Your 5 Biggest Disappointments Ever

[rompip]

Halston z-14 let me down big time.

Its Putrid. After reading the reviews I bought it blind. cant stand the stuff.

I was slightly disappointed by Habir Rouge. ITs gorgeous but not as good as i was anticipating

[knightowl]

1) Egoiste. Medicine and booze mixed together for the top notes on a pencil-shaving base. Not for me.
2) Dzing! I got a sample, thinking that it would be the magic scent that many Basenoters talk about... but I got something boring to my nose.
3) Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue Pour Homme. New from Procter & Gamble: a fragrance where the notes on the pyramid don't even match the juice! Where's the grapefruit, incense, and oakmoss that I was promised? Instead, I got another Acqua di Gio clone!
4) Very Irresistible Givenchy For Men. Given my love of gourmands, I thought I'd love this. Not so. Wet dog, anyone?
5) Gucci Pour Homme II. Yummy top notes, but a crap generic base. Another disappointment from P&G.

Disagree with you on the Egoiste and agree on the Gucci and Light Blue .

[JON RODGERS]

1. Creed Himalaya.
2. Dior Homme.
3. Body Kouros.
4. Guerlain Vetiver.
5. Ungaro III.

[Lian]

1 Mitsouko, it might be as brilliant as people say it is but because of associations it didn't do it for me
2 Antimatiere, can't smell it
3 Douce Amere, cant smell it
4 Creed, years of reading basenotes and never being able to sample creed or buy it lead me to have huge expectations of many of the male creed offerings. I found the most loved to be rather weak, I expected real men scent tm and I found many to be fairly unisex I guess. There are a few brilliant gems in this house that definitly met my expectations but they were ones I never read about before. Makes you think right

[Larwiz]

Gucci II? I have to say I respectfully disagree. I wore this yesterday and my reaction was more like "man, I smell good!" All day long I kept catching whiffs of it and liked it more and more. I wore 5 sprays, and I believe it would really take about 8 to project any.

But in terms of my personal enjoyment, it's a big winner. My wife really dug it as well when she buried her face in my neck. She liked it better than the AOS Sandalwood I got in the mail yesterday. I also like it better than the Richard James Savile Row I'm wearing today. Aw heck, I like it better than a lot of my other scents.

To each his own...
(same).

I'm with you my man! GPH2 is damn good! I love how I smell and feel in this one. It's my Kanye West fragrance. I put it on, and you can't tell me nothing! lol I don't understand how these same people will dog nice fragrancces like this but then talk all day about Kouros, Patou Pour Homme/Prive, or some other bland uninspiring fragrance.

[MFJ]

I do have my reservations coz ive turned 180 on the prevously detested.
As for Now

1. Aigner X Limited
2. CK escape
3. Cold Benneton
4. Davidoff Adventure
5. Hugo

[PorkFat]

1. Other than Bois Du Portugal and Virgin Island Water, there's not a single Creed out there that I would spend that kind of money on. They're universally weak in longevity and sillage and many of the later offerings for men smell so similar and unisex that there's no point in getting more than one of them. Many of the smell-alikes last longer, smell just as good and cost a fraction of the Creed.

2. Bvlgari pour Homme / " " Extreme: One or the other, they're both the same weak citrus and boiled vegetable odor with no redeemable merits.

3. Amouage's men's line: Oh! I LOOOOOVE smelling like a lady! Montale does oud that smells like a man and I actually want to wear it for half the cost.

4. Tommy Bahama: All of them. Terrible, cheap, cloying nastiness.

5. Any female fragrance that reeks of powder and/or flowers. Wow, I haven't smelled that a million times since perfumery was invented.

[petruccijc]

1. Dolce and Gabanna Light Blue pour Homme
2. Dolce and Gabanna Light Blue pour Homme
3. Dolce and Gabanna Light Blue pour Homme
4. Dolce and Gabanna Light Blue pour Homme
5. Dolce and Gabanna Light Blue pour Homme

[Kevin Guyer]

The longevity issues associated with:
Mouchior de Monsieur
Jicky
Apres L'Ondee
Sou le Vent
Vol de Nuit
The only thing worse than this drama is the George W. Bush presidency.

