Profumorist

From: [email protected]
Sent: Thursday, September 12, 2019 11:34
To: [email protected]
Subject: Your Product - Hommage à l'Homme



Dear Sir or Madam,

My name is Profumorist and I am an editor of a well-known online perfume review platform. Having tested and appreciated several of your products in the past (e.g., Encre Noire, Encre Noire Sport, and White), I would love to dedicate myself to another one of your products. Namely, the Hommage à l'Homme. A fragrance that I have been able to test several times and which I liked very much right from the start.

However, as I am not an experienced nose when it comes to deciphering individual fragrance components, I would kindly ask you to explain some details and aspects of your product to me. I am particularly interested in information about the scent progression, longevity, sillage, and the bottle.

Thank you in advance.

Best regards,

Profumorist

_______________________________________________________________________________________

From: [email protected]
Sent: Friday, September 13, 2019 08:45
To: [email protected]
Subject: RE: Your Product - Hommage à l'Homme



Dear Profumorist,

First of all, thank you very much for sending your email and for the trust you place in our products from the Lalique Group.

We would like to mention that we were able to enlist Christine Nagel for the composition of our product Hommage à l'Homme. Christine Nagel is a recognized master of her craft and is now the chief perfumer at Hermès, succeeding the great Jean-Claude Ellena.

The top note of our product Hommage à l'Homme is characterized by a fresh and simultaneously metallic-cool start. The main component of our product Hommage à l'Homme, the violet or violet leaf, creates this effect in combination with bergamot and the spiciness of saffron. Violet is not very commonly used in perfumery. Any comparisons with Fahrenheit by Christian Dior, in our opinion, are not valid. With the heart note, the interplay of pepper and pimento leaf adds to this unmistakable fresh-spicy impression, which is further underlined by the violet's slight coolness. Towards the base, oud and musk become more recognizable, adding a slightly animalistic touch to the fragrance.

Extraordinary, noble, classic, and thus timeless. A tribute to man.

Our product Hommage à l'Homme has been designed so that you can enjoy it throughout a whole workday without overwhelming your colleagues.

As you may know, Lalique has been world-famous for its glass art since its beginnings in the 19th century. This quality is, of course, also reflected in our perfume bottles. The design of our extraordinary bottle, made of heavy glass, is meant to evoke the coffered ceiling of the Pantheon in Rome. This coffered ceiling not only served an aesthetic purpose but was also intended to reduce weight and thus the load-bearing capacity, contributing to the lasting durability and stability of the entire building. Our product Hommage à l'Homme is also intended to help lighten the burdens of everyday life and provide you with a sense of freedom.

We wish you continued enjoyment with our products.

Best regards,

Your Lalique Group Germany

Musterstr. 1
50676 Cologne

Tel.: 0221/12345-67
Fax: 0221/12345-89

Please check whether this email really needs to be printed!

I have an interesting history when it comes to fragrance preferences. I was born in 1980. Accordingly, my fondness for perfumes began around 1994. I wore CK One, CK Be, Cool Water, and Tommy Cologne. But I also cherished treasures like the old Havana (which I now own again!), Fahrenheit, What about Adam, or Azzaro pour homme. In the 2000s, I wore everything that the local Douglas had in stock from Calvin Klein, Hugo Boss, Baldessarini, Kenneth Cole, and the like. Fragrances that today make me wonder: "How could that happen?". And one thing upfront: sweet scents are not really my thing. Le Male, 1 Million & Co. Not for me.

Then I discovered Dior Homme for myself. It must have been sometime in 2012. A sweet scent that I liked?! And what a scent it is. A richness of facets and a quality impression that I had never experienced before. Probably no surprise, given the background. This wonderful fresh-powdery-sweet lavender with a generous portion of cocoa. And in the drydown, mixed with vetiver. A unique combination. Noble, elegant, and suitable for all occasions. For me personally, alongside Terre d’Hèrmes, it has the best drydown of any perfume. Plus, it has very good longevity and almost perfect sillage. All packaged in a pretty stylish bottle.

The Eau de Toilette. A fragrance by a master perfumer. And the best of the line. Still worth its weight in gold for Dior. The cash cow that, commendably, hasn’t been milked as much as other manufacturers might have done.

The price of its success is merely the frequency with which you perceive it on others outside. But even that will settle down one day.

I hope that with this comment, I have sparked the interest of skeptics of sweet-powdery fragrances to give it a try. It truly is something special.

If we continue this community in 20 years, we will probably look back on this vintage with the same longing that some people do today with fragrances like Zino or Antaeus. And we will be able to say: "We were there."

Best regards

Your Profumorist

Once upon a time, there was a famous German fashion house that decided, albeit a bit late, to launch its first perfume in 1985. A scent that still matched the spirit of the times back then. Even though the refreshing wave of Green Irish Tweed, Cool Water, and New West was already on the horizon. And as it often goes, this creation was for decades the best thing they produced.

First, I want to clarify that I do not perceive any animalic notes, no sharp sweat smell, and certainly no rest area toilet here with Number One. What you smell at the beginning is the herbaceous freshness of aftershave, with a good amount of honey already present. In the middle, there are very delicate floral undertones. Just as was typical for a classic men’s fragrance of that time. In the end, the mossy-soapy-leathery notes come through more and more. And still supported and accompanied by honey.

The whole composition is wonderfully balanced, rounded, and has above-average longevity and scent development. Fresh, leathery, mossy, and a bit tobacco-focused. Classically masculine in a positive sense. Timeless.

Perhaps it is the interplay of honey and caraway that leads some to perceive animalic notes here.

