Eau de Vetyver (2001)
by L'Occitane

Bergamot and a restrained lemon open up this adventure; refined and brightish; not in the style of an refreshing Eau de Cologne but uplifting nonetheless. Very soon a herbal undertone is added, a rosemary with whiffs of dried hay.

The drydown brings an onslaught on wood notes. I get cypress initially, followed by a fairly light fears and some moments of a minimal contribution by an impression of Guaiac. Touches of nutmeg provide for just a tiny bit of spiciness. In the middle of the olfactory fire at the vetiver finally makes an appearance, as if the development so far just constituted an opening act or prelude. Is is rather a smooth and soft vetiver, with little harshness and just a modicum of a component of wood or stem, and little earthiness only - this is not Molinard’s superb take on the theme.

The base adds a smooth suede to the woods, but we are not out of the wood yet; the cedar, especially, lingers on until the end.

I get moderate sillage, very good projection, and an impressive nine hours of longevity on my skin.

The vetiver the name of this scent for cooler summer days promised in not actually the main player here, but like a high-ranked eminent VIP who arrives last at the ball and leaves first, the titular component is not much more than a team player amongst others. Still, the vetiver as such is nice, albeit neither spectacular nor particularly original. Overall 3.25/5.

One of the best vetiver fragrances that I have smelt. I wasn't impressed by L'Occitane's other fragrances, but this one is a winner. Sadly, it has been discontinued but a must-have for fans of vetiver. It is extremely good value for money at about £35 per 100ml. Longevity is not extremely long due to the natural ingredients that are used.

A very nice Vetiver. I smell nutmeg and woods in the opening. The one thing I'm not totally crazy about with this one is the scent of Cashmeran, or Cashmere Woods as they're called, which is a synthetic woodnote. This is a good vetiver frag however and I would recommend anyone who likes vetiver fragrances to give it a try. After having tried this one and Guerlain's Vetiver, I have to say that I prefer the Guerlain product to this one. But, this one is still good.

Eau de Vetyver is in the fragrance family of mossy woods and floral orientals. I'd call this "a poor man's Creed Original Vetiver", because Eau de Vetyver is a low-cost dead-ringer to that one!

A classy, rich, smooth, warm masculine scent that explores the more mossy, oriental side of vetiver.
EdV starts out with a bold, lush envelopment of citrus, spices, woods and moss. Like a fizzed up soda that eases down and settles, the opening onslaught soon makes way to a solid vetiver greenness that is heavily accented by the spiciness of nutmeg and (unlisted perceived notes) of cinnamon and cumin, with a whiff of amber. The result is a stable sweet quality that doesn't change for the remainder of the wear cycle.

EdV has an aromatic vibe that smells a LOT like Creed's Original Vetiver, as well as a more mature & toned-down version of Gucci Envy and a slight bit like Chanel pour Monsieur in its animalic touch.

Overall, a well-crafted, rich experience that is a very nice take on vetiver fragrances, smelling less experimental and more accessible than one would expect from L'Occitane. Not for everyone I'm sure, but HIGHLY recommended to check out.

I went into the store where, the day before, I had called and asked them to set aside a bottle for me(I heard it was discontinued...?). When I got to the store, it looked like they still had quite a few in stock because several bottles were on their shelves. The girl offered to test it on a strip of paper but I said I want to try it on the back of my hand to see how it would dry down.

Well, minutes later, I never got the vetiver scent everybody's talking about. Instead, it became an outright woody scent--woody as in walking into a lumber store! Maybe it's my skin chemistry so I decided it wasn't for me but since I was there and didn't want to appear a total @$$, I decided to try others I might buy. I tried the Eau de Cade(meh!), the Eau des Baux(??),and the L'Occitan which promptly disappeared from my skin. So I settled for Eau de Cedrat and from my initial spray, I quite liked it and it's the one I bought, a fitting summer scent.

I'm disappointed in how the Vetyver acted on my skin because I so wanted to like it. Hours after I got home, I could still smell the wood until I took a shower that evening. At least you can say something about its longevity!