Reviews of Acqua di Sale
by Profumum

Let me start by saying that this only smells like ocean because you expect it to. In reality, it smells more like baby wipes, something slightly fecal (a la Musc Ravageur), and a slightly salty kind of play-doe smell with overtones of Noxzema creme… Not at all what I was expecting! It smells less like the ocean, and more like human skin drying in the sun after a dip in the ocean. To me, Aqua di Sale is a definitely a skin scent – over-apply it and you’ll probably just get a bunch of play-doe and Noxzema – wear the right amount and you’ll end up smelling like as though your skin just naturally smells great. Although Aqua di sale smells more realistic than Sel de Vetiver, I personally prefer Sel de Vetiver because it smells (different and is) better overall with the same kind of effect…

nota bene: While Erolfa and Aqua Bulgari smell more like the ocean, Sel de Vetiver and Acqua di sale smell more like ocean-kissed skin. (Therefore, Acqua de Sale is one of those fragrances I can only enjoy on skin, not my clothes).

7/10

IMO, it is very linear; it does not develop over time on my skin. On me, it is very anisic, with a powerful, artificial musk base that is reminiscent of fresh laundry. Which can be nice as part of a bigger picture, but on me it stayed on those two notes (licorice musk) like a laser beam for 12 hours. In my opinion, the CDG fragrances that do the fresh laundry-ozonic thing are preferable, if they don't give you a headache. And I agree with the other reviewer who said that Sel de Vetiver is a more successful ozonic scent; it is a fully-developed, rounded-out scent with a nice evolution that includes vetiver and iris notes.

To be fair, I am not a fan of the "marine" scents. I feel they are like the "grape" flavoring in hard candy that we have all come to label as "generic grape" but bear no resemblance to any fruit found in nature. In the right hands this kind of artifice can be inspired, though. Take Jean Claude Ellena's Eau The Vert, which has come to represent the smell of green tea, but really smells nothing like it. My hope is that the technical and artistic challenge of re-creating a convincing impression of fresh ocean breezes will push perfumers to try new ideas and take chances. Hope springs eternal...

This probably has the most authentic salt water/ozone note in the history of perfumery, for better or worse. It makes me think of a dark, stormy, cold night on a harbor minus the brine smell and seagull poop.

This is not a beach fragrance, nor a vision of a Nautica ad. ADS is for the hardcore sea scent guys who care more about the authentic sea notes rather than a pretty aquatic cologne.

It's nice but not for me.

I agree somewhat with Vibert on the licorice and cucumber, but I think it's the marine algae that's appealing to me. It's just OK.