Fragrance Reviews by Connoisseur

Fluid Man is one of the most unique and synthetic (in a nice way) designer fragrance I've yet tried, but from what I’ve read it is extremely sensitive to body chemistry as many men dislike this one on themselves. Not true at all in my case. On me this fragrance is divine and is to this day still my second most complemented fragrance next to Creed Millesime Imperial. Fluid Man begins very hot and spicy with fresh, white floral undertones, becoming woodier as it dries down, with a thick, dark mix of wood, patchouli and oakmoss notes. The amber and honey notes lend a good deal of sweetness to the dark woods mix after about 15 minutes. It is very full fragrance mixing many diverse notes and is a shade away from being one of those fragrances that goes in too many directions at once, and almost clashes, but doesn't. It is strange because it is a very "perfumy" yet manly fragrance, reminding me of layering a highly feminine sweet, floral fragrance with a highly masculine wood and oakmoss fragrance. The dry down reminds me a little of a toned down version of Paco Rabanne's Ultraviolet Man (shares notes of honey, amber and moss).

Top Notes
Grapefruit, Mandarin, Lemon, Bergamot, Freesia, Magnolia

Middle Notes
Cardamom, Nutmeg, Tobacco, Amber, Honey

Base Notes
Patchouli, Oakmoss, Javan Vetiver, Ebony, Beech, Texas Cedar

Armand Basi Homme is a very nice sweet, oriental woody-amber scent. I see a slight similarity to Gucci Envy, but I would say it compares more with Must de Cartier only woodier. Not only do they smell very similar but they also both do not project very well and wear very close to ones skin, which I personally dislike in a fragrance. The spices, tonka bean and vanilla do give it a ginger snap cookie smell that blends exquisitely with the various wood notes, while the guaiacwood gives it a dark, dry wood dry down that is somewhat unexpected but nice. It smells great. I only wish it didn't wear so lightly, but I still have to give it a thumbs up.

Jacinthe de Bois is a delicate, fresh, innocent white floral that smells very mature to me. It also has a sharp wood note in it that smells like a mix of hay and sawdust and smells extremely medicinal, which is VERY off putting. The hyacinth note is very pure and smells like a front yard flowerbed. This white floral is too heady and sharp and smells much too mature for my personal tastes. It's surely for the 40+ y.o. crowd. If you want hyacinth, get the slightly sweeter and less cloying La Haie Fleurie du Hameau instead.

La Haie Fleurie du Hameau is a lovely, fresh mix of white florals and watery green notes with a touch of sweetness. It has a dominant sweet honeysuckle note that I just love mixed with the strong blast of jasmine. Ladies, this is a spring flower fragrance that you must get. I like it a lot because it retains its flowerbed smell while adding a titch of sweetness, but not too much, as some other feminine florals tend to do. The oakmoss in the dry down is a little too dark for such a delicate, white floral fragrance, and they clash a touch, but it is still a great fragrance. It lasts forever too.
Honeysuckle, Jasmine, Wisteria, Tuberose, Narcissus, Hyacinth, White Lily, Oakmoss and Vanilla

Redcurrant Basil is yet another hit from the people at Fresh. The luscious fruits are what dominate this fragrance and the pomegranate note is just wonderful. I've never smelled the likes of this one. The top notes smell very tropical to me while the dry down is very clean, fresh, warm and musky. Many notes stand out in Redcurrant Basil and mix wonderfully together as this is such a wonderfully well-blended fragrance. Fruits, leaves, basil, rose and warm musk -- this one is awesome! I'm beginning to fall in love with Fresh!
Top Notes: Italian Lemon, Kumquat, Moroccan Basil
Middle Notes: Turkish Rose, Pomegranate, Redcurrant Leaf
Base Notes: Warm Musc, Cedarwood, Rosewood