[PorkFat]

1. Dolce and Gabanna Light Blue pour Homme
2. Dolce and Gabanna Light Blue pour Homme
3. Dolce and Gabanna Light Blue pour Homme
4. Dolce and Gabanna Light Blue pour Homme
5. Dolce and Gabanna Light Blue pour Homme

Can someone please describe the hatred for this fragrance? All I ever see are outright slams with nothing to back it up. OK, I get it, it's another aquatic. But it's NOT bad. After Bulgari Aqua, Aqua Marine and Azzaro Chrome it's the only other aquatic I found worthy of a purchase. The woods and incense in the dry down really make it for me and makes it unique compared to others in the field. It's longevity is decent and strength is great for something labeled "light".

Was there some sort of hype machine that got everyone's hopes up, only to bash them on the ground as another aquatic was revealed? What more could you ask of a fragrance called LIGHT BLUE.

I thank the perfume gods that it has no similarity to the female version that smells of crushed up lemon pez and rubbing alcohol. Why anyone would want to smell like that is beyond me, especially a man.

The only thing I can think of is that this was one of the first fragrances I bought as I got into this wonderful scene. I actually bought shortly before discovering this site. So my nose wasn't inundated with "me too" aquatics left and right for years before hand. I wonder if it was one of the first few if it would be so disliked.

[CYoung234]

Okay, here goes:

1.) Dior Homme - It smells good on my wife and she likes it - on her. On me, meh.
2.) Armani Prive Bois de Encens - blecch - this went back. I like incense type frags, but this one was too much.
3.) A*Men - if you like it, good for you. I personally cannot stand it. A scrubber.
4.) Versace Blue Jeans - this one went back, too.
5.) Yatagan - bottled dog urine. Sorry.

[MFfan310]

Since I've made a complete 180 on Egoiste, here's my new and improved list:

1) Emporio Armani Diamonds for Men: The great note pyramid gave me great expectations, but the hideous scent left me high and dry.
2) Guerlain Homme: They had a chance to do a modern classic for the young crowd, but in the end, I got Eau de Nothing.
3) Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue Pour Homme: New from Procter & Gamble: a fragrance where the notes on the pyramid don't even match the juice! Where's the grapefruit, incense, and oakmoss that I was promised? Instead, I got another Acqua di Gio clone!
4) Creed Virgin Island Water: Banana Boat sunscreen smells exactly the same (if not better) for 1/20th of the price.
5) Very Irresistible Givenchy For Men. Given my love of gourmands, I thought I'd love this. Not so. Wet dog, anyone?

[petruccijc]

Can someone please describe the hatred for this fragrance? All I ever see are outright slams with nothing to back it up. OK, I get it, it's another aquatic. But it's NOT bad. After Bulgari Aqua, Aqua Marine and Azzaro Chrome it's the only other aquatic I found worthy of a purchase. The woods and incense in the dry down really make it for me and makes it unique compared to others in the field. It's longevity is decent and strength is great for something labeled "light".

Was there some sort of hype machine that got everyone's hopes up, only to bash them on the ground as another aquatic was revealed? What more could you ask of a fragrance called LIGHT BLUE.

I thank the perfume gods that it has no similarity to the female version that smells of crushed up lemon pez and rubbing alcohol. Why anyone would want to smell like that is beyond me, especially a man.

Because I can get the same effect by spritzing myself with lemon flavored seltzer water - and only have to pay $.99 for it. It is SOOOOO f'ing boring - and IMO a major letdown from the far superior Light Blue (which this man prefers to wear and smell like). But if you like, that's all that should matter.

[MFfan310]

Can someone please describe the hatred for this fragrance?

It's not in the spirit of the women's Light Blue (a citrus woody) at all. If they did a men's in the spirit of the women's, they would have had a winner. But it doesn't smell or even have a remote resemblance to Light Blue for her, which I (and many other Basenoters) love.

Also, the pyramid doesn't match up with the notes of the scent. If it did, it would have smelled a lot better than it does.

[PorkFat]

Because I can get the same effect by spritzing myself with lemon flavored seltzer water - and only have to pay $.99 for it. It is SOOOOO f'ing boring - and IMO a major letdown from the far superior Light Blue (which this man prefers to wear and smell like). But if you like, that's all that should matter.

