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Havana Gold Dries Van Noten 2025

8.0 / 10 57 Ratings

A new perfume by Dries Van Noten for women and men, released in 2025. The scent is spicy-leathery. The longevity is above-average. It is being marketed by Puig.
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Main accords

Spicy

Leathery

Sweet

Smoky

Resinous

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Liquorice

Mandarin orange

Star anise

Heart Notes

Benzoin

Tobacco absolute

Cinnamon

Base Notes

Roasted tonka bean Cypriol

Cypriol

Leather

Perfumer

Jordi Fernández

Ratings

Scent

8.057 Ratings

Longevity

8.147 Ratings

Sillage

7.646 Ratings

Bottle

8.947 Ratings

Value for money

5.930 Ratings

Submitted by Paulinasa, last update on 11/06/2025.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Smoking Hot

Reviews

5 in-depth fragrance descriptions

09/27/2025

10Scent 8Longevity 9Sillage

NectarA
12 Reviews

NectarA

Cigars and a night full of stars

I’ll admit it — Havana Gold had me at licorice, anise, and tobacco. Some of my favorite notes! There is a delicate tobacco touched by a light smokiness and soft suede. Moderate projection and longevity. Unisex, maybe a bit masculine leaning but it works really well on my skin.

It is such a smooth composition, perfect for cool evenings when you want warmth and depth without weight. Not groundbreaking, but there is something comforting about it. Dries Van Noten did it again. Great addition to my collection.

07/30/2025

8.5Scent 9Longevity 7Sillage

Yuuki
44 Reviews

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Yuuki

Top Review 16

Dries van Noten's take on Smoking hot

Yay, a licorice scent in a beautiful bottle!
That was my thought when I saw the release.

So I got a sample and off we go-

I know the smell... where do I know the smell from...
after I sprayed all the licorice and anise scents I have, it came to me...
Smoking hot by Kilian!

About the scent:
Right upon spraying, you get a light mandarin note, somewhat alcoholic.
Then quite quickly licorice and anise, but in a rather nice way.
Probably because soon tobacco joins in, this licorice impression quickly gives way to the leathery part of this scent. The leather, although it stands in the base, is perceptible throughout the entire progression.
Tobacco also clearly runs through the scent progression. Havana Gold is very rounded, and this leathery note recedes into the background after a while.
The drydown is very soft with a distinct tonka bean.

For me, it’s very similar to Smoking hot, but in direct comparison, Smoking hot is "brighter" and remains sweeter for longer. Havana Gold is very soft in comparison and sweetly dark.
Definitely unisex, maybe slightly masculine.

Conclusion:
Definitely not THE licorice scent.
But for anyone looking for a soft licorice/leather/tobacco scent that has a really delicate drydown,
this one might be worth a try.
Innovative? - no....
Inspired and well executed? - In my opinion, yes.

08/08/2025

8.5Scent 8Longevity 7Sillage

Rosini
16 Reviews

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Rosini

6

A Fragrance Journey in the Footsteps of Hemingway

First stop: the top note - on the rooftop terrace of La Bodeguita

Our fragrance journey begins in the late afternoon in the old town of Havana. The cobblestones shimmer in deep shades of red from the heat of the day. We sit on the rooftop terrace of La Bodeguita. In front of me glows a crystal glass filled with ruby-red, sun-soaked mandarin liqueur. Cinnamon sugar sparkles on the rim of the glass. In the background, the Christmas sounds of the Buena Vista Social Club resonate. In a mint-green Pontiac Salmiac, we finally drive through the sun-drenched alleys of the old town. A cooling breeze gently brushes through my cinnamon-golden hair.

Second stop: the heart note - tobacco field in Vinales in the early evening

In the midst of the still brightly lit tobacco plantation, we meet a farmer with a truly spicy sense of humor. His skilled hands carefully roll the golden-brown leaves into cigars - no lighter, no smoke, just the reverent silence of the ritual. He meticulously arranges the finished artworks on a barrel in Kilian style.

The end of the journey: the base note - Finca Vigia, Hemingway's residence

In Hemingway's study, the windows are wide open. The walls still carry the warmth of the day. I sit in a buttery soft beige leather armchair, the farmer's gift in hand. I enjoy smelling it. From the kitchen wafts the delicious scent of a nutty tonka vanilla pudding through the door crack. Above the bookshelf hangs a picture of Che Guevara in sepia tones. I get up to admire Hemingway's typewriter by the window. The paper roll holds a slightly yellowed sheet, on which I read: my Mojito in La Bodeguita, my daiquiri in El Floridita. I smile and wonder if these are indeed Hemingway's words. With the paper in hand, I walk through the room, stop in front of Che Guevara's picture, and let my fragrance journey replay in my mind.