Patchouli Pure is the most amazing mix of fruity citrus, light spices and patchouli fragrance. This is one of the best bergamot fragrances I have yet found. It includes lush citrus fruits and berries and light yet rich spices, with a sweet and clean musky base. I am amazed at how good this one is. Though filled with sweet notes like vanilla, amber, tonka and musk, Fresh Patchouli Pure is surprisingly fresh and clean smelling. The patchouli note is a very clean and not extremely earthy or dirty as some patchouli notes can be. The sweet notes blossom after it dries down for about 15 minutes and they seem to magnify the cinnamon note nicely. Pick this one up for sure.
Top Notes: Ginger, Bergamot, Orange
Middle Notes: Patchouli, Cinnamon, Pimento Berry
Base Notes: Vanilla, Amber, Tonka, Musc

Pomegranate Anise is another great fruity masterpiece from Fresh. It is very bright, crisp and fruity with strong notes of grapefruit and pomegranate, with lovely fresh freesia and lily notes that really lighten it up and a seedy star anise, warm amber and sandalwood dry down. This is one of Fresh's best. It is very much a sharp, fresh grapefruit & pomegranate fragrance. I love it.
Top Notes: Grapefruit, Mandarin, Pomegranate
Middle Notes: Chinese Lily, Spring Magnolia, Freesia
Base Notes: Amber, Star Anise, Sandalwood

Fig Apricot is a great fruity, fig and musk fragrance from the people at Fresh. The apricot is distinct, the fig note is potent but not too much so, and it's rounded off with a nice, light green tea note. It is wears a little more transparent than most from Fresh, but it is still there even if you cannot smell it strongly. For a fruity take on a fig fragrance or if you'd like a fig fragrance that isn't so in your face like Philosykos, try Fig Apricot. At times it smells a little like an apricot peach roll up. It's very nice.
Top Notes: Turkish Apricot, Peach Skin, Lychee
Middle Notes: Fig Leaf, Petitgrain, Dandelion
Base Notes: Green Tea, Musc, Marine Notes

Guerlain Aqua Allegoria Lemon Fresca is a powdery, musky citrus scent with a light woody base that smells like nothing else out there. The bergamot note puts me off with this one. It also has a note in it that smell a lot like a citronella candle, which I don't care for either. The dry down becomes strong of wood with a light fig note fig. The combo of lemon blossom, anise and fig wood ends up smelling very powdery, feminine and somewhat old fashioned. I've never smelled a fragrance made for a baby, but it must smell like this. I do not care for it.
Notes: Bergamot, Lime, Lemon Blossom, Fig Tree Wood and Leaves, Anise, Musk, Amber

Kumquat Alhambra (Kumquat) is a light, fruity citrus fragrance that smells a lot like lemonade to me, with a dry down of limeade. It is very much a simple pure citrus fragrance with the smell of lemons, limes and oranges. The top notes are so light that the fragrance is hard to detect, though it does get a little stronger as it dries down when the weak white musk note shows up. The pepper eventually shows up but so lightly that it's barely there at all. Oh, and it’s also more feminine than unisex, so the fact that it’s called a men’s fragrance is way off. Overall, this fragrance lacks depth, has poor quality of notes, is poorly blended and is much too oversimplified. There are some Wal-Mart body sprays that have more depth that this one. Too fleeting, too simple and much too bland -- Kumquat Alhambra is a rare disappointment from Comptoir Sud Pacifique.
Top Notes: Bergamot, Sweet Orange
Middle Notes: Kumquat, Mandarin, Pineapple
Base Notes: Pepper, White Musk

