Basenotes - Reviews by finisterle

North Korea

Showing 1 to 9 of 9.

Halston Z-14 by Halston

Z-14 reminds me both in name and nature of Zyklon B - a gas the nazis used to kill people they didn't like. And while Z-14 hasn't been known to kill per se its beginning is as uncomfortable as whisky vomit.

So what happens if you survive the initial agony ?

Well, after a while, sometimes a pyramid of hours, you get an odd impression of wearing the smell of a pharaoh's tomb.

There is no light except what you take with you, no wind and almost no oxygen. If history wore a fragrance this would be it.
If a man wears it on a date he's probably history before the meeting has begun. For nobody wants a partner who idealizes the picture of himself as a corpse drinking tea in a crypt.

30th July, 2009.

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Touch for Men by Burberry

Brilliantly made and named as it really is a continous touch of soft and fresh sensuality. The sensation of lying in a newly made bed after using your girlfriends shower gel can be intoxicating.
But like so many other men I prefer fragrances that speak of explosive adventure, treasures and elegant wisdom.
So even though I can't get around the fact that I really admire the craftsmanship and idea in Touch, I shall continue to buy old dinosaurs with questionable reformulations instead.

18th February, 2009.

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Paco Rabanne pour Homme by Paco Rabanne

About Paco Rabanne edt, new bottle anno 2009: Initial blast feels dense and synthetic. Qualitative drydown begins differently depending on factors which seem almost random.

On the upside: 1. You can get it cheap on the net. 2. The bottle is stylish, especially in the coloring, in real life. 3. The drydown is quite modern, soft spoken and close to the skin. So you can apply a fair bit if you feel a sniff frenzy coming on.

On the downside: 1. Longevity is mediocre. 2 Projection is poor. 3. The drydown manages a delicate fan of aromatic honey tobacco blended with freshness from lavender and greens now and then; but it feels so unpredictable. Twisting and turning. Paco is like a decent (but not really stunning) piece of architecture which is constantly being rebullt while spending much of the time in a state of deconstructed rubble.

11th February, 2009.

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Eau de Cartier by Cartier

Light & fruity opening. Not unlike the freshly vibrant air outside a flower shop on a cool morning. Has to be applied richly to be noticed at all though.
So how good is it ?
Well; I'd rather smell this than Le Baiser du Dragon, also by Cartier, on a woman.
So, if chosing among Cartiers, maybe a woman would rather smell this than Must Essence on me ? Quite possible.
But would I rather wear this than Must essence ? On first impression: no, absolutely not. It simply is: asexually boring beyond belief. But...then you get it.
It is like when a shy person finally opens his or her mouth and says something delightul in a soft pleasing voice, and you wish they would just go on and on.
Final verdict: It can put you to sleep. But it will do so in a first class bed.

25th August, 2008.

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Aqua Velva Ice Blue by Williams

It's refreshing and unpretentious. It's a train station in the morning. It's a pilot going through a check list. It's a baker or construction worker who are too busy being the salt of the earth to have time for bizaar hobbies. It is real. It smells "monday" in
a way that makes Rive Gauche look like a drag queen on stilettos. It can walk up to any frag and say "and how are you contributing exactly ?" I just bought a bottle again and keep splashing it on, totally ignoring everything else on my shelf.

7th August, 2008.

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Bleu Marine by Pierre Cardin

The 0.5 oz/30 ml bottle is a petite piece of cute romantic-futurustic design. It's the sort of thing you would excpect to see in an intellectual French sci fi comic. Scentwise the marine part is a musky whale rather than a cool sea breeze. Concentration seems to fluctuate; I remember Bleu Marine being weak but the stuff I have now is easily overdosed. As warm seas go Bleu Marine is more elegant and healthier than the sickening staleness of Baldessarini del Mar. However.....even though it's not as bad as some people here say its fascinations are also far behind much of the competition and can really annoy people. I've seen it happen. If you like it for whatever reason don't ovespray.

26th May, 2008.

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Van Gils by Van Gils

If buying anything by Van Gils buy this one.

Powered by roaring 80's engines proud of the smoke they generate Van Gils is a bit on the dark and sweet side. This is a vintage sports car at full speed - so full of classy energy it can even give King Kouros a match.

4th December, 2007. (Last Edited: 1st March, 2011.)

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Escada Homme by Escada

Warm, spicy and sweet in harmonious combination. And very well suited for cooler days or summer evenings.
Romantic, elegant and timeless. A bit simple perhaps, but acceptable even on the finest of occasions.
Will not irritate with sharpness or discords. Doesn´t last very long but leaves a very pleasant afterglow. The After Shave and the Edt are more pleasant than the Edp which seems to go old and dull in the bottle. Something I did not experience at all with the After Shave and Edt. The Edp mini bottle is really pretty though and worth getting to place next to your Buddha statue or similar.
Be warned though. Once opened the mini bottle can't be properly closed again.

29th October, 2007. (Last Edited: 2nd July, 2008.)

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Allure Homme by Chanel

Allure is as alluring as a sharp smell of vodka bouncing around a cold prison cell. To put it in other words: it´s cheap and offensive. Of all the chanels for men Allure is the one with least charms. I would feel more comfortable standing next to a 15-year old who had overdosed on his grandads Aramis than anybody wearing Allure.

29th October, 2007.

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