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What scents would you recommend buying blind?

post #1 of 26
10/21/05 at 1:02pm
Thread Starter 
Hello Basenoters. This topic was done a while back but since then I'm sure many of our opinions on scents have changed. Besides, we've got a number of new BN members so I want to hear everyone's take on this.
I know that buying blind is one of the most daring (foolish) things to do and I usually recommend testing before you buy. But if you had a gun pointed to your head and were forced to recommend a scent to buy blind, which would it be? In my case I would recommend Polo Blue. I find that it's hard to hate in my book. IMO people either like it or they're neutral, but I've never had anybody tell me that they hate it. What's your pick? Â*
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post #2 of 26
10/21/05 at 1:19pm
Yang by Jacques Fath
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post #3 of 26
10/21/05 at 1:22pm
Under normal conditions I'd recommend none. If I was pressed my recommendation would have to be conditional on a an individual's preference. Now if I had a revolver pointed at my forehead, I'd be quick to utter the words - Sud Est by Romeo Gigli...
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post #4 of 26
10/21/05 at 2:30pm
It would be difficult to find a safe bet. It all depends on the individual i'm recommending to. Well anyway, i'll stick to my guns and say LAGUNA!!!
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post #5 of 26
10/21/05 at 2:37pm
I dont reccomend buying anything blind. Chances are you wont like the scent and therefore wasting money and resulting in an unhappy you. Ive done it twice, and I definitely regret both.
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post #6 of 26
10/21/05 at 2:41pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by milamber

It would be difficult to find a safe bet. It all depends on the individual i'm recommending to. Well anyway, i'll stick to my guns and say LAGUNA!!!

I bought two scents blind because of you and I'm very happy I did (Laguna & Geir).
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post #7 of 26
10/21/05 at 2:46pm
Santal Noble, Musc Ravagueur
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post #8 of 26
10/21/05 at 2:59pm
From those I own : Allure Homme Sport, Armani Black Code.
They are sure bets,they will not hurt anyone!
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post #9 of 26
10/21/05 at 3:54pm
Guerlain Vetiver - I can't imagine anyone not liking it.
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post #10 of 26
10/21/05 at 3:57pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Machineo

I dont recommend buying anything blind.

I second that. Â*EVERYTHING here is personal taste. Â*Perfect example ... nine have been mentioned here on this thread so far, and only 2 of them I would personally recommend (Santal Noble and Geir). Â*Laguna is a good, cheap purchase (under $20 most places) , but I find myself rarely reaching for this. Â*I have so many better made ones. Â*I do like Black Code too ... but I'm rapidly growing tired of it. The others mentioned I just don't like.

Anyway, staring down the barrel of a 357 Magnum ... of fragrances that I personally like AND have a good deal of popularity with others (to maybe keep him from squeezing the trigger), my "safest" blinds would be:

Hermes D'Orange Verte - (for a citrus)
Geir - (for a daytime/casual)
Creed BdP - (for a nighttime/formal)
Dzing! (because it's just so damn good)
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post #11 of 26
10/21/05 at 3:58pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dante

Guerlain Vetiver - I can't imagine anyone not liking it.

I don't. But then again, I don't any like vetiver scents in general. :
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post #12 of 26
10/21/05 at 4:31pm
Creed SMW & M.I. are hard to hate, and as mentioned, I like Polo Blue for those conservative times.
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post #13 of 26
10/21/05 at 4:55pm
Samples and decants. They have saved me a ton of cash. They will save you too.

Slim
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post #14 of 26
10/21/05 at 5:04pm
Creed's Original Vetiver. I bought it blind and am in 'lust' with it.
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post #15 of 26
10/21/05 at 5:34pm
Gendarme
GEIR
Havana
John Varvatos
Anvers

Remember....this is my opinion...I loved all of these from first sniff.
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post #16 of 26
10/21/05 at 6:58pm
I second Slim's suggestion. Why on earth risk big bucks on a big bottle of the unknown when you can testdrive smaller amounts of so many different fragrances fairly inexpensively. I won't even bother ordering sample vials of things I'm not half-way sure that I'll like, and still - nine times out of ten - I'm glad I only got 1 ml and saved my cash. Yet without whiffing those legions of samples, I would never have found the few scents that I like well enough to invest in a bottle.
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post #17 of 26
10/21/05 at 9:02pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by teflondog

But if you had a gun pointed to your head and were forced to recommend a scent to buy blind, which would it be?