Vetiver Extraordinaire is one of the strangest fragrances I've yet encountered. The first minute smells like a BBQ grill that badly needs cleaning. In the beginning, it has a potent cumin note that really gets to me, but it does diminish quickly. I am also not a big fan of the bitter bigarade orange note that Frederic Malle uses in their fragrances and this one has it strong. The bitter bigarade oranges mixes with the strange musty ozone note and gives it kind of a dank, sour feel for the first few minutes. Afterwards, when the uber-strong bigarade orange and spice rack cools down a little, the vetiver shows up along with lovely fellow base notes of musk and amber. VE is sharp bigarade oranges, hot spices, smoky cedarwood, a dank, musty ozone note, grassy vetiver and a warm amber and musk base. It is very smoky and I still get teriyaki chicken cooking on the backyard grill out of this one, but I still like it a little for some reason. Maybe because it is so different and yet still okay smelling. Though kind of nice it is still slightly novelty and reminds me a lot of a less sweet version of the sickening Gobin Daude Biche dans L'Absinthe. It's kind of fun to wear out but only when you want to be extremely different.
NOTES: Bergamot, Bigarade Orange, Pink Pepper, Nutmeg, Floralozone (muguet ozone),
Haïtain vetyver, Sandalwood, Cedarwood, Oak Moss, Myrrh, Cashmeran (synthetic spiced floral), Muske-tone (synthetic musk), Tonalide (synthetic musk)

The saffron, Kashmir wood, tobacco and sweet notes in Versace Man combine to make a very strange fragrance that smells like grape bubble gum mixed with dank drift wood. Sometimes it smells okay, but most of the time, I really cannot stand it. It's way too musty and it tries to do too much at once, causing the notes to clash badly. It just does not work well at all. After about 15 minutes, the spices take over making it slightly better, but it still isn't that great.

Viking is a fruit and light spices, ozonic fresh fragrance that smells a little like something Perry Ellis would make. It actually smells like Perry Ellis Reserve with an airy ozone note. Viking is mainly pineapple, juniper berry, ozone, light florals and spices, with a balsamic, wood and patchouli base. Sadly, the dry down is a little too bland and overall it is a very generic late 90's fragrance. It's surely nothing that will turn heads. Actually, it already smells a little dated. Some of the highly fruity scents of the late 90's are getting old fast IMO. I'd pass on this one.

Jack Black Signature is a very unique and highly rich woody fragrance beginning with a strong bergamot top note, a salty cypress wood note, a bevy of hot spices including a strong pimento note and a lovely lavender freshness. The base is extremely woody along with a strong patchouli note and a warm amber dry down. It is an extremely dark yet hot woody fragrance and it is very interesting, but there is a problem with it. The mix of salty cypress and spices ends up giving it an ever so slight smell like body odor. If you want a dark wood fragrance that works, get Cacharel instead.

Keiko Mecheri's Paname is described as "A sweet and bitter composition of absinthe, rare spices, Comores vanilla flower, and powdery musk." To me is smells like a powdery, creamy, orange and vanilla fragrance. The bitter accord, which I assume is the absinthe, hides in the background and really doesn't interact much with the predominantly sweet and musky notes. It smells a lot like Roma Uomo only Paname is much more well blended and balanced making it much less cloying than Roma Uomo. Some have called Paname a masculine scent but I think it is more feminine than masculine, but still unisex. It really is very nice.

Subtil reminds me at first a little of Rykiel Grey, but it's a scoche less spicy. It's a simple, spicy, aquatic fragrance with a lingering fruit note, a woody base and a slightly ambery dry down. I like the top notes but completely dislike the dry down. 15 minutes after spraying the top and middle notes seem to fade down to nothing, leaving nothing but a dank woody dry down. Though initially it smells pretty good, the dry down is so poor and boring that I have to give it a thumbs down.

Trumper GFT is one of the best well-balanced classic citrus fragrances I've tried. It comes on strong with top notes of mandarin, bergamot and lemon, middle notes of tarragon, lavender and cypress with a base of musk, cedarwood and moss. The cypress really shows up as it dries down along with a pleasant, light oakmoss note. If you aren't a fan of highly mossy fragrances (like myself), don't worry; the moss note is very light. A classy, casual scent with a classic, fresh, barbershop citrus feel. GFT is a very nice fragrance and it lasts pretty well too.

D&G Masculine is a great, modern take on a classic, lemony citrus scent. Very simple and fresh with a strong lemon note, the freshness of peppermint, a slight basil spiciness and a woody base. It heats up as it dries down and the citrus notes fade. It becomes very woody and spicy, in addition to having nice, light notes of grassy vetiver and creamy, sweet tonka bean. Smells like something our UK friends would have made. Masculine is very fresh, uplifting and long lasting. It's a great ally in the battle with summer heat.

