Peppernator

Short and concise answer to the question in the title: NO, it is not!
And now for the longer answer to the question:
Esencia EDP (not to be confused with the EDT, which smells completely different and only has the same name as the EDP) is a fragrance that goes in a green-woody direction and also smells slightly fresh despite the woody notes. The association with Aventus comes from the fact that the top note is somewhat reminiscent of Aventus. However, after 30 minutes to an hour, the fragrance develops in a completely different direction to Aventus. While Aventus tends to go in a fruity, 2010s mainstream direction, Esencia has more and more green notes. To me, the fragrance smells like a classic gentleman's scent that has been modernized and doesn't smell old-fashioned at all. It reminds me of a walk in the woods after visiting a barbershop. If you're looking for a masculine, fresh fragrance that's suitable for everyday use and yet is far removed from the "blue" mainstream, Esencia is the perfect choice!
Longevity is solid - it lasts about 80% of a classic working day. Silage is okay - not too weak, but also not too strong and therefore absolutely suitable for the office. The fragrance can be worn in any season and for me it is a men's perfume and is less suitable for women. My only criticism would be the shape of the bottle. I have a 50 ml bottle and it tips over now and again due to its long, narrow shape. You have to be a bit careful with it. On the other hand, I think the bottle feels very high-quality. The Loewe logo is engraved on the lid and on the spray head and I also think the spray head is very good and very smooth, which balances the whole thing out.

Gritti has probably jumped on the fruity-oud hype bandwagon and created Mango Aoud. At the moment, many fragrances are in vogue that combine dark notes such as leather/oud with a fruit - keyword "London | Widian / AJ Arabia" "Oud Maracujá | Maison Crivelli". With these fragrances, the dark scent tends to dominate, whereas with the mango aoud, the fruity scents tend to dominate - we also know this from "Purple Accento | XerJoff" or "God of Fire | Stéphane Humbert Lucas", for example. As I really like this scent, I was really looking forward to this fragrance! The idea of combining oud with mango... why not? It worked quite well before with other fruits.
But compared to the fragrances of the competition, I find this one quite chaotic. It doesn't smell quite balanced. It's almost as if the fragrance hasn't been fully developed yet and we're smelling the first draft of the fragrance. At times, I smell a lot of the more synthetic fruit, then I only smell the floral notes, then only the oud - and it doesn't really harmonize. The oud is slightly animalic - I don't find it as bad as some claim. Longevity is solid, you should be able to get by with it for a regular working day.
Basically, I think the fragrance is overhyped here - in the end, you get what it says on the bottle - namely mango and oud. I definitely recommend testing the fragrance!
As a little tip: If you are looking for a better interpretation of mango and oud, then I would recommend the "God of Fire | Stéphane Humbert Lucas" - although significantly more expensive in terms of the ml price, it is also much more balanced and pleasant to smell.

Hello everyone!
I've been curious about the "Tony Iommi Monkey Special | XerJoff" for a while. I love fragrances that combine fruity elements with dark notes - such as the "Sapphire Collection - London | Widian / AJ Arabia" or "Oud Maracujá | Maison Crivelli". As the Xerjoff is so well ranked, I had high expectations of it. Unfortunately, these expectations were not met.
I give the opening of the fragrance a clear 1/10 - it is very harsh. Somehow there were very strong alcoholic vibes. After about 10 minutes it got much better, but not particularly good (4/10). I had associations with a leather couch on which a rum-passion fruit mixture had leaked, which dried out after a few hours. Only after about 1-2 hours does it become wearable and quite pleasant (7.5/10). The interplay of rum, leather, passion fruit and caramel works surprisingly well. However, you first have to "struggle" through the opening in order to smell pleasant. I would therefore not recommend the fragrance or would spray it on 1-2 hours before going out.
The performance is great, it easily lasts the whole day. From an artistic point of view, the fragrance is great - that's how I imagine a rock star in a leather jacket drinking a rum and passion fruit cocktail after a 2-hour show and spilling a little. But I wouldn't want to smell like that in everyday life or on a date!

...this fragrance would be created here. The base DNA reminds me of the Spearmint chewing gums of that time mixed with the Big Red chewing gums from Wrigleys.
Even though no mint is officially stated, I can definitely detect it.
The fragrance starts off quite fresh, but then moves more and more in a mossy, cinnamony direction and becomes heavier. For me, it's a fragrance for spring and colder summer days. I dare to doubt whether it will work in midsummer. But you'd have to try it out first, it's hard to say at 2 degrees outside temperature in January 2024.
With this fragrance, too, you can tell that Widian has mastered his craft. You simply notice the high quality and how well the individual fragrance notes work together. They have also managed to create a certain depth in a fresh, rather summery fragrance. Chapeau to Widian!
I also think it's great that a fresh, minty, summery fragrance has been added to the Sapphire Collection.
The price is quite high - everyone has to decide for themselves whether they are prepared to spend €5/ml on a rather fresh fragrance. This is also difficult to judge in winter, perhaps it only unfolds its true magic at 25+ degrees outside? I remain curious! :D

Turin 2023, a tennis match is taking place on a beautiful, sunny spring day. The flowerbeds are in full bloom, the first bumblebees are flying from flower to flower and a light, fresh breeze is blowing past. Standing at the entrance to the tennis stadium, you can see the first wealthy guests from Turin arriving just in time for the match.
I have this moment in my mind's eye when I smell the fragrance.
It is a very beautiful, floral and fresh fragrance, with neroli dominating at the beginning. There are light woody and spicy notes in the background, probably due to the patchouli, cardamom and woody notes. You have to like neroli to wear the fragrance. At first, the neroli also made me think of Tom Ford's cologne or Neroli Portofino Forte. For me, it's an old-money fragrance with a modern twist. It has something vintage about it mixed with something modern.
Torino 23 is a fragrance that you can wear very well in spring and fall. In summer I think it's a bit too strong, maybe you can wear it on cooler summer days or in the evening. The performance is also very good for a rather fresh fragrance. It easily lasts around 6-7 hours.
This fragrance has not reinvented the wheel, but it is still very nice!
The price is currently 180€ + 20€ shipping for 50ml - I think the price is too high for the fragrance, but it's just a Xerjoff, they are usually always a bit more expensive.
The bottle is a 10 out of 10, very elegant, very chic and also very sporty with the line design. A very suitable fragrance for a tennis tournament.