Fragrance Reviews by Indie_Guy

I can't believe the lack of enthusiasm for this fragrance, which in my opinion is fantastic. It's a Guerlain and it's a new chapter in the Vetiver story, so I'm kind of surprised at how little attention this has received.

The first thing that impressed me about it is that it shares a bit of a unusual "rubbery" quality with Frederic Malle's Vetiver Extraordinaire. The smell of hot rubber snorkels lying in the grass of a backyard, baking in the late afternoon sun of summer, near a pool. Vetiver Extraordinaire almost takes this facet too far, while Vetiver Extreme backs off it a little, balancing it with other things-- notably soft greens and spices.

I think what may underwhelm people about Vetiver Extreme is that its sillage has a kind of "surface tension" quality about it. You either smell it or you don't. And when you smell it, you've hit a tipping point in which you smell all of it. You have to break a certain bubble of space to smell it, because the top notes don't continually break away and flare off like sunspots. The whole thing is so cohesive that it isn't given away by the screech of renegade top notes. So in a way, people might be upset because it doesn't bleed continuous sillage everywhere.

I think it's a beautiful, sturdy variation on Guerlain's Vetiver. Earthy, green and sophisticated. The "Extreme" denotes a kind of "weight" rather than "intensity." In some ways the original Vetiver probably announces its presence with more volume. Vetiver Extreme is more of a deeper, somber, resonant lower register kind of affair.

I have to wonder if once this stuff becomes hard to find, it won't garner more praise.

Lately for some reason, I've been on a huge Platinum Egoiste kick. The first time I smelled it, I hated it. It turns out, that at the time what I hated was sandalwood. Then one day, I got a bottle of Tam Dao, and it forced me to face sandalwood, and to my surprise it took me about ten minutes to do an about face! I'd always perceived sandalwood's smell as being somewhat like a overheated plastic "ziploc bag." Once I reset the circuits of my nose with my new positive feelings toward sandalwood, I came to like all sorts of scents that I previously dismissed. Platinum Egoiste was a major one.

So what's that got to do with Creed's Santal Imperial? Well, I just noticed for the first time that Santal Imperial reminds me of the stripped down, smoky sandalwood base of Platinum Egoiste, without all of the shiny shaving cream aldehyde topnotes-- and in place of all that is just a hint of transparent freshness and spice. Don't get me wrong, Platinum Egoiste and Santal Imperial are worlds apart, but they do seem to share a similar base of flame tempered sandalwood. There's seriously a lot of smoke going on in Santal Imperial. And there's an almost peppery aspect to this fragrance as well. As I inhale deeper and deeper, there are a lot of different facets- powdery, sweet, rubbery, animalic, dry, toasted. The ambergris house note turns up and gives depth to this pure, mellow fragrance. Almost the soft pink smell of pencil erasers fades in and out.

Not the most modern, versatile, sporty fragrance out there-- but if you're looking for classic, no nonsense sandalwood that smells like a million bucks, make sure to try this one.

I like that this fragrance is inspired by effervescent soft drinks, yet it doesn't smell like any one particular type in particular. It's something like Sprite and 7UP, with its citrus notes, but then it's also got quite a ginger ale character as well--maybe even a touch of lemon Alka Seltzer. Soda is very strong, long lasting and generates pretty intense sillage-- although it's such a playful scent that it comes across really friendly and amiable. There is a bit of a citronella candle accord that sometimes comes through and I can see where some people might find it a bit like household solvents and cleaning agents like Pledge, but it doesn't bother me too much-- I expect a bit of a chemical playground feeling from the Synthetic Series.

This is a good fragrance to wear on a 90+ degree day, when you're going to be outdoors for long periods of time and you want to stay constantly refreshed. Where most citrus colognes would shear off in the hot sun, this stuff is engineered (synthetically, of course) to stick around.

First of all, let me just say that Chanel Pour Monsieur Concentrée has been savaged by the same people who insist that Platinum Egoiste is garbage while the original Egoiste and the non-concentrée Pour Monsieur are flawless. I'm not knocking Egoiste or Pour Monsieur-- they're really great, it's true. But so are Platinum Egoiste and Pour Monsieur Concentrée.

I was at a fragrance counter buying Egoiste Platinum and I happened to test Pour Monsieur Concentrée. I was instantly struck by it. I knew I'd be back for a bottle of it, and sure enough I came back the next day to get one. It has a fresh burst of classical style citrus bolstered by a big cardamom note that reminds me a bit of Prada Amber Homme's. What's instantly appealing is that the sweetness is almost a milky, coconutty, cotton candy web that wraps so tenderly around the bundle of citrus and spices. It tapers down to a flawlessly tailored base of vetiver and moss. The overall effect is almost like a soft tobacco warmth and a pastel purple freshness. The orchestration of vanilla and spice in this is extremely sophisticated. It has a semi-dry sweetness that never goes south... and a spicy oriental quality that never goes east.

This is a formal scent that is quite versatile. I wouldn't wear it with a t-shirt and jeans, but it would go with anything from a nice casual button down dress shirt all the way to a tux with ease. I've received several nice compliments from women on this one and that doesn't surprise me. This one is truly great and easy to wear. Nothing but high marks.

One of the most perfect scents ever released. A cousin in spirit to Yves Saint Laurent's Rive Gauche Pour Homme-- they both share a slightly ironic take on classic, macho fragrances, but with a knowing intellectual wink. As others have said, these are both the equivalent to a fitted, black mens' dress shirt, open just a little at the collar.

Black Jeans is very dry and sharp. It opens with a kind of pleasant "fumes" accord that would appeal to glue sniffers or people who enjoy the smell of gasoline. Very masculine. Then it settles into a dry herbal zone with a perfect vetiver base. There's not much point talking about the notes, because the whole is so coherent. It sparkles darkly across a room.

I first discovered Black Jeans on a valet's table at a cheesy nightclub. Never having smelled it, I tried it and was astonished at how lively it was. It had real personality. I went back a few times to reapply-- I couldn't get enough. Unfortunately I had a hell of a time sourcing a bottle. Finally, years later I acquired a bottle from another Basenoter and was thrilled to finally be able to wear it again. Just the other day I snagged a second back-up bottle. With this being discontinued, I don't want to run out.

