Fragrance Reviews by peevish_yolk

Whenever I wear Boss Bottled some 50 Cent’s verses go through my head. Namely, couple of people told me that I smell just like a candy shop when I was wearing this scent. My sub consciousness did the rest.
If you’ve tried only 10-20 scents in your life so far you’d might adore this one, but if you’ve tried a lot of scents you’d might just like it… and that’s the whole story about Gray Boss.
There are people that simply don’t want to be spectacular; they just want to be nice, nothing more. There are the scents with the same “intentions”. Boss No. 6 is just one of them… and there is nothing wrong with that if you ask me.

I give just one chance to the people, and sometimes I think that even that is too much. On the other hand, I am convinced that every scent, with no exception, deserves a second chance.
I bought M7 without smelling it first. When I smelt it for the first time, I did not like it… I did not like it at all. It was somehow… weird. My father wanted to encourage me with a following, very suggestive, compliment: “It smells exactly like lubricating oil.”
After that I didn’t use it for some time. A few months later I tried it again… and I liked it. The time transformed the weirdness into the originality and, after some time, I fell in love with it. Agarwood just took my heart. Cavallier and Morillas proved that they are a great team.
I get the compliments (and I mean – the “real” compliments) every time I wear it, and not just from a female part of the population. Namely, I regularly get the compliments even from men. I said “even” because in my country, which is still living in the 20th century, a man just doesn’t give the compliments to another man.
There are only three situations when you, as a man, can get a compliment from another man on your scent:
1) He absolutely adores your scent and He just can’t hide that, although he thoroughly tries to do that,
2) You put a revolver to His head,
3) You are the big boss and He is your ancillary and a toady.
M7’s longevity and sillage are as enormous as my love toward this brilliant scent.

First of all, I would like to say that this is a very unoriginal and uninspiring scent so it is not my fault that the following review is boring…
Well, let us see…
Your best friend’s birthday is next week. (You are thinking:) What kind of present would he like for his birthday? Maybe a scent? Yeah, definitely, it is a terrific idea. He has only Allure Homme Sport in his wardrobe. But, what happens then? You and your best friend have some stupid conflict. You are mad at him; he has said to you some things that hurt you. I will offer you a perfect solution. Just buy to your friend Versace pour Homme for his birthday. He will get a copy of the only frag he already has, he will smell unattractive, and it will be an adequate punishment for the words he has said to you.

I love (sensual) amber, (intoxicating) musk and (powdery) vanilla and this scent gives all that to me.
When I smelt G^2 for the first time, I thought “OK, this one is good, but it is too feminine for me.” Today, G^2 is in my collection although I still think that it is quite feminine.
I am living in a pretty patriarchal/conservative environment, where G^2 on a man is a huge social NO-NO. If you wear G^2 and you are living where I am living and you are a male, people around you would definitely think that your sexual orientation is “problematic”.
However, if I put my love toward this scent on one pan and the people’s tattle on the other, the first pan would be much, much heavier.

And what do we have here? An average/ordinary female scent became a modern male scent… No, I’m not surprised: in the strange world we are living nowadays.
It’s floral, very long lasting, floral, partly powdery, floral, quite strong and… Did I say it’s floral?
However, if you’ve already bought this one (like me, for example) you should know that it’s not so repulsive on very low temperatures.
I agree with just a part of its name: “fleur”… oui, sans aucun doute, mais “du male”… je n’ai pas cette impression.

