ITX

My girlfriend recently bought "Her Choice" by La Rive, and I was really impressed by how closely this dupe resembles its counterpart, Armani My Way. Unfortunately, it's not quite as easy with AdG Profondo. La Rive offers nothing useful, and Azzaro Chrome Extreme was sold out everywhere. By chance, I discovered Liam Blue Shine by Lattafa, which most reviewers also describe as very similar. So I immediately ordered a bottle!

The good piece is delivered in an absolutely exquisite and huge box, which makes the simple outer packaging of the original look ridiculous. The bottle is blue on the front, while the rest of the bottle is transparent. The liquid is gold-yellow, and the cap and sprayer are golden. So I already give design and presentation 9 out of 10 points!

Much more important than the packaging is what’s inside. So I treated myself to 2 strong sprays on my neck right away and was initially really astonished - the Profondo DNA is clearly noticeable, citrus freshness with aquatic notes - perfect!

However, what follows in the heart note surprised me quite a bit. Here, the fragrance takes a completely different direction and gives the Profondo scent profile an oriental character. The rosemary is dominant in this phase, but I also think I can smell cumin and cloves, which makes the fragrance - despite its summery start - a perfect winter scent.

The end is then almost identical to the original. Moreover, the fragrance doesn’t last too long, which is of course primarily due to the price. Nevertheless, I was more than positively surprised by the overall package and will rock this scent as my office daily in the coming winter. While I certainly appreciate the similarity to my favorite Profondo, it was precisely those minimal deviations that make this fragrance so special for me!

Although I have always liked AdG, my standard luxury fragrance in my youth was always Code. By now, I can no longer stand the latter, whereas I have grown increasingly fond of the AdG DNA as I age.

Recently, when I ordered a bottle of My Way for my girlfriend from Flaconi, a sample of Armani AdG Profondo was included. Since I was DJing at a wedding a few days later, I took this festive occasion as an opportunity to try out my new EdP.

Immediately after application, a bittersweet scent of mandarins and grapefruits unfolds. This intense note fades relatively quickly, and now rosemary, along with some aquatic undertones, comes to the forefront. Slightly minty, fresh, invigorating - truly brilliant. The heart note lasts quite a long time and is one of the main reasons why this fragrance currently ranks number 1 on my favorites list.

Once it settles down, a base note remains after many hours that strongly resembles the regular AdG - woody, spicy, and simply masculine. The scent lasts forever and is even more or less resistant to sweat - it was unbelievably hot, and I had to set up and take down my gear at 33°, but I never lost the Profondo from my nose.

Conclusion: not many fragrances manage to excite me for so many hours. The old AdG is already legendary, but Armani has truly succeeded in creating an even fresher and more aquatic version of the original DNA. Bravo!

The fact is: If you've never worn 1 Million while going out, then you've never really gone out!!

Known as the "proletarian water" par excellence, the Viennese clubs of the 2010s were practically enveloped in clouds of 1 Million fragrance. I too fell for the hype and wore this perfume often and gladly while partying. One shouldn't be too modest with the sprays; otherwise, the extremely sweet and relatively synthetic scent quickly faded away. When applied generously, however, the fun lasted all night and covered up some sweat or alcohol odors.

Conclusion: About 2 years ago, after an eternity, I bought a bottle out of pure curiosity, and I was horrified by what my youthful party self had subjected my skin to. I had to admit that I had an extremely romanticized memory of this bro scent, whose most dominant notes are basically nothing but cinnamon and cotton candy!

Adidas Ice Dive was, alongside Axe Pulse and Papa's Hugo bottle, one of my very first perfumes. It offered a significant advantage over the latter two, namely the cool, minty freshness upon application. Although the scent dissipates almost by the minute afterwards, it was always a pleasure to apply it on hot summer days. In short: With this cheap fragrance, the name says it all - jump into ice water, dash to the shore, and back out of the water. There's no need to even start talking about H/S with this scent, yet it is somehow iconic and almost a legend among us 90s kids!

I have been wearing perfumes since I was 12 years old. At first, I secretly used my dad's Hugo, which felt somehow too "heavy" for me as a teenager due to its extremely spicy-leathery note. After going through pretty much every Adidas EdT over the next 5 years, I felt just before my 18th birthday mature enough to try a real designer fragrance with a bit more depth. So off to Douglas I went, sniffing my way through the olfactory garden. Suddenly, amidst all the Boss and Armani fragrances, I discovered a true gem that would accompany me on my journey to adulthood: Jil Sander Pure for Men. It was literally love at first sniff - the fruity-summery top notes, combined with the woody-bitter finish, convinced me right away. I easily went through about 15 bottles until one day I painfully learned that this EdT, which had accompanied me throughout my partying and bachelor days, was discontinued. And it may sound clichéd or cheesy, but somehow a part of my youthful carefree spirit also died that day. I was now an adult, had to (not just) evolve in terms of fragrance, and say goodbye to my "just go with the flow" self. Even though I have since found numerous pleasant scents that suit me and highlight my character, I sometimes catch myself staring longingly at my perfume shelf, murmuring to myself, "a few spritzes from the good old rectangular bottle would really do you good"....