Fragrance Reviews by Ruggles

A patchouli bomb. Perhaps the grandfather of Givenchy Gentleman? But, unlike GG, Madrigal doesn't scream, "this is a man's scent". In this respect it is akin to some of the wonderful L'Artisan scents. It's hard to find in the US, I got mine from a Canadian swapper.

1 year ago I tried GIT and thought to myself, "another boring green scent." Well, what a difference a year makes! Thanks, in part to Basenotes, and slowly weening my nose off, the largely synthetic, designer frags, I can now appreciate the beauty of all things Creed, Malle, Lutens, etc.
GIT, along with my other favorite Creed Vanisia, speaks of quality, balance and refinement. GIT is evocative of being outside in nature while Cool Water can only only be evocative of being inside of a Sephora.

File this one with YSL's Nu - two "take no prisoners" insence scents that miss genius by a mile. Oh, the humanity!

Unique, easy and refreshing. Sure it smells a bit synthetic, but it is based on Cashmere Bouquet soap, which is quite fun if you think about it. I heard the secret S note is semen. If only semen smelled so fresh......

I'm a big amber fan and Chergui delivers the amber, big time! I love to transition to this in the early evening from something fresh, like Annick Goutal's Vetiver. It puts me in a sensuous, happy mood. Great longevity and a bit softer then Ambre Sultan.

Another sublime Creed that is mistakenly marketed as a woman's fragrance. Vanisia is clearly unisex. Some similiarity to one of the early CdG's - a cinammon note? Of course, it being a Creed, it's much more natural and luxurious. Opening with jasmine and a very spicey rose, then on to vanilla and sandalwood. It envelopes you in a warm aura, but works well in the summer heat.

This is not the scent of Nag Champa incense. It smells like a vague mix of aroma chemicals thrown over a vanillic base. Whatever!

To me this does not resemble the scent of fire, wood or incense. It smells synthetic, plastic-like even.

A wow, a gem, a keeper. I wore JIE during a week of high humidity, and it stayed beautiful for the entire day. It's an exquisite mix of Jasmine, rose, vanilla and sandalwood. Ir projects loudly for the first 15 minutes, but after that, it's a perfect balance of discreet sillage and staying power. Not for everyone, thank god, but it suits me to a tee.

Let's get a sleeper car on the Marrakesh Express - bring along your leather pants, you know the ones you wore all last year without underwear and never cleaned.........

My second Creed purchase is a keeper. From the nose stinging opening of ginger, then to the wonderfully uplifting, green tobacco heart note, down to its sandalwood base, this one is a winner. A fresh scent that is truly invigorating!

I was convinced that I had found my holy grail scent when I first tried 3rd Man. But, within a month, it bored me. I'd pick up the bottle stare it it for a few seconds and put it back down and pick something offering more of a thrill. As the cliche goes, "too many cooks spoil the pot". Yes, in the end, there's really nothing/everything to focus on in this potion, it's sweet, it's floral, it's woody, it's well done, it's high quality. Zzzz..........

A horrible, chemical scent. It goes on like bug spray and then, aldehydes take over and it's gets even worse. A chemical romance if there ever was one. Instant headache - avoid at all costs!

In my attempt to round out my fragrance wardrobe, I needed to add an herbal and a green potion. Virgillio perfectly fills both needs. Quite bold and wonderful with its full on Mediterranean ingredients, I find it to be the perfect summer in Provence fantasy frag. I wear it when I feel the need to be uplifted. Is it for work or weekends? If you have to ask, don't even bother!

Sorry to spoil the love fest, but to me, Nu is nuclear. I sprayed it on a piece of paper and left it on my table. That one small spray filled the room with the smell of synthetic incense for 3 days. For a scent that's only 6 years old it smells awfully dated. If they ever open a Studio 54 ride at Disneyland, they should pump this in!

Olfactive Block? Why bother? While I love vanilla bases, I found BB to be a cloying and polluted vanilla. Too simple and, IMHO, nothing to do with the divine Dzing!

I thought I was going crazy, when I sprayed Cabochard on my arm, after the drydown, I thought to myself, this reminds me of Aramis. What was I thinking? This is a fragrance created for a woman and Aramis is one of the most macho scents ever! Well, to my suprise, I just saw that Bernard Chant also created Aramis. So, there it is: Cabochard is Aramis for the the gals. As Gomer Pyle used to say, "Golllllly!!"

