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05/14/2012
Greysolon
74 Reviews
Greysolon
Helpful Review
4
Huh, not bad...
I was shopping at a discount store last winter and found Very Cool on clearance for next to nothing. As I stood before the jumble of boxes on the clearance shelf, scoffing at the idea that it could be any good, I recalled reading a couple of generally positive reviews by bloggers I respect. Given the price, I couldn't resist the urge to test my skepticism. Well, it turns out the reviews were pretty much on the mark. Very Cool isn't bad. I know, that's sort of a tepid endorsement. But while it's far from being a unique fragrance it does have its merits. Chief among those are the thought and care Tommy Bahama has put into Very Cool's creation and production.
Even though I now own a bottle of Very Cool I don't think I'll ever wear it again. It's just not my thing. Hopefully, It will find a good home with someone who digs its retro vibe. However, there's no denying that this is a well crafted, well balanced fragrance. I don't claim to have a very sensitive nose but I swear I can smell every note listed in the pyramid of this otherwise homogeneous fragrance. The bergamot and tangerine retain just a touch of sweetness but the spices pull the tea (bergamot) and citrus notes more to the savory side. The spices also link the citrus to an earthy, slightly peppery vetiver so everything comes together in a balanced, blended fragrance. By the way, Very Cool is labeled as a "cologne spray" but it wears more like a decent EDT.
The Tommy Bahama bottle is another well thought out aspect of the product. It's aesthetically and ergonomically a beautiful design that embodies the company's seaside image. Not only does the concave, convex curve of the bottle bring to mind a billowing sail or rolling wave but that shape fits right into your hand, as well. Even the cap is designed to look like stone or wood polished in the surf.
Now the downside, which is its limited market. Hopefully nobody will take this as stereotyping or ageism but everything about Very Cool smells like it was designed for Tommy Bahama's older core demographic. It's hard to fault them for that; what else would you expect a company to do? Besides, being just on the grayer side of middle age, I'm right in the sweet spot for being a Tommy customer. This could have been your dad's fragrance if you'd grown up in the 60's, which I did. I think if Tommy Bahama had given this unintentionally retro fragrance a twist and didn't play it so straight to their customer base, they might have had something really special.
Even though I now own a bottle of Very Cool I don't think I'll ever wear it again. It's just not my thing. Hopefully, It will find a good home with someone who digs its retro vibe. However, there's no denying that this is a well crafted, well balanced fragrance. I don't claim to have a very sensitive nose but I swear I can smell every note listed in the pyramid of this otherwise homogeneous fragrance. The bergamot and tangerine retain just a touch of sweetness but the spices pull the tea (bergamot) and citrus notes more to the savory side. The spices also link the citrus to an earthy, slightly peppery vetiver so everything comes together in a balanced, blended fragrance. By the way, Very Cool is labeled as a "cologne spray" but it wears more like a decent EDT.
The Tommy Bahama bottle is another well thought out aspect of the product. It's aesthetically and ergonomically a beautiful design that embodies the company's seaside image. Not only does the concave, convex curve of the bottle bring to mind a billowing sail or rolling wave but that shape fits right into your hand, as well. Even the cap is designed to look like stone or wood polished in the surf.
Now the downside, which is its limited market. Hopefully nobody will take this as stereotyping or ageism but everything about Very Cool smells like it was designed for Tommy Bahama's older core demographic. It's hard to fault them for that; what else would you expect a company to do? Besides, being just on the grayer side of middle age, I'm right in the sweet spot for being a Tommy customer. This could have been your dad's fragrance if you'd grown up in the 60's, which I did. I think if Tommy Bahama had given this unintentionally retro fragrance a twist and didn't play it so straight to their customer base, they might have had something really special.
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