Violet, rose, amber, vanilla, incense, sandalwood and musk make up the delicious composition of Angelique Encens. The sandalwood note is dominant while the other notes dance playfully around it through the entire wearing. Angelique Encens is very woody, smoky and sweet with some lovely powdery floral notes. After about 20 minutes the amber note emerges and plays very nicely with the sandalwood, vanilla, incense and musk. After an hour it goes even darker as the vanilla becomes less and the amber completely takes over. At this point it goes from wow to incredible. It smells like something Serge Lutens would have made only better if you can imagine. I've heard it described as the smell of sex, but I would have to disagree and say that it is not the smell of sex but pure sexuality. Angelique Encens is very playful and extremely sexy. If you are into Serge Lutens or other borderline unisex fragrance this is one you must try. This is by far my favorite of the vintage Creed so far. Remember to give this one a good hour before you judge it completely because it makes 3 distinct changes as it dries down.

Carnation is one of the most distinctive "HOT" fragrances I've ever smelled. The Cloves, Red Carnation, Jasmin and Red Pepper are very strong and spicy to the max. I've never smelled anything even slightly similar to this. I'm in love! Very hot and sexy, it wears great on men. I wear this on a hot date, or it also warms you up nicely on a cold day. One of the most uplifting fragrances I own, like spray on Prozac.

I haven't compared the notes, but Habit Rouge seems like it was patterned around Caron pour un Homme. It smells an awful lot like it only spicier. They are both heavy on rosewood, floral notes and sweet notes. With its spiciness, I find Habit Rouge smells like a highly cloying woman's oriental fragrance. It really doesn't smell very manly. I have no idea what some people love about this one. It is simply too much! It becomes a little better after an hour, but it still has notes in it that clash and make a sticky sweet leather and moss mess.

I would say Givenchy pour Homme is very close to Aquaman by Rochas. They share notes of grapefruit, coriander and cedarwood; plus the green leafiness of the davana note in Givenchy pour Homme is very similar to the green leafiness of the geranium leaves in Aquaman. The big difference between the two is that the vetiver, additional spices and stronger cedarwood notes in Givenchy PH make it richer and a little darker. Problem is, the warm woods and dark vetiver clash with the lingering fruity, fresh and green top and middle notes, and give it a strange dirty fragrance after about an hour. Givenchy pour Homme is sweet fruit, coriander herb and lush greens with rich spices, cedarwood and vetiver. The first half hour is amazing -- sweet, green and fruity -- but after it dries down for about an hour it smells very strange, like two fragrances layered over each other that just don't mix well. It has very weak base notes as well, which hurt its longevity.

Vetiver by Guerlain is a fragrance that I am very off and on with. Some days I think it is a nice fragrance to have around for a hot summer day, and other days it smells old fashioned and very musty. It is a fairly strange combination of sharp citrus notes, neroli
flower and strong vetiver with a little pepper, tobacco and cedarwood. It smells very grassy and earthy, I can imagine it being an outdoorsman's signature fragrance. I think of it as being more casual than formal, but it could work for both. If you crave vetiver, there are more than a few other vetiver based fragrances that are much better.

Metropolis is very nice for a slightly old-fashioned leather based fragrance. Minty fresh with strong notes of clary sage and geranium, it has a very dark and very green yet surprisingly warm amber, patchouli, vetiver and leather dry down. Like I said, a little dated but very nice nonetheless. Usually the leather scents from the 80's are so strong they smack you in the face when smelling them, but Metropolis breaks that trend with its subtle, soothing aroma.

Goodlife is an amazingly versatile, clean, fresh and severely green leafy fragrance. With powdery floral notes in the middle and some strange spice notes in the base, it all culminates into a sparkling and extremely fresh fragrance that is great in so many settings. Formal, casual or as a sport fragrance, it can be worn any time any place. The grapefruit lends a citrus fruitiness to the green freshness that is very succulent. Goodlife is very complex and well made; I would even go so far as to say it ties with Zino as Davidoff's best fragrance. It is one of the most highly underrated designer fragrances I know of.

