 | Armani Eau Pour Homme by Giorgio ArmaniHow amazingly simple!!!! Yet sparkling,lively and almost sizzling like a bottle of shaken mineral water that is being opened.Made according to the logic of a common man - simple and efficient.Straight to the point kind of smell. Nothing that would make you fall into a heavy discussion with yourself just to figure out wheather you like it or not.Just like it...or not!Very 80's.Very "cologne" style.Nowdays they would consider this kind of smell something rather for a windowcleaner or toilet freshener than for a fine perfume. Includes all of those "male" ingredients: lemon,bergamot,basil,clary sage,lavender. Probably the only fragrance with an undisputably masculin lavender. Makes me quite nostalgic about the times when i was just a child and my grandfather used to wear something of this type of smell.To me this is what Dirty Harry would smell like. 9th April, 2011. |
 | Cashmere Mist by Donna Karan-...,...it's when you take "Le Male" by JP Gaultier and cut off all the tonka and vanille notes so all you have finally is a clear white musk with some flowery notes. Quite one-dimensional yet with a pretty flowery character and all it evokes is a colour white.If you are into synthetic musks and stuff..well,here you go.Not so much natural notes here.Another thing is that to me this type of perfume should not necessarily present itself in a form of EdP but rather could be found in any other cheap shower gel or a bath product. 16th January, 2011. |
| | Narciso Rodriguez for Him by Narciso RodriguezThat's it!!- the original scent for a man,not for some kind of efffeminated pseudo bi modern kinda guy. Very simple-patchouli,violet,maybe even some chocolate notes but mostly the "chocolaty" effect of patchouli,and some artificial ornaments (probably woody stuff like someone already mentioned) as those are ubiquitous in all of the nowdays products. The very fact that it doesnt smell so delusionally good is exactly so brilliant about it. Why should an adult male smell good like sweet and yummie kind of stuff? 28th October, 2010. |
| | Gucci pour Homme by Guccigo take a piece of wood slightly dried out and put fire to one end at a pointy corner bit of it and then swiftly blow the flame off so that only a thin silky thread of raising smoke remains. Wait a minute or two and the smell that piece of wood - that's a very close approximation of what this Gucci really is like. Now imagine that you've done this procedure to some woodchips of cedar,rosewood, birch, santal and put them all together - that would be the smell towards which the maker of this Gucci ,to my opinion, would want to reach. Smoky wood that would still comfort one's nose. One should rather wear it on some evening occasion. 28th October, 2010. |
| | Beau Gosse by FragonardWell i'm afraid that in this case the cheapness is pretty much proportional to the perfume as whole.Dominant,quite harsh masculine citrus with some herbal tints carefully accompanying it.Very cologne-style,very masculine and unfortunately quite artificial in the way that you definately can spot it even if they would swear that it's all natural.But it's true you can get hell a lot of it for a rediculous price also available as a shower product which i find much more usable.At least Fragonard is always very clear and honest about their ingredients. 16th June, 2010. |
| | Sorenza by FragonardThat's another traditional take on a rose composition.Very smooth, creamy and dark rose as it used to be some 20 years ago.Some hints of oakmoss create an impression of a geranium motive.The whole experience reminds of those lady hydrating creams that i always saw my grandmother was using about 20 years ago. 16th June, 2010. |
| | Marescialla by Santa Maria NovellaThe trick to this one is to let the thyme and herbs "to do thier job" in the opening.Yes, it's an abrasive "blitzkrieg" of thyme that makes it so masculine and probably unbearable to most noses-but that's the opening.And after 10 min or so the patchouly-horizon is in sight.Now,sometimes it is hard to bring two odour extremities in to one perfectly constructed "singularity" but here it's quite a friendly partnership between them two. It's like green on dark purple.And i get no sign of any artificial musk base or fixative-so the overall quality is pretty decent. 28th January, 2010. |
| | Gaggia by Santa Maria NovellaThis is a glorious mimosa scent-just from the very opening-Wham! It's april in your nose! One for the springtime. 28th January, 2010. |
