Teststreifen

Let me start with this. Since this fragrance is often associated with Xerjoff Naxos. In my opinion, the two scents might share 1 µ in common, and that's about it. Why do I say this? Well, because I personally tested it for that very reason, before I knew about Naxos. You know how it is. Hype and all that :D
But is that a bad thing? What can we expect fragrance-wise here?

The opening starts off really very lightly fresh and citrusy. But just a hint. What it then does is simply tell everyone where the hammer hangs. Quickly, a warm, cozy, fruity, slightly vanilla-sweet note comes in. Many write about cherry here. Yes and no, I must say. It’s not 100% definable for my sense of smell. Shortly after, this "earthy" pleasant tobacco joins in and basically forms the base note of this wonderful fragrance. I think I also perceive a hint of cinnamon somewhere. But please don’t overinterpret this.
When it comes to longevity and sillage, you don’t have to worry. You’re beautifully enveloped for 8-9 hours. The first 2-3 hours are its peak phase. It projects really enormously during that time. Your surroundings notice you. After that, it pulls back a bit, becomes shyer, but is still there for a long time and wraps you up :-)
Unfortunately, I can't say anything about the bottle, as I only own a 5 ml decant. Kindly provided by the super-friendly Souk-Dou Sörensen :-)

Brief description: If someone were to ask me how I would describe this fragrance in a nutshell, I would say: Moist, fresh, fragrant, high-quality, Christmas-like fruit-tobacco.

Now a quick digression about Naxos. By now, I have of course tested the aforementioned Naxos myself. I can understand the comparison to some extent. Well, in the opening and the "tobacco bed" that both lay on. The flow and structure are similar at the beginning. However, in my opinion, Ambre Tabac takes a different, its own path. And that’s a good thing because I’m not really the biggest Naxos fan anyway. Here, I’ve probably fallen into the hype trap for the second time after Ombre Nomade. Don’t get me wrong. Both are not bad. But well … let’s leave it at that …

Conclusion: Are you into really pleasantly sweet tobacco gourmands? I would almost go so far as to say: Blind buy worthy. I can say with complete seriousness that this is one of the most beautiful, if not THE most beautiful winter fragrance I have ever smelled. It really blows me away every time.

It’s not exactly easy to get, but if the prices online are right > 50 ml for around 80-90 €, then grab it immediately. My order will surely arrive soon :D

Cheers and Merry Christmas to everyone ️

I must confess, I have only been dealing with niche perfumes for about a year now. But my curiosity and passion for everything new and that simply smells particularly good is all the greater.

A few weeks ago, we took a family trip to Karlsruhe. As we strolled past Breuninger, it occurred to me: Right, they have a more upscale selection. At least that's what some people have written here.

So we entered the store, and my wife looked at me seriously :D I should mention that we are not the type of "people" or the classic Breuninger clientele that comes here to shop. I hope I’m not stepping on anyone's toes here, but we are just normal "average consumers." Let's put it that way.

Upon arriving in the perfume department, I was completely amazed. I felt like a little kid in a candy store. My pulse was racing. I saw all these niche brands that I only knew from decants or YouTube videos, live and in color. Cautiously, I approached one of the salespeople and politely asked if I could test the Initio fragrances. He was totally relaxed and said, of course, very gladly. So I tested my way through, and to be honest, the one I liked best was the Paragon. Beautiful fresh opening. This light creative, balsamic note along with this incredibly creamy plum. I also think I smell a hint of cinnamon. Incredibly seductive as well. Simply grandiose. Then there was just the issue with the price. Since the beginning of my "perfume addiction," I have set a clear limit of no more than €150 per bottle. I will stick to that. And I didn't let myself be tempted that day either.

Somehow, the scent didn't leave my mind, and so I searched and searched online that same evening at the end of our trip for at least an alternative to Paragon. In vain!

A few days ago, the good Scent Jay uploaded a video on YouTube. My first thought was, wow, the bottle is ugly :D What’s with that weird radio on it? But as the saying goes: Don’t judge a book by its cover. I watched it. Aha! So it’s supposed to smell like Paragon? My attention was solely on the video. I think I watched it twice in a row :D However, since my experience with Lataffa is a bit hit or miss and I want to take it easy on collecting bottles (it gets quite expensive), I only ordered a small 20 ml mini bottle. I should be anything but disappointed …

… Bam, unpacked the thing and first noticed, wow cool standard glass bottle and not grotesquely ugly. The 20 ml, mind you. Sprayed the good piece and floated on cloud nine. I looked at my wife and just grinned. She looked at me and said, is this the dupe from Breuninger? And it is! Ouh, it smells delicious, she added. I must say, my wife has exactly one signature scent that she rocks, and that’s enough for her. I envy her for that. I tend to annoy her with my fragrances :D

Now to the scent. I must say, it’s very well done, but there are minimal deviations. To me, the Lataffa seems a bit sweeter and thus slightly more feminine. In my opinion, it’s still in the unisex segment, but for someone who prefers more masculine scents, this one might come off as too feminine. Otherwise, you really have a very similar progression to Paragon here. The slightly citrusy opening from the bergamot? That incredibly wonderful plum. Wonderfully seductive creaminess. It doesn’t have the depth that Paragon has, but at this price, it’s still an absolute steal!
One last thing perhaps: I don’t know why, but the scent gives me strong vibes of a winter version of Malibu Party in the Bay (especially in the dry down). This creamy-fruity finish. I wore Malibu quite often this summer, and somehow it reminded me of that (aside from the coconut note).

