I came across Directive 46 after learning that it was inspired by Amouage Guidance 46, so I was naturally curious and started looking for reviews.
To be honest, the reviews were almost too positive. I even wondered if some of them might have been exaggerated or manipulated.
Most people described it as smelling almost identical to Guidance 46. Usually, people say fragrances like this are around 80–90% similar, but many of the reviews for Directive 46 claimed it was as much as 99% identical. I was skeptical, so when I got the chance to sample both, I decided to do a side-by-side test.
I sprayed Guidance 46 on my left wrist and Directive 46 on my right, then started smelling them side by side.
Surprisingly, neither fragrance revealed any particularly distinct individual notes.
They were more like a complete accord rather than a fragrance where you can easily pick out specific notes.
There was a floral quality, but it didn't really smell like rose in particular. It was simply a rich, floral impression.
There was also a fruity quality, but again, I couldn't identify any specific fruit. It was more of a general fruity accord.
The top, middle, and base didn't seem to present themselves as clearly separated stages, either. Instead, both fragrances gave me the same overall impression: luxurious, opulent, elegant, and beautifully blended.
In a nutshell, they smelled the same.
It was genuinely difficult to tell them apart.
If I really tried to find differences, I could say that one seemed just slightly sweeter, while the other seemed to have a slightly richer and deeper drydown.
But even then, I couldn't tell whether that was actually a difference in the fragrances or simply because I had sprayed a little more on one wrist. The side with more juice naturally seemed sweeter and more intense in the drydown.
And this is where my own expectations started to get in the way.
I kept thinking, “Surely the much more expensive Guidance 46 must be richer, deeper, or last longer.”
Perhaps if I wore them for a much longer period and paid very close attention, I might eventually be able to identify some subtle differences.
But with my admittedly untrained nose, I found it extremely difficult to distinguish any meaningful difference in the scent itself from this single side-by-side test.
If anything, I may simply have been more inclined to favor Guidance 46 because of the price and my expectations.
For now, though, my first impression is very clear:
**Directive 46 is remarkably close to Guidance 46 — so close that, at least to my nose, telling them apart is surprisingly difficult.**