Olene is powdery white flower petals, soapy, fresh and subtle yet long lasting. It smells like the soapiness of Annick Goutal's Eau du Sud blended with the white flowers of Jessica McClintock (both of which should only we worn by women). The dominant notes in Olene are foremost white flowers with undertones of lemon and wood. Olene is not one bit masculine, and any man who wears this has some MAJOR gender issues.

Etra by Etro smells like raisin cinnamon bread pudding with a little extra vanilla. It smells delectably edible. Etra has a dry down that reminds me a lot of Ultraviolet Man. The geranium, lavender and sandalwood give Etra a subliminal freshness that blends perfectly with the cinnamon, musk and other sweet notes. Etro is one of the best sweet vanilla based fragrances I've tried. A girl I know even bit me while I was wearing Etra, saying it was because I smelled so damn tasty!

Roma Uomo is a mess. If you can imagine this, it has notes of sharp citrus, a dark souring oakmoss note, with strong notes of vanilla, musk and sandalwood. I've heard it described as a sweet orange sorbet, and to some extent it is, but only if you added some sour milk to the mix. If anything, it smells like a very strange, sweet oriental women's musk fragrance gone completely bad. They try to make it more masculine with the oakmoss middle note but it just makes it messier instead. It is one of the most cloying fragrances I've had the displeasure of wearing. The notes simply do not work. I have so wanted to like this one that I even tried another bottle that I knew was fresh just to make sure mine wasn't bad. Same smell. I then made a friend of mine wear it to see if it was simply my body chemistry that wasn't working with it. Again, same smell. Orange, oakmoss, sandalwood and vanilla do not work together on a man, nay; no one should smell like this. If you crave a sweet vanilla fragrance, splurge and get Etra by Etro instead. Etra works in all the areas Roma failed. The only upside to Roma Uomo is that it is long lasting, so that's a bonus if you like smelling putrid.

Celine is a lot like Salvatore Ferragamo, but not nearly as harsh with the curry dish smell. The orange peel, cinnamon and nutmeg top notes are very light but noticeable. Fresh and tangy, wood and spice -- it is nice, but much too light and very unoriginal. Those things taken into account, I just can't recommend this one.

Oxygene is a very fresh and clean, light and airy aqua fragrance. Juniper berry, cedar, a cypress note similar to the one in L'Eau D'Issey, and white musk round out this fragrance. I suspect the artemisia note mentioned is the herb and not the flower because I smell an herbal note in there somewhere. Here's how I break it down: top notes=360 Perry Ellis, middle notes=L'Eau D'Issey, base notes=Tommy T. Tommy T and Patrick Cox High are two that smell very similar to Oxygene. Since Tommy T is the only potent one of the group, and because I'm not into fragrances designed to be transparent and airy, Tommy T is the one I would recommend getting instead of Oxygene.

Vera Wang is a nice fragrance but it wears so close to the skin you have to touch your nose to your wrist to smell it. Besides that it smells pretty good, but it is so light it's hard to pick out the individual notes. It is a very simple fragrance; citrus, powdery orange blossom and leather makes up most of the fragrance. Where are the anise and tobacco notes? These notes are so weak they seemingly do not exist. While it does smell good up close, there are so many much better fragrances out there. If you want a great modern leather scent, get Cuiron by Helmut Lang instead, the Eau de Parfum version if you can find it.

