Mountain Woody Forest Zara 2022

Strolling in a forest, it's afternoon and the weather is comfortably chilly. Between the crisp, clean mountain air, the moss under your feet and the cold lake that stretches before your eyes, something stands out. The proud and resilient, eternally green Pine Tree, a gentle giant. Under the tree, an abundance of freshly fallen pine needles can be observed, inviting you to take a rest. The calming, reinvigorating aroma captivates the beauty of the wilderness, making you feel more and more at home in nature.

I am pleasantly surprised by this perfume. Being and outdoorsy person, I was excited, but also anxious of trying out a pine themed perfume, thinking that It might not fit fit me, I might not like it. This fragrance, however, exceeded my expectations. In my opinion, it perfectly captures the elegance and presence of the pine tree.

The smell is definitely a masculine one, it's bold, but not too intimidating. The feeling that it gives me is that it's inviting, calming, almost addictive, without asserting dominance, fitting of a distinguished, confident gentleman, confident, but still not being too formal, leaving room for adventure. I could definitely see myself wearing it in both the office and out in the nature.

Wow, what's going on here?! I thought to myself when I first sprayed Mountain Woody Forest.
My Parfumo life goal is to find the ultimate forest scent, as forests have a calming effect on me.
Striking the balance between authenticity, capturing the theme, and being wearable is sometimes not so easy.
I've tested several forests, ranging from cheapies to niche fragrances. The reactions from those around me to my field research have been more or less positive at times.

So here I am with Zara, my first fragrance from the brand.
We're dealing with a €20 scent, essentially rated as "synthetic fragrance that captures the forest quite well".

To put it briefly, the forest completely passes me by; at most, you can catch a glimpse of it in a slightly ethereal note at the opening.

Instead, I get entirely different notes, namely those that define the title.
Who remembers the bright green grass lollipops that were often souvenirs from Amsterdam? They contain, of course, (at least mine) no THC and, as I perceive it, do not taste like grass.
I catch this quirky scent in the first 10 minutes, followed by... you might think I'm crazy... Ombré Leather (2018) Eau de Parfum.

At least in principle, because the fragrance releases a leather note that is brightened by my grass lollipop; I get a similar scent profile with Tom Ford, although I suspect that the fragrances would show noticeable differences when compared side by side.
The leather has relatively good longevity, and the scent is interesting to well wearable.
I still have to search for my ultimate forest, but this detour was surprisingly entertaining.