| | Opus 1870 by Penhaligon'si guess of all them fruity florals for men out there,this one is the most elegant and simple.Sweetness can be masculin and here is a proof.I get oakmoss(which i always get,no matter what)a very natural one,pear and a slight touch of a lily of the valley.Sits tightly on my skin,after 1 hour still there.Being myself a big sceptic when it comes to sweet fruity scents for men,i can say that this opus has a certain dignity and elegance.If you like stuff like YSL la nuit de l'homme,switch over to this! 6th January, 2010. |
| | Citrus Paradisi by Czech & Speakethem folks have been talkin'bout rubbin' tupperware and stuff into skin...Now dig this - there are some substances in nature which are called cadaverines(and are basicly some aminoacids).What they do is actually create a smell of a putrifying corps when the process is actually happening after death of a living creature(mostly a non aquatic mammal).This smell is very very distinctive and once you smelled it (at some point in your life) you will never never EVER! forget it nor confuse it with anything else.And what i'm getting with this particular Cz&S is a far away echo of a tint of that cadaverine smell - no really,it is in the middle.Ok it's not like the whole scent is putrid-not at all.But what i think the perfumer has done here is he slammed some die-hard patchouli in this fragrance which somehow in combination with grapefruit gave this very odd,kind of bitter basenote of death.Now that's what i call "a daredevil" of a perfumer. 5th January, 2010. |
| | Gucci Pour Homme II by GucciYes,some more longetivity is on the wish list for this one because a beauty like that should last longer.So large,so spaceous and bright almost emitting some kind of a shine.Probably aimed to be really loved by everyone,not just represent some of that special Gucci vibe.Peaceful,a bit mellow and kind - that's what kind of personal qualities this scent projects.Violet,tobacco and maybe even marjoram do all the magic here.Once again,a very straightforward opening without all the hesperidic,spicy,nose-biting mish-mash and leads directly to the main theme.This one really stands out from the grey mass of all those posh pseudo-aristocratic model house perfumes.Deserves a try! 30th December, 2009. |
| | Réminiscence Homme by RéminiscenceGot a free sample when bought their Elixir de Patchouly(which is another story that MUST be told-people just have to know about this stuff!)Sprayed two times on a kleenex tissue and here you go.Starts off as one of those common grocery shampoos - quite artificial. I guess it is cedar that they are trying to pull out here. And this is what it remains for about 5 min-an attempt to artificially "raise" a cedar on a seashore because it got also some acrid aquatic notes in it.Nothing sweet nor fruity nor flowery about it that should deserve any attention.And this is probably what it is all about. No development to anything different.Not that it is so bad but...could be better. 22nd December, 2009. |
| | Patchouli Homme by RéminiscenceThank God it's not the curry again! (but let this sentence not scare you off from trying the rest of them Rem's for men)Once again cedar and once again a bit acrid and artificial.A very slight development into patchouli base.I think at this point i'm starting to have a real problem with this acridness and biting artificial acid aquatic thing which i think is supposed to represent cedar but somehow just doesnt do it in a pleasant way.Because if one is still going to use it in one's creation,one should make the whole experience a bit more enjoyable at least more then in this Rem. Gone in 20 min. 22nd December, 2009. |
| | Patchouli by RéminiscencePatchouli with rum! That's what came to mind the first second i sprayed it on a kleenex tissue.Another kleenex waisted?Not at all!The whole patchouli theme is supported with a fine, elegant candy/rum-like thing which to me creates a very feminine and even kind of sexy combination.I guess if you are one of these southern,mediterranian or arabic types this will suit you so very well.Once again what makes it really good is simplicity and "everything in the right place"-style. 22nd December, 2009. |
| | Antaeus by Chanelnever seen a topic with over 100 reviews! blindly bought a small bottle of this---sharp?-yes! punching in your nose without any remorse?-yes! masculine?-yes! except for the drydown which to me smells like one of those typical "oakmoss for men" kind of deeply sweet , dried black plum although not very strong but still a tiny hint of it i do detect.That's probably the only minus point about it because if we are going to speak about a "deep,plummy,dark but smooth oakmoss drydown" then it's Azzaro pour homme which is the absolute undisputed champion in this game. But leather is good.Interestingly, i must notice that apparently to Chanel,the manhood equals to oakmoss.Egoist is a convincing example of that fact.But that's my nose. The price is also kind of incoherent with the total olfactory experience one will get through with this Antaeus.Now i' m not even quite sure when and how to wear this fragrance. 19th December, 2009. |
