DaveGahan101

Florence, just after nine in the morning, in a side street, the sun makes the first houses glow, much still lies in the cold shadow, smoking men in leather jackets - with turned-up collars - quickly disappear
into the countless cafés, the pink newspaper tucked under their arm, you can already hear the characteristic music of coffee grinders and the tapping of the portafilters...the melange with a hint of aftershave tells you something about freedom and enjoying life...you just have to listen closely...you can hear the sweet melancholy of “Stellina dei cantautori” by Luca Carboni...precious...not a tourist spot.

Such or similar images are evoked by Tabacco d‘Autore for me.
So far, I haven't encountered many tobacco scents...real tobacco scents, not sweetened shisha-herod tobacco or pipe tobacco...but tobacco! Creed's Tabarome comes to mind...not exactly a delight either.
Maybe it's good that I don't have many comparisons like I usually do, but can dive straight into the fray.
Tabacco d‘Autore already sounds like an old gentleman's room with creaking floorboards, perhaps just a scent for romantics. It starts fresh, with a
blend most reminiscent of grapefruit, bergamot, or dirty lemon (similar to the top note of Citron Noir by Hermes), but already something warm-spicy lies behind it. Immediately, I have a scent in mind: Avantgarde by Micallef, just not quite as creamy. With Avantgarde (Noble-Chanel-Allure PH), not much happens afterwards. But with Tabacco, it looks quite different.
It does not choose the mainstream path, not the easy way - to push the sweetness more into the foreground - but becomes herbal-bitter, spicier, a hint of sweetness remains, very aromatic. Smokers should take a whiff of the black Lucky Strike for comparison; slight leather nuances also appear. This feels very mature, not necessarily life-affirming, but real, manly, melancholic. In the end, a note of aftershave comes through, which is not unlike Creed's. With Creed, I described it as blunt; here I choose - mature! By now, it’s no longer a scent for 20-year-olds, nothing for the Alder-Digga-Chiller-victims generation, here style comes before(!) sillage.
Conclusion: Not a sky-splitter, not a heartbreaker, not a charmer, solid and honest, very good longevity, the sillage slightly above average.

Everyday usability: 7/10
Comfort factor: 7/10
Wow effect: 6/10
Price/performance: 7/10
Idea + implementation: 8/10

Farmacia SS - a brand that magically attracts me. This is partly due to its medical origins, its centuries-old tradition, and the beautiful bottles (especially the new black ones).

It exudes such seriousness for me, like a family business without bling-bling marketing or any other frills. More "handmade/homemade" and alchemical.
In its sympathetic appearance, it strongly reminds me of Carthusia. Unfortunately, they only showcased their room fragrances at Exsence 2018, so I couldn't fully test the range. But the bottles were a real eye-catcher, reminiscent of Dimple whiskey, great!
So I had to order the samples online. I was vaguely familiar with the anniversary scent 450 from a colleague who usually has nothing to do with niche fragrances, so I was more than surprised when she pulled it out of her bag! So I needed to do a detailed test again!

I'll keep it short, the scent is fantastic! This is simply because I love fragrances like Bois d'Iris (Van Arpels), Bois d'Argent (Dior Prive), Lye (Gabriella Chieffo), or The Woods/New Level (Brooklyn Soap Company).

This wonderful blend of light woods, incense, and powder just appeals to me and evokes a lovely, cozy feeling on cold days.
The differences between the individual scents lie in nuances; Bois d'Iris is the sweetest of them all, The Woods has the wood a bit more in the foreground, while Bois d'Argent features the incense. I like all facets.
The fragrance radiates warmth and elegance from within; everything about it is bright, soft, and sensual. Unfortunately, its longevity (like the others) is quite moderate; after 3-4 hours, it's all over, and the sillage is rather close to the skin from the start, with Van Arpels standing out a bit here. The fact that 450, like the other scents, does not develop significantly is forgiven, as it smells great from the beginning, but I can't overlook the poor performance, as otherwise, it would only suffice as a sofa-cuddle scent. Unfortunately, there are no samples available for the stronger version "Concentrato" to make a comparison, and currently, there is no discovery kit either.
However, the very friendly customer service provided me with a few additional addresses where the fragrances can be found in Germany, apart from the two large online retailers. I will then provide a direct comparison here as an edit. It's a shame that this wonderful and somewhat unknown brand is so rarely encountered in Germany; even in Italy, it is not often found. It definitely deserves a bit more spotlight!