But the lemon seltzer is exactly what the femme version is. There's no lemon in the men's frag. It's grapefruit peel and sandalwood and incense. I don't know, perhaps I have a reformulated version that smells exactly as the pyramid says. Boring? OK, I'll give you that. But it's not pretentious and I say that it accomplishes what it set out to. It's in the darn name of the product! It's a light aquatic. Hence, Light Blue. Eh, oh well. It will still outsell most of the favorites of the BN members. (Sad but true). I'm not saying it's the greatest thing since man first put essential oils in an alcohol base and spritzed it on himself, but it's not deserving of all the shit that's been dumped on it by Luca Turin and this message board.

I'm really going to have to try the femme version at a store. The two decants I got smell nothing alike and neither have any wood what so ever. But I don't have high hopes.

Haters keep on hatin'

[petruccijc]

But the lemon seltzer is exactly what the femme version is. There's no lemon in the men's frag. It's grapefruit peel and sandalwood and incense. I don't know, perhaps I have a reformulated version that smells exactly as the pyramid says. Boring? OK, I'll give you that. But it's not pretentious and I say that it accomplishes what it set out to. It's in the darn name of the product! It's a light aquatic. Hence, Light Blue. Eh, oh well. It will still outsell most of the favorites of the BN members. (Sad but true). I'm not saying it's the greatest thing since man first put essential oils in an alcohol base and spritzed it on himself, but it's not deserving of all the shit that's been dumped on it by Luca Turin and this message board.

I'm really going to have to try the femme version at a store. The two decants I got smell nothing alike. But I don't have high hopes.

Haters keep on hatin'

Geez. Lighten up Francis. So other people have a different opinion of a fragrance then you do. I am sure it is not the first time, and it certainly won't be the last either. There are plenty of fragrances that I like that others don't - I really could care less. I am wearing it, not them.

BTW - I didn't say I hated it. The thread was about disappointments - and Light Blue pour Homme is a MAJOR disappointment to me. IMO, it is too bland and boring to hate - there isn't much of a smell to it.

[PorkFat]

Geez. Lighten up Francis. So other people have a different opinion of a fragrance then you do. I am sure it is not the first time, and it certainly won't be the last either. There are plenty of fragrances that I like that others don't - I really could care less. I am wearing it, not them.

BTW - I didn't say I hated it. The thread was about disappointments - and Light Blue pour Homme is a MAJOR disappointment to me. IMO, it is too bland and boring to hate - there isn't much of a smell to it.

It's cool Pee Wee. I just don't want others forming an opinion without giving it a try. Sorry it came across as someone getting bent out of shape over something like this. I really wasn't.

[jathanas]

LAdDM
Lonestar Memories
Rive Gauche
Guerlain Vetiver
C&S 88

[petruccijc]

It's cool Pee Wee. I just don't want others forming an opinion without giving it a try. Sorry it came across as someone getting bent out of shape over something like this. I really wasn't.

Not a problem. We all have strong opinions about the fragrances we like and want to defend them. Now I hope no one has anything negative to say about Kouros....

[mrblowtorch]

1. Dolce and Gabbana Pour Homme - This made people gag, so I threw it in the trash
2. Azzaro Pure Lavande - This made ME gag, go I threw it in the trash
3. Gucci Pour Homme II - At first I thought this was an acceptable Tea For Two Substitute, but it wasn't, so I threw it in the trash
4. A*Men - I liked this the first time I tried it, and then hated it every other time; I gave it away rather than throwing it in the trash. It's someone else's problem now
5. B*Men - Like Dolce and Gabbana PH, but so much worse, so I heaved that M*****F***** in the trash
6. Azzaro Pour Homme - May have been cool years ago (doubtful) but now it's an embarassment; pawned it off to an unsuspecting lackey
7. Quorum - See above
8. Grey Flannel - Haven't had a chance to heave this monstrosity in the trash yet - will slam dunk this foul failure of a stench soon
9. Banana Republic Black Walnut - the only thing I ever gave away that I miss; gave this away even though it's a perfectly acceptable Chergui substitute at a quarter the price. Disregard this one
10. Anything by Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab. Great marketing, great T-shirts, great attitude; scents that will make you gag until your eyeballs turn red

[Mossant]

Cartier Declaration
Gucci by Gucci PH
Guerlain Homme
Jean Patou Voyage
Dunhill Fresh

... all purchased blind on the strength of the brand before discovering Basenotes.

