I Quattro Elementi - Fuoco Paolo Gigli 2009

Red. The color of warmth, of heat alike, the color of passion, of a fiery temperament, of love, of life. But it is also the color of power and the color of danger. Red always stands out, red cannot be overlooked.

I like red. Very much. It stimulates me, warms me up, invigorates me, gives me energy. And also strength: with red, one is seen and regarded, and one must be able to endure that, especially if one is not the center of attention.

So Fuoco caught my eye, the bottle so red, so magnificent ...! However, a bit too playful with too much embellishment for my taste (gold ornamentation! Rhinestones!), to please me unreservedly, but indeed wonderfully vibrant bright red and with a very pleasant feel.

In the preliminary comments and responses, I read "Cool Water," and - how devastating for a fragrance in this price range - "Fa Deo." Well, my own nose must take a look and form its own judgment!

Fuoco begins with a strongly sillage-rich, juicy, fruity-aromatic note that indeed bears a resemblance to Cool Water. Since I quite like the scent of Cool Water (apart from the fact that it has become so overused), this doesn’t bother me much. Lavender is distinctly noticeable and adds a friendly, soft elegance.

Fiery is not the case here at all, and I can even share a bit of the "Deo" association, which, as I suspect, is due to the slightly sweaty spicy note that meets the concentrated fruit. Just as if the (so often fruity-freshly scented) deodorant hadn’t quite kept the sweat at bay. A rather masculine sweat, I should add here ;-).

But that is not unpleasant, not overpowering, not cheap or even disgusting. And soon flows into the red: the rose opens up. Yes, a velvety, lush, red rose unfolds, spiced fiery, pepper clearly, rosemary less so, and the other flowers take away some of the overly dominant rose without me being able to recognize and name them individually. And I swear: I smell oud. This woody sharpness, dry, very dry, and yet deep, paired with rose: not such an unusual combination, and it fits here with the impression of elegance, restrained sensuality, class, and sovereignty.

The ignited fire now crackles upwards; yet not suddenly flaring up, the flames grow stronger, it becomes hotter, drier, smokier, "redder." The scent warms me well, even without sweetness, and makes me kneel before its calm, reserved, yet palpable masculine dominance. It is beautiful! Here I am warmed to the core, the scent holds me firmly without suffocating me with a sweet, tight embrace. It has something distant yet close, and behind the controlled distance burns the fire, bright red, hot. The fire of passion? Of power? Of love?

Whichever it is: it draws me in magnetically, just as the color red magnetically attracts me, just as fire has always drawn people in.

Slowly, Fuoco takes on a sweetness. I sniff a fine honey sweetness, slightly powdery, delicious, finely balanced, amber-like, not exaggerated. Gold-red comes to mind, rather warm than hot, and the oudy rose is still beautifully intertwined with it. This now gives the whole a stronger feminine touch, muted and softer, supple like flames that become a warm glow, from whose sight one does not want to turn away and one does not want to remove one’s body, so beautiful, so beautiful ...

Fuoco is a fragrance whose uniqueness lies behind the prominent fruity notes. It requires an understanding of the noble, fiery red behind the rhinestone bling-bling and the warm, dry, mature strength behind the sweaty deodorant.