A true gem.

I got a bottle of this today and it's a nice light summer version of the original Essenza Di Zegna. As a summer version, it's similar to the way Issey Miyake's L'Eau Bleue Eau Fraiche was reworked from the original L'Eau Bleue-- lots of mint. I still get that banana/dental anesthetic/anbesol note in this one-- I noticed it in the original, and I like it. Strange, but gives it a bit of character. There's a cucumber note in this as well-- this reminds me of a subtler cousin to Aramis' Surface Skin Tonic. Even though it's probably pretty synthetic-- all sharp crisp edges, it still feels like luxury to me. Doesn't seem to have extreme longevity, but it's great for hot days.

I've done a 180 on this one. Hated it the first time. Actually returned my bottle which I almost never do. Then, over time I began wondering about Blue Jeans again. Had I misjudged it? Though a staple of the TJ MAXX clearance racks, I'd begun to notice less and less of it lying around, so I decided to grab it before it became too hard to find. I think my original bottle was bad or something, because my new bottle is really good. Sure, there is a kind of cheap almost tacky quality lurking in this scent, but it can also be thought of as an assertive forwardness or self confidence as well. It's almost done in a humorous, lighthearted way.

Lots of sweet pipe tobacco in this one, balanced against an herbal heart of galbanum. Maybe a bit dated in a mid-90's tight rolled jeans kind of way. Still, it lifts my mood. It smells very free and playful. Smells like an olfactory intersection of naiveté and cunning.

When I put a spray of this on, it's like "new car smell" for the human body. Really crisp, transparent, and upifting. If I wake up feeling ragged, a shower followed by a spray of this seems to reset the odometer nicely. Despite the presence of cumin, this smells perfectly clean to me--the cumin here is like that in Baldessarini and Erolfa-- nothing like Kingdom-- don't be afraid. What I like is that this fragrance feels like it has no mass-- it's tenacious and long lasting, but it seems to weigh nothing-- it levitates. All the ingredients in this produce a very nice unified whole. A very modern rose scent that is masculine/unisex and well tailored. On top of that, it gives off a radiant, natural sillage that reminds me of Comme des Garçons Odeur 53, in that it doesn't come across much like a "cologne" or "perfume". It seems to slip quietly through the nostrils and olfactory center of the brain without triggering any "I SMELL PERFUME!" responses. Also, it smells sexy.

My favorite of the Bulgari's "tea" series.

The aspect that I find so novel in this is its tannic character. I get the exact smell of the skin of a red delicious apple on September evening, as the sun sets. Not the smell of apples, but specifically the slightly bitter smell of apple skin. It's a really evocative note, and it reminds me of Autumn and hayrides. Also, the tannic character suggests red wine. Makes me think fondly of getting "wine drunk" with a girl and the lovey-dovey feelings that result. Sure I suppose most people experience this fragrance more literally for its red tea notes, but that's not what I get from it. The whole thing is framed by a sunkissed note of hedione, which gives it a warm blissed out transparent feel. Completely unisex and a work of evocative, minimalist beauty.

For a long time I bashed this one. It didn't seem to have that YSL "DNA". It didn't seem to be dangerous, dark, eccentric or interesting the way the other YSL fragrances are. My first thoughts were that L'Homme smelled extremely generic. But one afternoon I was wearing a sample of it and wound up getting an enthusiastic comment from a girl I was dating. So, like a little chimp, I ran out the next day and bought a bottle. I still felt that it wasn't up to YSL snuff, but it was better than I thought. As time went on, I found that I liked it more and more. The topnotes weren't my favorite part, but I liked the way the effervescent ginger collided with the vetiver in the base.

It's never going to be the best thing that YSL has released, but I do like it. It has more depth than it seems at first glance, so do test it thoroughly. If you're wanting to smell good for girls who don't care about the particular minutiae of your perfume while they're busy ripping off your shirt, then buy this and don't feel bad about wearing it. Girls will like it. Still, if you want them to bite you passionately, obsess over you, sleep with garments that smell like you, well then... you'll have to wear Rive Gauche Pour Homme.

I was quite perplexed to find this one so middle-of-the-road and yet so sublime that I'm always eager to wear it often... I think it's one of the best all around fragrances a man can buy these days. Sure, it smells cologney, and there are times when it reminds me of Escada PH, L'Instant de Guerlain PH, Obsession for Men, and a whole slew of things we've all smelled before-- but dammit if this isn't the one that just gets it right. A crisp tangy orange over a slightly dressed up aromatic base. I don't really know what the cypriol contributes, but this does have a wonderfully musky base-- and women have commented positively on it. Sure the clear plastic cap looks like the puffed up reservoir tip of a condom-- and knowing how Tom Ford is, it's probably no coincidence... but the classic notched bottle and amber colored juice are a fitting complement to this scent which is understated and perfectly balanced.

Lasts really well on me and it's one of the most versatile fragrances I own. It proves that a fragrance doesn't need to be novel to be perfect.

I bought this blind and immediately found it to be shockingly great. There's a mouthwatering grapefruit note that is reminiscent of the sweetened red grapefruit segments that come packed in jars of sugar syrup-- and this note lingers all the way though. Also, the dry, peppery melange of spice notes grabs your attention right away like a Chinese firecracker. The subtle vetiver in the base rounds everything out nicely. I dislike the heavy-handed sweetness of most orientals, but this one achieves a perfect dryness. This fragrance also resonates with a certain air of mystery-- when you walk up to a group of women wearing this, they will all wonder who you are.

I've recently discovered the original Opium Pour Homme and it's good, but I prefer the modern touch of Eau D'Orient (2006 version). Get a bottle and wear it to your favorite smoke-filled, dimly lit bar. Then watch the magic happen.

Outstanding.

I just got a sample of it today and it initially gave me deja vu. It reminded me of "T" by Tommy Hilfiger (the one that smells like a freshly washed t-shirt). However, the notes that rumble along under the bright sunny surface are nice and edgy-- A bit of burned rubber to go with a clean shirt. Very nice. I'd buy a bottle right now if the design on the bottle didn't look like some John Wayne Gacy clown nightmare. Still, it smells great.

