I was able to spend a few minutes spritzing a bunch of perfumes onto appropriately-labeled strips of paper yesterday. I suppose I looked like a freak of nature as I quickly walked from bottle to bottle, strips of white paper sticking out of my hands arrayed in a star-pattern almost like I'd sprouted new digits or something.
I didn't care, of course, and continued on my way, getting the strangest looks. Luckily, there were no SAs around to stop my pilgrim's progress so I was able to spray the following:
My impressions:
Chanel Pour Homme is a classic sophisticate! Love this one and instantly shoots to near the top of my wishlist. Five stars
Boucheron Pour Homme reminds me of soap, something Irish Spring-y about it. I recognize it's a well-crafted scent, but not for me. Three stars.
Boucheron Jaipur Pour Homme is a stunner. Sweet powder pervades it and I just love it! Which is no wonder since it reminds me of Burberry Brit. Four stars.
Givenchy Pi is unique. I don't think I've smelled anything quite like it and of course, being that I like unique, I love pi! This is actually delicious ... yes folks, so yummy I want to eat it. Four and a half stars.
Sean John Unforgivable is surprisingly good. I thought that the first time I smelled it, but I wanted to confirm my "suspicions"; I am not a fan of P-Diddlyhead or whatever he's calling himself these days so I approached this one with some trepidation. I'm happy to report I will be able to forgive Diddlyhead for Unforgivable after all: three and a half stars.
Givenchy Very Irresistible is also good. While it didn't blow me away, I couldn't find anything I disliked enough to toss it. It's notes can be jarring, but I like it even more because of that, I believe perfume should be "interesting", not in the usual "Oh my god, what is that smell?" accompanied by one of these faces (
) kind of way, but "h'm, I wonder what that guy's wearing, I'd like to move in closer for another sniff" hopefully uttered by Alessandra Ambrosia or my wife (either one's good! 
)
VI is interesting like that, so three and a half stars.
Vera Wang For Men is sweet; a sweet, fruity tobacco that reminds me of Baldessarini. I like it, it's well made but a bit derivative. Three and a half stars, and would be four if I'm convinced of its longevity, which I'm not.
Dolce & Gabbana Pour Homme. This one threw me for a loop! I've smelled D&G PH in one form (magazine strip) or another (paper strip) and on one person or another for a long time, you'd think I'd be used to it by now. No sir! It may have been my burgeoning head cold, but wowee, love this one. Shot into my wishlist for sure, and since I was surprised when I thought I shouldn't be, kudos to D&G: five stars!
Ralph Lauren Polo Double Black: quality scent, reminds one of my friends of sex (she said so at a Christmas party and with enough feeling that I spied some of the male attendees scribbling the name down on pieces of paper!); such a review by a member of the opposite sex clinched it for me: four stars. Love the almost acrid smell of the unripe mango (is it mango?) notes.
Well, that's it, my grand odyssey and the results. I really should stay away from fragrance counters: they make me look weird to the rest of humanity and my wallet will be singing a mournful tune before too long. So this is what a crack addict feels?
I didn't care, of course, and continued on my way, getting the strangest looks. Luckily, there were no SAs around to stop my pilgrim's progress so I was able to spray the following:
- Chanel Pour Monsieur
- Boucheron Jaipur Pour Homme
- Dolce & Gabbana Pour Homme
- Boucheron Pour Homme
- Vera Wang for Men
- Givenchy Pi
- Givenchy Very Irresistible
- Polo Double Black
- Sean John Unforgivable
My impressions:
Chanel Pour Homme is a classic sophisticate! Love this one and instantly shoots to near the top of my wishlist. Five stars
Boucheron Pour Homme reminds me of soap, something Irish Spring-y about it. I recognize it's a well-crafted scent, but not for me. Three stars.
Boucheron Jaipur Pour Homme is a stunner. Sweet powder pervades it and I just love it! Which is no wonder since it reminds me of Burberry Brit. Four stars.
Givenchy Pi is unique. I don't think I've smelled anything quite like it and of course, being that I like unique, I love pi! This is actually delicious ... yes folks, so yummy I want to eat it. Four and a half stars.
Sean John Unforgivable is surprisingly good. I thought that the first time I smelled it, but I wanted to confirm my "suspicions"; I am not a fan of P-Diddlyhead or whatever he's calling himself these days so I approached this one with some trepidation. I'm happy to report I will be able to forgive Diddlyhead for Unforgivable after all: three and a half stars.
Givenchy Very Irresistible is also good. While it didn't blow me away, I couldn't find anything I disliked enough to toss it. It's notes can be jarring, but I like it even more because of that, I believe perfume should be "interesting", not in the usual "Oh my god, what is that smell?" accompanied by one of these faces (
) kind of way, but "h'm, I wonder what that guy's wearing, I'd like to move in closer for another sniff" hopefully uttered by Alessandra Ambrosia or my wife (either one's good! )VI is interesting like that, so three and a half stars.
Vera Wang For Men is sweet; a sweet, fruity tobacco that reminds me of Baldessarini. I like it, it's well made but a bit derivative. Three and a half stars, and would be four if I'm convinced of its longevity, which I'm not.
Dolce & Gabbana Pour Homme. This one threw me for a loop! I've smelled D&G PH in one form (magazine strip) or another (paper strip) and on one person or another for a long time, you'd think I'd be used to it by now. No sir! It may have been my burgeoning head cold, but wowee, love this one. Shot into my wishlist for sure, and since I was surprised when I thought I shouldn't be, kudos to D&G: five stars!
Ralph Lauren Polo Double Black: quality scent, reminds one of my friends of sex (she said so at a Christmas party and with enough feeling that I spied some of the male attendees scribbling the name down on pieces of paper!); such a review by a member of the opposite sex clinched it for me: four stars. Love the almost acrid smell of the unripe mango (is it mango?) notes.
Well, that's it, my grand odyssey and the results. I really should stay away from fragrance counters: they make me look weird to the rest of humanity and my wallet will be singing a mournful tune before too long. So this is what a crack addict feels?
} and that pretty much overwhelmed anything I could have smelled so I didn't get that marvelous drydown I know is in there somewhere.