At the end of the day, I definitely recommend buying it :-)

If you’re unsure, just buy the 20 ml version. The addiction factor is over 9000 with this one.

A few months ago, I stumbled upon this amazing fragrance more or less by chance at a perfume shop here in the souk. Descriptions here in the forum like: “I’ve never smelled anything like this” or “Very distinctive” caught my attention and got me quite hooked. Come on, just take a 2 ml sample and see what happens.

When the fragrance sample arrived and I sprayed it on in the morning to “savor” it throughout the day, by the way, perfect weather outside (rainy late summer day), the first thing I noticed was: Phew, wow (in a positive context) okay, now I know what was meant by “special.” Slightly overwhelmed, I thought while grinning: Okay, what the hell is this now :D But somehow very cool. I quickly became enthusiastic, and throughout the entire “workday,” I kept getting light and pleasant waves of this wonderful scent.

But how would I personally describe the fragrance:
In the top note, it is quite “fresh” (and it stays that way for almost the entire time). However, its home port is the “herbaceous,” “earthy,” “grassy,” almost “moldy.” Moldy doesn’t sound so great, but I really mean all of this in a positive way. It’s really hard to describe this fellow. Here and there, I got the faintest hints of Terre d'Hermès. It must be due to the grassy, earthy components of vetiver. I would also describe it as relatively linear in terms of fragrance development. So everything I’ve described comes out more or less, and that’s it. End of the day. But that’s a good thing because the scent is already very “outstanding.” I can really imagine this perfume being perfect in late summer, autumn, and maybe even in parts of winter. That’s where it feels at home. When it rains, it shines the most. Longevity and sillage are really top-notch. Not a monster, but it doesn’t need to be because it could potentially overwhelm, in my opinion. So, we come to the price-performance ratio: at around €23-26 for 100 ml, it’s an absolute steal. You can even reapply after 7-8 hours if you want. But it’s not necessary.
The bottle is a solid 10! Everything is just right. It looks like a black obelisk. Almost mystical, dark. The cap has a dark wood look and nicely rounds everything off. Personally, as a metal fan, I’m into this kind of dark stuff anyway, so I might be a bit biased and not a standard :D

Let’s come to the conclusion: Is this fragrance everybody’s darling? No! Does it smell very unique and special? You can definitely say that! For me, it falls into the category: Not for everyone but MUST at least be tested if you’re looking for something fitting and special in this dreary autumn weather :-)

I want to make it clear from the start that my review is about the OG Dior Homme from 2011. The current versions have nothing in common with this one. But let's start from the beginning …

Oh, what wild times those were. Parties, pre-gaming with friends, and just having a great time. My personal experiences with this fragrance remind me of exactly that time. It was my best buddy who rocked this scent every weekend when we went out. Back then, as young and naive as we were, we had no idea what a great fragrance it was. Or rather, I never asked. The scent was truly everywhere in the air, and I already associated it with something masculine, noble, mystical, and elegant.
That this fragrance would eventually awaken my love for perfume was something I wasn't aware of back then. The rest is history … :)

Today, about 10 years later, my best buddy is still around, :)
I am a happily married dad who, well, the young fathers know what I'm talking about, is quite busy. However, a few weeks ago, I managed to carve out some time and met up with the aforementioned buddy for dinner at his place. Somehow, the topic of perfume came up again, and we chatted and chatted about how perfume has long had a grip on the YouTube world. I also mentioned that I had signed up for this great forum here and so on.

After a while, we also got to talking about the fragrance in question. It just came out of me, and I immediately asked what it was called. “Bro, it was Christian Dior Homme.” He laughed, and we reminisced about the old times.
“Why didn't you ask about it earlier, you idiot.”

I didn't care at all, I thought, and immediately searched for the fragrance online. Damn! It doesn't exist in that form anymore. The following week, I ran to the nearest perfume store and smelled the Dior. Come on, it has to smell somewhat similar. But far from it. No, that was not it. It smells completely different. Disappointment set in. Well, Parfumo had warned me.
I still cannot understand how something so absolutely wonderful can be taken off the market or changed so drastically. Well, I could write a review just on that topic, which would be much longer …

Thanks to this wonderful forum, though, after some time I did find a leftover bottle. The world was back in order. Everything was right
and I have my fragrance back, which reminds me of wild, wild nights. Of long lines in front of the nightclub, of coming home at 5 in the morning when the sun rises …