This is a violet leaf disaster.

It smells like a five year old made a taco out of grass and banana peels.

This has been one of my biggest turn-arounds. Initially I found it a confusing and uninspiring mix of Polo and Michael Jordan Cologne. Like an old-timer's chypre got mixed up with some calone infused Abercrombie brew. It was like looking AT a pair of 3-D glasses and wondering why the hell there is one blue lens and one red lens. Makes no sense. Then you put the glasses on, and everything jumps out at you in startling detail. That's what John Varvatos Vintage does with its "red" lens (the old school, warm mossy chypre) and its "blue" lens (the cool calone aquatic). The total effect is really good, once you've perceived it properly-- which is actually probably most difficult for scent aficionados, who are likely to see the juxtapositions as incongruities-- whereas your typical coworker, friend, date, etc. will only think "wow, that smells incredible."

There are a lot of things going on in this scent. I like the very dry tobacco notes-- very much like the smell of going into one of those historical general store type places where everything is antique and there are strings of dried herbs hanging to dry on clotheslines. Honestly, I don't even try to sit and figure out what all is in this one, because the overall result is just so evocative of sitting in an old study or drawing room-- though it's also somehow hip and modern. The snakeskin encircled bottle is a great touch.

This one is all about depth perception. Now that I view it the way I do, I can't imagine how off-base my initial thoughts on Vintage were. A top ten for me.

Terre D'Hermes makes me think of the works of a certain writer/director/actor... a certain auteur... The late Coleman Francis. I'm thinking of such films as "Red Zone Cuba" and "Skydivers." These films are on a general level just terrible B-movies. They were made fun of in episodes of Mystery Science Theater 3000. They were bad, yet compelling.

Even though these movies were by all accounts "bad", man there is just something about the starkness of these black and white films that just resonates with me. First of all they take place in the early '60's and most of the scenes are shot outdoors with the hapless "stars" jumping out of airplanes, driving around in rusty pickup trucks, hiding in drainpipes, assaulting sandy beaches, climbing up rocky crags, crawling through the dirt, digging for pitchblende... Even in the worst of these movies, there is just a glimpse of a simpler, better time than that of today's overstuffed blockbuster films. I don't know if the world of "Red Zone Cuba" ever existed, but man, I'd trade all the modern conveniences to sleep under the stars and pine trees in the America that Coleman Francis portrayed. Yes, I want to live in a 1963 B-movie.

Anyway, I wear Terre D'Hermes... and I feel like I've LIVED "Red Zone Cuba." I've crawled under barbed wire fences. I've stormed the beaches of Cuba (or was it Arizona?). I've climbed the mineral cliffs with a stiff breeze blowing through me. I've ducked hot lead. I've had my face buried for hours under the hood of a rusted out F-150 that I later sold for 35 bucks. I've eaten frog legs at Cliff Weismeyers place. I've gone out looking for pitchblende on Chasteen's property. I've run all the way to hell with nothing but a penny and a broken cigarette... OK, I'm poking a little fun at the movie.

BUT if you've seen "Red Zone Cuba"... it might make sense. Aside from the fleeting orange citrus note, I find Terre D'Hermes to be a very stark, no-nonsense black and white B-movie of a scent. And a manly one at that. The outdoors. Open Roads. Hills. Mountains. Rocks. Cedar forests. It does something very unique. It captures the outdoors and it does it without being green! It's the outdoors as seen in black and white. It manages to evoke rolling hills fo grass, but not green grass. Black and white grass! A grey sky with grey clouds, a sawtoothed black horizon that stretches far and relaxed.

I'm sure that Jean Claude Ellena has never seen "Red Zone Cuba"-- because if he had intended to create an homage to this film, coffee would be a central note. I digress. Anyway, regardless of what the auteurs Mr. Ellena and Mr. Francis intended to create, to me, what they captured a kind of beauty in quiet breezy blacks, whites, greys, slates, charcoals. But with that orange note like the sun on a cloudy cold day, as your collar flaps against your neck on the open range.

Masterful creation. It smells like an Ansel Adams photograph.

Joop Rococo for Men is a real sleeper of a fragrance. I've worn it the past seven days straight and it's compelled me to post this postive review.

Initially when I bought it, I thought it was not really my type, but it really grew on me. Here's what sold me on it and made me give it another look--once, I was in an elevator and I had just applied Rococo. When the door closed, this strange girl leaned in and sniffed me. Then she kind of went limp and just collapsed into my arms (I think she had been drinking). She remained there with her head on my shoulder until my floor came and I had to leave. A pretty nice moment we had. No words really, just a brief encounter.

So that got me thinking more about Rococo, and how much I like it. It does ginger notes really nicely--in fact it kind of reminds me of red fruit punch and ginger cookies. It's well balanced, seductive, and offbeat. Kind of makes me think of something a friend from Europe would be wearing. It's just slightly quirky enough to be mysterious. Complete antithesis to the hordes of Aqua di Gio type scents. This scent works anywhere, and would be a really good first-date scent, as it is well rounded and yet still has that air of mystery.

The bottle is cool as hell too!

Maybe one of the tackiest bottles ever released. When this stuff was launched it was hard not to look at it sitting there competing with the Polos and Armanis and not laugh. However, I had brought a chick with me to the counter to test stuff with me and she wasn't put off by the stupid marketing. She sniffed it and liked it. We took a sample with us and later she kept saying how good it was.

She said it smelled even just a little bit like popcorn-- which suddenly made sense with the cinematic theme in marketing. Very clever inside joke. Though it smells a bit "90's", it's also a very striking and attractive scent. Almost has a hint of a pine note against a whole bunch of stuff that I can't even describe. I never could bring myself to buy a bottle yet I could never forget it.

Imagine my delight when years later I found a new bottle of this at Marshalls for like $15! It doesn't get mentioned often, but it's actually quite unlike anything else I've ever smelled.

