BLurreD

In 2022, I was in green D for Mother's Day and was looking for a women's perfume.
In the end, it was one from Versace.

However, the saleswoman packed a sample of this Eau Givrée for me, and my first thought was: Oh no, you don't really like TdH anyway.
I usually stored most samples in the center console to test one here and there. Just like this one.
In the summer of 2022, it was finally this one’s turn:

And my first thought was: Wow, it’s like I just peeled a lemon. But there was something else - something icy that came to the forefront through the juniper berry and the pepper.
The DNA of the original TdH was thus also present and always noticeable.
However, the freshness here is the first "scent" and lasts quite a long time for such a fresh fragrance.
I wore the scent for about a week (mostly at work) and felt fresh the whole time.
My colleagues liked it too, as I didn't overdo it with the spraying.

However, the tester ran out quickly, and other samples and my standard fragrances came back into play.
I've never used a sample so long until it was empty. So, I liked the scent - subconsciously.
And that feeling lasted for weeks, months afterward...

Two weeks ago, my colleague came by with the original TdH, and I caught a whiff of that TdH DNA.

In that moment, I knew: You have to get the bottle. But of course, the flanker Eau Givrée.
Said and done, and the scent is now in my closet, and I’m wearing it at work in about 23 degrees outside.

I can't imagine a better scent right now - because I really "missed" it. This cool citrus freshness with a green/earthy touch.

And that was exactly 2 years ago.

When I was in Frankfurt with my girlfriend before the Corona crisis, we literally sniffed around in the Faber-Castell store on Zeil. For those who don’t know: Faber-Castell is a stationery manufacturer, from pencils to colored pencils, etc. - what makes the stationery heart beat faster.
Of course, it also costs quite a bit more -> It is one of the premium brands.
Since I assume that everyone has been in a stationery store at some point, one knows the smell of fresh wooden pencils, that scent of wood and pencil leads (graphite).

Exactly, this is what Silver Mountain Water reminded me of in the heart note. However, not the cheap pencils that, for example, linger in old boxes in the attic after school.
But rather high-quality, handcrafted, and exclusive pencils - which are expensive. Just like this fragrance.
(Additional info: A pencil box with over 150 pencils was displayed, in collaboration with Karl Lagerfeld. Luxury case - for over €2500 - luxury at its best)

The association with a roaring mountain stream only hit me when spraying it, the freshness and purity it contains.
Exactly this purism of pencil boxes, where each color of the pencils is arranged precisely. In rows and lines. Order. Cleanliness.
Not the dirty, painted, and scratched pencil case where the pencils lead a miserable existence.

For me, the scent is again a realization that fragrances revive encounters, events, and places.
In this case, the trip to Frankfurt.

But that doesn’t mean that when you spray it, you smell like a walking luxury pencil!
But luxurious and elegantly beautiful!

I ordered the fragrance - since I really like Aventus and Tuscan Leather, and this one supposedly smells like a blend of these two well-known scents according to comments and reviews.
Done - finally arrived from the UK. I immediately checked the bottle, which is standard for Alexandria:
“Leather - Pineapple - Birch” -> These are probably the main ingredients of this mix, which are prominently displayed on the bottle.

I immediately sprayed a puff into the room and smelled it.

“WOW - what a scent” - was my first thought and I was thrilled.
The fruity pineapple was perfectly balanced with the woody & slightly scratchy birch. No trace of leather. A strong Aventus touch!
With the second spray on my wrist, the association with Aventus immediately came back to my mind. Very strongly reminiscent of it - but why is Tuscan Leather missing?!
In comparison, I also have the “dupe” of Aventus in the form of Rasasi’s “Pour Lui” (Zebra) - which smells quite a bit more synthetic.

After that, 2 sprays behind the ear and off to the acoustic band rehearsal. In the car, the scent lingered in small clouds in my nose - but altered. You can sense a bit of sweetness, and leather -> Finally, Tuscan Leather emerges.
Very subtly in the background, I noticed the scent throughout the evening and found the interplay of the two notes of fruit and leather very good.
However, a nice anecdote at the end of the evening: a colleague came closer to say goodbye and asked, “Why does it smell so much like incense sticks here?”
My answer: “That must be me.”

And yes - this smoky, sweet-woody undertone of the fragrance, which is stronger in the air and in the room than the fruit -> does remind one of typical incense sticks.
But there are differences too.

All in all, it is a very good fragrance - high quality and worth the money. Longevity is a good 6-7 hours.
Did I expect more? -> Yes, something seems to be missing. Something that makes the scent unique. But how can that happen with the two role models....

It was a blind buy - since the reviews for such a newly launched perfume were quite good.
I also really like GUESS as a fashion brand (especially the retro line), which is why I dared to order it this way.
For 24€/100ML, you can't complain.

The opening of the scent was very dominated by mint and pepper - which made it come across very intense and sharp in the nose. After this concentrated initial cloud settled,
the fragrance pyramid became more apparent. You can smell some vetiver as well as ginger - however, no molecule of tobacco reached my nose.
There are some similarities to EROS to a certain extent - however, the pepper is too strong here, which is why the sweet aspect of Eros never really comes through (which some might actually like).

The sillage is okay - but not overwhelming, which is certainly a plus.
In the drydown, I like the scent the most, as all the fragrance notes work very harmoniously together and create a well "shaken" cocktail that doesn't clash and will please everyone.
Longevity for me was 5 hours (before I showered). So actually okay - I would have given the scent maybe another 1-2 hours before it would only be perceptible very close to the skin.
However, in my opinion, it lacks something special, the class that makes the scent appear high-quality. Thus, the fragrance aligns with its "brand" GUESS among the usual mainstream suspects.
A Hilfiger, Burberry, and the like could have also released such a scent.

My blind buy rating would be a 7.5/10. Price-performance, however, a 9/10.

I received the fragrance as a gift at the tender age of 18. With a deodorant stick! That was 14 years ago. And I still have the fragrance. There are still about 20ml left in the bottle (100ML).

The scent blew everyone away at the time it was released. You could smell it everywhere. So strong that the scent really lingers in everyone's nose, from man to woman. Everyone immediately knows with the aroma of apple and cinnamon and the good vanilla that it can only be one fragrance. Boss Bottled.
If you ask people on the street which is the most famous men's fragrance, 90% will surely say: Boss Bottled.
From young to old - the fragrance has never disappeared from the scene. Why is that? Although mainstream is often very fleeting and dynamic.

It simply comes down to its uniqueness. The original. The source.

It may not be the best fragrance - but it is well made and simply stunning in terms of longevity and sillage (Batch 2004-2005).

I use it rarely, which is why I still have it. Stored cool and dark in the box, the scent has hardly changed in my nose. But the nose gets older and wants to smell something young from time to time, or rather, have the thought of youth.