J'adore Intense Dior 2026

It is astounding how almost all the new releases of a perfume house can be so consistently shit. Dior is not broke; and perfume has high margins. With their prices they can afford to be at least passable in scent.

This perfume manages to be too juvenile and too mature at one. Cloying sickly sweet apricot and dusty cheap florals, just awful. The recent Dior glow addicts that smell like cheap candy gasoline, the mid Miss Diors, just bleh (Miss Dior Essence is ok but it better be for that price), and the Dior homme reformulation into another fragrance.

Anything that isn't garbage gets thrown into their private line, which at this point just drop your regular line and sell that instead if you're so determined to punish non private line buyers. Any spark of creativity or anything interesting cannot be in the regular line as they are greedy and believe that they can coast off the Dior name alone.

If you do want something that isn't an assault on your nose, you need to pay double the price (because GOD FORBID the poors be able to buy something that doesn't smell like a suspicious temu dupe from the house of Dior).

The sheer greed and disdain for the customer exhibited by Delphine Arnault and Francis Kurkdjian is almost comical.

I now believe that Kurkdjian was infiltrated by a gray eminence at Dior to destroy the brand at least in its perfume segment.
My evidence: Take a 10-euro note. The side with the portal, not the bridge. It says ECB nine times in different languages. Nine! So many letters as Kurkdjian has!!!!!!!!! Next to it is the European flag with its twelve stars. Francis + Dior (twelve!!!!!!!!!!1!)

If that isn't enough evidence, test this J'adore here. While l'Or three years ago was still a perfect jasmine scent, this one teaches you to hate Jamin and the J'adore line.
Pissy white flowers... Once you've survived those, a really musty note comes in (is that supposed to be the apricot? I don't know either). At least it didn't last very long on my skin today in the spring-like warmth. Good.

Okay, die eingefleischten J'adore Liebhaber werden sagen, was ist denn hier schief gelaufen...die typische DNA weg...ich bekomme die volle Dosis cremige Aprikose, Ylang Ylang macht ihn zum Sommer J'adore. ...einige werden wieder sagen viel zu süß, Wespenmagnet...aber nach einigen Minuten ja da kommt die Verwandtschaft doch zum Vorschein, blumig, würzig. Bitte sparsam dosieren. Das Opening hat es in sich. Einen Flakon würde ich mir definitiv nicht zulegen. Aber für Tage an denen mir nach Aprikose Überdosis ist, erfreue ich mich an dieser Abfüllung...und die Urmutter aller Flakons winkt zum Ende doch noch erfrischend würzig mit einer Rose und vertreibt den dichten Ylang Ylang Schleier. Alles in Allem, ein sehr dichter, fruchtig blumiger Duft, ich korrigiere jetzt die Jahreszeit! Tragt ihn besser jetzt...gut gegen Grauschleier!

From this more intense version of J`adore, I actually expected a more elegant, somewhat deeper interpretation. However, on my skin, a very dominant, honey-sweet direction quickly develops, which strongly characterizes the fragrance. The apricot note is recognizable to me, but it comes across as a very, very overripe fruit - almost syrupy. The pronounced sweetness brings to mind images of falling into a barrel full of overripe apricots: the sweetness is simply overwhelming. The scent therefore feels very gourmand and noticeably heavier than expected. The typical lightness and elegance that I associate with J´adore is unfortunately absent here. Instead, there remains a sweet, honey-like presence that lingers for a long time. Surely, this opulent, fruity-sweet interpretation will find many fans. However, for me personally, it is too honey-heavy and too lush to truly enjoy.

I am completely flabbergasted. What was Dior's new chief perfumer thinking with this pathetic creation?

This scent smells unbelievably cheap to my nose. 1990s in a drugstore, back shelf... Yes, I believe that unfortunately sums it up best.

But how does it smell then? Actually exactly as indicated in the pyramid.

* Fruity
- peach iced tea-like
* Floral
- cloying ylang & rose
* Vanillic
- a dollop of sweet vanilla sauce on top

Creamy sandalwood is unfortunately the only note I can't detect at all.

Longevity & sillage I find to be good to very good. But you know that scents you don't like always seem to be atomic.

I must unfortunately say that the new J'adore L'Or (2023) Essence de Parfum does not quite suit my taste either. It's a shame that so many great fragrances are being discontinued and replaced with trivial or characterless ones.

In the end, of course, it's always a matter of taste. Please feel free to test the fragrance yourself. Everyone has different preferences.