Boss is a clear scent of the 80s. Not a “I choose green-eat vegan-and ride my bike to work” fragrance. It is no longer trendy. It is not adjusted for the year 2019. It is not reserved. It does not want to hide. It does what it was made for. Stand out! Maybe that’s why I like it so much, as I generally have little interest in trends. And no, I have nothing against greens, vegans, or cyclists.

I think it’s great that something like this is still available today. And at a very affordable price. If you were to bottle it in brown apothecary bottles and write Tom Ford on it, you would pay triple the price for half the content. And before the TF devotees scream here, just test the Arabian Wood. Just for comparison.

So honestly: Anyone who occasionally needs a change from the modern waters should definitely give this one a try. It’s worth it.

Regards

Your Profumorist

Schoork, my friend! What you can do, I can do for a long time already ;-)

The 90s. I spent them between my tenth and twentieth year. I started high school. I graduated. I fell in love for the first time, got drunk for the first time. I experienced my youth with them.

The 90s were Guns n Roses, Nirvana, REM, Rage against the machine. Oh yes, I never really thought Bon Jovi was cool. "November Rain", "Black Hole Sun", "Smells like teen spirit", "Losing my religion" and "Killing in the name of". They were also Snap!, Dr. Alban, Haddaway. Techno and Eurodance. Top of the Pops. Brit-Pop. Kelly Family and the seemingly countless number of boy bands. Hyper Hyper and somewhere over the rainbow.

The 90s were parties in the Rhein-Rock-Hallen and in the Tarm-Center. They were Smirnoff and Kleiner Feigling. Lots of Kölsch, lots of schnapps, lots of nausea.

The 90s were also Game Boy, Super Nintendo, Super Mario, Sonic and Doom. Ego-shooters on the PC. Beverly Hills 90210, Melrose Place, Baywatch, Diddl, Tamagotchi and the G-Shock.

In the 90s, the Backstreet Boys were still freely available on MTV, Jasmin Wagner was still Blümchen, you couldn't go without the 501 from Levis or the Eastpack backpack, tattoo chains were still in, platform soles were still fashionable and the boys wore bomber jackets and the bleached middle-parted bowl cut.

The 90s were also, for me personally, Müngersdorf. The old stadium with the tartan track. Pierre Littbarski, Icke Häßler, Bodo Illgner, Morten Olsen, Toni Polster and of course Mucki Banach. Definitely a different vibe.

What does all this have to do with this fragrance? To be honest, not much. Except for the completely misleading name, the new Cool Water reminds me of a scent we wore in the mid/late 90s. It might even have been a fragrance for women back then. Unfortunately, I just can't remember it for the life of me.

First, one must ask why Davidoff named this perfume "Cool Water Intense." Because it has absolutely nothing to do with the original. Zero. Zilch. It seems Davidoff took a page from Dior's book. They aren't exactly the best when it comes to (intentional) naming either.

The opening is, as expected, very fresh and slightly fruity. I would agree that there is mandarin in here. This is immediately complemented and accompanied by coconut. And it is important to mention: The coconut, or as stated, the coconut water, is not dominant. You don't smell like a piña colada. I also perceive the scent of vetiver as finely dosed. Overall, it is nicely balanced. Creamy, fresh, pleasantly woody. And the synthetic notes don't scratch. For me, who does not like these modern and increasingly indistinguishable fresh-fruity-sweet scents at all, this one is more than bearable.

The base makes an appearance after about four hours. Here, the new one definitely becomes sweeter. For some, it might be too much. Here, it's all about testing for yourself and deciding.

Longevity: Respect Davidoff! Respect. It lasts like a Duracell bunny. Where we would be back in the 90s.

Sillage: Also not bad. Noticeable, not overwhelming, and thus very well balanced.

Bottle: Awesome. Just plain awesome. The classic Cool Water bottle in dark blue. Attention, it's coming... awesome!

In conclusion, I can only say that I really like the new one here. Maybe or probably it’s due to the memories this perfume evokes in me, and maybe a child of the 90s will eventually remember which fragrance smelled like this more than 20 years ago. Please let me know.

Best regards

Your Profumorist

------------
Now I know what the scent reminds me of: The old Roma Uomo. It's also by the same
perfumer.

In between. This is the middle of three children, the tomato and the cucumber in the burger, the number six on the football field, or the assistant who has to observe the game from the stands. The truth is also something that often lies somewhere in between. And reality unexpectedly comes in between quite often.

Well, I expected nothing less from Eau Sauvage Extrême than an intensified, yes, extreme version of the classic Eau Sauvage. But it is not. I could have thought of that. I can read. Yatagan clearly states it in his statement. Well, that’s not a big deal.

Because what I perceive from this fragrance is excellent in itself. A fresh, soft-citrusy, fruitily ripe opening. The whole thing is subtly underscored with a slight spiciness. Lavender and mint are clearly noticeable in the heart. After about an hour, the vetiver joins in clearly and triumphantly. Longevity and sillage are top-notch. Excellently balanced without being intrusive.

After two days of testing, I must admit that Eau Sauvage Extrême does remind me of Eau Sauvage. But not of the EdT, rather of the two perfume variants from 2012 and 2017. It is primarily this creamy-woody base, this specific scent of vetiver, that unites both fragrances for me. The two perfumes are two works of art for me, but over time they were too overwhelming and opulent. Eau Sauvage Extrême, however, is exactly the more pleasant, fresher, and thus more wearable variant. It seems that François Demachy deliberately created Eau Sauvage Extrême as an intermediate step for the perfume variant. Deliberately, without wanting to remind of the big brother.

What else can I say in conclusion? Considered on its own, Eau Sauvage Extrême is an excellent EdT. A chypre at its best. And a clear recommendation to buy (as long as it is still available).

Best regards

Your Profumorist