Acqua di Giò Absolu Instinct 2019

Acqua di Giò Absolu Instinct by Giorgio Armani
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7.6 / 10 186 Ratings
A popular limited perfume by Giorgio Armani for men, released in 2019. The scent is woody-citrusy. It was last marketed by L'Oréal.
Pronunciation Limited Edition
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Main accords

Woody
Citrus
Spicy
Fresh
Aquatic

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes Top Notes
Italian citrus fruitsItalian citrus fruits Marine notesMarine notes
Heart Notes Heart Notes
PatchouliPatchouli
Base Notes Base Notes
EbonyEbony

Perfumer

Ratings
Scent
7.6186 Ratings
Longevity
7.3162 Ratings
Sillage
7.0162 Ratings
Bottle
8.0183 Ratings
Value for money
7.271 Ratings
Submitted by eBOSS, last update on 31.07.2023.

Reviews

7 in-depth fragrance descriptions
9
Bottle
7
Sillage
7
Longevity
9
Scent
Leimbacher

421 Reviews
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Leimbacher
Leimbacher
Top Review 17  
The most sensual coke ever?!
A flanker of a flanker. Yeah, these are the times we live in. Luxury (problem) or bullshit? Let everyone decide for themselves. Personally, I like completely new releases more and more and would like to see more quality instead of quantity, more courage as a habit, more genius as a brand, that more time is taken and more daring and thinking is done. Do this attitude and the bad experiences with superfluous flankers change something about the fact that I like "AdG Absolu Instinct" very much? No!

Salty beach games meet a warm woody, ripe Coca Cola - that's my overall impression of this little player. Synthetic - but to my taste. Ebony - but not dusty or old-fashioned at all. Youthful and sweet - but never sticky, sugary or annoying. At least the week I could wear it. What you can almost call a long-term test in my case. Not power amplifier as if Son Goku shines blue, but still a kind of legitimate successor of the "Magnetism for Men". Instead of Coke Cherry - Cola Wood. Not a real Acqua di Gio, once again a bit of name fraud - and still a treat. The patch backbone lends gentleness, the sweet woodiness gives the impression of a refreshing drink, and the citrusy sound of the sea on top gives the name at least some raison d'être. The smell itself has more than enough for me anyway.

Flacon: woody, valuable, Armani, great
Sillage: because of its undeniable synthetic it is quite wide and almost penetrating - but it lies down quite fast and becomes almost stylish...
Shelf life: 6-7 hours mouth

Bottom line: this is a love-or-hater, no question. Where I stand should be clear. An agile mixture of the aquatic DNA and a (hardly sticky!) cola. Sexy, tasty, young, modern. And yet, at least that's my first and second impression: not cheap or interchangeable. The sweet tooth of time and yet different. Salty caffeine. Wow!
3 Comments
7
Bottle
6
Sillage
6
Longevity
6.5
Scent
Fresh21

52 Reviews
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Fresh21
Fresh21
Top Review 17  
WANTED 2.0 ... or the laughing third party :)
Take Wanted's freaky ginger-lemon and Wanted by Night's spacy cinnamon-tangerine, add an aquatic wood note to the two Azzaro synthetics and spice it up a bit. And the Wanted arbour 2.0 is already knitted (even with wave bath;)

Here the details:

First 5 minutes of great citric, not as strange as Wanted, ... different, better, but not less unusual. This is soon joined by a spicy cinnamon (?) fruit aroma that could be borrowed from the Night Edition of Wanted. And right from the start there's a bit of aquatic on board, which has nothing in common with the original. A rather unusual brew, but for me a bit too synthetic and loud. Fortunately, this calms down after about 30 minutes, and another quarter of an hour later the AdG AI has finally grooved in. Because now the soft aquatic has grown to about half of the fragrance impression. In addition, the citric appears reduced and somewhat sweeter, while the cyber-cinnamon has also shrunk to a healthy size. Why this bright spiciness is not listed in the pyramid I do not understand ...

