Kouros Cologne Sport Eau d'Éte (2004)
by Yves Saint Laurent

I like this a lot. Then again, I am a big Kouros fan. This is somewhat close to the regular Cologne Sport, but it is different enough to be its own frag. I wouldn't have labelled it Summer at all, you can wear this year round. To my nose there is a woody note hiding behind a mandarin citrus note. not a bright citrus, more of a sweet but not too sweet tinge. Then ofcourse the 'dirty' note. I can't say I love one over the other, I love the 2 variations equally.

This is the only Kouros I own, and it's definitely the mildest of all that I've tried (which is nearly all of them). One could wear this anywhere, anytime, with no fear of scaring people away as is possible with the original. At first this is definitely 'perfumey', as the review below puts it.... you get all of the notes at once. Light fruit (tangerine?), mint, and anise. As with the original, there is something animalistic lurking in the background, but only ever so slightly. Over the 30-60 min after application the mint and fruit fade, leaving a pleasant, light anise scent that is similar to Rive Gauche Light. This is an EDC, and the whole thing lasts about 2-3 hours on my skin.

Take everything you love about the original Kouros and remove it from your mind, replace it with something aquatic and harsh and if you try very hard you can find something of the original Kouros lingering in the back wondering what this snazzy teenager trying to smell young and fresh is doing while it was suppose to be about masculinity, about attraction, being macho and feeling good about it, about the stickyness of sex, about women wanting to be close to their man for a hug and being there for them. All that is replaced by the insecurity of something younger, that worries about smelling nice and inoffensive instead while seeing a movie with his group of aqua di gio wearing friends.

I'm a big admirer of Kouros (though I don't wear it out much). I'm also a huge fan of Kouros Cologne Sport (though I wear that one for myself as well- its kind of weird, yet IMO a masterpiece of contrasts). So in the interest of being a Kouros completist, I bought this one too- the Kouros Cologne Sport Eau D'Ete Summer Fragrance in the gradient blue bottle. It's much more mainstream than the standard Cologne Sport. It's got a nice tangerine and mint accord, and a "perfumey" note that is absent from the other. It does have a somewhat short longevity, but it's more like a refreshing tonic. It really wears well in high heat, and in the breeze. The Cologne Sport and this, the summer version, are very original scents, I haven't smelled anything remotely like them. Some people dislike them, and I can see why. Cologne Sport is like a white sheeted ghost, all arms up, saying boo. The summer version is just its laid back little brother, albeit with a nice tan.