Africa
Kilo
1995

Spürnase30
10.03.2024 - 08:16 PM
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9
Pricing
3
Bottle
7
Sillage
5
Longevity
9
Scent

My start

I'm a child of the 90s, Axe Africa (deodorant) was the first fragrance in my life where I thought to myself "Boah! That's it!". I thought all the other Axe things were stupid, but this Axe Africa, that was it. Back then I was still a little kid and didn't know that Axe Africa would remain my secret tip until I was an adult. When I started shaving in my teens and started looking around, Axe Africa became my aftershave and by far my most complimented fragrance. By then I knew that the Axe brand was rather frowned upon, so I liked to poke fun and keep the questioners guessing. A few interactions later, I was also enriched by the experience that it apparently just smells different on my skin, apparently more positive. In any case, many people liked it on me and when I showed them the bottle, they tended to turn up their noses. Maybe it was just too intense and pungently citrusy, straight from the bottle, I don't know.

Fast forward, I'm now 30 and have started collecting, and of course Axe Africa is a must. What a shame that there is no EDT or EDP of this great fragrance. It's completely inexplicable to me.

A small remark: The old bottles, as pictured here on parfumo, are apparently no longer produced. I can now only find "Axe Africa - Invigorating Citrus", which is 90% the same but from my memory I would say that the old Axe Africa Aftershave smelled fresh and citrusy for longer. The Invigorating Citrus only lasts about 80% of the old one and turns into a friendly tangerine sooner, whereas from my memory the old Axe Africa remained very citrusy for a very long time. But I could be wrong, the human nose is a mystery to me. I'll add some pictures of the current bottles and the packaging. Anyway, I really wanted to mention this because it was almost the reason why I didn't add Axe Africa to my collection. I didn't see anything with the old bottles, at least nothing under 50€ shipping :D And that's why I almost left sadly, but then I just ordered "Axe Africa Invigorating Citrus" and eureka! So technically, half of my review is now not about Axe Africa but about Axe Africa Invigorating Citrus, even though my love for this fragrance began with the old classic back in the early 00s.

Anyway, I read here that Laura Biagiotti's Roma Uomo is supposed to be similar to Axe Africa, which is why I went straight to the nearest Galeria Kaufhof to get a whiff of Roma Uomo. At first I thought to myself "wat wat wat that has nothing to do with Axe Africa", but to be honest I was never aware that Axe Africa is supposed to contain mandarin. Since I understood that, I can somehow understand the similarity. I then bought Roma Uomo and love it too. Unfortunately, Roma Uomo has massive sillage/durability problems (on me?), which is why it will probably only remain a collector's item. But Axe Africa is my day-to-day feelsgood fragrance. The difference between Axe Africa and Roma Uomo is that Axe Africa is more of a citric bomb, while Roma Uomo is more of a sweet mandarin with a slightly tart note (probably from the bay leaf and basil). This made Roma Uomo seem completely different to me when I first sprayed it, but at heart they are both mandarins and very similar. For example, in preparation for this review, I put Axe Africa on the back of my hand and Roma Uomo on my forearm, and for the life of me I can't tell where one ends and the other begins. But if you don't like the slightly tart note of Roma Uomo and would like to experience a citrusy, straightforward mandarin, Axe Africa is highly recommended.

Axe Africa does what it is supposed to do on the skin. After all, it's just an after shave. I like to overdo it with it and slap myself with the stuff after showering until I'm scent-blind. Then I have a good few (3?) hours of it. For this super low price, I'm always happy to use it again. I have several bottles in my cupboard anyway. It doesn't last super long in my clothes, but it's okay. My current "fresh standard" is to slap Axe Africa on my face and neck (and then it's on my hands), and then something else fresh (currently mostly Club de Nuit Intense Man) on my chest/clothes, however I feel like it. In any case, the Club de Nuit lasts so well on clothes, which then carries me through the whole day when Axe Africa slowly gives up. So I like to supplement Axe Africa with something else fresh and fruity/citrusy that lasts longer.

TL;DR: Fragrance favorite and insider tip, which the world owes an EDT/EDP, which is why it is only available in medium durability. Sillage at this time but still good.
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