Basically, the fragrance gets better and better throughout the whole process, albeit slowly, and especially from the second hour. Although the synthetic is still present then, it is no longer disturbing, or even shapes the scent character in a positive sense. The now clear aquatic character enters into a harmonious symbiosis with the unusual spice citric of the Wanted mixture. Very extraordinary, and therefore at least worth testing for all those who like rich aquatic as well as aromatic synthetic scents like Wanted. Because the combination of these two directions is really unusual, even if not mine.

What I only faintly perceive, however, is the wood of the fragrance, which at most after about three hours sometimes flashes up slightly acidic and dark as such from time to time. Because otherwise I can only detect it in the mixture of the aquatic plants, but not as a clearly identifiable wood note.

Nevertheless, the fragrance has a lot to offer, at least for fans of fancy synthetics: a distinctive blend of sweetish citric, soft aquatic, aromatic spice and a little wood in a fairly linear flow. Yes, it has something ... but not for me ;-) Nevertheless, there's no denying that the fragrance smells quite good after about 2.5 hours, and after another one I'd even give it a 7.5 because it becomes milder, softer and more harmonious. But while it already starts to recede from half arm length to very close, this Armani says goodbye after 5 hours at the latest even on my most durable shirt into projection-off (that's why the currently relatively high H+S values of the community of up to 7.5 are a mystery to me).

Conclusion: Although I rate this flanker only 6.5, Wanted only 5, and Wanted by Night only 4, so for fans of these two Azzaro fragrances, AdG AI might be a recommendation if you extrapolate the distance ;-) Even if I think it's only so-so, I think the reduction of the Azzaro Wanted fragrances in favour of a distinctive wood aquatic effect is the better concept. And that's why Armani's Absolu Instinct is for me a

WANTED 2.0 ... or the laughing third :)

12 Comments
10
Bottle
7
Sillage
8
Longevity
8
Scent
Micha1984

29 Reviews
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Micha1984
Micha1984
Very helpful Review 13  
Gorgio's Acqua di cola
After all the offshoots of the Adg series, I have now come to this one. Why? Because this one is the most original fragrance in the line for me... It reminds me strongly in the opening of a fresh Coca Cola with a thick slice of lemon and ice cubes in it. For me very unique, because I personally do not know any other fragrance that smells like that. For me, this one has a slight touch of the original, but in the whole process it is independent. It manages to do everything right, which was totally wrong with the normal Absolu... Because this one was just too linear and boring in the course of the story, which was slowly but surely getting on my nerves. Also Profumo was not my thing, because it seemed too dark and too heavy for me... The original is an icon, but it was turned down so much that it is only a shadow of itself now. Personally the instinct comes in handy.

But about the fragrance itself...
As mentioned above, this Armani in the opening actually smells similar to a fresh cool Coke mixed with a strong lemon. The aquatic DNA of the original resonates gently in the background. The sweet tart lemon remains present until well over the middle, where woody and maritime notes join in. In the base I use mainly ebony, which makes it soft and warm towards the back. The durability is very good with 4 sprayers at 8-9 hours. In the first 2 hours it projects very well and you are definitely noticed. After that it flattens out, but still lies well in the nose.

The bottle is an absolute feast for the eyes and definitely one of the most beautiful I know. The combination of gold and brown perfectly matches the fragrance. Golden yellow lemons meet dark and heavy ebony. The cap, which by the way is made of wood, is also a nice detail. It has a beautiful embossed pattern which makes the Falkon look even more elegant.

Conclusion, with this scent Armani could win me back. Scent, bottle and durability are convincing throughout. Those who don't know it yet should definitely try it before it disappears again (because it is limited)! It is a horny scent!
6 Comments
8
Bottle
7
Sillage
8
Longevity
7
Scent
DonJuanDeCat

658 Reviews
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DonJuanDeCat
DonJuanDeCat
Top Review 12  
It could be a little uphill again!
Hello folks, here I am again and describe the newest fragrance of a actually beautiful fragrance series, of which I was disappointed by last year's Flanker and could not believe what Armani had brought out. We are talking about the Acqua di Giò series, which in itself is very beautiful, but with the fragrance Acqua di Giò Absolu had reached the absolute (ho ho wordplay! :D) low point, at least in my opinion.

