Oero27

After I noticed the announcement and read the fragrance pyramid, as a lover of spicy-warm scents, Boss The Scent Elixir for Him was a flanker that piqued my interest again after a long time…

So, after the info “Now available in our store,” I eagerly marched towards testing, sprayed it on and… was practically disgusted. Yuck! -I was overwhelmed by a penetrating, incredibly loud, and very fruity sweetness of ripe mango!
But we all know: Everything takes time and should also have its time to develop…

After a few minutes, this penetrating “initial blow” quickly faded away and -Wow!- rolled out a fruity-spicy note of allspice and red pepper. In the first 15 minutes, the scent is still relatively fruity and fresh, but it continuously and purposefully moves towards the spice, and the lavender also becomes slowly recognizable as a floral-powdery companion, gradually becoming more present. -A beautiful and linear transition; just the way I prefer a fragrance development.
And that’s exactly how the scent continues to develop: The spiciness slowly decreases but remains noticeable, while Boss The Scent Elixir for Him becomes sweeter, warmer, and softer, finally arriving at its sweet-powdery and slightly spicy-woody base and taking root.
The beautiful fragrance development is really very well balanced, blessed with very good longevity and sillage. -Always present, but never more intrusive and loud.

Except in the height of summer, I perceive the scent as a suitable “everyday fragrance” for the adult man.
Spicy, sweet, and powdery, flanked by subtle woody and slightly resinous notes. But neither too spicy, nor too sweet, nor too powdery.
High-quality, mature, and elegant. And confidently a bit different from the others.
And definitely my next “must-have”!

…Mama Habit Rouge EdP.

70% Papakind, but Mama always walks proudly and present, smoothing out the boy's rough edges a bit.

And in the morning, the boy still has quite a bit of power! Especially the pepper, in what I find to be an unusually “fruity form” here (which I find fascinating), really shouts out under the watchful eye of the violet that keeps an eye on things in the background! Yes, he wants - just like Papa - everyone to know: “I am here!!!” And he undoubtedly succeeds; the sillage in the first 15 minutes is enormous for two sprays! One is truly surprised and tries to dose a bit more appropriately next time… And is curious about how he will develop as he gets older.

By midday, however, the guy has already lost some of his energy. His morning sweat has dried and developed a wonderfully floral powderiness. Here I smell more violet and jasmine. The soft light leather pants are clean and freshly washed (thanks, Mama!), and in some pocket, the guy has hidden green vetiver, oddly resinous in scent…

Yes, the guy has character! And many character traits! (Just puberty. Everyone is trying to find themselves in some way.) Some are completely unexpected, some not in this form, and a few quite familiar like with all “these” guys. Does it work? - One might think of a hyperactive autistic person with epilepsy after pondering this too much? But no, it fits! It all fits together perfectly…

In the evening hours, he has already become more of a man. He is older now; and gets quite tired early. (He didn’t get that from Papa.) Quite a shame! - He has captivated our fascinated attention all day long. The leather has darkened a bit, still soft and without the edges of Papa's much older leather pants. He has taken the now dried vetiver out of his pocket and cheekily and proudly hung it up in his room. And he loves vanilla! (Another strange character trait. It actually smells a bit feminine, doesn’t it?)

“Mama, I’m going to sleep soon. Just as early as you. Papa is tinkering away in the workshop until 2 in the morning anyway.”

I like the guy!!! :)

I had, to be honest, high expectations and great anticipation when I first tested the new Bleu Noir perfume. -Because in my optimistic imagination, I envisioned a heroic autumn king…
And the test gave me - No, (unfortunately) no euphoria. No, (thankfully) no resignation. But: SURPRISE! And indeed a very surprising surprise…

‘You know this one, don’t you?!’ was my first thought; surely not unknown to many of us. ‘No, THIS cannot possibly be!’ the second, louder thought; also familiar to some of us. Luckily, there is a Rituals store not far from the turquoise D. -So, straight there for a parallel comparison, once left and once right… Thought number 2 grew louder and throughout the evening and what felt like 14,378 scent tests from various distances and angles (certainly an amusing sight for everyone that evening), thought number 2 transformed into the realization: Yes, Bleu Noir perfume is a Rituals Roi d‘Orient 2.0

And indeed a more mature Roi d‘Orient; rounder and more distinguished, with better sillage and significantly better longevity.

