Thronumgod
Reviews
Thronumgod
La Nuit Elixir
There are very few fragrances that are as daring and have an opening as bombastic as this. As an intermediate level fragrance collector, I own, have owned and smelled an obscene amount of fragrances and it is very rarely that I am caught off-guard by a fragrance, especially one of designer sensibilities.
Any fragrance connoisseur knows the original La Nuit - this flanker is a bold and daring departure from that legendary DNA to darker and more adventurous territory and let us unpack it very briefly: This is a dense and enveloping fragrance loaded to the rafters with cardamom, leather and Tonka to create an aura of fire around any so daring as to wear the scent.
The opening is loud, sweet and truly dense on first application. It quickly becomes apparent that this scent is something of a monster and addresses the very well documented performance issues of the OG La Nuit while striking harmony between the core elements of the original and evolving the scent with the inclusion of the leather and Tonka. This EDP does come across more masculine and is a dangerous item to have in one’s arsenal on colder days and those evening excursions.
From the onset, all of the new accords are on full display and they gradually make their way to the front as the freshness at top subsides. After which, the leather and Tonka become the most prominent and these are accompanied by a slight powdery texture, while the famed cardamom retreats to a supporting background role on this iteration as opposed to being the protagonist like on the original.
The scent opens warm, rich, sweet and very sensual with a quick bite from the grapefruit, which quickly retreats, with a dash of powdery dustiness from the lavender herein. This phase of the fragrance is very short-lived, which makes this version come across as less fresh, at least, when compared with the original.
Once the stars of the show, the leather and the Tonka, take center stage, the fragrance becomes smoother and even more elegant with the emergence of the sandalwood which polishes the scent slightly while mixing in a slight woody element.
When comparing the two, the EDT is more attention grabbing and may be favored more by the general public but I favor this EDP a bit more as it feels more creative and a step away from some of the traditional leanings of mainstream fragrances, making it slightly more unique while still keeping some of the designer mass-appeal.
Naturally, this will be a cold weather and night-time scent as I suspect it may grow slightly cloying in high-heat situations. As earlier indicated, the fragrance does perform very well – Lasting cleanly through entire work days with a few feet of projection around the first two hours of application and gradually growing closer and eventually resting as a skin scent which you won’t have to work very hard to locate at the end of your day.
Overall, here is my rating:
Scent: 8/10
Pricing: 7/10
Versatility: 7/10
Longevity: 8/10
Projection: 8/10
Any fragrance connoisseur knows the original La Nuit - this flanker is a bold and daring departure from that legendary DNA to darker and more adventurous territory and let us unpack it very briefly: This is a dense and enveloping fragrance loaded to the rafters with cardamom, leather and Tonka to create an aura of fire around any so daring as to wear the scent.
The opening is loud, sweet and truly dense on first application. It quickly becomes apparent that this scent is something of a monster and addresses the very well documented performance issues of the OG La Nuit while striking harmony between the core elements of the original and evolving the scent with the inclusion of the leather and Tonka. This EDP does come across more masculine and is a dangerous item to have in one’s arsenal on colder days and those evening excursions.
From the onset, all of the new accords are on full display and they gradually make their way to the front as the freshness at top subsides. After which, the leather and Tonka become the most prominent and these are accompanied by a slight powdery texture, while the famed cardamom retreats to a supporting background role on this iteration as opposed to being the protagonist like on the original.
The scent opens warm, rich, sweet and very sensual with a quick bite from the grapefruit, which quickly retreats, with a dash of powdery dustiness from the lavender herein. This phase of the fragrance is very short-lived, which makes this version come across as less fresh, at least, when compared with the original.
Once the stars of the show, the leather and the Tonka, take center stage, the fragrance becomes smoother and even more elegant with the emergence of the sandalwood which polishes the scent slightly while mixing in a slight woody element.
When comparing the two, the EDT is more attention grabbing and may be favored more by the general public but I favor this EDP a bit more as it feels more creative and a step away from some of the traditional leanings of mainstream fragrances, making it slightly more unique while still keeping some of the designer mass-appeal.
Naturally, this will be a cold weather and night-time scent as I suspect it may grow slightly cloying in high-heat situations. As earlier indicated, the fragrance does perform very well – Lasting cleanly through entire work days with a few feet of projection around the first two hours of application and gradually growing closer and eventually resting as a skin scent which you won’t have to work very hard to locate at the end of your day.