LOL. This was supposed to be a fun question. We all know that you should test before you buy. We've preached it a million times. But if you had to choose, which would it be? It's like that game "Truth or Dare?" that many of us played out of boredom.
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post #18 of 26
10/22/05 at 12:38am
If I had a gun pointed at my head, I would scream out "KOUROS"! I guess I have a death wish.
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post #19 of 26
10/22/05 at 4:41am
Well I have to echo some of the post here and say that all my blind purchases have ended up with some vile crap that I do not like...so to answer the question...What would I recommend buying blind?..I would have to say 'Bang'..there must be a frag out there with that name................. ;D

Peace and Safety,

Otto
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post #20 of 26
10/22/05 at 4:53pm
I have had good luck buying blind so I wouldn't say it is to be avoided as a rule, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend a particular fragrance for someone else to buy blind. My blind purchases have been based on careful study of notes, reviews and forum comments, with a focus on whether a fragrance seems like it would appeal to my personal tastes. Luckily I have yet to be really burned on a blind purchase and have discovered some favorites.

Of course there's no substitute for trying before you buy, but many scents are not conveniently available to test. Somehow I find it more fun to take a flyer on a blind purchase than to buy samples or decants. But then again, I tend to be a frugal scent shopper--if I were interested in a big ticket niche item, I think I would be more careful about getting samples.

--Steve
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post #21 of 26
10/23/05 at 11:03am
Anything from YSL and Chanel!
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post #22 of 26
10/23/05 at 11:20am
I would possibly recommend Live Jazz by YSL it is were spring or summer. For any other time, I wouldn't feel guilty if I recommended Tea for Two by l'Artisan Parfumeur.
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post #23 of 26
10/23/05 at 2:12pm
Take my advice at your peril. Take all Basenotes advice at your peril, really. Because the question was asked, this is how I'll answer:

Caron's Third Man. (Number three, troisième homme, numero trois, whatever the box you find is calling it.)

Molinard's Madrigal.

L'Artisan Parfumeur's Santal.

Hermès Equipage

Annick Goutal's Eau d'Hadrien or Hadrian Abosolu.

Creed's Bois du Portugal.

Alain Delon's AD Classic.

CdG 2

I don't want to be responsible for suggesting something someone else hates once the get it any more than the next Basenotes member. You're just reading the internet after all--can't trust everything. But if a friend asked me for a recommendation like this thread asks for one I'd pretty much spell out the above list. There are things that might not be liked in everything I mention, but heck, I can't do the Vulcan mind meld on anyone, much less some Vulcan nose meld, so I'd just take a stab. If they make anyone vomit, oh well. Tomorrow is another day.
--Chris
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post #24 of 26
10/23/05 at 2:21pm
Gucci Envy seems as close to being universally liked as anything I am aware of.
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post #25 of 26
1/4/08 at 3:50am
I would recommend at the moment Andy Tauer- L'air du desert marocain. This fragrence is one that just gets better on your skin. When I first sprayed it i hated it and wanted to wash it off but I gave it a chance and now it's top of my list. The Base notes are creamy and smooth and is a high quality long lasting scent for a very resonable price. around 69.00 Euros (£40.00). A bargain for such a luxurious treat for your nose!!
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post #26 of 26
1/4/08 at 5:29am
  • Gus
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I'd only recommend such undisputed classics that if you don't like them, it's your fault, not theirs. Eau Sauvage comes to mind, for example. But then again, blind buying is a recipe for disaster, sample first!
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Basenotes › Basenotes Forums › Fragrance Discussion › Male Fragrance Discussion › MFD Archive › What scents would you recommend buying blind?