Sunday Cologne / Fantastic Man (2009)
by Byredo

I do really like this, but along with Montale's Red Vetiver, I find it too similar to Terre d'Hermes to justify owning a bottle. That said, I bought it anyway! Its a more citrusy Terre designed as a trad cologne ( with 10x the staying power I hasten to add ) while R V is a bit deeper and richer

1st March, 2011.

Fantastic Man is a modern take on the old fashioned blueprint of a man’s cologne. There is no great evolution beyond the opening, merely a slight diminishment of the original theme,accompanied by some subtle garnishes. A mighty bergamot presence in the opening, later becomes a citric seam,lightly spiced but respectfully refreshing. The green theme is persued with the inclusion of green lavender, but it is more a distraction than a real contribution. Aside from the light reduction in potency, later phases adopt an aridity and earthiness, venting a warm aura of refinement. The quality of the ingredients are obvious, and it is a fragrance to luxuriate in. It effortlessly straddles the categories of formality and informality, and despite its prohibitive price, remains one to consider for all occasions.

30th November, 2009.

Trying this for the first time today as a sample. Definitely a beautiful fragrance. My wife likes it much. She says it smells "cedary" with an opening strong note of citrus. Very appealing in the beginning. I sprayed liberally, but the tenacity is a bit weak on me. Hardly smellable now five hours later. Because of this, I won't be buying any.

4th November, 2009.

I discovered this in Munich last week and it was actually recommended to me by the salesperson - usually not a good sign, but this time she was spot on - apparently this is exactly the fragrance I had been looking for. It's classic yet memorable, fresh yet warm and even though it says "Cologne" on the bottle, it has quite a lot of staying power (which is unusual for my skin). I adore the clean and no-nonsense quality of the scent, which is uplifting and sophisticated. This fragrance doesn't go for a cheap thrill (wouldn't be appropriate at this kind of price) but convinces with sophistication and style. It is rather pricy, but exclusivity rarely comes cheap. -- Very very nice indeed!

3rd August, 2009.

Ben Gorham of Byredo has collaborated with the Dutch men's fashion/style magazine 'Fantastic Man' and produced a 'gentleman's cologne for 2009', which has taken 2 years from inception to production. With the concepts of 'subtlety' and 'simplicity' applied to the rest of the range, I was a bit wary that this being a cologne, it wouldn't project or last at all (I could hardly smell Gypsy Water). The notes used are pretty common in fragrances, but not so in traditional colognes. I was smitten at first sniff though with bergamot and star anise to the fore then cardamom giving it a nice kick. A heavenly lavender (never thought I'd say that) and incense mix then take over until they blend with moss, patchouli and vetiver to create a breathtakingly beautiful drydown to finish. The tenacity is surprisingly good -- I got 8 hours with a liberal spray. I am head over heels with this scent and for once all the hyperbole surrounding the fragrance is true. Fantastic Man is actually fantastic.

23rd June, 2009.