Havana Gold is certainly not a fragrance revolution. Perhaps it could have benefited from a pinch of rum(ba) to show more liveliness - very much in Hemingway's style. It doesn't strike me as smoky at all, and I perceive the leather note quite subtly. Thus, the fragrance remains a bit monotonous, without ever becoming too sweet. Yet it is precisely this gentle, finely spiced warmth that makes it a pleasant buttery soft companion that lingers long after.

08/28/2025

9.5Scent 9Longevity 8Sillage

Gyokuro2021
9 Reviews

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Gyokuro2021

3

... where the Cuban gentlemen sleep all day

The night is warm and heavy, the rain has polished the streets to a shine. A bar at the end of the alley, voices like muted trumpets, tobacco smoke hangs in the air. Those who enter here leave reality behind. And just like that, Havana Gold opens up: unobtrusive, embracing, like a promise in the half-light.

In the background, Steely Dan shimmers: from Doctor Wu comes the line "Biscayne Bay, where the Cuban gentlemen sleep all day." But we are not in Cuba ... it is an imagined retreat, a dream that exists only in thought. Havana Gold captures this floating sensation: a subtle hint of heat, tobacco, and old wood, seen through a tinted glass, never directly, always as a reflection.

One might think the streetlights cast their golden light on the wet pavement, while a soft groove pulses in the background. Voices blend with saxophone runs that do not push but caress. Everything has a touch of wickedness; a shimmer in the shadows, a warmth that is barely spoken, and the suggestion of a night that promises more than it can deliver.

Havana Gold is not a longing perfume, but an escape scent. A brief, subtle break from everyday life, like a secret side window into another world. It carries the elegance of distance within it, the hint of a freedom that one never fully possesses, but feels for a moment. Each breath brushes like a fleeting kiss, a warm shadow on the skin that cuddles without demanding.

Those who wear it do not really travel away. But sometimes, it is enough to inhale this scent to let time flow more slowly. Havana Gold thus becomes a small, fleeting feast for the senses: sensual, elegant, mysterious. And like a Steely Dan song that lingers in the mind long after the music has faded.

08/24/2025

9Scent 9Longevity 8Sillage

Jarok
13 Reviews

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Jarok

Helpful Review

Havana Gold - my personal favorite

Havana Gold by Dries Van Noten is a fragrance that I have truly fallen in love with. It sounds so fascinating that I keep returning to it - and right now it is my absolute favorite.

The first thing I notice is noble tobacco - not dry and not harsh, but soft, almost velvety. Alongside it are zesty sparks of mandarin that add freshness and liveliness to the composition. And then the true magic unfolds: warm, slightly sweet anise with a licorice undertone, embedded in a rich, dark infusion of black tea.

This combination gives a feeling of luxury and comfort at the same time.
It feels like sitting somewhere in Havana, surrounded by gentle twilight, filled with the scent of tobacco leaves, fresh citrus fruits, and a steaming cup of spicy tea.

For me, Havana Gold is a fragrance that fascinates, envelops, and hypnotizes.
That’s why I call it my mood fragrance, my inspiration fragrance, and my undisputed favorite this autumn.
p.s. The bottle is, of course, unparalleled - like all bottles from this brand. An aesthetic pleasure.

Statements

26 short views on the fragrance

IllParagraph

15 days ago

9Scent 8Longevity 7Sillage

2

Alluring, sensual and cool. Licorice-dominant opening that transitions to leafy tobacco & leather in the mid with a lovely tonka close out.

Liberrita

1 month ago

8Scent

1

I want to lick it - it's so delicious. I hate liquorice but I love this. Very intriguing for fall/winter. Unisex yumminess

NoraBalsamic

2 months ago

1

If you like liquorice you will like this.
I don’t like liquorice so I don’t like this.

bouffant

3 months ago

7.5Scent

1

Leathery. Very leathery. Sweet and spicy. Masculine. Really nice and easy. Smooth, not screechy. I'm a fan.

Theris

1 month ago

8.5Scent 8Longevity 7Sillage

29

26

Mandarin smiles
Star anise in the night sky
Sprinkled with cinnamon sparkles
Relaxed Cubans
Rolling mild cigars
With licorice threads
On a leather surface

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