Putting Green Omerta

There are plenty of fragrances that are close to Eau Sauvage. There's the excellent Diorella, which continues to delight even after its recent reformulation and differs from Eau Sauvage with a touch of Far Eastern influence (both are from Roudnitska); there's Patricia Nicolai's sensational, distinctly fruitier and jasmine-heavy Vie de Chateau (the old EdC version, the new equally fabulous Intense bears only a distant resemblance to Eau Sauvage); there's Goutal's great, though unfortunately somewhat fleeting Eau du Sud, which Rivegauche aptly described in his instructive comment as "a tribute ... to Dior's Eau Sauvage with a pinch of Diorella," but which I find to have even less complexity. Some also mention Aigues Vives by Galimard, which I also like, but find considerably heavier and ultimately a bit leatherier.

And then there's Putting Green by Omerta. Available for a small price, coming from the Omerta label, which aims to recreate well-known fragrances and has, in the vast majority of cases I know, spectacularly missed that goal; think of the total failure Stand In Woman, which lags behind the original Very Irresistible by Givenchy as far as a dung heap lags behind Montblanc; think of the Cool Water violation Beach Call for Men, think of the disgustingly synthetic, overly sweet Clouds of Love Man, which at best caricatured A*Men / Angel Men; think of Stand In, which - a particular sacrilege! - records the legendary Azzaro pour Homme. I cannot comment on Golden Challenge and Sensible Man, as I already dislike the originals (One Million and Le Male).

So I expected less than nothing when I first sprayed from the small sample that a kind fellow perfumista had included for me - and was more positively surprised than almost ever before. It has all that made Eau Sauvage great and what has become a reminder of days of past greatness in the last years of reformulation: the citrus opening, the spicy, airy heart, the mossy drydown. Putting Green is somewhat weaker in projection than the not particularly radiant Eau Sauvage, but has the same longevity. Despite all its restraint, it is significantly more voluminous than the flatly reformulated wild little water in the last version that came under my nose. Differences from Eau Sauvage are noticeable, but not large. Since I could hardly believe what chance - or the generosity of the esteemed colleague - had played into my hands, I conducted several test runs. After wearing it four times, I ordered Putting Green and will wear it this Christmas. To the delight of my mother, who feels "reminded of something" (my grandfather wore Eau Sauvage for decades), accepted by my scent-averse father ("nicely subtle"), praised by my partner ("finally something fresh"), and to the envy of my brother ("Where did you get that?"). Anyone who likes Eau Sauvage can safely take the plunge with a blind purchase, especially since it doesn't cost the earth (around €9 in total).

Thanks to A! You were right, excellent.