La Nuit de L'Homme (2009)
by Yves Saint Laurent

It's pleasant. I mean how can it not be. A coumarin sweetness and aromatic cedarwood. The top notes fade fast though so La Nuit de l'Homme in the end is mainly about the coumarin and wood. Some amber too.

However, it will not differ that much from any other lower ranking EdT that packs the same notes. We used to have a fragrance from Garnier here that was close to this but it's been discontinued for over a decade. Maybe YSL bought it?

If anything, going by the scent alone then price wise it should sit just slightly above the highest priced (non-designer) drugstore fragrances (Garnier, Daniel Hechter and the likes). I say above, because it does still come from YSL. But it's priced at 70EUR/80USD here for 100ml?

That's too expensive for this tier of scent. There is for example a fragrance from another Yves (Rocher) that has similar notes but sells for 50'ish USD/100ml. It's been a while since I've smelled it though but I remember it was going for around 20 USD even 10-15 years ago.

La Nuit De L'Homme seems to me to be the logical conclusion to this discussion at corporate headquarters:

"Hey, remember Rive Gauche? It has a huge following among fragrance nerds, so it must be good. Let's make a version of it that would sell really well at Macy's!"

It's a spicier, scratchier, more accessible version of Rive Gauche, in my eyes. I think it's a decent scent, it performs well, and it's not overly-synthetic, though in the beginning it does border on being cloying. It really comes across as a barbershop fougere, but one that you wear when you're having a romantic evening. This is "date night" fragrance. I can't really think of any other time where it would be appropriate, which is kind of a shortfall, as Rive Gauche does what this does, but better, and it is more versatile than La Nuit de l'Homme by a country mile.

All in all, it's a decent scent, but one that I won't be adding to my collection.

This is really pleasant, and to me, inoffensive. I get the feeling that others consider it a spicy, assertive fragrance better suited for a night out than a casual setting. But, I could completely see myself wearing this at the office. Maybe it's because this plays with lavender and I already have a boozier sophisticated lavender scent in my collection (Fahrenheit Parfum), that I'd use for those special occasions.

Not sure if the projection or longevity are particularly awesome as it did feel like a skin scent within a couple hours. Overall it smells nice and is certainly worth checking out, but right now there's nothing about this that screams "I need a bottle!".

A lot of lavender and bergamont, a jagged yet not unpleasant opening. Strong citrus and amber as well, with lots of woodsy-cedar waiting in the background to round it out. A bit thick, too syrupy-sweet on the opening: artificial and synthetic, not for everyone.

As it dries down, it becomes more earthly, organic: a more lush vetiver. I enjoy the drydown and wish it projected more. Speaking of, the overall projection is above average, more than an arm's length and the longevity is a bit below average: 3-4 hours until it's a complete skin scent.

This scent is a young man's game: it's strong and assertive, trying to make a point and letting everyone know. Overall, I like the scent but the heaviness of its citrusy overtones and the overall synthetic nature of it makes me shy away from constant use.

6.5/10

I really like this juice.

I'd yet to find a lavender frag that did anything for me, but this one is blended so well that I might consider my mind changed. If you're a fan of The One, you'll like YSL La Nuit.

Dive deep into the reviews for this one, sure. But I think you could blind buy this and be ok (and I don't say that a lot). I have a hard time imagining someone not liking something about this.

It has a wide application range, but only for shorter encounters. The performance on this one is around five or six hours, and the strength has a fairly quick drop-off. Applied at 8:30 this morning this frag is gone by the time I get back from lunch.

I see this as more of an evening cologne, regardless of season.

Wear it on a date (not a first date), spray it on your dinner jacket before an event, wear it for close encounters, wear it at night when it's just you, your chair, your pipe. You can pull this off with a suit, but there might be a better choice.

I think I'll try the Parfum when this bottle dies.

Scent: 8/10

Longevity: 5/10

Sillage: 4/10