Santal Noble is one of the most unique and dynamic fragrances I've ever smelled. When first sprayed, the coffee beans, vanilla and amber are most prominent, smelling lusciously sweet for a total of about 30 seconds. After that, the patchouli and vetiver take over and send it down the toilet for about five minutes, smelling very animalistic and even fecal. Unexpectedly, the patchouli and vetiver fade after about five minutes and it dries down to a fragrance that is simply dreamlike. The sandalwood takes on the illusion of strong, hot cedar when mixed with the lingering, light, warm sweet notes. The incense adds a dark undertone that is noticeable throughout the entire wear. I find that when I spray it on my shirt rather than on my skin, the animalistic phase doesn't develop and it stays sweeter longer. Santal Noble is surely not an everyday fragrance; special nights out and even romantic encounters are where I see it coming in very handy. Some have described it as smelling old or aristocratic and this simply is not true. It is very woody, sweet and warm, dark and brooding, and I find it very sensual and sexy. Santal Noble is one every fragrance fan needs to experience.

Rykiel Homme is a very nice woody, fruit and floral fragrance dominated by notes of yuzu and grapefruit, violet, amber, wood and a light evergreen note that gives it a very pleasant freshness in the base. When first sprayed the fruity top notes remind me a lot of Tempore Uomo by Laura Biagiotti, but Rykiel Homme evolves beautifully as it dries down, ending up with a woody evergreen drydown that is amazing. Rykiel Homme is a fun, well made fragrance that plays around with many interesting notes and smells great.

Essenza di Zegna smells like Bvlgari pour Homme with less prominent tea note and a bit more citrus. Minty and citrusy, Essenza di Zegna has a fresh, clean, sporty feel to it. It smells like a type of scented dryer sheet I tried recently called "spring fresh" or something like that. EdZ smells a little generic, but it's nice. But if you're in the market for a fresh, clean fragrance, Bvlgari pour Homme is much better.

L'Eau D'Issey is a citrus fragrance unlike any other. The citrus notes are soured by the herbal and cypress notes, giving it a "salty" quality. It does smell extremely oceanic, like the Great Salt Lake if you've ever been there. The sour, salty quality in L'Eau D'Issey sometimes comes off smelling a little too strange and has given me headaches before. I rarely wear oceanic fragrances such as Issey and Kenzo, but I do keep them around for something a little different in the summer. Another downside to oceanic fragrances is that most women find them to be a turn-off, which may be an issue to some men. If you're looking for a nice, fresh aqua scent, look elsewhere.

Take L'Eau D'Issey pour Homme, subtract that strong, slightly sour "salty" note, add more wood and there you have it, Life Essence. I was surprised how similar these two are. I think it is the cypress and amber that makes them so similar. Though it is a decent scent, I think they copied Issey a little too much, and I'm not a big fan of copycats. Stick with L'Eau D'Issey.

I was very surprised with all of the Elite lovers out there how much it stinks. It smells like Agua Brava from Puig mixed with sour limes and roses. It is a complete sour floral woody mess. Elite is heavy on the floral notes of rose and lavender and what smells to me like carnation. The grapefruit mixes very badly with the other notes, creating one of the most sickly sour fragrances I've ever smelled. After about 20 minutes it dries down to something somewhat nicer, like a subdued and woodier L'Ombre dans L'Eau by Diptyque. Bottom line, Elite is Agua Brava meets L'Ombre dans L'Eau and it just does not work at all. Thumb way down.

Adrenaline is a simple, fresh, sporty fragrance that smells strong of oranges and light herbs. It isn't the longest lasting fragrance, which is very much like others that are very similar to it such as Perry Ellis Man and Perceive by Avon. Of all the sporty fresh fragrances I've owned, Adrenaline gets the most positive reaction from women. So not only does it smell awesome but women love it too. I recommend getting the body wash to help it last longer

TM's Cologne smells like a very well made, fresh, clean bar of soap. It also has a woody accord that helps it work well for a man as well as a woman. It has a fragrance similar to Bvlagari pour Homme, both containing orange flower, bergamot and musk notes. It is one of the best scents around for a sticky hot summer day.

Platinum Egoiste is one of the most overrated fragrances I've ever owned (and promptly traded). The citrus notes are kind of nice but much too understated. The dominant, and truly overwhelming notes in Platinum are the lavender, petitgrain and clary sage which mix together into a strange sickly, pungent, rotting garbage smell that I just cannot handle. I really don't know what people see in this one. Be sure to try Platinum Egoiste before you buy it.