I just recently completed my collection of the entire Synthetic Series. While I already was a fan of Skai, Dry Clean and Soda, I'd always mentally partitioned off Tar and Garage as "those other two." Basically I liked the concept behind Tar and Garage, but didn't think either would be wearable. That changed today when I wore Tar for the first time. I sprayed some Tar under my shirt and ran some errands (the sprayers on the Synthetic Series dispense a lot of juice). I was standing in line at the bookstore, and the person in front of me was holding up the line. Some people walked up behind me and I was starting to get self conscious about the Tar. Suddenly I heard the girl tell her boyfriend "Hey, something smells good!" And I eavesdropped as they talked about their favorite perfumes. Not even a "that guy in front of us REEKS" or anything. They seemed to enjoy it--even though I don't think they had any clue as to who or what they were actually smelling.

The think about Tar is that it has an olfactive effect similar to vetiver. It's like a modulation of vetiver into another key. Similar range of facets and textures--dry, arid, earthy, sharp, salty. Different ingredients, similar effect.

In comparison, Garage is similar to Tar, but with the addition of some other notes that make it more of a literal translation of "garage" to Tar's somewhat abstract rendering of "tar." Of the two, I definitely prefer Tar and find it more wearable. As for garage/car/gasoline scents-- Santa Maria Novella's Nostalgia beats out Garage handily, in my book. Garage is complex, unusual and smells of all kinds of solvents and vapors, but it also smells strongly of olive juice-- and I've never seen a gearhead sipping a dirty martini while performing an oil change.

It may take a little courage to wear Tar, but it's actually very pleasant in a strange unplaceable way. Everyone with an eccentric side should try it.

I enjoy anise fragrances and this one is very good and it smells completely natural. My mother and grandmother would often make Italian anise cookies called "pizzelles", and I loved those growing up. This reminds me very much of those cookies. When I was in the L'Occitane store trying their fragrances, there was an attractive married woman who was watching me-- she was curious as to what fragrance to get her husband. I would try each fragrance on my skin, and then this woman would give her opinion. When I got to the Eau du Badian, she grabbed a hold of my arm firmly and didn't want to let go. It definitely met her approval! I have noticed that this does seem to be a bit weaker and shorter lived than I'd hoped. It doesn't have a lot of musk/fixatives in the base, and as such it feels more like an Eau de Cologne than an Eau de Toilette-- not a problem though, because for many situations I prefer a cologne to have modest sillage. It does smell great. Aside from the wonderfully prominent anise note, Eau du Badian is also a good grapefruit scent. I also heartily recommend the Eau du Badian shower gel. I've often wondered what all was in this scent, and I've just seen the list of notes for the first time-- I can definitely smell the maté and green tea. But the anise is tops.

Now I need a Harvey Wallbanger!

Like another reviewer said, bottles of this were floating around for $20, so I snagged one.

Baldessarini didn't impress me much on a paper strip, but when I just decided to wear it one day, I was really taken aback by it. Some fragrances are really good but they get old fast. This one on the other hand just gets better as the day goes on. My favorite part of this scent is the fir note-- really refreshing like the outdoors. And the orange note is soft and chewy like orange bubble-gum. It almost reminds me of Boss in Motion, which I dislike, but this one is much better.

This is kind of a simple scent, but I find something extremely satisfying about it. Everytime I wear it, I feel like I've made the right choice. I've found the longevity to be pretty good-- it lasts all throughout an eight to ten hour shift.

The solid metal bottle is high quality-- and really heavy. They really put some care into the packaging of this.

For a while, I just didn't understand the Tabaromes (both Vintage and Millesime). Then one night I sat down to watch "The Remains of the Day". As I was drawn into the period of the film, I heard a voice in my head and it said "hey, go put some Tabarome on. Vintage on the back of your right hand and Millesime on your left."

So I did, and as I watched the movie my experience was enormously enhanced by these two fragrances. I found myself sniffing my right hand during some of the scenes where the old order was represented-- the scenes with the master of the house in his study, redolent with the smell of something like Vintage Tabarome. Then, during the scenes with Christopher Reeve's character representing the new order, I found myself sniffing the Tabarome Millesime on the left hand.

Last night I watched another Merchant/Ivory film, "Howard's End" and again, not long into the film I realized that again my Tabaromes would be needed to add to the experience.

At first I thought Vintage Tab and New Tab were nothing alike. True, initially in an A/B test they are worlds apart. Funny though, as time goes on, their direct lineage becomes apparent. Vintage Tab is a bone dry, somewhat stuffy tobacco leaf scent, with a leathery feeling to it. New Tab is a fresher, lighter, less dry update on the original. Both scents are uncompromising. Neither one is something to wear to impress the ladies, though the ladies might love you despite that-- for having the character to wear something that is such an unapologetical throwback to patriarchal times when it was a "man's world."

I've become a believer in Tabarome Millesime, and now I'm sold on Vintage Tabarome as well. I wish it would be available in 2.5 oz bottles-- there's no way I could ever use a whole flask of this. You have to be careful because it can be intoxicating-- too many sniffs of the wrist and you'll get that feeling of smoking too many cigars. It's a bit out of time, unless you're wearing a suit-- in which case, it's perfect and it makes everyone else in the room come across like shabbily dressed embodiments of the wrong time and place.

A fragrance like Tabarome makes you realize it's great to be a man!

I bought a bottle of this blind, and I have to say that I was surprised to find it was quite different than I had imagined it. I was relieved to find that it was not some "air freshener/floor cleaner" pine smell. The pine is quite nice. But it is married to a HEAVY cardamom note-- it's almost a bit sweaty. I wore it to work one day and was surprised that it wasn't as fresh, cool and crisp as I had thought it would be. It reminded me a little of the effect of Eau d"Hermes (though Eau d'Hermes has cumin and a mega-dose of cinnamon). I think I detect geranium in Epicea. But again, that cardamom note sets the tone for the texture of this scent. There's also a nice lemony citrus topnote.

As others have said, the longevity may not be the best. I agree on that point, but as is often the compromise of perfumes-- if they were made to last longer, they wouldn't smell the same.

