Fragrance Reviews by Johannes

As many other thumbs down review say, the stuff has an awful, sour, synthetic, chemical note. Actually makes me want to clear my throat and spit. How did something so toxic make it by the test panel? Could be one of those either/or notes that some people pick up and others are oblivious to. For instance, some, including myself, find the aroma of white pepper very repulsive. Others love it.

I don't get the aquatic side mentioned here at all. To me, Tsar is a dry (or green?), mild, masculine scent that fades into a very pleasantly powdery as well as woody drydown.

The notes of Tuscany ought to form a bouquet, but they don't. They form a fist that punches you in the nose. Way too heady and strong. Impossible to apply -if others can detect it, you've put on too much.

Soapy clean citrus with an intriguing, medicinal and bitter sting in the tail. Has a strong, formal presence with a sort of sexless masculinity if you know what I mean. You don't? Well, it's no good for a night at the disco is what I mean. It's a boardroom and office scent.

Light blend of herbs, wood and smoke. A bit formal and understated, but distinctive and evocative as well. Nice.

Bucketloads of sour horse sweat, campher lozenges and bad whiskey! Actually, intriguing and unapologetic, but its time has passed. Could be worn if you wanted to make some sort of statement. Repulsive and ridiculuous if you put on more than a hint, though.

Peppery, piney pencil shavings with a chaser of Lacoste pour Homme. Pleasant and refined. I like it and wish the scent would not disappear so quickly.

The mandarin and myrtle or whatever it is seems to clash with the drydown and give off a burnt, greasy note. My impression is of an exquisitely made jam that was left on the stove unattended for a minute.

My first encounter with this otherworldly fragrance was in the shape of a scent insert in the March, 1987 issue of Rolling Stone Magazine. That memory says something about the central effect of Obsession: It is extremely evocative, almost hypnotic.
Made in the wild eighties by French sensibilities backed up by enthusiastic American funding, it was a true innovation. The adventurous attitude of the its creators is evident in the crazy grab-bag of notes which make up this modern Frankenstein monster (yes, it is a monster, although a romantic and civilised one.
I don't know what's in it, but here's what seems to come out of it: Marzipan, sour cream, bourbon, brown sugar, automobile scent tree, rubber, camphor, ginger bread, vanilla, musk, pine tree resin, lilies wilting in the stale water of an old crytal vase, and last but not least YSL's Opium.
Add to this a stunning projection and a very abstract, cold, cerebral quality, what we have is a wintry classic that is almost unwearable. But a classic it is. Or was. The fragrance has changed slightly some time after its launch, making it a little more harsh. But it is still very, very good.