I personally think the only connection between A*Men and B*Men is a sweetened Patchouli accord. But even then, there is a clear difference between the sweet notes used. In A*Men, it is a Caramel Candy note, which is where most of A*Mens tooth rotting, diabetic shock sweetness comes from. This along with the Mint, Coffee and Chocolate firmly peg A*Men as a gourmand. None of these exist in B*Men. If Caramel Candy is 'cooked sugar', then the sweetener in B*Men is most definitely 'burnt sugar', overcooked and blackened. This is why B*Men is nowhere near as sweet as his brother. This burnt sugar and Patchouli accord is there from top to bottom and becomes more dominant as time goes on, which might be why people consider it linear. These two also produce a tar note, not the same as the tar in A*Men, a bit more rubbery.
I cant make out the Rhubarb in this one, there is a sour fruit note there in the opening, but doesn't register as Rhubarb. It is paired up with Licorice Root. I have spotted the 'Peanut' accord that people mention once or twice, but I dont always get it.
In the heart, in comes the redwood and the spicerack. The combo of wood and burnt smells doesn't come across as smokey though. My experience is that if you are not judicious with the spritzer, the redwood note becomes very musky. This does mean I'm never quite sure what experience I'm going to get that day. Be warned, B*Men is highly potent - my 100ml bottle will probably last a decade, and in its own way it isn't any more polite than A*Men.
Then in the base, the burnt sugar and Patchouli prevails. I've not picked up the Vetiver at this stage, I am assuming I'm combining the earthiness of the Patch and the Vetiver into one smell.
I wouldn't call it an Oriental, there aren't really any resinous or vanilla notes. Its a semi-sweet Woody Spicy to me.
I never considered that angle, nonetheless, I prefer B*Men and have only that one in my wardrobe. Perhaps some folks do look at it like you said.