Cardamom is present from the start and remains so throughout. The citrus aromas of the top note throw themselves into the fray very enthusiastically, but they quickly abandon their initial claim to dominance within the first 5 minutes and retreat; just like the entire top note. Bleu Noir perfume develops quite swiftly into a gentle all-rounder that prefers to stroll in autumn…
I actually do not perceive any leather aromas, ever.
Cardamom, on the other hand, is the dominant note of the fragrance. As mentioned: Always present; yet wanting to overshadow everything else, but rather acting like an experienced director subtly in the background, holding all the strings. The emergence of musk and iris on the scene is cleverly and very pleasantly woven in, just like its departure and the start of the longest fragrance chapter: tonka bean with its woody neighbors. Perfect harmony hand in hand. Guided by cardamom, of course, with style and experience…
The powderiness of the iris remains - guided by the stylish and experienced director cardamom - present from then on.

Short conclusion: For me, Bleu Noir perfume is a pleasantly powdery, slightly sweet yet subtly woody fragrance. As already mentioned, an all-rounder for the autumn months. Good H/S, beautiful and valuable bottle, reasonable price. But somehow also familiar.

As a brief side note, I would like to mention: I cannot locate any association with the color blue in the fragrance development. (Possibly because I am "comparatively biased"…?)

Yes! - And indeed overripe yellow pear in at least the 4th power… And that in transatlantic alliance with equally ripe pineapple. All other fragrance notes are, if at all, only rudimentarily perceivable with a bit of imagination. Because they are simply "overlaid." Only the vanilla makes itself known again in the drydown and brings a bit of ambry (and in this case pleasant) sweetness with it.

Both longevity and sillage are - at least for my sample - to be placed in the lackluster midfield. Transatlantic striking power farewell… I cannot agree with the common assessment of the H/S of this flanker either.

In my perception, Ultra Mâle is simply a very fruity and sweet unisex fragrance for the leisure of the U20 generation in the warmer days of the year. Clearly too fruity for winter. And definitely too expensive for perfumery.

When I reflect on and compare reviews I have read here and my own perception of a fragrance, I often ask myself: Does the intuitive "top" or "flop" have such a significant influence on the detailed fragrance perception, are perceptions generally so significantly different, or are they simply the samples...?

Ultra Mâle, in any case, is a first-degree polarizer.

“Dad? Did you buy the shower gel with Darth Vader?” - That was actually the very first reaction when I gave the scent a chance outside the germ-free confines of the perfumery. And there were unexpectedly many reactions… The most telling one came from a bewildered and usually rather reserved colleague. “You usually smell so good.” was her feedback delivered with a noticeable frown. Every single comment was in some way a thumbs down, and Acqua di Giò Profondo gets one from me as well.

The beautiful linear -if somewhat uncreative in my eyes- composition of the fragrance notes sparked my interest in a fresh-woody summer scent with the potential to be a summer “go-to.” And it was disappointed.

The bergamot that dominates the opening remained dominant, like an emperor who tolerates no resistance. Yes, there were a few rebel alliances; but they were all hopeless.
The mandarin in the top note did indeed try and was noticeable; for about one or two minutes. Suppressed.
The cypress also tried to ally with the lavender; but detecting the two’s struggle required closed eyes and a bit of imagination. In my perception, rosemary didn’t even show itself anymore, not even with closed eyes.
In the drydown, the bergamot finally found its Darth Vader in the amber and obediently let itself be carried on by him…
And unfortunately, there’s also:
1. All of this -with as much imagination as possible employed to create some kind of fantasy realm for the scent in my mind and thus its justification for existence- is always, very reliably always, associated with the term “shower gel.” And:
2. For a newcomer on my skin, it has decent longevity and sillage.

But the simple fact with the keyword “body chemistry” certainly has its justification, as it is practically a natural law. And the comments show, fortunately in the majority, that other body chemistries can smell better with Acqua di Giò Profondo than the two of us can.

I’ll give this missed opportunity another chance this summer with the very first Acqua di Giò. - Because it is a reliable summer “go-to.”