New year, new fragrance, and is there a more beautiful fresh start than falling in love at first sight? Whether Intense Instant Crush lives up to its name, you will find out in my first review for the year 2026. At this point, a big thank you to my 14 followers, whoever you are, because unfortunately, Parfumo does not reveal the followers, so I can only thank you impersonally, but rest assured, I feel honored and have concrete goals for this year, namely to break into the Top 100 most active users for reviews on Parfumo. With currently 138 reviews, I'm not too far off. Of course, this also requires new fragrances, and Mancera makes it quite easy in this regard, as 5x 2ml costs 18 euros and 5x 8ml costs 65 euros. A very fair offer to fully indulge in the brand, and said and done: 16 new Mancera fragrances await me in the near future. So you can now gladly call me Mancera Man or Mister Mancera, alternatively, you can also just skip it hahaha, enough of the intro, let's get to the scent.
Unfortunately, I do not know the predecessor Instant Crush and cannot make a direct comparison, but the Intense variant is said to be darker, bolder, and more hypnotic than ever according to the manufacturer. At the beginning, I perceive a strong saffron note, which definitely shapes the opening and thus one of the three phases of the fragrance. Unavoidably, I automatically think of Oud for Greatness Eau de Parfum with saffron fragrances, which has influenced me so much that a direct comparison usually turns out to be unfavorable for other fragrances, which is clearly the case here as well. However, Intense Instant Crush wants to present more than just a spicy saffron note, and the second phase does not take long to arrive. After a short time, the black leather joins in, and I really like the spicy, leathery combo; it is well done. The second phase of the fragrance remains true to its leathery note for about 4-5 hours until one realizes that suddenly this mix of vanilla/sandalwood/musk breaks through in the third phase. The transitions are wonderfully done and harmonious, and I would generally claim that many more women should dare to approach the scent, as currently, out of the 68 users on Parfumo, a whopping 84 percent are male. I attribute significantly more unisex potential to the fragrance, although I also fundamentally believe that leathery fragrances tend to suit the male gender better.
Regarding performance, I was surprised; yes, the word intense is often misused in the perfume industry, and you get a fragrance that says goodbye after just 3-4 hours. However, with "Intense Instant Crush | Mancera," love seems to have actually put aside the bow and arrow and instead taken the bazooka. This extrait has ignition and ranks in performance on my skin alongside fragrances like "Oud Satin Mood (Extrait de Parfum) | Maison Francis Kurkdjian," as I could perceive myself with four sprays on my neck for over 10 hours. That is absolute Champions League and deserves praise.
The Mancera bottles will probably not win any awards for innovative bottle design, yet they make an elegant impression and have a certain recognition value. I find the bottle design good, but nothing more.
In terms of price, I am completely convinced. Mancera generally offers one of the best price-performance ratios out there, and even with the "intense" Extrait de Parfum variants, they have remained modest in price compared to niche competition. For 120ml, 179 euros are charged. For that, you get a good spicy/leathery fragrance with outstanding performance and a decent bottle, top! And for those who want to test smaller variants first, they can also order these, as already mentioned, cost-effectively as a sample or travel size set.
I have very little to criticize about this fragrance and definitely recommend it. The only thing I am a bit unsure about is the naming, as the fragrance does not have that aphrodisiac effect (at least not on my nose). It is good, no question, but for an instant crush, I wouldn’t rely on saffron and leather. I have already created more of an "Instant Crush" effect with fragrances like "Noir de Noir (Eau de Parfum) | Tom Ford."