Overall, here is my rating:
Scent: 8/10
Pricing: 7/10
Versatility: 7/10
Longevity: 8/10
Projection: 8/10
A King of Summer
My collection was built on dark, dense and heavy winter fragrances and it took a bit of time for me to develop the pallet for freshies, aquatics and generally lighter fragrances. Presently, I have become quite infatuated with this genre of fragrance and I was fortunate enough to acquire Neroli Portofino.
Straight to it, this is one of the most sophisticated spring and summer time fragrances I have come across: From the opening, there is a very controlled blast which comes across as a neatly blended citrus cocktail. Immediately, the fragrances make it abundantly clear that it is geared towards the slightly more mature, more refined demographic, rather than any younger audiences. From casual office use to more elegant, more formal and dressed up occasions – This fragrance boasts tremendous amounts of versatility and can be employed in a plethora of settings.
The initial citrus quickly subsides, or at least, trades positions from the forefront to a background supporting element. At this point, the is a slight green and almost grassy texture which begins to make its way to the spotlight and it stays there for the lifespan of the fragrance. This same texture adopts a slight wood accord and this makes it evolve slightly to almost medicinal sensibilities with a splash of aquatics to help maintain the fresh aspect.
To very crudely describe this phase, it comes across as walking through dense vegetation with the occasional stump housing lush swaths of moss with a crystal clear stream of water coursing orderly nearby. At this point, the fragrance will remain so until the end of its lifespan. It is sensational. Within first application, the scent will project softly within a few feet and as it evolves, it will gradually return to a skin-scent which will linger easily into the 8, or even 9-hour mark.
I fortunately also own Bvlgari’s Wood Neroli which shares striking similarity with this fragrance – In short, Bvlgari does come across as the better blended between the two and feels more rounded and polished. However, the Tom Ford somehow still comes across as superior quality despite falling behind slightly on the blend comparison. Neroli Portofino unceremoniously outclasses the Bvlgari in terms of performance because it lasts significantly longer while projecting further. Some may feel that it may be redundant to own both since they share so many parallels but I feel both need to be explored at length because there are also some differences that color the two scents differently.
In summary, this fragrance is an absolutely must-own for the corporate, the mature and the refined fragrance connoisseur: Spring and summer are absolutely under siege if you employ this gem and if anyone has proclivities for fresh and clean scents, this will completely revolutionize how you perceive fragrances of this genre.
Straight to it, this is one of the most sophisticated spring and summer time fragrances I have come across: From the opening, there is a very controlled blast which comes across as a neatly blended citrus cocktail. Immediately, the fragrances make it abundantly clear that it is geared towards the slightly more mature, more refined demographic, rather than any younger audiences. From casual office use to more elegant, more formal and dressed up occasions – This fragrance boasts tremendous amounts of versatility and can be employed in a plethora of settings.
The initial citrus quickly subsides, or at least, trades positions from the forefront to a background supporting element. At this point, the is a slight green and almost grassy texture which begins to make its way to the spotlight and it stays there for the lifespan of the fragrance. This same texture adopts a slight wood accord and this makes it evolve slightly to almost medicinal sensibilities with a splash of aquatics to help maintain the fresh aspect.
To very crudely describe this phase, it comes across as walking through dense vegetation with the occasional stump housing lush swaths of moss with a crystal clear stream of water coursing orderly nearby. At this point, the fragrance will remain so until the end of its lifespan. It is sensational. Within first application, the scent will project softly within a few feet and as it evolves, it will gradually return to a skin-scent which will linger easily into the 8, or even 9-hour mark.
I fortunately also own Bvlgari’s Wood Neroli which shares striking similarity with this fragrance – In short, Bvlgari does come across as the better blended between the two and feels more rounded and polished. However, the Tom Ford somehow still comes across as superior quality despite falling behind slightly on the blend comparison. Neroli Portofino unceremoniously outclasses the Bvlgari in terms of performance because it lasts significantly longer while projecting further. Some may feel that it may be redundant to own both since they share so many parallels but I feel both need to be explored at length because there are also some differences that color the two scents differently.
