Ginger Widian 2024

Widian has already convinced me with several fragrances; "London | Widian / AJ Arabia", "Aswan | Widian / AJ Arabia" and other bestsellers like "Sahara | Widian / AJ Arabia" have shaped the brand very well. Often, however, the brand tends to have more "heavy" scents or rather cold-weather fragrances, apart from a few newer ones that cover transitional phases.

With "Ginger | Widian / AJ Arabia," Widian has made a significant step towards fresh scents, why? Let's get into it!

- "Ginger | Widian / AJ Arabia" starts with a beautiful citrus explosion, really juicy bergamot and lemon create a sparkling feeling with the slightly sharp ginger! Underneath, a hint of green from the magnolia emerges, and a minimal sweetness from the violet, but everything still remains in the fresh context with the citrus.

- After that, the fragrance gains a woody-earthy creaminess in the drydown, but don't be alarmed, the scent doesn't become creamy; this citrus-woody aspect still predominates, just a bit creamier.

- The longevity is brilliant, I expect nothing less from a freshie, really solid. The performance is also very good in terms of projection, top at the beginning, then more skin-close, but we know that from other freshies (I would have given 7.5 for projection, but unfortunately, that's not possible).

Now to the exciting question, how does the scent compare to other freshies?

- "Ginger | Widian / AJ Arabia" has a similar top note to "Afternoon Swim | Louis Vuitton," "Aqua de Dora | Pana Dora," "Mahina | Parfums d'Elmar," "Le Gemme - Tygar | Bvlgari," and "Vibrato | Sospiro." Yes, they all share this fresh citrus opening, hence the initial comparison to these fragrances.

- Afternoon Swim has a significant similarity throughout the fragrance development from my perspective, only that the citrus in "Ginger | Widian / AJ Arabia" is a bit more vibrant and brilliant, and the scent performs much better. Additionally, Widian adds a small floral-creamy twist here.

- Vibrato and "Ginger | Widian / AJ Arabia" have a similar start, but Vibrato becomes significantly powdery in the drydown and does not go in this slightly woody-creamy-floral direction like Widian. After a few minutes, there are already noticeable differences after the opening.

- Aqua de Dora has a similarly fresh opening, but not as sparkling. Moreover, Aqua de Dora goes in a different direction in the drydown with this distinctly noticeable chestnut note and the generally dry-woody DNA.

- "Le Gemme - Tygar | Bvlgari" has a more elegant citrus and an ambrox-based woodiness in my nose in the drydown, yes similar, but it also lacks this floral-creamy-woody drydown that characterizes "Ginger | Widian / AJ Arabia."

In this respect, "Ginger | Widian / AJ Arabia" is already distinct if you know the fragrances in detail and can pick out these nuances. Personally, I like this touch in connection with the performance; at least currently, "Ginger | Widian / AJ Arabia" is clearly my favorite from this comparison.

I did not bring Rosso Pompei into the comparison because it is simply too overpowering, even though it goes in a similar direction with the citrus at the beginning, but the difference is already much greater in my perception.

Well, definitely worth a test!