Scheelinho

The Herod I bought only recently, after I have Layton already longer in my collection. Since I like the DNA of de Marly fragrances very much (for many are the yes too sweet and playful), it was clear to me from the beginning that I must also own Herod sometime.

Based on the descriptions and my other experiences with PdM, I assumed a much heavier fragrance. Herod is really stunning. It just makes you feel good when you wear it. I smell a slightly fruity tobacco wrapped in (not sticky) vanilla. It has a certain sweetness to it, but it's much more transparent and "wearable" or unobtrusive than I thought it would be. For me, it smells a little like a very high-quality spirit.

Some criticize poor performance - I personally can not confirm this: My 2021 bottle lasts on the back of my hand just under 13 hours and is then still perceptible. Herod is just not as loud as a Layton and also no board that flies permanently around the ears. It is rather fine with the previously described transparency in the air and smells incredibly high-quality. I therefore think that the criticized performance is more related to self-perception.

Conclusion: Fantastic fragrance and because of the transparency also not only for super cold temperatures (but please do not wear in high summer ;-))!

The Layton was my first niche fragrance and is still one of my favorites. A few days ago I ordered me then (spontaneously ;-)) the Layton Exclusif, because I have fascinated me over time more and more woody notes and I had the hope to get a more animalic, less youthful Layton.

Preliminary: the expectation he has also fulfilled, yet I'm of the opinion that you do not necessarily have to own him.

Right at the beginning I perceive a little of the Layton DNA. Especially this menthol(?)-like tingling in the nose has the Exclusif also. Dominates the fragrance but by a rather pronounced woody note, which makes the fragrance in my opinion also less suitable for the masses. If one comes still rather from the designer area, a Layton Exclusif will probably first confuse, because he smells after spraying on but quite tart.

Over time, it becomes a little rounder and more balanced towards the Drydown, but still gains something of the normal Layton DNA. In the Drydown smells the Exclusif best, but is then from smell totally the Marley and has only discreetly the Animalik in the background.

Why do I now believe that one must not necessarily own the Layton Exclusif?

1. Especially in the drydown Layton and Layton Exclusif (except for the wood note and minimally less sweetness) are just too similar to me.

2. It's less beginner-friendly and requires a bit of time to get comfortable with.

3. It is more expensive than the house's regular Royal Essence range. For this, he smells different, but not higher quality than other PdM fragrances.

Conclusion: I like him, but wear my normal Layton rather.

PS: H/S are incidentally already directly with a freshly unpacked new bottle phenomenal (mine is from 2020, so still quite current). So no need to worry ;-)

Where do I start?

I don't know the old and apparently legendary batches, but I have a pretty good picture of the fragrance DNA in my head and presume to be able to pass judgement for ME.

Among the positive aspects for me, first and foremost, that I really like Creed Aventus - honestly! He smells of the fragrance DNA actually simply masculine, elegant and fresh. Basically, Aventus is a perfect office and chypre fragrance that I think has quite a lot of citrus in the top notes and doesn't get quite as mossy and earthy as some other chypre representatives. What I find most intriguing is that apparently some can't handle the "mossy" note in Aventus at all, even though I think it's so much younger and easier to wear than many other chypres. So, for example, the Nishane Hacivat, with which he is much compared and which I also own as a flacon - THE is really mossy, get a sample and sink into the modder after the top note has faded... ;-)

Now to my big BUT...

Aventus has a good but in my opinion just boring fragrance DNA. He gives me nothing that Dior Sauvage can not also, only that Aventus smells to me less synthetic and still a little fresher or better. There are so many beautiful, exciting and adventurous fragrances out there. If Aventus would cost half the price (the batch discussions deliberately excluded), Aventus would be the perfect ever-goer, but to be honest, I prefer to buy more exciting fragrances for the money.

The last few days I have very strongly flirted with it, me for outrageously little money, for which there is Joop Homme now online, a bottle to buy and this as a classic beautiful next to Cool Water to place on my closet. I was very pleased, of course, when I got fragrance mail from a dear user and this me as a surprise still a small filling of Joop! Homme enclosed.

I then sprayed the fragrance directly and within seconds the entire room smelled like classic Joop. I'm still really blown away by how much durability and sillage you can get for so little money. To be honest, the strong sweetness (after much more he smells namely not) now not positive around, but a bad fragrance he really is not.

I think, therefore, that the evaluation here on Parfumo comes pretty good and would sign that so. I would recommend the fragrance for young people who do not spend much money, but want to be smelled.

For me, Hacivat was definitely love at second sight. I think that the hype around the "super fruity" Aventus killer leads many totally astray. Don't get me wrong: I think Hacivat is quite successful, but it is now a fragrance with really strong woody and oakmoss notes after the fruity-creamy top note settles. So if you have not smelled so many chypre fragrances (especially those with a strong mossy note), Hacivat can scare you off at first.

I therefore strongly advise against buying him blindly, especially since you get him now in DE also not on every corner at a reasonable price. Now that I have become accustomed to him, he will get as "my Chypre" a permanent place in my collection.

Scent: I like it, but I just can't give it a full 10 points, as it can take quite a bit of getting used to if you don't know what you're getting into.

H/S: Although I become quite quickly noseblind, but in the environment you have to watch out already strongly, because after a short time everything smells like Hacivat. Long it also holds.