I respect this legend so much that I am standing while I am writing this review…
First citrus, then vetiver and tobacco. Very simple, very beautiful.
Vetiver is probably the most natural scent I know. Sometimes, when I wear Vetiver and when I’m alone in my office (I don’t want someone to think that I’m a crank) I close my eyes and imagine that I’m laying in a meadow and I feel the sunshine on my face, smell of the grass and worm earth under my hands.
If Vetiver is a synonym for natural, its antonym could be Cool Water or 212 Men or Echo…

This is my favorite oriental scent. Couple of days ago I was in a corridor talking to a female colleague. Obsession was on my neck. She asked me:”Could you please droop a bit, I want to smell you better”. I did it and several seconds later I felt her lips on my neck. I was quite surprised. She is 13 years older than I am; she is married and the mother of two children. Then we proceeded to talk like nothing happened. I have to say that I am just an average looking guy with not much charm… so it must be the scent…
Thanks to Obsession I got my first retroactive compliment (it means: somebody notices your scent, (s)he likes it, but tells you that just couple of days or even some weeks later). A female friend told me once:”Last Wednesday, when you passed next to me, you smelled just great”.
I do not enjoy in any specific note (not even in amber or mandarin which I love very much, and definitely not in myrrh or clove which I do not like), but the interaction of the Obsession’s notes is simply perfect.

I remember, in an interview with a fashion magazine from this area some singer said about Nightflight (the question was – what is your favorite fragrance?): “I don’t know much about scents, but I think that Nightflight by Joop! is just brilliant. It’s quite original and sexy. Nightflight is far better than many, more famous, scents.”
This statement is absolutely correct but just till the first score. Nightflight is very unoriginal and un-sexy scent. With no identity; With no authenticity; With no sense. It’s soapy and nothing more but soapy.
I have it in my collection but it was (that’s my excuse) a blind buy. I hated myself because of that for a long time.

This fresh oriental scent is pretty rich, spicy and ambery. The note of cognac, no doubt, is quite interesting, but the notes of pepper, sandalwood and musk give me a bigger pleasure.
It reminds me of a very polite, retiring gentleman who won’t impudently demand your attention but if you pay your attention to him you’d be pleasantly surprised.
Escada Homme do not bring me the compliments but it always brings me the pleasure what is more important.
This (not spectacular but nice) scent is a very good example that sweet scent could be quite manful, at the same time.

Some people say that this is an evening scent. I strongly disagree: Ungaro III is exclusively a nocturnal scent. So, if you have a date with your beloved at (about) midnight Ungaro III is more than an appropriate solution for that occasion.
It is “on the rose based” scent but I’m not capable to imagine this one on a woman.
I was thinking for a long time that Ungaro III is a timid scent, but… on New Year’s Eve I was at the municipal square. I chose Ungaro III for that night. I was alone before one of my friends walked up to me and told me that he first detected my scent and saw me just after that. I have to mention that, when he saw me, he was at least 20 feet far from me.

No, the main trump of this fragrance isn’t its smell per se (it’s quite classical). Antaeus is a very important part of the magical olfactory world and that’s not without a good reason. First of all Antaeus has an exceptional strength (even the compliments I get for Antaeus sound like “oooh, that one is REALY good”).
Very often, when I come out from my room (with Antaeus on my neck) ready to go to work, my father says:” Is there any liquid left in that bottle?”. That strong it is.
One more example: A female colleague asked me one day: “Were you in the accounting department yesterday (I’m working in the marketing department) at about 11 am?” I was astonished: “Yeah, how do you know that? I didn’t see you”. “I detected your scent in the corridor”, she said with a smile. Of course, I was wearing Antaeus.
It is strong, but it is elegant as well. There is no doubt; Antaeus is a Rolls-Royce among the scents… the big, black, shine Rolls-Royce.
It’s not indispensable to love Antaeus, but one has to respect this true legend.
Just one more remark: you don’t have to wear black clothes when you have Antaeus on your skin, but that would make your look somehow complete.

It was a summer evening and I was at the beach. I was wearing Dune. Suddenly, a tall, good-looking blond woman approached to me and said: “Excuse me, you smell soooo nice, and I just couldn’t resist coming to you and smelling you better. Can I?” I wanted to make an impression on her as a smart and eloquent guy, so I said: “A-ha”. She leaned over me and I felt the touch of her nose and after that of her lips on my neck… and then… and then I woke up and I realized that people around me could love Dune only in my dreams.
I bought this one and CK Escape for Men on the very same day. It was a double mistake.
I was wearing Dune when someone said to me that I smell as a brand new rubber toy… and when you smell as a brand new rubber toy you definitely do not smell mainly, sexy or attractive.
I have never thought that I could say that I hate some scent… but I do hate this one, as much as I hate the hypocrisy, waiting in line or my ex-girlfriend.

