ScentSlave
Helpful Review
8
hmmmm….
…. Different indeed….
Not for everyone, and NOT for beginners.
Everyone is asking for something that isn’t “mainstream” and Cartier is giving its take on something “different”.
Right from the start, the people that it won’t appeal to are going to KNOW it. The opening is definitely very different than what most designers have been trying. This caught me off guard as well, as I’m so used to designers having their either sweet or soapy approaches introducing themselves immediately.
The immediate opening smells like that feeling you get when you swallow that FIRST SHOT of a good, strong bourbon/whisky/scotch. Not what it smells like from the bottle, but the FEELING you get in the back of your throat/upwards toward your nasal cavity when you take the shot. THAT’S what I’m talking about. That passes, and it’s quickly followed with a dark, musky and smoky feeling, almost coffee-esque vibe. It kind of reminds me of when elementary schools had a “coffee lounge” where the teachers would gather and be themselves before school, and during recess and lunch. (The teachers playroom, if you will). Remember that room, but think of it back when the teachers were allowed to smoke cigarettes in there as well (yes I’m old). Now remember that coffee-breath+smokers-breath feeling that resonated throughout those types of rooms? That’s what I get here. A quick kick of nostalgia that I didn’t even know I would remember.
Semi sweet, smoky, MATURE, and unique. When I say breath, don’t mistake me for saying it’s a bad odor, because it’s not. I honestly get the feeling of those “administration only” rooms that only adults were allowed into in the mid-to-late eighties. There was a resonating scent that would remain there even after work hours, but when the coffee was hot, and the smokers were puffing, it become louder and louder, and that’s what I see here.
That scent remains as it dries down into the mid, and an Antaeus/Jules feeling musk slowly emerges, but lightly. Very much present, but not loud. It then becomes sweeter and sweeter as time progresses, eventually settling into a burnt caramel that feels very similar to Gentleman Reserve Privée.
This feels like a modernized take on an old school, musky scent. If Antaeus was created in todays society, this is what it would be.
It has an authoritative, very masculine feeling, but I think a woman could easily wear it as well. The visual I get here is a 35+ year old administrator (like a superintendent). It has a very strong masculinity, but when I close my eyes, I see a female wearing it. She has all the power, and her fuse is short. No one knows her true personality, and they all fear her. She only exists to them in the professional world. No one has been inside her house. That is what this feels like.
Performance is modest; projecting 1.5ft or less in radius, and the sillage trail isn’t loud either. People WILL know it is you, and that you were there, but in a more “intimidating” way. (Footsteps in a carpet more so than a sillage trail). Longevity is fantastic, however, as it maintains its humble performance for over 9+ hours.
This isn’t bound to a suit and tie environment either. A decent polo and slacks would work too. Just be professional, and you can pull it off. I think it would work well on a smoker as well, to be honest. It would “clean up” their aura, and add a color to it.
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