Reviews of Armani Privé Vétiver Babylone (2008)
by Giorgio Armani

Creamy lemon over a thick and clean musk that can only be described as a green version of Bulgari pour Homme. I was actually surprised to find out this was created by Alberto Morillas and not Jacques Cavallier (the creator of Bulgari PH). Overall, Vetiver Babylone smells somewhat the way new clothes at the Gap smell, with a little bit of new car smell too, all wrapped up into a creamy, lemony fragrance with a huge dollop of clean musks and the tiniest dash of vetiver (it's barely even noticeable). The best parts are the fresh lemon opening and the musky green heart, while the drydown is a tad too sharp and synthetic while still maintaining it's creamy texture.

I can't help but agree with those who say this scent is underrated, but it's still not a masterpiece in my books. Vetiver Babylone just smells a little too generic and typical for something with a 125$ price tag. Either way, I do like it very, very much, I just won't be purchasing a bottle.

8.75/10

Fresh and light lemony vetiver. In fact, I don't think there is much vetiver in this but it's still has that "green" quality that a vetiver scent has especially towards the drydown. But this is where something else overtakes the vetiver. The name might be deceiving for those looking for a hard-edged vetiver scent but this is a nice, rounded lemon and green scent. My guess is that Armani wanted this "Prive" because the mainstream market probably couldn't handle something a little different on the deptartment store shelves. Too bad for the public.

This has a perky, green, and crisp opening. It is lemony-fresh, and quite nice. Then, I get an odd and quite distinct note that seems like rancid butter! I don’t know what that is, perhaps it is the particular treatment of the vetiver. The scent is fairly attractive once the butter note burns off – it remains lemony for a good long time. My reservation is that for a scent called Vetiver, it doesn’t have much of that, especially in the nice cushiony smooth style I like. More could be done with the mid-note spices, they are very faint. So I’m neutral on it.

I loved the top citrusy notes and for the next half-hour or so it was still fresh, but a bit more spicy. And then it changed into a rather ordinary and generic fragrance - on me anyway -- I mean, not unpleasant at all, but a bit predictable. Basically, it's a fresh vetiver with more green than wood. The whole 'Prive' line was a bit flat imo.

This is a really wonderful take on vetiver. It's not an earthy, dirty vetiver but rather one brightened with some fruit notes, light musk, and fresh accords done in such a way that it's unlike the standard mainstream "fresh." I find it to be made in the style of Outrageous! by Frederic Malle (though that's not to say they smell alike). It's probably one of the more inoffensive of the Privé line, but it's certainly still unique and creates a nice aura that will have others, as well as yourself, wondering what that lovely smell is.

Vetiver? What vetiver? I am so tired of peculiar citrus blends calling themselves "vetiver." This is yet another rip off of Ellena's Jardin series. This one is more powdery and lacks the zing of the original. It is nicely balanced and totally inoffensive, but at this price, I want much more, especially some vetiver. It's not that there isn't enough vetiver; there is no detectable vetiver at all! Give me a break.

absolutely gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous fragrance. The Vetiver is present immediately intermingled with beautiful Bergamot and fruit notes.....as the fragrance proceeds i detect light floral notes and pepper notes adding to the beauty of the most translucent vetiver i have ever sniffed.......this scent is airborne, meaning you dont have to sniff your skin to always detect its presence....it is gorgeously constructed, beautiful, classy and sensual at the same time. This one is a bit too good to be worn on a daily basis but this is a perfect wedding, big date, big meeting fragrance.....considering that i wasnt really fond of any other fragrance in the Prive line and didnt expect anything from this one, I was and am absolutely blown away by it....my top 2 easily.