Valentino Uomo Born in Roma Purple Melancholia Valentino 2026

I felt a little betrayed by this one. Just smelling right through the atomizer, you REALLY get the coconut sweetness. Just in that way (I guess smelling the vapors just coming off the juice) I was reminded of course of Le Beau Le Parfum. A deep, creamy-sweet coconut. I was excited at that point, because Le Beau LP and Paradise Garden are two of my favorite fragrances, and coconut follows as a favorite note.
HOWEVER, on skin--that Coconut gives way in the opening immediately to the cardamom. I knew cardamom was in here, and I know on my skin and for my tastes, it can be polarizing. I didn't think it would be THIS prominent. It's really in your face, and since it's literally the only top note, I feel like nothing is balancing it out. So yeah..for me at least, the opening just isn't appealing. Too simple, and too heavily spicy.

Why a one-note top? I'd have LOVED to get that coconut again as an open (more of a coconut water) mixed with the spicy cardamom that's maybe slightly toned down. I think about my absolute favorite Valentino--Coral Fantasy. It also has some cardamom in the top, but the opening is SO gorgeous and appealing. Why? Well of course because the cardamom's spice is toned town and both engulfed and balanced out by the juicy apple. If they repeated this technique for Purple Mel. with a fresh coconut note, like a watery one on the top (as opposed to the creamy-fleshy coconut in the base) this opening, I imagine, would have been a 10 for me.
As I'm left yearning for that comfortingly sweet coconut, I wait for what feels like ages through the drydown, and it just never comes. Instead you have to battle through a wall of lavender, in this very basic, linear-feeling transition from spicy cardamom.
Literally imagine a DJ doing a set, who with very little creativity simply does a crossfade from one song to the next, very slowly. Now imagine the first song is just cardamom spice, and the second is clean lavender. It's like fading from a house song into a slow country jam. It makes no sense to me. The spicyness is just weirdly dirty and distracting, taking away from the potential elegant floral-cleanliness of the lavender. If only there was some kind of sweetness that bathed both of these notes that could act like a glue that lets them harmonize (I don't know, maybe coconut?)
While the DJ transitions between these two one-note, noncohesive songs, I'm still waiting for my favorite song: coconut. I've been waiting for ages. I feel like I payed for a ticket to a Tame Impala concert, but the surprise opening act is kid rock and he. won't. get. off. the fucking. stage.
FINALLY, after what I think is close to an hour since spray-on, I reached my hand up to my nose and smiled. It's insane how beautifully that sweet, almost milky base coconut just washes right over the cardamom and tones it down, letting the lavender play a little more with the sugary notes. THIS is what I expected. Why couldn't it be just this for the entire life of the fragrance? Yeah, you could say the whole fragrance is linear if all the notes stay the same from open to dry to base, but you can still have some variation without it being just so fucking WEIRD the way this one is.
Here's how I'll rate it. Pre-coconut hit, its a 4/10. I'm sorry.
After the coconut hits, it's maybe a 7. This is only because it's just not satisfying enough to make up for the strain of waiting for it for so long and experiencing such a distasteful (to me! all is subjective!) wall of spice and lavender.
Do better, Valentino. This feels lazy. A few minor tweaks could really make this formula/profile shine.
Obviously I'm going to do some more rigorous testing and wearing of this one, maybe it'll grow on me. Maybe living with it isn't as jarring of an experience as sort of analytically sniffing my wrist every few minutes to get a really deep feel for the notes. Maybe it was engineered better for that purpose.
Either way, thanks for reading.

This fragrance is in line with what's popular among the younger crowd: loud, creamy , fruity fragrance for clubbing and outdoors.

I tested it for 2 days. It reminded me of a hot, sunny day by the pool. Creamy coconut sun tanning lotion smell for sure. It is incredibly loud for the first 2-3 hours, and it stays on clothes for days.

Once settled, hours later, the similarities to JPG Scandal Absolu is remarkable, almost indistinguishable if it wasn't for the ever-present coconut note instead of the plum.

Age range: younger crowd, 100%.
Occasions: clubbing, beach or pool, outdoors, informal gatherings. Not office safe, not formal occasions.
Weather: I'd say all weather, but careful with the sprays in the hot summer.
Signature fragrance worthiness: very low unless this is your only fragrance.
Originality: zero.