This wasn't because the fragrance had nothing new to offer, but was so synthetic that it made the whole fragrance look so cheap that it seemed like a better shower gel to you (or me). So bad was the Flanker of 2018, that I was quite sceptical about the new Flanker here, especially because here the by-name "Absolu" is still in the name. And, of course, because the bottle was still suspiciously full, but this was because the tester bottle stood behind the entire packaging of the fragrance, while all the other versions stood in front of the packaging.

All who passed by these Armani scents reached for the older Absolu and sprayed themselves full from top to bottom, while I laughed myself one inside, since the poor guys were about to smell extremely cheap-synthetic. I couldn't warn them either, since they had perfected the method of "passing by a scent and spraying themselves excessively with it" in the meantime, so that I couldn't "intervene" any more. Well, I'm not really gloating, but people, ... smells first of all how the smell on your skin smells, argh ... but no, the main thing is that it says Armani on it, then it will probably be good, ... :DD

The fragrance:
The fragrance begins similar to the "normal" Absolu, i.e. maritime and synthetic, but the synthetic is at least in a reasonably tolerable range again, so that you can enjoy large parts of the fragrance if you like the fragrance notes. As I said, the scent is aquatic or maritime (although it is not salty or alginous, which I usually associate with maritime scents) and has fresh citrus notes in the top note. However, these decay quickly, so that the scent quickly becomes woody. It says here that it is ebony, but for me it smells more like cedar, although I have to admit that I don't even know how ebony smells... maybe they smell similar. The wood note is okay and comes across as herb-spicy, and the patchouli, which is not too intense, also adapts well to the woody and maritime smells and in principle it was, because the fragrance is not going through a great development. It smells the same all the time, which is okay. As I said, the fragrance is also quite synthetic, which in my opinion one could have done without, but this synthetic is much less annoying to me than the previous fragrance.

The Sillage and the shelf life:
The Sillage is quite good, so that you can smell the scent without getting too close. I also found the shelf life very good, as it lasted more than eight hours with me.

The bottle:
The bottle is great as always. It is rectangular, but rounded (oval :D) and dark brown. The name of the fragrance is printed on the bottle, at the bottom of the thick glass bottom. Otherwise you can see on the front as always the quite big Aqua di Giò lettering. Since the fragrance is limited, this time it also has a more detailed and more beautiful lid. A very nice bottle.

So that was the new Armani Acqua di Giò fragrance. I'm still not really enthusiastic, but compared to last year the fragrance is not a complete disaster this time, but despite all my criticism it's still okay and therefore usable. Brrr,... if I still think of the predecessor... the Absolu I found really terrible. You know what, man? In Lidl there is currently (because of spring and so on), once again perfumed toilet paper. You man, that's just shit paper to wipe your ass, and even that smells a thousand times better than the last Acqua di Giò scent, that can't be true... :D

Whatever. However, this new fragrance is also far removed from its predecessors such as Essenza or Profuma in both class and olfactory terms. Olfactory because the new fragrances no longer have beautiful herbs, such as basil, sage or rosemary, which gave the fragrances a great note and which came across particularly well with summer fragrances. Now the new fragrances are just more or less cheap looking, almost meaningless main streamers, which you already had a thousand times under your nose, where actually all Armanis are main streamers (except for the Privé fragrances), but that doesn't have to be bad in itself. Well, whatever. We have at least one huge rosemary bush standing in the garden here, so if I want to use this scent, I'll go rubbing myself against the bush (and the neighbours will surely think of me as a strange pervert who stands on trees and such (technical term: dendrophilie and no, don't ask me how I know the expression! D), but hey, at least this would be such an opportunity again to shout "This is not what it looks like"! :DD).