| | Bogner Wood Man by BognerJust got meself a good deal for a 25ml edt +deostick.Well...all i get here is vetiver,himalayan cedar,oak moss and tonka(by now i have trained my nose with these natural ingredients well enough so no doubt about it,in any case about vetiver and cedar).Or at least that's where it all goes to in it's drydown.Quite dry,a bit sweet and without all that unnecessary citrusy mess at the start.A bit on the female side.I didn't happen to smell anything like this before and that's quite intriging even to myself. This would suit well some younger public. 18th December, 2009. |
| | He Wood by Dsquared2as i said in one of my other comments-you've got be that kind of a guy(to like and to wear this).This is totally original albeit not so very masculin.Deep,sweet and kind of etherial in a sense that it's just a "large" scent that is not aggregated around one songle component but it reaches out in every direction.Yes,maybe vetiver is lost "in translation" somewhere on the bottom of a whole well full of Iso E Super,but if for instace you would ever hesitate between a nice,deep,woody mens fragrance of a type Calvin Klein Men and this Wood,you really should go for this because it is at least somewhat more original. 16th December, 2009. |
| | Tactics by ShiseidoIts great because it is the simplicity itself.I guess in 1979 this was quite up to date but of course today...one will encounter very easily 101 cheap shower gels which have probably inherited this fragrance composition.Green and citrusy,the citrus ,being the main theme here,is sparkling and just slightly sharp but that's how it is supposed to be in compositions like that(or WAS supposed to be back in 1979 anyway)and once again...simple -...yet masculin which for me is quite important factor when forming my final verdict. 16th December, 2009. |
 | Miyabi Man by AnnayakéSometimes the spirit of commerce and the power of money take complete control of the ideology and this sort of utopic striving of the artistisme and creativity to reach "a better" destination. This was launched in december 2009 obviously to compete in " the christmas shopping olympics", when all the brands make their final most tough effort to gain some cash. It's a great dissappointment! After Annayake's male scents which to me were kind of a token of the alternative japanese manner of perception and creation of things like perfumes (but not only them),miyabi man comes as another commercial clone,some kind of anti-wanna-be perfume that actually tries to be more like the "rest of them" rather than to represent something particular and unique. What is it all about? Actually i didnt even studied this smell well when i got this test strip from the store because my first impression was just "commercial bull***t!".Sweet,fruity,peary,peachy,cloying without any particular male properties.Like eating the whole pack of fruit jellies all together instead of one by one.No developement what so ever,no character and no real value. 14th December, 2009. |
| | Azzaro pour Homme by Azzaroi know,there has been enough said already,but...if there's still a bit of space left for another positive review, well...For this moment this is the best male fragrance i have ever smelled in my whole life.Even forgotten about all those fragrances that i used to like and thought that them were real men's perfumes.But ApH - that's what a male fragrance is supposed to be.It is just serious and "detained" within the clearly shaped frontiers of masculinity.While so many perfumes for men nowdays tend to bind you with that special sweet female tint in a form of glorious flowers or sweet vanilla/tonka or any other redundant elements in a well scetched men's scent, ApH is just all what there needs to be and no more.And this is what i personally appreciate in it.That's why classics are forever and this one is certainly too. 14th December, 2009. |
