Reviews by xistrot

Infusion de Fleur d'Oranger by Prada

One of the most impressive openings of a fragrance (to be fair I am a fan of orange blossom). So much so that I was tempted to buy it 30 seconds after smelling it. I did not, but after trying it several more times it was to good to pass up.

I think the citrus, indolic and floral aspects of the scent are well-balanced against each other, and the scent is perfectly suitable for a man. I would caution that after about 5 hours or so, the powdery aspect of the fragrance rears its head so watch out for that.

Eau de Gentiane Blanche by Hermès

A unique, and ultimately impressive, take on the cologne genre. The notes are well-balanced and the juxtaposition of the notes creates a bone-dry, quiet, musky scent.

The scent evokes in me a somber, almost meditative state (I suppose that's the incense working).

Eau de Campagne by Sisley

Agree with Vibert. This is indeed an uncompromising green scent. Its tart opening may be too much for most people but patience will give way to an exceptional dry, herbal, slightly woody scent. It reminds me of my childhood, the simple pleasure of playing and tumbling in the grass.

Acqua di Parma Colonia Assoluta by Acqua di Parma

An excellent fragrance made in the style of an eau de cologne. Has surprisingly good longevity for a cologne.

A Scent by Issey Miyake

A soapy, green, clean scent, which is interesting only because it did not severely disappoint me (having had such low expectations on account of Miyake's L'Eau and its assorted flankers)

Rose by Czech & Speake

This is a light rose scent. It is less complex than C&S Dark Rose. There is something in it which gives it a "sharpness", which appears to be common in many of C&S fragrances.

Citrus Paradisi by Czech & Speake

Urgh, I get a dried cat pee smell.

Lalique White by Lalique

The drydown is very good, which surprised me a little because the top and middle notes were very average and forgettable.

Un Jardin sur le Nil by Hermès

Originally disliked it when I smelled it on paper, but gave it another go on my skin and now I do enjoy it. Not sure if I would blow all that money for it, though.

Timbuktu by L'Artisan Parfumeur

Purchased it after testing it for a few days, and now one of my favourite scents. Unique, refreshing, and generally very well made. Only downside is that it does not last long on my skin.

Eau des Merveilles by Hermès

Love, love, love this. Perfectly wearable for a man, and also well suited for the climate that I'm in (i.e., sunny whole year through). The orange note is very prevalent but its anchored/ mutated by the wood notes. As with most Hermes scents, it is very well made.

Rive Gauche pour Homme by Yves Saint Laurent

A lot of people have raved about it, but unfortunately I get a headache when I smell it. It could be that it is just too strong - even now, as the strip is sitting on my desk about one arm lengths away, I can smell it. Plus, in terms of originality, it is sorely lacking. As many have pointed out, it smells like a lot of the old fragrances which men would wear, like Brut.

Eau Parfumée au Thé Blanc by Bulgari

Hmm I'm going to give this a thumbs up despite some misgivings about how I think they may have overdone the floral and sweet aspect of this scent, at the expense of the tea note. The tea note is quite beautiful, and is different from the tea notes in other Bulgari scents to me at least makes it unique.

Its good for office wear, but I would not recommend it if you are in the sun too long as the floral can give you a headache.

Passage d'Enfer by L'Artisan Parfumeur

On the dry down I could not distinguish from CdG's Kyoto. Which doesn't make it bad, just non-unique although I note that Kyoto did come out in 2002 while this came out in 1999. So perhaps CdG is doing the imitating here.

Here in Singapore incense is everywhere so people don't get bowled over by incense scents but Passage d'Enfer is quite nice

Tea for Two by L'Artisan Parfumeur

Phew! What a gourmand scent this is! If it were food, I would eat it but alas it is a fragrance and I think it is simply too overpowering and too gourmand-ish for a fragrance. It certainly is inappropriate in the hot and humid conditions of Singapore where I live.

I have to give props to its uniqueness though.

Starwalker by Montblanc

Pretty offensive generally. It is one of those generic air-freshener-in-an-airconditioned-room fragrances. Pretty sharp when it starts off and stays sharp for quite a while. I kept sniffing it hoping that it would mellow down but alas it was not to be.

Bulgari pour Homme Soir by Bulgari

A clean scent, with an excellent tea note. I've not tried that many fragrances with tea notes but I must say this is one of the better ones, with good execution. As with most Bulgari scents, it is subtle, and longevity is just so-so (I would say about 3-4 hours). I think it is more an office fragrance than anything else, as it does not impose on the people around you.

Tumulte pour Homme by Christian Lacroix

Phew, cedar all the way! I do not smell anything much apart from this. I get bored of the scent very quickly and I have only worn it a couple of times at the most. I live in Singapore, which is sunny 365 days a year, and the cedar smell is just not suited for the kind of weather that Singapore has.

Not easy to find this scent in shops here, I only stumbled upon it by accident, and was swayed to buy it by the pretty bottle.

What I do sometimes is to lie to my friends and tell me I'm using CdG Kyoto :)

Bulgari pour Homme Extreme by Bulgari

I bought this about 6 months ago, got bored of it because it was too subtle, moved on to other fragrances. Then I rediscovered it and I must say that after having gone through quite a number of frags, I think I am a fan of subtlety and understatement (although one could say that being the Extreme version, the normal version should be even more subtle - but If I do remember correctly, the normal version was just different and unappealing to me - I think I concur with the other reviewers who say that the original is just different).

Like other Bulgari PH frags (I also own Soir, which I love), this is a clean, sophisticated, light scent. It is generally inoffensive, and so suitable for office use.

Dolce & Gabbana Pour Homme by Dolce & Gabbana

I'm new to perfumes and was trying out a couple of them. Tried the ones that most large stores were pushing (Polo Ralph Lauren, CK, Hugo Boss, etc) and did not like any one of them. There was something common from them which I did not enjoy. I eventually settled on Dunhill by Aldred Dunhill (the one from 2003) for a while, but after using it for a couple of months, I wanted to try something new.

Then I chanced upon Dolce & Gabbana pour Homme and wow, what a breath of fresh air. I knew nothing about it before I smelled it and after a whiff of it I bought it immediately. Little did I know that this was an old fragrance which is a shame really. I wish more fragrances smelled like this.

Since I'm knew to perfuming I don't have the vocabulary to describe this exceptional fragrance. All I can say is that it relaxes me and makes me feel good when I smell it. It smells 'sophisticated' and does not at all smell like a generic perfume.