Like many of the other Creed EDT's, this does smell like something from another era. The smell of the masculine gentleman circa the mid-20th century. It's a fragrance that is quaint, humble and sorely missed in these modern times where clueless, classless businessmen too often finish putting on a three-piece suit with a spritz of (gasp) Aqua di Gio.

Two thumbs up for Epicea.

The reviews for this one have been typically negative. I think it masquerades as your typical dime-a-dozen fresh scent-- but really I think it's better than the reputation it has received.

This is a very transparent, peppery smelling fragrance that shares something with the heartnotes of the old Boss #1. This fragrance doesn't try to tell a big longwinded story-- it keeps things brief. You smell it and it smells "clear"-- you don't associate any colors with the smell. This makes it a bit hard to describe. It also reminds me of a more stripped down version of one of my personal favorites, Joop Rococo for Men (from another German house, as is Boss). I find a commonality between these three German scents.

The bottle is cool. I think it's a sleeper.

It's hard to put into words how breathtaking Neroli Sauvage is. The topnotes are warm, sunny and full. A richness you don't get with many citrus fragrances. When you close your eyes and sniff your arm, you will get so many nuances out of this composition-- so many shifting facets. Oranges, Greens and Yellows blurring over and over in the theater of your imagination.

When the middle notes arrive, there is a lemon custard sweetness-- like a rich pastry with powdered sugar. Very edible quality. You will go from wanting to drink this scent with breakfast, to wanting to eat it for dessert.

Then comes that familiar and wonderful ambergris and sandalwood combo that is also so much a part of Green Irish Tweed's drydown. As it dries down, I find it stays somewhat close to skin, though the longevity is good.

When this hits your nose, it can transport you to any carefree summer of your youth. And it seems so real, even though you know it isn't possible to travel back in time. Just for a minute you almost believe it could actually happen.

To wear something this beautiful-- it isn't easy to live up to it. Almost too perfect. But you've got to wear it anyway. It's all you can do.

I've had a bottle of this for a month now and now I think I can properly review it. I was kind of mad at myself for paying retail price for it, since it's a bit less versatile than some of my other Creeds that I've bought for less. But since I wanted to be the first kid on my block to get this, it goes with the territory...

OK, this is a unique fragrance. The notes I get are lime, white rum, coconut, and musk predominantly. This scent doesn't drydown in pyramid fashion, nor is it linear. The notes each come and go and come and go almost randomly--as if each was carried by its own independent breeze.

This scent goes on a bit oily, which does give it a slight buttery suntan lotion feel. But the real upside is the amazing longevity I get from this. I applied one spray to the upper chest over 12 hours ago, and it's still going strong. And I bet I'll still be able to smell it several hours later. Amazing balance of sillage/longevity and at the same time-- never overpowering. The perfect balance is achieved.

As far as versatility-- this is a summer/spring vacation scent-- It's not something you'd probably want to wear to a funeral, under any circumstances. It's very unisex, and though there is the ylang-ylang note, it doesn't smell feminine. It does smell a bit "thematic"--you probably won't want to smell like a Malibu and Coke with lime every day, even in the summer... but on those days when you do decide to wear it, you are going to make friends fast!

Again, the longevity I get out of this is tops! Sure there's coconut, but where some people think this smells like a pina colada--for me, with the prominent fresh lime and rum, I get more of a cuba libré vibe from this on my skin. The lime note in this is a force to be reckoned with. Quite a different style for a Creed, but the Creed quality is evident.

Thumbs up!

I know a woman that works with me who wears this and I really enjoy it. It's a little strange at first, but I like women to wear proper perfume and not just body-shop lotion smelling crap all the time, so on the occasion that she wears this, I just enjoy it.

From a male perspective, just know that men find this an attractive smell on a woman. I see some thumbs down for this one but I have to disagree. This one pushes my buttons.

Bois de Cédrat is a scent i couldn't fully discern nor appreciate until I bought a bottle of Creed's Néroli Sauvage. Citrus fragrances don't usually excite me too much, so I don't wear them that often nor do I pay much attention to the composition.

So I did an A/B test with Bois de Cédrat on one arm and Néroli Sauvage on the other.

Néroli Sauvage strikes me as a "warm citrus". It's sunny and a tad floral. As the basenotes come out on the skin, there is a bit of a custard sweetness that is attractive. Much later, I notice the sandalwood. Néroli Sauvage also seems shorter lived than my other Creeds--though I don't have longevity issues-- one shot of Silver Mountain Water to the chest can go for at least 15 hours on me. Néroli Sauvage lasts a decent while, but it remains very close to the skin.

Bois de Cédrat on the other hand seems more like a "cool citrus". It's very refreshing, like cool rain on a hot summer evening. While it seems straightforward with few notes other than lemon and cedar, it smells very full and complete. I get a kind of herbal waxy note as well--it kind of reminds me of the smell of original chapstick (black labelled tube). I get more sillage from Bois de Cédrat then I get from Néroli Sauvage, plus I do think it lasts longer--especially the cool fresh topnotes. Néroli Sauvage has more of a "fade to musk" thing going on underneath (which is a nice evolution), while Bois de Cédrat remains crisp.

It's worth it for me to have bottles of each. Some days you want something warm and inviting. Other days you need something cool and invigorating.

Bois de Cédrat is perfect for any occasion. Great for a spritz when leaving the gym, and just as good for a big night out.

An underrated Creed gem.

I reviewed Amber & Lavender two years ago and I've decided to review it again.

I just came back from an out of town funeral for an uncle and I wore Amber & Lavender to the visitation. People always want to know what scents, if any, are appropriate for funerals. Some people think that one should not wear a fragrance.

I think that given the correct choice of fragrance, and moderate application, a certain aura of strength and respect can be communicated-- A bracing quality that others can lean on for comfort and familiarity in times of loss.

