Blu Mediterraneo Marine Oak / Quercia Marina (1999)
by Acqua di Parma

I received a sample of this as part of TPC's big 19-part men's beginner's educational sample selection. As a newbie, it was one of the first in the group which I was able to like right off the bat.

Apparently this was a part of a 4-frag ADP introduction back in 1999, of which two remain in production, while this and another have been discontinued. Which is unfortunate in that now I seem to have formed a certain emotional attachment to the thing.

26th September, 2011.

Well, I have to say that I hated this one at first, I think it was the distinctive earthy note of the marine oak. But it started to grow on me and the next couple of times that I wore this it brought images of a mediterranean beach, hot and dry like Crete or Corsica. The opening notes are soft and pleasant, typically soothing for a summer fragrance. It's the marine oak that makes all the difference, without the opening notes this could qualify as a "reality" fragrance.

12nd June, 2011.

I had a small decant that had enough juice for three decent wearings, so, this review is (like many of mine, actually) based on three experiences.

My first wearing was on a cool rainy day, and boy did this stuff shine. It really felt like I was wearing the Long Island sound, in the rain. There was a wet, non-tropical sea freshness that only strengthened as the day progressed. It isn't "aquatic," rather it i marine, and I can only assume that this is the seaweeds doing

My second wearing was on a dry, warmer day, and I also may have applied a bit too much. ADPBMQM is easy to over apply because it doesn't seem to smell much upon initial application, and you may not really smell it for about 30 minutes (without pressing your nose on it, of course). This day didn't go well, and the fragrance became dry and cloying rather quickly.

My third wearing was a bit more even tempered. It was a mild day, and though thundershowers were in the forecast, there were none to be found. No matter, as there was some humidity in the air, and my application was more reasonable. Well, that third wearing was average at best. It was reminiscent of the first awesome wearing, but didn't have the magic, and felt more like I was just wearing an entry level, department store "sea" fragrance.

I cannot recommend this due to it's fickle nature.

26th April, 2011.

Today is another grey day, complete with rain, so I decided to wear something powerful today that will stimulate my imagination. Acqua di Parma's Quercia Marina seems to be the ticket. I love the salty masculinity of this juice. It is powerful, yet well-constructed. I smell cedar, of course, lots of it, and a bunch of bitter herbs, violet, and maybe some vetiver. I bet my dad would love this one. I love it too. I intend to get a full bottle (soon, because it's apparently discontinued) and wear it on days I want to be powerful and send masculine signals. Definitely a contender for the 'job interview' category. I wonder why this was discontinued. I guess it smells too natural for the power-hungry business dudes this is probably supposed to appeal to. They are probably wearing Hugo Boss, the idiots!

I love how Italian this smells too. I am starting to identify a specifically Italian aesthetic in perfumery--a tendency towards more tonic, herbal smells, less sexy than the France, but also, perhaps, more gorgeously historical. I mean, stretching back into the past of cologne, before modern perfumery was around, even before Napoleon bathed in cologne water. I get the sense of a deep history of perfume chemists in a Santa Maria Novella or an Acqua di Parma, of a tradesman dropping off bespoke bottles of a certain formulation at the back entrance of Lorenzo di Medici's mistress' townhouse before trudging back along the filthy Florentine streets to get back to his apothecary.

8th April, 2010.

This smells very masculine to me: a very complex and in-your-face confident and aggressive type of man. It would not suit the sensitive new-age guys and civil servants in my orbit, but would be perfect for more intimidating types (if they still exist anywhere). Come to think of it, maybe that is why it is no longer in production - those men are long gone! Darn.

12nd April, 2009.

Fragrance notes: “marine oak,” carnation, mint, cedar.
Marine Oak has a lovely and bold opening. It is herbal and woody, a real “brown” sort of scent. Note: marine oak is not wood at all, it is a kind of seaweed. The wood note comes from the cedar. Carnation and mint spice up and freshen the herbal-seaweed fragrance. This was designed to be a tonic scent: thus it is bracing and quite aromatic. It is a different sort of scent – it is powerful, so don’t over-apply. I like it.

8th January, 2008.