No, it’s not cozy, but I still want to draw a comparison with Kuschelrock (do they still exist?). The albums usually featured beautiful songs that you had already listened to all year long, some of them really overplayed. But it was convenient to have them all on one CD so you didn’t have to keep switching. It’s somewhat similar with Balade Sauvage, a collection of beautiful scents that you probably already know, at least if you’re a fan of citrusy, ethereal fragrances.
As a greeting from the kitchen, Petit Matin serves delicate, herb-fresh lemons with a green-plant-like touch, not particularly sour or zesty, rather morning-shy, tender, lightly creamy.
Quickly, a sweet-salty fig is served as the second course, strongly reminiscent of Figuier Ardent by Atelier Cologne. Very ethereal-fresh, like a single fig tree on a Mediterranean peninsula by the sea; I’ve rarely smelled such a pleasant fig, often it quickly becomes overwhelming for me, especially when it gets too sweet. It often takes center stage too much, occupying your attention so that you no longer notice other fine facets of the fragrance, Ferragamo’s classic is a good example. So, it needs a counterpart, which here would be the citrusy and floral nuances; while they can’t compete with the fig, the slightly woody undertone keeps it in check. Similar fragrances like Fico di Amalfi and Cedro di Taormina partially flow in here.
The sweetness in the background reminds me of ELDO’s Remarkable People; it adds a bit of creaminess and provides further counterbalance. Unfortunately, I couldn’t pinpoint the source.
All of this together smells really pleasant, but it’s just not new.
It doesn’t have to be, though; it appeals to me because it’s simply so easy to wear, without being a soliflore, which can quickly become monotonous and boring. I also appreciate that you probably can’t reinvent the wheel in this fragrance segment. All citrus fruits in the world have been completely squeezed out in every possible combination, even beyond the peel; Atelier Cologne offers a fragrant overview here. What makes the scent then more exciting is its counterpart. Aqua Sextius shows this wonderfully with its oak moss. Of course, Balade Sauvage is more casual and easier to wear.
Similar to Paris-Deauville by Chanel, it conveys this lightheartedness, yes, also a piece of purity, a high level of being well-groomed. Therefore, both will probably have to compete for my favor next spring. Given my pre-existing sympathy for the Dior Prive series, I already have an idea of who will win the game. Even if it can’t measure up to the big fragrances of the Prive line, such as Gris Montaigne, Bois d’Argent, or Mitzah, and I generally don’t like brands and may doubt their inspiration when they release 5 fragrances at once or 10 fragrances in 2 years, I still like it as a perfect all-rounder, a wonderful daytime scent in warm temperatures; in winter, it will probably go down mercilessly.
Here we are already at its major flaw, its longevity.
If I want to express it kindly, it stays with me for about 3 hours, which brings us back to Acqua di Parma level. The sillage is really good in the first hour; a really nice wave of good mood and freshly showered scent comes towards you, but unfortunately, it pulls back too quickly for me, which is a shame. The 125ml should fit very well here.

Everyday use: 10/10
Feel-good factor: 10/10
Wow effect: 5/10
Price-performance: 4/10

EDIT 11.11.18

Thanks to the dear TheScenter, I had another opportunity to test it. He had the impression that it has a feminine note (sample), which doesn’t appear directly from the bottle. My impression was similar; in my sample, which was also used for the comment, I describe a slight feminine note that appears from the heart note. In his test, this note also showed up yesterday, but today in another test, it didn’t, which is interesting how we perceive fragrances differently on different days. I believe it’s not about where the scent comes from (sample, decant, bottle), but simply about one’s condition that day.
For me, it remains fundamentally feminine from the heart note.

Wow, 1994..that was a whopping 24 years ago!! Do you sometimes feel the same way about years that were close to the millennium, that it feels like it was just recently...but it’s actually 20 years ago!?
1994..what a year, people were excessively going to techno and later rave parties, Mayday was a term known everywhere, a term for a whole generation, zeitgeist. Marusha’s Over the Rainbow was an anthem, Hyper Hyper somehow too, which I categorized into the fairground music drawer, just like Cotton Eye Joe or Eins, Zwei, Polizei. Despite the recently passed 80s, it was also a time of love songs, like Love is All Around (Wet Wet Wet), Always (Bon Jovi), Without You (Mariah Carey) or All for Love (Bryan Adams) or the unforgettable Mhhh Mhhh Mhhhh. The birth of many actors, 4 Weddings and a Funeral, The Moving Man, or the still extremely touching Philadelphia with Tom Hanks..the title song by Bruce Springsteen still gives me goosebumps today. Apartheid was history, Nelson Mandela was free again, Ayrton Senna had a fatal accident, people drove a Golf 2 Fire+Ice by Bogner in dark violet or the rich kids had a Golf 3, at least as a special model Pink Floyd...there were more to follow. People wore Diesel Sattle jeans in extra wide and rolled them up a bit at the bottom, Joop jeans with (!) matching denim shirts and wide sweatshirts from Chiemsee, Oxbow, Blue System and the poppers and slightly better Chevignon...and yes, there was Jordan Letschkow (better we stay silent) and unforgettable fragrances like Heaven by Chopard, CK One, Catalyst, Fuel for Men, Issey Miyake pH, Blue Jeans and of course Faconnable..the last two, in the trendy tin cans of that time.
Looking back at music or fashion, it makes my stomach turn today..but oddly enough, that’s not the case with fragrances. Yes, I know, that’s the nostalgic view, everything was better back then and of course the fragrances are loaded with memories, for me of a carefree time when 50 marks were enough for the entire weekend.
Heaven and Faconnable still appeal to me greatly today. I would kill for Heaven today. Back then we thought they were good, but we didn’t make such a fuss about fragrances like we do today.
Faconnable was thankfully re-released last year, why that hasn’t happened with Heaven is beyond me. Faconnable is somehow a fragrance that feels a bit out of time, its strength, character, and longevity are no longer or only very rarely found in that price segment (50-60€), but powerhouse would be too much to say. But back then it was completely normal for fragrances to last easily 8 hours or at least the whole disco night (an important criterion). Faconnable is an unusual mix of freshness, flowers (lots of lavender and neroli, but no 4711), mint, and an extra dose of oakmoss. Fresh-spicy fragrances were very popular back then and not too dissimilar from each other, see Issey Miyake, Heaven, Patou’s Voyageur (great with the ship as a stand) or Ultramarine by Givenchy, but still very unique, today one would say character fragrance. I can’t find any similarities to toilet cleaners, but I can understand why many might not like it. The piercing freshness and the dominant oakmoss and musk base are not to everyone’s taste. I like it a lot because with just one spray of the fragrance, I can rewind back to that wonderful time and enjoy, indulge, wonder, shake my head, sigh.
Sillage and longevity are great, easily 8 hours or more are possible and not much has been tinkered with the fragrance, I can’t recognize any significant differences...the comparison from memory is just too long ago, but I recognized it immediately:-)!