Jo Malone's Amber & Lavender is that perfect fragrance if ever one was created. It smells formal, but it isn't loud and narcissistic. It doesn't smell like clubbing cologne. It just radiates a tradional stoic dressed up masculine presence. It's just as minimalist as it needs to be. It just says two things, "I'm a man, and I'm here for you." Also, because of this, it would also be the ideal cologne to wear at one's own wedding. It just emanates a really basic trustworthiness that enhances ones own virtues. It doesn't make the wearer feel like a vain empty opportunist on the make--rather if you read his mind it would say "I'm a content and happy man, and I do not want what i haven't got." And by the way, women love that in a man.

Perfect in every way. This stuff really glows.

Man, I think Chypre Rouge is terrible!

It smells like this jello dish my relatives used to make and bring to gatherings. This dish contained pureed celery, pecans and red jello. Not all that great. It's like there are two or three things going on in this scent that don't really go together.

Also, there's something about this that smells like a "nosebleed." Do you know that feeling when somebody punches you in the face and suddenly you are in a bar fight and your adrenaline kicks in, and there's that metallic smell of blood in your nose? That's what this scent conjures. Another scent that does this is Diptyque's Eau D' Elide (I think that's the one).

I got samples of several Lutens and all were interesting and some were great. Chypre Rouge was the only one I found to be just plain awful. Godawful.

I just bought a bottle of this blind. The price was good so I went for it based on the positive reviews. The first blast of it was kind of a shock. I'm used to mainly the more recent Creeds--the Millesimes. At first it smelled very dense and hard. Kind of dated, but at the same time, a very exquisite, powerful kind of smell.

After about five minutes on the skin, it's really interesting. It smells very formal. It reminds me of the Rat Pack for some reason. Kind of reminds me a bit of Versace L'Homme, but this is much much better--this is more tightly wound than L'Homme. I was afraid of two things when trying Baie de Genievre: that it would smell like pine trees or that it would smell too much like cinnamon. It reeks of neither. Its minimalism is a virtue. Actually upon drydown I'm picking up a similarity to Vintage Tabarome--except VT I don't care for all that much, while this stuff I could definitely wear.

I'd have to wear a suit with this probably. It smells too formal to pull off with jeans. Because of the description, I was expecting this to be raw and a little crude--well, I can see that but to me it seems extremely refined as well. An early 80's power scent as done by Creed. Interesting. I can't wait for an opportunity to wear this.

I initially hated this. But now, I like it. I had thought it was too feminine. The main shock I got when I sampled it for the first time was that it smelled like the liquid soap you wash your hands with after visiting an interstate rest area. Seriously it does smell like a rest stop--though one reason could be that the nature of saffron sometimes takes on a cherry-like aroma not unlike air fresheners used in such places.

But after revisiting the sample, I really enjoy it. What I like about it is that it is relaxing and completely smooth. No rough edges. I have a gift card I have to use at a certain store, and I think I'm going to get a bottle of this.

I got a bottle of Erolfa last week. It's just what I hoped it would be-- a darker, moodier cousin to Millesime Imperial. It's herbal and fresh and yes, there is that prominent sea-salt accord. Erolfa while being a marine fragrance, has a kind of an "old soul"--like the patina of brass fittings on an old galleon.

While MI is sunny, bright and outgoing, Erolfa is darker, more mysterious, and introverted. The yin to MI's yang. And I almost find Erolfa to be somewhat "goth" in a way, I suppose depending upon the rest of the wearer's presentation.

Definitely a good choice for evening wear. It's kind a kind of macho roughness about it. A lot of depth as well. When I sniff it, I get all kind of daydreams about ships. pirates, maps, seas, and the like.

Definitely the best fragrance a person could wear to see a Decemberists concert!

Everything I'd hoped it would be.

I bought a bottle of Green Irish Tweed a month ago. I was fully expecting it to smell like Cool Water, but I bought it anyway--My reasoning being that Original Vetiver smelled identical to Mugler's Cologne at first, but after a while I could detect a world of difference.

Well... When I got my bottle of GIT, sure enough it smelled like Cool Water. I was slightly saddened because I liked the way GIT smelled, but I was certain that anyone who smelled it would identify me as a guy who wears Cool Water.

But you know what? I can't stop wearing this stuff regardless! At first it seemed kind of mediocre, but the quality is first rate and the multifaceted drydown is addicting. I almost don't care if people think it IS Cool Water, because it just smells incredible.

Just last night I stopped in a Sephora and did a quick spritz of Cool Water on a paper strip--I should have put it on skin... But yep, it was similar in smell to GIT. But while they smell similar, Green Irish Tweed has much more complexity and allure about it.

To enjoy it, you really have to divorce yourself from thoughts of Cool Water, and just enjoy it for the masterpiece that it is. And if you must recall Cool Water, remember, Green Irish Tweed was created first and Cool Water was the plagiarist.

Green Irish Tweed doesn't need to reinvent the wheel. It already invented it in the first place...

I don't know what to think of Tabarome Millesime (New Tabarome)...

I bought a bottle of it blind. I'd heard some people say it was just like Bulgari Blu. Well, it wasn't--which was nice, because I didn't want to have another Creed deja vu moment--but I think Tabarome Millesime is more than just a little weird.

The ginger blast can be overwhelming. I agree with CoL that it can be almost nauseating. The initial impression is something like a tart, sour gingery, slightly powdery, aldehydic pineapple smell. I think I hate the opening. Kind of a clammy sensation, the warm and cold at the same time. There is perhaps too much bergamot in the top.

However after a mere ten minutes, it gets much better. The ginger/pineapple recedes and I get a kind of butterscotch note that starts to peek out. I really wish the initial topnote weirdness could be avoided totally, because it gives perhaps a false impression of the scent.

I was expecting something more earthy and opaque--it's hard for me to judge because the opening blast colors my impressions of it so heavily--if I could have just started it further into its drydown the first time I smelled it, my opinion would be different. Also, for some reason I keep expecting to get some leather out of this fragrance and never get any. I've smelled Vintage Tabarome and while it's not for me (reminds me of mothballs), I can see its richness and leathery contours. New Tabarome on the other hand feels a bit underpowered and wet behind the ears.

I'm going to keep wearing it and see if it grows on me-- as it is, this is one of the few times where I am pretty neutral on a scent.

OK, let me preface this by saying I have a bottle of the original Declaration and also Declaration Essence, and I love them both.

