Is rose a flower whose scent any man can wear? Is the character of the rose not rather feminine? Or what about floral fragrances in general?
Who could determine or generally establish that? These are already heavy questions that certainly won't find all-encompassing answers here.
As for me, I had my difficulties with rose. Not simply as a man or because I generally struggle with florals. Rather, because they just gave me headaches. Rose in
Alexandria II Parfum, rose in
Casamorati - Mefisto, rose in
Oud Republic, all fragrances that I find really nice for 10 minutes and then have to wash off. It's nice that there is a great alternative to
Alexandria II Parfum from Gritti, with iris instead of rose. But good alternatives aren't always easy to find. I had already given up on rose, with the small consolation that rose just doesn't suit me that well. Then I was able to test
Radical Rose Eau de Parfum and the extrait.
Strangely, the headaches are absent with
Radical Rose Extrait de Parfum and the OG. It is not an overwhelming, but rather a fresh and spicy rose. It is the spices that make it light. It doesn't sit heavily on the skin due to the saffron and the slightly cooling patchouli, but rather feels sparkling and weightless. The extrait might be a bit heavier than the OG, but still consistently pleasant.
Additionally, the immortelle gives the rose a slightly resinous quality. It doesn't appear dark red but rather golden-amber. And so I can wear it well when I'm in the mood for rose. For special occasions, but not in my everyday life. By now, I also get along with
Stricker and there I also find saffron that lets the otherwise heavy bloom float. So…
No, there hasn't been an absolute radical shift to rose. I will probably remain a rose skeptic, but if I want to smell rose, then I will take this one. It's a pity that there are no 30ml bottles at Matière Première. That would have been enough for my lifetime, especially because of the pretty good performance.
The brand seems to have already passed its hype wave, but with the extraits, they have taken a significant step in my opinion. I also really like the bottle design. Let's see if a leftover bottle with 20-30ml appears somewhere in the souk.
Thank you for reading this far.
Best regards, Andi
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