White Musk Montale Eau de Parfum

I have been looking for a good fragrance for a while now, one that I can wear in casual settings or at the office, a scent that is clean and fresh while not overwhelming my surroundings too much. Ideally, something floral, not citrusy, and also unisex.

A classic in the market for an office environment is, from the designer corner, Prada L'Homme, lovingly praised by the German YouTuber "JF" as "the best soap fragrance on the market with a luxury touch." Yes, Prada L'Homme smells great, but it lasts almost zero on my skin, which is why my search for a scent with a comparable profile began. With Montale White Musk, I may have found what I was looking for. The fragrance DNA of White Musk and L'Homme is by no means comparable; just a glance at the fragrance pyramids makes that clear. However, what they do have in common is the "type" of scents: gentle, pure, floral, like freshly washed laundry.

I really have no idea what pure musk smells like. I even read that some people cannot perceive musk at all. Musk is often found in the base notes of perfumes, and I have always wondered what exactly musk smells like? White Musk seems to enlighten me a bit, as (white) musk is supposed to be a significant component here. First of all, the scent is very clearly white-floral in its character. The linearity of the scent progression does not seem to be a problem; this makes White Musk as a perfume easy to understand. Although Montale, especially due to its affinity for oriental fragrances, often brings real powerhouses to the market (-> Oud Blablabla), White Musk belongs to those that are more restrained. However, restrained here does not mean directly intimate; at least for the first hour and a half, the scent projects noticeably well on my skin.

With a sweet-floral and very subtly animalic note, I would describe this musk, the longevity of Montale White Musk is noticeably extended to up to 8 hours (which feels about 8 times longer than Prada on my skin). This very note makes the fragrance a unisex scent for me, which is fundamentally somewhat feminine due to its floral-soapy nuances, but I, as a man, would definitely wear it too.