| | Fidji by Guy Larocheabout my emotions: this has made me think of times spent in one of the former soviet countries in the beginning of the 90's.Those posh overweight ladies somewhere in their mid 30's who just happened to get this as a gift that was cosidered to be of a divine value because by that time fidji was THE french perfume for ladies.And especially during hot summers whatever governamental institution one could ever visit back there, one would encounter a sweaty, "moisty" , almost puffing with steam administrator with a body full of redundant matter stretching her clothes who would smell of fidji and just because of this still have a trace of femininity.And curiously enough that smell was ubiquitous no matter what kind of institution or commercial enterprise one visited especially during summertime. 14th December, 2009. |
| | Fahrenheit by Christian DiorVery curious story i got meself into with this smell.One day i was walking on the sidewalk of a busy roadway and the only guy who was walking towards me had this smell on.By that time i didn't know the smell of Fahrenheit.That guy,dressed pretty causually,even looking a bit butchy,left a whiff,a kind of light breeze of that scent passing me by and eventhough the traffic was quite intense that morning(meaning the smell of exsausts was overwhelming) i was STUNNED by his perfume(which eventually turned to be Fahrenheit obviously) like being slapped on the face."What a fantastic deep woody well "rounded-off" with a light leathery character smell" i said to myself."Nothing redundant but really the very essence of probably 3 elements tops" i thought.Some time has past.Next time somewhere on the street in the center of a busy city (somewhere in western Europe) i was CLENCHED! on my nose by this smell from again some man just swiftly passing by.And no doubt that was exactly THAT smell eventhough the first time it was all disolved in exsaust fumes being a bit deranged in the top of the fragrance structure but it's core, the basenotes, were imbedded in my memory permanently.After that, i definately started to get a bit agitated and curious about what perfume exactly it was.When suddenly,out from nowhere,my partner with whom i work together in the lab had put this on one day and made me absilutely insane with this smell eventhough he was wearing the white laboratory robe all the time.I asked him what it was but he didn't know and said that it could be one of thos free samples that he had scattered all around his place.After that i encountered this smell a couple of times more randomly on the streets of the city but never had courage to stop the man and ask him the question(always was restrained by the prejudice of "being gay"-subject while obviously i am not).After that i started to jump in each and every perfumery shop i ever saw or knew where one was situated and tried my best to describe this smell to a service woman and no one could give me a definite answer.My description was "deep woody soft".They had been giving me lots of hellish things to sniff which obviously were hard to get rid of in terms of sales but not a single one was even close to what Fahrenheit really is. When finally i came into a shop with not a very extended choice of brands but where i could serve meself by taking any tester a wanted and spray a bit on a paperstrip instead of waiting and asking and trying to explain and being dissappointed and frustrated. 14th November, 2009. |
| | Acqua Colonia Melissa & Verbena by 4711Sharp,deeply penetrating limonene from both melissa and yellow lemon let you think back of "eau de rochas homme" ans "eau sauvage" and probably many other oldtimers on the same theme of "lemon-all-the way".The main subject of kölnisch wasser is put very far back to become almost unimportant.Verbena though....hmmm..yes,verbena here is pretty well "camouflaged" and certainly in the opening where melissa is thinly slicing your nose with all that limonene. But really remarkable is the last stadium of that fragrance when everything has settled down and that very well known baby-powder(or some other baby product , mostly soap though)smell develops which is not bad in terms of general presentation but still makes you wish for some more handsomness to it rather than infantility.I guess that's when you finally meet the verbena but still very dominant melissa.As more it settles the more soapy "baby-lotion"-like it becomes.I guess it should be called "Acqua Melissa & a little bit Verbena at the end". 12nd November, 2009. |
| | Hurlingham by AtkinsonsJust got a 10ml mini of this "stuff".I actually have ever in my life used an air refresher for toilets that smelled almost exactly as this.Overwhelming lemon with some inadequate sweetness and ...wood?No way!It's just lemon lemon lemon until it settles into still lemony but now with a bit "kölnisch wasser"-ordinary character of herbs.Maybe i just got a false sample or maybe back in the 74 that was the ultimate "englisch wasser"-i dont know.As a modern man, i would accept this just as a requisite from the history of perfumery but not more. 28th August, 2009. |