But... Bois Bleu is probably THE most disgusting scent I've ever tried. I sniffed it briefly once and thought I liked it. The other day I got a sample and when I got home and sprayed some on, I couldn't believe how bad it was. It actually has the distinction of being the ONLY fragrance that nearly makes me vomit. Seriously, I smell it, and I get that same ache in my stomach etc.

It smells OK for about 20 seconds and then the bottom drops out and there is just a nasty muddled foul note in there that just comes galloping out, bringing all kinds of other funk with it. They tried to make this scent "cool and wet". They succeeded in making it clammy. Seriously, I would sum this fragrance up in only one word, "clammy". Plus it smells really badly of "wet dog". It stinks. Also I get the impression of walking through a damp woods and sinking my teeth into a giant slug. There is something of mollusk slime in this scent that is just revolting. So, it's clammy in two senses of the word. And as it dries down on skin, there is something even worse-- Oh, jeez, how do I say this... well, there's kind of a note of metallic blood and saltiness, kind of like planting your face somewhere you'd rather not, purely out of...ahem, obligation.

The other two versions of Declaration are nice. I think they work because they have a real dryness to them. They're arid. Something about trying to take this scent accord, and make it wet and fresh actually just makes it really gross.

#1 Worst fragrance ever in my book!

Just had to add that I meant to give it a thumbs up with my review!

I got a sample of this when I bought my bottle of Vettiveru. I'm really impressed with all three. Anbar is fresh, clean, a bit sweet, and as a dab of musk. I've worn this to work a few times and it's really an ideal work scent Something in it reminds me of the smell of Gobstoppers jawbreakers candy. And new leather. Wonderful stuff. Getting used to this series, EDCs' as they are, can be a bit strange at first. But you come to realize that scents like these have their place and can be worn everyday in every situation.

I bought this for myself over a year ago. I just rediscovered it. It smells a little like maple syrup oatmeal, to my nose. Also it seems to have a "reversed" scent pyramid, because the sweet, heavy notes seem to be the top notes, and after they burn off, what remains are the tangy citrus notes- This is the opposite of what usually happens.

I think by calling it B*Men, they set this up as a kind of "also-ran", The name conjures up associations with "B-Lists." This is unfortunate because I think it is superb. Granted, there are similarities with A*Men, but B*Men has its own shiny dance moves as well... And with the way the pyramid seems to go in reverse- B*men busts out with "the moonwalk."

I'm a huge Comme des Garçons fanatic...but THIS...

This stuff smells like a "life-support machine!"

I just bought a bottle of this after having a sample for a while, not being able to make up my mind if i liked this stuff or not. It's VERY different. Avant- garde.

It begins with a kind of pickled-ginger note, and it has a note not unlike bread crusts. There is also an incense note. A kind of "off-white" incense smell. A bit of dust. But at the heart, there is a tobacco note and all kinds of stuff I can't identify. It's heavy on exotic spices and has kind of an all-spice character.

I describe it like this. Imagine a giant framed art print. Like a test pattern on a TV screen- nothing but vertical lines...this scent is like that. Here is the color scheme for the lines: White, off-white, yellow, tan, beige, grey, and grey that is just a tad darker.

It took me forever before I decided that I really love this scent, and it is QUITE wearable. Very mysterious, calm, rebellious, and not even close to smelling mainstream. Almost impossible for me to describe. It doesn't fit into any of the fragrance families. Really an odd duck.

On a side note, the bottle and packaging are really great concept-wise. The bottle has two little glass pebbles that slide around on the bottom. Well done.

Even though I'm a fan of this one, buying blind may be risky, because it's so "out-there"- try it first!

This stuff has more wood than Beavis and Butthead on a morning school bus ride.

But seriously this is the purest wood scent I've ever encountered. It smells just like "Lincoln Logs"-those wooden toy logs that kids build little log cabins out of. I could smell it all day. Palisander is a wonderful fragrance. Never mind the sillage, people around you will get SPLINTERS! Woodpeckers will circle like vultures and people will call you Pinnochio. But kidding aside, its a very intense yet sober rendering of an old wood smell. And the myrrh and hot spices around the corners are so well crafted. Its smells very deep, and very red, and at times, very much like a 2x4.

BTW this one has some similarities with Sequoia, if you like one, be sure to try the other.

Calamus is one of the most natural smelling green scents I've ever smelled. Its a milky kind of green. I read somewhere that the calamus plant is one of those tall plants like those that grow on the edge of ponds. People used to chew on its roots and supposedly Walt Whitman's "Leaves of Grass" was inspired by calamus.

I was expecting this Comme des Garcons fragrance to be really odd, but I was astounded at the positive comments by people who picked up the bottle and smelled it. They loved it. My brother wears it all the time. One friend was impressed with it and asked if it contained pheromones.

milky, powdery, and green like the dew on morning leaves- If you were an active child who loved playing outdoors in the grass, whacking your way through the tall weeds with a whiffle-ball bat, I promise you Calamus will be a very nostalgic fragrance for you.

Sequoia begins a bit tart and spicy. A bit like candy apple. A leafy green flits around in the red. In the topnotes, you can really pick up the rum note- kind of a mouthwatering, intoxicating quality. Then you start to get the mulchy red wood smells. There is a nice Agarwood note in there too and it reminds me of an incense I like to burn. This scent has some similarities with Palisander, But while Palisander is a palpable plank of wood across the nose (in a good way), Sequoia is more of an ambient headspace of the aura of a forest. Very wearable. It smells very relaxed, like napping in a log cabin or lying back in a canoe in the middle of a quiet lake on a sunny day.

It's like summer camp in a bottle!

Some of us have a saying here at Basenotes, "Rive Gauche Pour Homme is the 'King of Compliments'". It's freakish how girls attack me when I wear Rive Gauche. Last night I wore it to work and a co-worker BIT ME! She freaking went crazy on me. It's a mystery why this scent ,which is relatively straightforward, causes women of all ages to go completely nuts.