If BN Directory’s rules allow that, my review for Pure would be purely simple, it would have just one word – distasteful.
I know, it is hard to believe, but this scent played quite an important role in my life. Namely, it forced me to believe in Murphy’s Law and here is the story about that…
At first, I had smelt Pure from the bottle in the perfume store and I did not like it. Nevertheless, I decided to splash some on my arm. Alas, the spray mechanism was broken, so a lot of the liquid ended up on my arm. Couple of minutes later I had just one wish – to scrub it out. On my way to home, I met a girl whom I liked for some time. We were talking for about ten minutes. She was watching me somehow… weird, during our conversation, and I could be quite sure that the reason was my goofy smell. When I came home, another pleasant surprise was just waiting for me: there was no water… the reason: some problem with the installations or something like that. Well, I had to bear Pure for another couple of hours.
I would just like to add that Pure reminds me of Echo with a mellow touch of Banderas’ Diavolo, maybe... and maybe not.
In sum, this is an ideal present for someone you really, really, really hate.

That day I was sitting on the bus on my way to work. Next to me was some young girl (apr. 18-19 years old). I was thoughtful. Suddenly I felt something on my shoulder. It was her chin. Her nose was quite close to my neck. She had a little smile on her face and it was so obvious that she was enjoying. Her nostrils were spread, her eyes were closed. It was no doubt; she liked my scent very much. She didn’t say anything and there was no need to. I must say this: She wasn’t aware of my existence, not even for a moment, and because of that the whole situation was even more likable.
Well, sometimes we receive speechless compliments and they can be more convincing than “oh, my God, how good you smell!!!” compliments.
By the way, I was wearing L’eau d’Issey that day.

This is one of my favorite fragrances and certainly my favorite unisex fragrance.
Eau d’Hermes, on my skin, has two very different faces. Sometimes it is dr Jekyll (a delighted unisex scent) and sometimes it is mr Hyde (a gloomy male scent). Happily, more often it’s dr Jekyll.
Pretty often my office gets the smell of a scent I’m wearing that day. Several days ago I was wearing Eau d’Hermes. During the day I had to leave the office and I was absent for about 10 minutes. When I returned the office smelt so good. Then I was sure: I love this scent.
I didn’t get any compliments for this one, but I have one very simple maxim: my pleasure is beyond compare more important than a pleasure of the people around me;-)
Definitely, the soul of this fragrance is cumin.
Animal? I don’t know… if you say so.

Escape for Men is a pretty aromatic and synthetic scent. I like its hyper fruity opening. Grapefruit and juniper are quite lovely. It’s hard for me to explain why I dislike its drydown. I like sandalwood usually but not in this case.
At first, I wore Escape for Men exclusively during the hot days. I didn’t like it. Then I started to use it on the windy and cloudy days and it made a better impression on me.
On some sites I found that Escape for Men is a marine scent… a-ha, certainly, and I am Krusty the clown.

When I look at my bottle of Givenchy Gentleman I see how some ingredients, such as leather and civet, “float” in patchouli. This is the patchouliest (I don’t know whether this word really exist, my English isn’t that good) scent I’ve ever smelled. Its start is pretty alcoholic.
The most often comment for this one is “it smells like the very old eau de colognes/after shaves”. The weirdest comment (more precisely, the most stupid) I’ve ever heard about some scent it was just for Givenchy Gentleman “it smells like burned ping-pong balls”. One of my male colleagues said that, but he is not a good example for a normal person, anyway.
In sum, if you love “old-school” type of scents and adore patchouli, with this one your satisfaction is guaranteed.

