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Heart Notes 
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04/03/2015
Drseid
819 Reviews
Drseid
1
Balenciaga Does Synthetic...
Cristobal pour Homme goes on with an ambiguous fresh synthetic accord with a creamy faux sandalwood undertone. Moving to the early heart the slightly sweet, creamy faux sandalwood takes command of the development with hints of nutmeg spice and rose-like geranium. As the composition continues through the heart phase the faux sandalwood gradually gives way to a slowly growing vague synthetic blonde woody accord that takes over as star with the nutmeg spice and geranium remaining in support. During the late dry-down the composition turns decidedly more dry with the synthetic woods relegated to support as slightly powdery vanilla and relatively dry amber take control through the finish. Projection is above average and longevity is excellent at 12 hours on skin.
Ugh oh, Houston we have a problem... After being so impressed with many other offerings from Balenciaga it seemed like a relatively safe bet to blind buy a bottle of Cristobal pour Homme, emphasis on "seemed"... Unfortunately, this composition is nowhere near in the same league as the other Balenciaga offerings I have tried over the years. The primary culprit is the highly synthetic smelling nature of the composition (and in this case, I mean synthetic in a bad way). First off, is the faux creamy sandalwood (similar in smell to the stuff used in Floris Eau de Santal). This stuff may be fake, but when used properly it can smell quite good as it does in Eau de Santal. While it smells good elsewhere, in Cristobal pour Homme it definitely doesn't. Problematic faux sandalwood out of the way, we now come to the worst offender of all, the dreaded synthetic blonde woody accord (AKA Cashmeran). Cashmeran is a tough synthetic to control in compositions, and it is not skillfully implemented here, overpowering most of the other aspects of the composition until the late dry-down. Doubly problematic is when it is paired with the faux sandalwood it just emphasizes all its worst aspects. The only saving grace to this unfortunate concoction is the late dry-down as the vanilla and amber take over the focus, but it is just too little, too late, and indeed the Cashmeran remains in the background still to make sure you don't forget it. At the end of the day, one could do a lot worse than the minor mess that is Cristobal pour Homme, but one could also do a *heck* of a lot better. The bottom line is the approximately $125 per 100ml bottle on the aftermarket Cristobal pour Homme is a moderately disappointing concoction of synthetics that try way too hard and don't succeed, earning it a "below average" 2 to 2.5 stars out of 5 and a modest avoid recommendation. This one was a blind buy gone bad, I'm afraid.
Ugh oh, Houston we have a problem... After being so impressed with many other offerings from Balenciaga it seemed like a relatively safe bet to blind buy a bottle of Cristobal pour Homme, emphasis on "seemed"... Unfortunately, this composition is nowhere near in the same league as the other Balenciaga offerings I have tried over the years. The primary culprit is the highly synthetic smelling nature of the composition (and in this case, I mean synthetic in a bad way). First off, is the faux creamy sandalwood (similar in smell to the stuff used in Floris Eau de Santal). This stuff may be fake, but when used properly it can smell quite good as it does in Eau de Santal. While it smells good elsewhere, in Cristobal pour Homme it definitely doesn't. Problematic faux sandalwood out of the way, we now come to the worst offender of all, the dreaded synthetic blonde woody accord (AKA Cashmeran). Cashmeran is a tough synthetic to control in compositions, and it is not skillfully implemented here, overpowering most of the other aspects of the composition until the late dry-down. Doubly problematic is when it is paired with the faux sandalwood it just emphasizes all its worst aspects. The only saving grace to this unfortunate concoction is the late dry-down as the vanilla and amber take over the focus, but it is just too little, too late, and indeed the Cashmeran remains in the background still to make sure you don't forget it. At the end of the day, one could do a lot worse than the minor mess that is Cristobal pour Homme, but one could also do a *heck* of a lot better. The bottom line is the approximately $125 per 100ml bottle on the aftermarket Cristobal pour Homme is a moderately disappointing concoction of synthetics that try way too hard and don't succeed, earning it a "below average" 2 to 2.5 stars out of 5 and a modest avoid recommendation. This one was a blind buy gone bad, I'm afraid.
ManCam
Elysium