[PorkFat]

Threw it in the mutha truckin' trash, yo!

You're throwing out a lot of money there. I hope those were decants and not something you could have made some money back by selling them. I've heard of disposable income but jeez...

[Mossant]

You're throwing out a lot of money there. I hope those were decants and not something you could have made some money back by selling them. I've heard of disposable income but jeez...

I learned my lesson. I got good prices for them on e-bay, so the damage isn't as bad as it could have been. I'll eventually sell or trade them.

[TromboneGuy]

1. Millesime Imperial - smelled to me just like Floris Special No. 127, and very close to DR Harris's Arlington.

2. Terre d'Hermes - moldy oranges in a granite coffin.

3. Dzing! - It smells like the elephant pen at the zoo.

4. Encre Noir - I like vetiver fragrances, but this one just doesn't do anything for me.

5. Burberry Brit - did not live up to the hype.

[chocolateguy]

1. D&G Light Blue pour homme - The most boring aquatic scent up to date comes along with a super gly, just like fake bottle.


2. Gucci by Gucci pour homme - The beautiful bottle can't rescue the light, "nothing" scent inside.


3. Guerlain Homme - If this Homme came from Ck, or Hugo, it's totally ok. But unfortunately...


4. YSL l'Homme ( also the Nuit version ) - Along with Guerlain, YSL lost their spirit with "these things" called Homme.


5. Montale Chocolat Greedy - The worst chocolat scent that I've ever tried.

[Redneck Perfumisto]

For me, disappointments are usually because my expectations were too high. These may or may not be the biggest - I've forgotten a lot of them.

Himalaya (I expected the millesimes to be my thing - they weren't)
Bulgari Aqua Marine PH (love the original, hoped for better or different, but got slightly less enjoyable)
DKNY Men (new one - just a bit weak on me, and good stuff fades too quickly)
Habit Rouge (I expected mythical - will come back and try again with realistic expectations)
I Am King (call me fool, but I expected the Didster to at least match Unforgivable)

[dynastyd95]

Lacoste pour Homme (Silver bottle)
Bulgari Aqua
212 Men
Armani Diamonds
Polo Blue

[heythatslife]

Chanel Pour Monsieur Concentree: Smells nothing like original, too stuffy. Would rather go for Heritage.
M7 Fresh: Nice try, but too synthetic and not worth the hype
Cool Water: Milestone in perfumery, perhaps, but to me it's a toilet cleaner
Chypre Rouge: I'm a big fan of Lutens/Sheldrake creations, but I can't tolerate this one.
Green Irish Tweed: So what's the big fuss?

[cpk]

The complete Different Company line. On top is Osmanthus, with its nursery home smell, exactly what one reviewer stated.

1. Bois d' Iris: liquid thin air
2. Dilmun: the smell of toillets in an old people nursing home
3. Vetiver Extraordinair; a few days before trying this I bought a cheap vetiver oil to butn on a lamp. My god it had the exact same smell.
4. Vetiver Dance: although there is nothing unattractive to it, for some strange reason it makes me sick
5. Carnal Flower: why is this considered more avant-garde or masculine or anything for that matter than any other tuberose?

[nout]

At the moment there is only one disappointment, but a very big one.
A fragrance I liked very much, even adored and of which I wrote a very favourable review.
Amor Pour Homme by Cacharel

Now I detest the smell, so cheap and bitter smelling, like a vile body odour.
What was I thinking and smelling?
It reeks!

If only I could edit my review.
It's a ridiculous review in which I make a comparison with Cacharel pour Homme, the 80's classic, claiming Amor is timeless whereas CpH is dated...ahum...recently I revisited Cacharel Pour Homme, bought a bottle and I am amazed how timeless and sophisticated and discrete this one is, unique for its time, you may say the Bulgari Pour Homme of the 80's