| | Theorema Uomo by FendiThis one stands in the same row as Tommy and another one from Cartier(don't remember the name).I find there coriander (apparently the only one) and vetiver.Very green and fresh.This could also be a very refreshing aftershave. 25th August, 2009. |
| | Life Essence by FendiSome couple of monthes later...Just given it another try, on a windowcloth in my living room. To all i have currently sniffed,this would compare as an exceptional fruity oakmoss, so sentual and profound.Once again the element of "nothing else but the very essence" of the fragrance is pleasing my nose.You just dont get through all that unnecessary citrussy-herbal intro. this goes directly to what it was supposed to be -velvet soft fruity oakmoss.I guess i have to give it a plus point for being original and meaningful because this really does represent something beautiful. 25th August, 2009. (Last Edited: 20th December, 2009.) |
| | Yatagan by CaronWell...everything i wanted to say about Yatagan is already said here.Probably no need for another boring review but still...i'm under imression.Especially Vibert's definition "Uncompromising" was very correct and that's exactly what i think.Went to a store and asked to test it.The lady seller of about 50 years old hearing me asking for Yatagan replied with a certain alerted amazement "Yatagan?!!!Oh la la!" (living in a french speaking area,"oh la la!"- in this situation that was like an equivalent of "wow,maaaan!watch out!").I don't have this kind of nose to describe the opening and the transformations,but i left the paperstrip to dry till i got outside.Then after my first sniff i almost shouted out loud "YEEESSSSSS!!!!!!!!".I was stunned! Absalutely fantastic! Like a truck full of fresh cut pinetree logs droped off its cargo right in my nose!Just trying to remeber the scents i ever sniffed:juniperberry-yes it is there!very bright and bitter,rosmarine-yes,maybe not too expressive,celery-...????maybe as an opening note which i partly missed,but not when it all settled down.The general impression:bitter pine very straight forward and absolutely nothing that modifys it to anything more agreeable or soft or mild-hence Uncompromising!Them guys who are 25 or younger-don't even try to wear this,you will not succeed in it.So far to me this is the ultimate masculinity materialized into a fragrance.Might be the best selling fragrance in Alaska and Oregon. 21st August, 2009. |
| | Azzaro Now Men by AzzaroWhat is there that you won't find in any other contemporary "mass consumption" parfum? I don't know! It is so common to me.Maybe because i have scented so many shampoos and hair sprays and hair gels(cause there is a certain soapy quality in this one) which have just about the same fragrance composition or maybe beacuase it's just not my style-...both.Just as it has been noticed before-for a limited agegroup and i would even say 16-25 y.old boys.I even imagine that it was created in a kind of hurry and rush (to start selling) and this bottle...-Lord have mercy! No wonder if some "country bumpkin" got it for himself with a thought of a great parfum AND an electric razorblade in one deal.Pick this one if you just don't know any better. 19th August, 2009. |
| | Tam Dao by Diptyquea whole dump truck load of ...sandalwood of course.Foun a tester and sprayed 3 times on a cotton-synthetic curtain while the sun is ravaging and shining right upon this spot.The cedar(if any!) is so deep on the bottom but after a while comes out in a rather shy and modest way.This is probably good to wear to church on sunday(on saturday for some).It puts you into the right mood and would probably blend in well with this "churchy" smell(...just thinking back of my experience at russian orthodox churches-frankincense and candles).Creates a smooth and peaceful atmosphere but i wouldnt recommend this to a common man but rather to a priest. 19th August, 2009. |
| | L'Homme Essentiel by Roger & Galletjust very very sweet!and with fruity background.Gives quiet a joyfull and happy impresson.How masculine is this smell?->not very masculine.On a man it even smells like something of a feminine line.Surprisingly the whole composition is not so badly done eventhough others would find it "just another copycat".Would smell best on a hot sunny weather.To compare it just with something-there's been something from HanaeMori for men which smells almost like this one. 16th August, 2009. |
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