Well, nobody has said to me yet that I smell “dirty” although I wear Kouros quite often (maybe, I meet exclusively polite people;-). On the contrary, mainly I hear “it smells somehow… chemical, like some purification’s liquid”; but that’s OK, I don’t even expect from the people around me to “understand” Kouros. I reconciled to that long time ago and I wear it just because of my own pleasure.
At first, the animalistic part of the scent is ably covert; But, after some time it becomes very significant. Kouros is just like a successful first date. At the beginning you are quite polite. Gradually, you become loose… And, at the end, it is right time for the animalistic part of you to show up… in bed… or somewhere else, immaterial.
You can find in this one clove, cedarwood, mace, oakmoss and (my favorite) civet, but one note is extremely important here and I want to say something about it. Here is the story…
There is an interesting religious custom in one part of the orthodox world. Namely, people set fire some incense and with it they go through the whole house/apartment. They do that on days of the greatest saints. People believe that, with this ritual, they drive the devil out from their living space.
It was Sunday and a saint Nicola’s day. I was in my room with a bit of Kouros on my arm. Suddenly, I felt that some smell came into my room and I thought mechanically “Hey, why the whole apartment smells just like my arm!?”. Naturally, it was a smell of burned incense.
Several days after that, I splash some Kouros on my arm and I asked my parents: “Does this smell remind you of something?”.
They didn’t have any dilemma: ”Of incense, assuredly”.
If the devil utters a wish to come into my life I would wear Kouros… just in case.

You have already said that the most similar scent to Vetyver is Envy for Men by Gucci (what is absolutely right, by the way). I have both Vetyver and Envy in my collection and sometimes I splash Vetyver on one and Envy on the other arm. Vetyver is just more “austere” and “mature” than Envy.
How could I describe Vetyver? It is woody, spicy, very deep and, for the first half an hour, bitter, after that it is quite sweet. The smell of Vetyver reminds me of our local alcoholic drink named “Bitter leaf”.
This fragrance is on my skin pretty short lasting and quite timid so I use it purely for my personal enjoyment at home.
I have to say one more thing: I respect very much L’Occitane’s ecological orientation and I’m always ready to give L’Occitane’s scent a huge credit because of that.

A typical story: some band launches debut album and shows us all its potential, creativity, strength and unruliness (A*Men). Then some big chief from the music industry notices that band and they sign a contract. After that the band launches second album. They still play great but their music is somehow different now… maybe moderated (B*Men)… and the guys from the band say “our music is more mature now” but YOU KNOW that it is not the music you fell in love with.
Are A*Men and B*Men similar? Yes, definitely… they are so similar that I like A*Men very much and I dislike B*Men very much. Both, A*Men and B*Men, are gourmand, but A*Men is “chocolate-ish” gourmand and B*Men is “soup-ish” gourmand.
People from my environment love B*Men quite a lot, especially the young female part of my environment. Their comments are “it smells like a kitchen but it’s sexy, at the same time”, “it wakes up the animal in me”, “I wish every man wore this fragrance”… However I wear it very rarely.
Please imagine this: You should go out. You are dressed well and you splashed some expensive scent. Then you go into the kitchen where your wife or your mother, never mind, is cooking the dinner. You are staying in the kitchen for a while (10-15 minutes) and you “collect” there the smell of the food. After that you’re ready for a good amusements somewhere in the town. You smell of your scent, but you smell of the food as well. Guess what? Your lucky day has finally arrived. You don’t have to bother anymore; you don’t have to waste your time in the kitchen no more. Just buy B*Men… I did…