Cristobal is a mellow Joop with coffee mixed in. It is much lighter and less intrusive than Joop, which is nice, and I like the coffee note in Cristobal, but if you want a great rather than just good coffee fragrance, Rochas Man and Yohji are the winners here.

Ulysse is a very strange mixture of floral and hyper sweet Benzoin and Vanilla notes that really don't work together until it dries down for a good half hour. Initially the bitter Yuzu, powdery floral and sweet notes clash badly and come off much too cloying. After about a half hour Ulysse is a decent scent but a little too feminine in my opinion. On an up note, it lasts a while, but overall, I can't recommend it.

Trend sure does smell like fresh wood shavings, but it also has a pleasant freshness added by the citrus notes. If you are looking for something woody I think Trend fits in great with other great wood dominant fragrances like Yang, Jungle and Declaration, yet adds it's own unique touch. It smells like freshly chopped wood. It is a light fragrance, it could last longer, but overall, I like it.

Derrick Silver takes the same gasoline note that is found in the original Derrick and lightens it up with dominant citrus notes. The "gasoline" note is comprised of moss, herbal and woody notes. Derrick Silver smells much better than the original, but it is still a thumbs down.

Though traditionally the drink has no raspberries in it, Sex on the Beach by Demeter smells entirely of raspberries. It reminds me a lot of a more potent version of Hot Couture by Givenchy minus the incense note. This one is completely feminine and one of the best I've ever smelled on a woman. Even the most effeminate man in the world could not pull off this one IMO.

Cypres Musc is one that just does not work at all. The cypress wood, english mint, musk and green notes smell just like pine needles, sawdust and Ben Gay to me. This is the most medicinal fragrance I've ever smelled. It is unique for sure, but to me it plain stinks.

Cuir de Russie is a very strange fragrance. It smells like very sour lemon and gasoline, emphasis on sour. It really only works for me as a novelty scent. It's a fun fragrance but it's just too weird for everyday wear.

Take the smoke, wood and green notes of Platinum Egoiste, crank them up, and you have Vermeil. Vermeil lacks the fresh top notes of Platinum Egoiste, but the dry down is very similar. If you like smoky wood, Vermeil is one you should try. It can be a little cloying at times to me, but at the same time it smells nice. I think I'm leaning towards a thumbs up on this one.

Effusion is a very weak, very bland and generic, fresh sporty scent. It truly only lasts all of 15 minutes. Though it supposedly has interesting notes in it like apple, rose and white cedar, all that shows up are the grapefruit and orange blossom notes, making it a very light powdery citrus. Even Adidas Moves and those tacky BOD sprays beat this one.

The mint and mandarin make it very fresh and citrusy, but the moss, thyme and lavender definitley give it the dominant flavor of an old fashioned gentleman's type fragrance; an interesting combination indeed, but much too suit and tie for my tastes.

Starts off with delectable fruit and fresh green notes, and as it dries down the sweet amber and vanilla becomes very noticeable, and to my surprise, the "nutty essences" blossom. It all blends together into a sparkling, enticing aroma that is one of the sexiest fragrances I've ever smelled. Dynamic, subtle sweetness and long lasting to boot, Brit is perfect!

Starts out a very soft, clean and fresh floral and becomes somewhat warm and sweeter as it dries down. Has a very pleasant powdery note that gives the scent a distinct feminine flavor. In my opinion, Sensi is a perfect mix of sexy, mature femininity and the sweet pleasures of youth. Has great lasting power too. Sensi is definitely one of my new favorites.

Watt is a very harsh, cheap smelling citrus scent. It's the only citrus scent that has ever given me a headache. It fades into something easier to stand after about a half hour, but soon fades away. You get what you pay for with this one.

Byblos has a floor cleaner citrus scent to it that blends very strangely with the jasmine note, mixing to an unusual sparkling grape-like smell. The top notes dry down to a very soapy, floral fragrance which is very unique and somewhat pleasant. Best about 30 minutes after sraying.