I bought this in the summer, but couldn't really wear in until fall/winter. At first I thought it similar to Gucci PH, but 2MAN evolves more and moves in different directions. The first thing that struck me about 2MAN is that it seems to combine pieces of other CdG scents. There are bits of CdG 2, Odeurs 53 and 71, Avignon, and Vettiveru all lashed together in this scent. If you are a CdG enthusiast, you will be able to pick these parts out. Sometimes I have a hard time deciding which CdG to wear out, and 2MAN lets me wear more than one in a way. My brother said it smells like "yellow Dial soap, and like a "stick", but in a good way. If you think this scent is a rip-off of Gucci PH, then do an A/B test. Spray each on a separate arm and wait about five minutes. The Gucci gets sweet and vanillic, but it stays within a certain narrow band between top to bottom, as a whole.The 2MAN seems to blossom in that the top notes spread out and the bottom seems to get deeper and it has a wider range. Plus the 2MAN has more quirks... I really detect alot of the oddball metallic things that Odeur 71 has, slipped into 2MAN. After ten minutes on the skin, Gucci PH and 2MAN have both changed so much that I find them pretty much nothing alike.

The bottle is one of the coolest bottles I've ever seen, I should also mention.

If you are a fan of vetivers, you will want to bathe in this stuff! First off, it is a true Eau de Cologne, meaning it is very, very light in terms of sillage. It comes in a big seventeen ounce splash bottle. And you WILL have to splash it on quite liberally to get a good application. Rub it on your neck, arms and wherever...It doesn't project much, but it lingers for a long time.

As for the actual scent. Its a very raw earthy, slightly dirty vetiver in the tradition of Goutal's Vetiver, yet it shifts back and forth to a green, fresh vetiver scent like Mugler's Cologne. And it has shades of the bitterness that is so "texture-like" in Guerlain's Vetiver. And it also reminds me of chewing gum, with its fresh topnotes. A perfectly balanced composition, with touches of floral notes and a dry bamboo-like accord.

It's very addicting stuff, i'm finding. Both clean and fresh-soil earthy, it's the ideal skin scent. A bit salty and citrusy. Vettiveru is like an all-star team of the notes of all the classic vetivers. I just want to wear it every day. Just always remember its an EDC so it's not a sillage monster, you have to put ALOT on. You'll probably have to use one whole sample vial in one application. But then again that's why it comes in a seventeen ounce bottle. Everyone needs something like this in their 'drobe. One of the best I've seen in a long time.

I'm a big admirer of Kouros (though I don't wear it out much). I'm also a huge fan of Kouros Cologne Sport (though I wear that one for myself as well- its kind of weird, yet IMO a masterpiece of contrasts). So in the interest of being a Kouros completist, I bought this one too- the Kouros Cologne Sport Eau D'Ete Summer Fragrance in the gradient blue bottle. It's much more mainstream than the standard Cologne Sport. It's got a nice tangerine and mint accord, and a "perfumey" note that is absent from the other. It does have a somewhat short longevity, but it's more like a refreshing tonic. It really wears well in high heat, and in the breeze. The Cologne Sport and this, the summer version, are very original scents, I haven't smelled anything remotely like them. Some people dislike them, and I can see why. Cologne Sport is like a white sheeted ghost, all arms up, saying boo. The summer version is just its laid back little brother, albeit with a nice tan.

After getting by for a while on sample vials of this one, I had to spring for a 3.4 oz bottle. This is my number one scent. Passage D'Enfer is Elegant and sexy and women love it. It's an easy choice for a first date or job interview. It smells a bit church-y with the incense. But it also reminds me of candle wax, smoke, and all the temporal conventions of a cathedral- as well as a kind of dark, brooding spiritual presence. It is a bit weaker than some other scents on me, but its very hard to overdo. If you're trying to seduce someone with an old-world fire and brimstone kind of scent, look no further than Passage D'Enfer. To paraphrase Dante', "Abandon all hope, ye who encounter this one!" This stuff is Inferno in a bottle...

I bought a bottle of this blind, and I'm really happy with it. It's a very nostalgic scent, with all of its plastic, vinyl, fake leather notes. It smells of alot of things from my childhood. It's quite forward with its unprecedented parade of plastics. But it also has a nice incense accord, and alot of spicy warmth. To me its like the offspring of Odeur 53 and one of the fragrances from the Incense series. Also, it reminds me a bit of a piece of burning white paper that has just been extinguished. Give it a shot!

I bought Kouros after getting Kouros Cologne Sport (a personal fave, warm and embracing, yet standoffishly odd and bitter), and the Cologne Sport Eau D'Ete Summer Version (Which is the safest scent yet to spring forth from the Kouros bloodline.) Well, the original Kouros took me a LONG time to warm up to. I would occasionally sniff it at a testing counter, and each time walk away with a frown. "Too dated, not for me", or "Damn that's some odd stuff!" Finally I snagged a bottle, and now I can see why it was such a big seller internationally. While its not going to be an everyday kind of scent, it is an essential "Rosetta Stone" in my collection. A scent both animalistic and otherworldly. Heaven and Hell collide in this ivory bottle.
Kouros...My "White Devil"

I found Kouros to be too dated and over the top, but there was still something in it I was intrigued by. I got the Kouros Cologne Sport and at first found it simultaneously revolting and magnetic. It reminded by of some nightmares I had. To me it smelled somewhat "funereal" and conjured up images of burial linens. Spooky. Yet, I've come to love Kouros Cologne Sport. Its fresh and yet has hints of otherworldly dark things floating though it. It paints vivid picures in my mind when I sniff it. It took me a long time to warm up to it, but now its one of my top 3. I don't care what anyone else thinks- I wear THIS one for me! I can't say enough about it.

One of my favorite scents! Very different, kind of underwhelming at first sniff from the bottle, it smells like "refrigerated air". But then, when you wear it, you come to detect the notes of sand dunes, flaming rocks, thunderstorms. The scent is very sneaky. It smells great but nobody will think its a cologne. They will just think you smell nice naturally, like a cool breeze. There is nothing in Odeur 53 that you can pin down to an organic source such as grass, citrus, wood etc. It smells like the "weather"! Five Stars all the way!