If I have just one word at disposal to describe L’eau bleue that word would be – original.
L’eau bleue is a bit unusual and when you wear it maybe you are insecure about possible people’s reactions to the way you smell. Believe me, you shouldn’t worry about it, people around you find this scent very lovely.
You could try this little experiment: splash some L’eau bleue on your arm. Wait about half an hour. Smell it, but let your nose be 3-4 inches from your skin. Wait just a little bit, then put your nose on the skin and smell it again. Do you notice any difference?
For some reason, the smell of L’eau bleue always brings to my mind the picture of a wet bush. God knows why.
In my opinion, L’eau bleue is ideal for spring, but… one winter morning I was on the bus on my way to work. I remember, it was very cold. At some station some guy entered. I felt immediately the smell of L’eau bleue. I was enjoying very much in that smell. It’s a nice “olfactory memory” to me. However, I never wear L’eau bleue during the winter.
No doubt, rosemary plays the key role in L’eau bleue’s top. The drydown is less original but more pleasant.
Unfortunately, I’m not able to explain the reasons, but I can easily imagine this scent on three characters from Dostoevsky’s novels: Rodion Raskolnikov (Crime and Punishment), Ivan Karamazov (The Brothers Karamazov) and Nikolai Stavrogin (The possessed). They all are young, intelligent, educated and handsome, but with the huge internal conflicts.

This is one of many not so popular but quite good scents.
You can easily detect bergamot, sandalwood, cedar, anis and white musk, but the most interesting note here (at least to me) is rice. It’s funny, but on many sites you won’t even find rice among the Angel’s notes. For me, without rice the picture of Angel is just like an unfinished puzzle.
I worried about the Angel’s sillage and I was apllying 8 sprays on each side of my neck until my mother told me once: ”You smell as strong as some prostitute”. That nice, little compliment “killed” my worries about its sillage.
It’s ideal for the afternoon’s walks during the summer.

Aqua Motu is my first summer choice. I have to mention that I possess about 30 summer scents in my collection. Should I say anything more? I should? OK...
Top: Gummy. Middle: Heavenly. Base: Salty. All in all, it’s very authentic, very interesting.
Aqua Motu didn’t made to be someone’s signature scent. It isn’t sexy or mysterious. No, that’s not its mission, but it is extra fresh (it sounds like a commercial for some bubble gum or tooth paste) and “you smell very pleasant“ scent.
Please imagine this: It’s very, very hot summer day. You are wearing Aqua Motu… and the passers-by, some people at the station where you wait for your bus, your colleagues, a lift-boy… they all are looking at you very thankful for that breath of fresh air you’re giving to them. Not an unpleasant picture, isn’t it?
Just once, in my whole “scent collector’s career” I regretted because I purchased 50 instead of 100 ml bottle. Of course, I’m talking about Aqua Motu.

I’m ashamed to say it but the reason I bought this one was the bottle (I’m blushing right now). Happily, I really liked it.
It’s not a perfect choice for the office, but it’s ideal for a pleasant evening with the friends or your beloved.
It’s funny, but I start to get compliments for this one not until four hours after the application. I was thinking a long time about the reason. Maybe, but just maybe, “the key” is amber. Namely, the same thing happens to me with Boucheron pour Homme. In the drydown of both scents, Basala and Boucheron pour Homme, you can easily notice amber.
Basala is an excellent example that a safe scent could be original, at the same time. Nowdays, that accomplishment stays a mystery for a lot of producers. They give us so many safe but tragically unoriginal fragrances. But, hey, don’t bother, the propaganda will do the rest; it will cover the lack of their creativity… or maybe of their courage.
In short, Basala is a really great one.

The assertion “when you don’t know what to wear – your choice is Cool Water” is absolutely correct and I’m the best example. It’s amazing how fast I almost expended my 75 ml bottle of Cool Water. Maybe it means that I am pretty indecisive.
Cool Water is a hyper-synthetic scent. One of my female associates is an artificial blonde. She has artificial eyelashes, silicon lips and breasts. Her behavior is a school example for the snobbishness. She said to me one day (I was wearing Cool Water): “Your scent is quite good”. I replied to her: “Oh yes, and it’s as natural as you are”. She didn’t understand, of course.
What’s the main note here? Maybe, this is the answer…
It’s usual in this part of the world that people put some lavender in their closets against the moths. When my mother smelt Cool Water on me she said: “If you ever stop using that scent, you should give it to me”. I asked her: “You like it? You want to wear it?”. She said: “Oh no, I’d put it in the closet, it’s very lavender-ish.” Naturally, Cool Water stayed her unfulfilled desire. However, since then, she sometimes ogles my bottle of Cool Water.