..it is often the hardest! For this often slightly deceptive (first) impression, there are many more examples in very different areas: fashion, art, football, or even with the unmatched acrobats of Cirque du Soleil.
During my first test a few months ago, I immediately thought: yes, it smells very pleasant, but somehow quite mainstream. I would equate mainstream here with ordinary. It was very difficult for me to reconcile the attribute "ordinary" with the purchase price, and it works very rarely in the world of perfume, actually never. The more ordinary a scent is perceived here, the more its price or its "exaggerated" marketing comes into focus, gaining more weight. It is often quickly referred to as a scam, rip-off, whitewashing, and blind following of its followers. Creed is a very popular victim here, as if these 2 brands had invented it;-)!
To get straight to the point, no, I don't have to justify this "mess" and this (over?)ambitious price, because I paid significantly less than the retail price through dear Mynos, so I was never in that predicament, and by the way, good marketing is for me the absolute top class, not necessarily required, but always exciting to observe why how what when works, a case study gladly under apple.com;.).
Anyway, despite quickly putting away the scent card, the fragrance stayed in the back of my mind, it struck a chord without me being fully aware of it.
Somewhere in my subconscious, it was stored and demanded more attention. With every visit to the perfume shop, I had to spray it on, yet I never managed to recall a similar, comparable scent. I tried it with Lumiere Blanche, with El Born, with Palo Santo, with Boy, Bois Dore, and also with Dries van Noten. Yes, everything is somehow not too far off or not completely wrong, but on the other hand, it doesn't quite fit. This wonderful creamy almond note (unsweetened) is absolutely unique to me. Initially accompanied by a 2-minute topping of fresh bergamot, it quickly transitions into the warmer part, warm-spicy, cozy, yes, one might think of Austrian desserts while skiing, but here nothing is filling. Sometimes I accuse Tom Ford fragrances of being overly eccentric, which often excites me, but on some days can be quite annoying. This results in me rarely wearing his fragrances two times in a row. Here it is so well hidden that I would almost claim that the art of omission was applied. This is exactly what stands out in a Tom Ford fragrance; everyone knows his magnificent all-time classics, and you can smell them from hundreds away, giving the impression that something is missing here. Nope..nothing is missing here, yes it appears slim and reduced and a bit simple, exactly that is the art of this fragrance for me. Exactly that is its magic, because it is incredibly dense, intense..yet it feels light.
What I like, which is also the parallel to Boy, is that it develops a masculine edge over time, before it risks becoming a bit monotonous. The edge is slightly herbal-spicy, could be Mysore sandalwood dipped in sage, which for me is always very aromatic-spicy, but also has that creamy melt. The entire fragrance smells incredibly valuable, exalted-nobility, which could be due to its iris-powderiness..this is simply wonderful.
I am sure this fragrance cannot be produced for 50,60 euros, because often this synthetic (fruit) sugar note comes through, becomes sticky, and starts to annoy. It’s like the difference between real vanilla bean and baking vanilla (best seen in the comparison Double Vanille-Eau Mission). Whether it has to cost 270€ for that, I haven't claimed, but for me, it is worth every cent of the price I paid.
The longevity is excellent with over 8 hours, the sillage quite strong, it couldn't have been more. Its great class only shows on cool days; on warm days, it loses its lightness. Chinos, jeans, suit..everything should be possible. For me, another highlight in an already very long line of Tom Ford fragrances.

Edit: 12.07.18
Now I think of another scent relative, Tragedy of Lord George by Penhaligons, which has a slightly milder and more restrained sweetness.