This is something I'd never wear. I'm 49 , and I have no issues wearing Green Stravaganza , which I love. Purple Melancholia is not for me.

Try before you buy.

The scent is sweet and fairly unique to my nose. Coconut isn’t a very common note, which gives it some originality, but it still clearly fits the Valentino DNA. The price feels reasonable. It’s a nice pickup if you don’t already own other Valentino fragrances or similar scents, but otherwise it doesn’t stand out enough. Quality is decent, though it could’ve been better.

I recently received a sample of this very fresh Valentino. It’s always cool to get brand new releases delivered for free. I wasn't quite sure what to think of this Valentino. Of course, the Valentino Uomo line is fantastic, but the newer Born in Roma fragrances have been rather modest and more of the typical synthetic mainstream. I find the Valentino Uomo Born In Roma Intense to be quite strong, while the rest are rather average. Here’s a new release with the great name Purple Melancholia. Does it live up to its name, or is it just one of many? My answer is that this one is quite good, but there are already similar ones out there. The Purple in the name likely refers to the lavender note, which is complemented by coconut. The fact that this release comes out in winter might not be the best timing, but spring isn’t too far off either. With this flanker, I don’t get the impression that it offers something that hasn’t been seen before. It somewhat reminds me of Asad Zanzibar or "Le Beau Le Parfum | Jean Paul Gaultier." Nevertheless, a positive conclusion, as the execution is quite good if you can handle more mainstream creations.

The prices for this release, available in 50 & 100ml, are typically high, but they will likely drop quickly. This is also because it doesn’t have much potential to become a bestseller. The bottle is as good as all from this line, featuring that great texture.
The scent impresses with a sweet-creamy overall profile, which, like most in this line, shows a certain synthetic quality. It’s not completely dismissible here, but it stays within limits and settles into a modern mainstream vibe a la L'Oreal. The lavender note is more synthetic than authentic, accompanied by the typical sweet-fresh addition found in many other current flankers. The coconut note comes in early, bringing some light tropical vibes and a well-groomed creamy aura. Cardamom adds a bit of spice at the start and quickly becomes milder. The base consists of coconut and many creamy-sweet notes leaning towards tonka-musk. Pleasant, but as mentioned, nothing that blows you away if you’ve already tested many brands. The scent is suitable for everyday wear and versatile, regardless of the season. Perfect for warmer but not too hot days, it also works in spring and at mild temperatures.
Performance is quite good, with longevity likely between 8-10 hours. It convinces me and radiates quite well.

Overall, a very solid release, but it’s really nothing new. It’s worth trying and has a fairly modern appearance. I won’t buy it, but perhaps some coconut fans might find something to enjoy here if they don’t have anything in that direction yet.

the Valentino Uomo Born in Roma Purple Melancholia is totally my type - at least in terms of the purple coloring. And "actually" when it comes to the keyword "coconut," an ingredient I appreciate in a Bounty (although I would prefer Snickers, Twix, Mars, and Milky Way), I find it questionable in perfumes, so I step back.

So let's test it and see if we can find some kind of consensus. Sprayed on, our melancholic scent comes across quite pleasingly with cardamom and lavender, along with a slight warm-woody base. However, the coconut doesn't take long to make its appearance. Very creamy, very cozy with a muted sweetness, and not as synthetic as suggested here and there. Even the closer relationship to the entire Valentino Uomo family could be more or less confirmed.

But after a good half hour, I wonder if I would really adopt it. Purple or not, it doesn't really knock me off my chair; on the other hand, it's not unpleasant and doesn't tempt me to wash it off. Personally, I'm missing something. That certain element to keep me engaged and wanting it. Couldn't the coconut have been replaced with something else? Because all I associate with this scent is coconut, less lavender.
If I imagine that instead of coconut, I perceive fig, which smells somewhat similar, it might make more sense. At least the scent is not as artificial as the "Le Beau Paradise Garden | Jean Paul Gaultier."

Longevity is also present, and it projects quite well. The price is also reasonable if you do a bit of research online with the retailers.

Still, I'm far from being shockingly in love, but I'm also not heavily disappointed. Therefore, I think that one day I could adopt it. Because actually, I don't have anything with coconut in my small collection. And actually, it's still undecided ;-)