Cereus Pour Homme No. 11 by Cereus, 2007

A fairly nice vetiver topped with an icy wintergreen smell that reminds me of cough drops. There's an alcoholic vodka smell hiding in there, as well as some sort of vaguely synthetic smoky wood (iso e super, I believe) and hints of lemon and melon. The anise smells to me more like fennel, giving everything a leafy green hue that really sings under the iso e super smoke. The end result is quite nice, and No. 11 stands out as one of the best of the Cereus line, though I personally think Guerlain does icy vetiver better with both Vetiver Eau Glacee and Vetiver Pour Elle. But when all is said and done, anything that combines smoky wood, vetiver, and leafy greens is going to be a thumbs-up in my world.

Mainly get a peppery vetiver throughout the life of the fragrance. The anise note isn't a prominent note like it is in Lolita Lempicka. It's more on the lines of the star anise in Rive Gauche. It's a pleasant enough, but doesn't stand out from the crowd and it's price is what makes it a no go.

Fantastic peppery licorice woods fragrance. Bits of grapefruit, anise, juniper and pepper yields a substantial but simple fresh wood scent that stays clean and present for hours. This fragrance is a solid choice out of a group of similarly scented fragrances I've tried that includes L' Artisan Navegar, Kenzoair, and Bond No. 9 Brooklyn. Cereus No. ll is more substantial and less sythetic than Kenzoair, a bit greener than Navegar and not nearly as aquatic as Bond No. 9 Brooklyn. A great choice for spring or summer warm weather.

I detect a strong note of vetiver here, but perhaps it's just the wood notes I'm picking up on, or even something a hair grassier/greener than those. Like SirSlarty, I too pick up a distinctive anise-like accord in the opening, although I must admit that this dries down within a few minutes.

Rich, woody, almost creamy center in this bad boy, with just hints of pepper and citrus.

A definite thumbs up, yes, but I won't likely seek a bottle. (Not at Cereus' prices.)

Cereus 11 notes: iced anise, gimlet, juniper berry, black pepper, platinum musk, gentle woods.
This has a cool herbal-green opening: dry, minty, somewhat interesting. It is quite lemony at this point. I dont get ANY pepper. Airy but not unpleasantly synthetic. I dont get any anise/licorice, nor any aromatic piney gin-like notes from the juniper. Basically, for me this is a breezy lemon scent barely there, irrespective of the amount applied. Nothing objectionable, except its lack of distinctiveness and its niche price.

Heavy peppery on first spritz that quickly fades into a licorice and juniper accord. The pepper returns a little while later. Woody and herbal in the drydown which lasts a while.