Hugo Woman Hugo Boss 1997 Eau de Toilette

In Plato's world of ideas, there is surely a perfume lying around that smells like "perfume itself." It just sits there and smells like perfume. More cannot be, because it must remain the idea of "perfume itself."
It is probably by Hugo Boss.

The round "Hugo Woman" illustrates where the image comes from that Boss fragrances are absolutely interchangeable and bland, to the point that it is annoying. I don't know a Boss scent that isn't at least very pleasant. Pleasantry does not always mean lack of creativity. But here, unfortunately, it does. The nasty part is that Woman, besides this interchangeability, has something that really annoys me, instead of a nose-catcher that elevates the 0815 scent (as happens with Femme or Ma Vie).

The opening is still quite okay. A little citrusy, but not too much. And something subtly aquatic. Like a glass of still water. It refreshes if necessary, but it lacks the fizz. Then comes the equally sour, yet artificially scented apple. And that is the note that annoys me. It has something of cleaning products or air fresheners, but way too sour. Something floral that becomes vanilla-sweet over time drifts aimlessly in the background. Very unclear and washed out, yet also smelling even more artificial. The woody base (same here) is only noticeable if you know it is there.

Sillage quickly becomes skin-close. Longevity about 5 hours.

In summary, what comes out here is so exceedingly interchangeable that it is very hard to bear. I really don't always need a mega noticeable scent. Even something simple can certainly excite me. The problem here is probably this interchangeability in poor quality. With a simple scent, it is important that there are no disturbing off-notes. No room spray associations, no plastic, etc. Unfortunately, that did not work here at all.