Carrera (new) (200)
by Carrera

I was very positively surprised with this scent.
I didn't have high hopes, to be true, but it's much better than expected.
Some smoky woods with tobacco on a great tonka base.
The top is fresh but nice, without hashness or synthetic vibe.
Very well balanced overall in my book.
Don't get me wrong; it isn't earth-shaking, but for the price, it's an excellent investment for a fresh oriental.

26th February, 2011.

The reworked Carrera is similar to dozens of other fragrances put out in the late ‘90s and the ‘00s. It is basically fresh, somewhat light, and very sweet. The top is a sweet / combined herbal accord where I can’t separate out the individual herbal notes except for the lavender. Then the middle gets green, spicy, and floral and the prominent notes are anise, geranium, and something conifer. In the cases of both the top and the middle, I find the accords quite ordinary with nothing in them that would suggest craftsmanship, refinement, or creativity. But then, there’s nothing to complain about, either. The base is ordinary, too. It’s basically sweet – tonka sweet, with cedar dominating on my skin; there’s a bit of moss, but the whole base seems thin and sharp to me. In favor of the fragrance I must say that there seems to be nothing synthetic or headache inducing in the mix. It is a very inexpensive fragrance, but it smells better than its price would indicate. Its sillage tends to be stronger than I like in hot, humid situations, but not excessive and the fragrance has very good longevity. It’s a pretty safe fragrance, but … not very exciting.

14th March, 2008.