Whether I recommend a test, well... you have to know that for yourself. Actually, I would rather say no and prefer to reach for Essenza or Profumo instead. But on the other hand some of you might like this one a lot, so, yes test :D
Otherwise, this fragrance is an all-rounder for me, somewhat fresh, but also usable in autumn because of the woody notes. Maybe a little banal for going out, but still usable. For me, however, it is better for daily use.

Soo, that's it. I wish you all a nice evening, then see you next time :)
1 Comment
9
Bottle
7
Sillage
8
Longevity
8.5
Scent
Condorpilot1

50 Reviews
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Condorpilot1
Condorpilot1
7  
What does Armani want to tell us?
Instinct told me, "You absolutely must have him!". The head said: "Is that really what makes Acqua di Gio special?".

I have longed for Armanis Acqua di Gio Absolu Instinct for a long time after I had seen numerous videos of American perfume you tubers. The first impressions and tests at that time were positive through the bank away and so my expectations of this release were accordingly high. Dark wood notes paired with the AdG DNA were then said in the videos so more or less - that sounds like a perfume for the evening. Finally, I also see it as an evening scent for cooler days.

The bottle is really nicely made, beside the Profumo bottle for me the most elegant, above all the golden writing on dark brown glass.

The opening is really good citric, in my nose a touch more mandarin/orange than lemon. Honestly I find the opening of Absolu Instinct the best of all AdG perfumes. I just wish these citrus fruits would last longer, longer than 5 minutes aren't in it.

It is quickly joined by discreet sweetness with a wooden character. Maybe it smells a bit synthetic but definitely suitable for mass production. "Ebony" is in the base. Whether that's really ebony, I'll leave it at that. I don't have comparisons with other fragrances with ebony and I don't know too much about the various wood directions to be able to distinguish them all individually. The Drydown is darker and more adult than the predecessor and I like
in spite of its straightforwardness, it is extremely good!

Now the question remains: Did Armani do himself a favor by adding Absolu Instinct to his Acqua di Gio series? With its predecessor Absolu, the company has already thrown a product expansion onto the market, which is intended to attract a broader range of customers with its sweet-woody character. Absolu Instinct continues this but for my taste more mature and elegant. And yet I don't really know if the word "Acqua" really fits. Both Absolus are not aquatic-fresh enough for me. I don't have the maritime classic AdG DNA. She flashes at most briefly at the opening. I really hope for Armani that they will not overdo it with (potential) future product extensions of their Acqua di Gio range, otherwise I fear the AdG range will be exhausted very soon.

The perfume had a shelf life of just under 8 hours at room temperature and 5.5 hours in the heat outside. Sillage, unfortunately, a little reserved, could be stronger.

I am not surprised by the better rating compared to the predecessor Absolu. Nevertheless, I consider the predecessor to be too badly rated. But the tastes are very subjective, especially for perfumes!

I would definitely make a test recommendation, because I think most people will like it.
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Statements

6 short views on the fragrance
GuapoGuapo 5 years ago
7
Bottle
5
Sillage
5
Longevity
5.5
Scent
They are damaging the image of a classic with these countless flankers.
What else will they invent, around the name AdG?
1 Comment
DPArtistDPArtist 5 years ago
8
Bottle
6
Sillage
7
Longevity
6
Scent
Mash-up of ADG Profumo and Absolu, comes across as if trying to be like Azzaro's superior Wanted By Night. Not horrible but seems pointless.
0 Comments
Topfpflanze3Topfpflanze3 2 years ago
8
Bottle
7
Sillage
7
Longevity
8
Scent
Sweet fruity character with a slight saltyness accompanied by dark ebony woods. More sophisticated and darker brother of the Absolu
0 Comments
JMWeedJMWeed 2 years ago
7
Bottle
7
Sillage
7
Longevity
6.5
Scent
A darker cola scent, reminding me of Coke Black from a long time ago. The ADG character is present, but this just doesn’t blend well to me.
0 Comments
JayNayJayNay 3 years ago
Had a sample and tried it. As horrible as Profumo. Had to scrub it off. Thumbs Down.
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