I was about to be indifferent about this one, but I just put some on, and Wow! Is it the 80's or is it the 00's? Lui is the one of the most confusing fragrances I've ever encountered. It is a wild card. The first 60 seconds it's, neroli, cedar, neroli, cedar and then the vanilla shows up to do its job, taking the bitterness off the neroli. But then it freezes up and it's back to neroli, cedar, neroli, cedar. The notes are what make this one an 80's tribute, but the contemporary feel comes from its cedar sweetness. I really can't decide on this one. What I do know is, that it's very flashy.

I did so much want to like this, odd-ball, mainstream fragrance. I so much wanted a masculine rose in my wardrobe. Iquitos is synthetic rose married to some very macho notes. Unique to the extreme, but unfortunately it's like Lillian Gish playing James Bond. I wore this out to a concert the first night I got it and someone looked at me and said, 'Granny?' I put it on my swap list the next morning.

How did I live through the 80's and miss this one? Nicely done, slightly sweet and powdery. This one holds up well. I love the Art Deco lettering.

I hate to be the spoiler on this one, but IMHO, R, is a mix of Yatagan and Aramis. Two great fragrances, mind you. If you like "macho" fragrances get this one, but contrary to what has been written, there is nothing Guerlain going on in this beautifully done 80's tour-de-force. Quite good, but not exactly what I expected.

I have gone insane over Mitsouko. I have the new EDT, which is great, but I had a small sample of the original formula and it was almost criminal in its beauty. The new bottle has a plastic top, which is sad.

Arabie was my first Serge Lutens fragrance and it remains my favorite. It's not a gourmand and it isn't an oriental. Actually, I don't know what it is, but it is the best, rich hippie scent that I've ever worn. Syrupy, yes. Perhaps it's the scent of a fruit cake, but a fruitcake from Ladurée.

Yes, it's as dry as a bone that's been sitting in the sun for a thousand years. The opening notes of incense do not prepare you for the driest, sandalwood dry down on the planet. I love this one.

The openings notes are a big wow! But it dries down to something close to Pinesol.

The first thing I need to get off my chest, no pun intended, is that I find it interesting that the fragrances created under the directive of ultra-gay Tom Ford are considered "chick magnets". That said, I think his work is brilliant and Rive Gauche is my favorite of all the frags associated with him. His allegiance to 1970's "man scents" filtered through his modern and androgynous take on the modern male makes Rive Gauche shine. A fougeres that has managed to link sex with shaving. Bravo!

I love l'Anarchiste. It's unique, very French and has all the makings of a legend. Camphor, oranges and musk. It's lives up to its name and does not try too hard like many other niche fragrances.
The reason it may be doing so badly on the retail level, perhaps is the ugly bottle. Kitsch sculpture always makes for a bad packaging. The copper color that oxidizes is a brilliant touch, but toss the faux headstone shape. Goths don't buy high-end fragrances. This fragrance is so in touch with the human body. It's like the sensation of biting off a scab.

It goes on very bright and over powering. Personally, I find the olfactory rush quite thrilling. Similiar to the one I get after spraying on Givenchy Gentleman. Of course the notes are different - but they announce themselves with the same assertiveness.
The tobacco is present from the first moments until the Dreamer fades - hours and hours later.
Luca Turin was very excited about this one and thought it was revolutionary for its day. I agree, but perhaps it is just a synthetic recreation of vanilla tobacco?

What everyone has failed to mention is on the drydown Oscar de la Renta becomes Aramis. Nothing more and nothing less. The dry down is certainly better the opening notes which are so dated and overpowering. I ordered a bottle on-line for the sake of having it, but I'm afraid it's just too much of a trip down nostalgia lane for me.

Wanted to love it, well, at least like it. I bought it on the cheap, while traveling or was I travelling on the cheap? Anyways, these days, the powers that be love to take things away randomly at the aiport security check-in, so I wasn't taking any chances with my Serge Lutens or Creed bottles. I bought a 1.6 Fl. Oz. bottle at T.J. Maxx for $16 bucks.
To me it's one of those 80's fresh fragrances that can be mistaken for a disinfectant. A total non-sexual scent. It's not unpleasant and the drydown is in-offensive, but I would rather a splash of Eau Savauge any day. Way to hospital for me.