light citrus notes, which soon develop into a wonderfully relaxed Green woody aura. Great staying power....WAY TO GO!

At first you will be upset with the apparent initial similarity to Mugler's Cologne. Although I enjoy that one to, in the end it has nothing on this superior green scent. Classic Creed "sparkle" and a broad register of clean, green soapy notes makes this new classic so enjoyable and special. And by the way, the longevity is about tenfold compared to the Mugler.
Mattias /Sweden

This Fragance is a special one above many others for one reason, it is the fragance of the French Dolce Vita, the 50's and all the great things at the French Riviera. The House of Creed is still the house of the real fragances. Magic and style are the best elements of this fragance, with a little touch of Haiti Nights. In the 60's in the great years of the best fragances from Haiti, Baron Dandy (voodoo fragance from Haiti) did present to the world the Vetiver Oricha, a more marine oil kind of root than the regular vetiver, and this little detail in heart notes of the fragance makes your best day with the ladies. They seem to see this fragance in a very special way. If you have the money, buy it now, before is gone... You must have it! The elements of the nature, the temperature, the weather, and even the smoke of the cigarettes and the smell of drinks will give you a better edge with the ladies... The house of Creed did something so great that you are not going to be sure that you are still the same person once you put it in you... Not even Piper Nigrum from Lorenzo Villoresi is so fantastic in his basenotes of VETIVER ORICHA. I don't know yet who did so fantastic research to obtain the best fragance of the moment... The ladies will call your home few times just to spend more time with you and and smell you masculine and magical sensuality... This is heavy duty masterpiece from the House of Creed... The Best thing is that you don't have to worrie about morning, afternoon, or night to put it on... Vetiver Original is wonderful anytime, anywhere...
French Riviera, Ladies, mansions, Wine, music, love, adventure... That's Vetiver Original...
Cheers!
Bernardo Trouyet LlorÈns (Toronto-Canada)

Smells like a citrus-grassy like fragrance.
I do not disike...However, I'm hesitant to recommend as of yet

A classic born. Original Vetiver by Creed starts out with a green citrus blend reminescent of TM Colonge but with an herbal refinement and pure quality ingredients which has become stample of the Creed house that has won the world over. The scent dries into a deeper green that exudes freshness and well being. Some may scrutinize the longevity of this fragrance and I will say if has plenty of staying power although its not the best and not the worst regarding this issue. 2 squirts seems to deliver the magical punch of this olfactive jem. This is a MUST BUY in any serious connessieur of orgasmic juice!

Recently bought at Ave. Pierre 1er Serbie in Paris this wonderfully refined fragrance by what I regard as one of the world's most exclusive perfume makers. Just after applying it to your skin, it starts out as what some would refer to as ‘soapy’, but after about half an hour it turns wonderfully soft. When compared to Guerlain’s Vetiver, this scent is much softer; leaving out the strong musky and suppressing the dry notes, being more on the fresh, lightly on the gingery side. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a refined fragrance for casual wear.

I'm relatively new to all this and it would take a lot for me to write a review. So why am I here? Well I just wanted to say that I've tried somewhere between 50 and 100 fragrances and this is my favourite. It's just beaten Creed's Green Irish Tweed to go top. I do like Creed but I'm not biased (Erolfa and Bois Du Portugal are very average) and although SMW is nice it lasts about 15 minutes.
Basically this smells of freshly cut grass with a certain sweetness to it. I found it very unique. It lasts moderately well (GIT lasts longer)
Its a very modern fragrance but with all Creed's traditional quality behind it.
The ONLY fragrance to make me go "hmmmmmmmm" I don't care if girls like it or not (though my girlfriend does) as I'd happily smell this stuff all day.