I didn’t know that someone could have, at the same time, a headache, nausea and dizziness… then I smelled Kenzo Jungle. Fortunately, I felt that way just the first time I smelled it.
Kenzo Jungle is one of the most aromatic scent I know. It’s very “colorful” and “joyous”. Maybe, a good choice for Oktoberfest or some rock concert.
It’s quite original (in the long run, all Kenzo’s scents before Tokyo are original).
I wear Jungle mostly with some conspicuous clothes. It goes along very well with my gaudy orange sweater.

Armani and Versace launched their first male scents in the same year (1984.). I like Versace’s scent much, much more.
If the ‘80s could have a smell, they would smell exactly like Versace L’Homme. It smells just like sunny Saturday’s forenoon in the ‘80s to me.
It is not just the first but the best Versace’s male scent as well. L’Homme is a very good and manful blend of lemon, pimento, cedar, patchouli and leather.
For me, this scent is a synonym for the happy days of my childhood (I’m pretty nostalgic about my childhood) and I wear it very often at the family reunions.

It’s snowing… for the first time this year. It is quite warm in my room. I’m hearing the children’s laughter from outside. There is a cup of very hot tea on the table just waiting for me. I’m wearing Michael for Men… “and I think to myself, what a wonderful world.”
This is a “just like it or absolutely adore it” scent. Its top is comme ci, comme ca but its drydown is a pure pleasure. The real enjoyment begins with an emergence of the tobacco note.
It’s impossible to find Michael for Men in my country, what is basically good. Namely, on the day I wear it I’m sure: it is more likely that I’ll see Halley’s Comet than someone around me will smell the way I do.
I wish it had better sillage, but, hey, nothing’s perfect.

My first contact with this one wasn’t so good… to be honest, it made me sick.
Some years later and after some hundreds of others scents my nose was finally ready for A*Men and… I loved it… I loved it very much.
Sometimes, when I splash some A*Men on my arm I smell it pretty piggish and I enjoy as much as Homer Simpson when he eats chocolate and he says: ”Mmmmm… sweeeeet”. Vanilla, caramel, chocolate… is there any sweet thing we know which isn’t in this scent?
A*Men is very long lasting and super aggressive. If you like when the whole room smells like you than you should use Opium pour Homme, but if you have a huge desire that the entire building smells like you, than you should undoubtedly apply this one.
I just couldn’t imagine A*Men on some mature man. Thanks God, despite my age (I’m 35 years old), I’m not so mature;-)

The story goes like this: You are at your grandfather’s house. You are bored… and than you notice grandfather’s “old days memories” box. You’re thinking “yeah… why not?”. You’re opening it… and what do you find there? Some old photos, turned yellow letters, half torn documents and… a scent.
Well, it is a huge possibility that the scent you found smells like (and even looks like) Cacharel pour Homme. It is old-fashioned, but somehow dear and agreeable, at least to me.
Cacharel pour Homme is based on “the axis” lavender-clove. It has very good longevity, but stays close to the skin all the time.
It isn’t a compliment collector and certainly not an up-to-date one. It won’t shout from your skin “hey, notice me, I’m an egocentric scent!”; but try it anyway, you won’t regret. I didn’t.
Some scents are made to live just for a while; some are made to live forever.

The most “comme il faut” scent I know. It’s very polite and intellectual, if I may say so.
I see this one as a wonderful musk “framed” with tea notes.
If you have to meet your future father-in-law and you have Bvlgari pour Homme in your collection, there is no need for a long consideration what to wear.