In summary, this fragrance is an absolutely must-own for the corporate, the mature and the refined fragrance connoisseur: Spring and summer are absolutely under siege if you employ this gem and if anyone has proclivities for fresh and clean scents, this will completely revolutionize how you perceive fragrances of this genre.
The Blue Beast Rises
To be perfectly honest, I was really not a fan of this fragrance when I initially smelled it: It really was overwhelmingly ashy and overbearing. I have since come around and this has climbed to the very top of my favourites.
This scent is an explosion of smoke and incense with a sprinkle of amber. I'm not seasoned enough to dissect the fragrance and explain what every note is doing but I can confirm that this is a fragrance that will only appeal to a small subset of the population. The Blue Beast, as it has come to be known, strays very wildly towards the horizon and may be too daring for most. The scent is unbelievably heavy and has some of the most monstrous performance I have ever encountered. In short, this fragrance will very easily be still projecting out into the world the next day. This is no exaggeration - I have been on the road over the weekend for work and have this monster casting fire and smoke in every direction.
Most fragrances have a developing life cycle that will evolve from opening, heart and base but Interlude seems to be very linear and unchanging. From the initial spray to the next day, this fragrance will maintain its character. As refined and sophisticated as Interlude is, it does struggle with versatility: Because of how different the scent profile is, there are very limited places where this can be worn - If you're wearing this an upscale event, cheers to you but do not dream of wearing this scent to an office setting because may be dragged to the town's square and punished.
Overall, here is my rating:
Scent: 10/10
Pricing: 7/10
Versatility: 7/10
Longevity: 10/10
Projection: 10/10
This scent is an explosion of smoke and incense with a sprinkle of amber. I'm not seasoned enough to dissect the fragrance and explain what every note is doing but I can confirm that this is a fragrance that will only appeal to a small subset of the population. The Blue Beast, as it has come to be known, strays very wildly towards the horizon and may be too daring for most. The scent is unbelievably heavy and has some of the most monstrous performance I have ever encountered. In short, this fragrance will very easily be still projecting out into the world the next day. This is no exaggeration - I have been on the road over the weekend for work and have this monster casting fire and smoke in every direction.
Most fragrances have a developing life cycle that will evolve from opening, heart and base but Interlude seems to be very linear and unchanging. From the initial spray to the next day, this fragrance will maintain its character. As refined and sophisticated as Interlude is, it does struggle with versatility: Because of how different the scent profile is, there are very limited places where this can be worn - If you're wearing this an upscale event, cheers to you but do not dream of wearing this scent to an office setting because may be dragged to the town's square and punished.
Overall, here is my rating:
Scent: 10/10
Pricing: 7/10
Versatility: 7/10
Longevity: 10/10
Projection: 10/10
Signature - The Evening Scent
This was my signature scent for a while and I took a bit of a break from it but I wore it recently and it reminded me of a time before the plague, a time before we normalized keeping to ourselves and a time where our evenings were spent in the company of others.
Looking back in retrospect, I realize how I never offered this fragrance the respect it deserves because this gorgeous. It's a sweet and spicy elixir that demands attention while remaining very respectable. Fragrances very rarely manage to strike a perfect balance but the way in which the house achieved this here is truly something to behold. Without going into detail regarding the notes and the subsequent breakdown, I can assure any who may care that this scent is unbelievably good - This is the working man's scent, this is the professional's scent, this is also the scent the you wear while dressed up, this is the scent you wear to the club and this is the scent you wear while out on the prowl.
Whether you're 20 years old or 50 years old, any self-respecting man can wear this. The only unfortunate aspect about this scent is that it was so well blended that it garnered so much attention and thus became something of a hype-monster and thus may not be very unique while wearing it. You know a fragrance is really good when its only disadvantage is that a lot of people appreciate it. Beyond that, this is very close to perfection and is really a must-own whether you have a nascent collection or a seasoned connoisseur.
My overall rating:
Scent: 9/10
Pricing: 10/10
Versatility: 8/10
Longevity: 8/10
Projection: 8/10
Looking back in retrospect, I realize how I never offered this fragrance the respect it deserves because this gorgeous. It's a sweet and spicy elixir that demands attention while remaining very respectable. Fragrances very rarely manage to strike a perfect balance but the way in which the house achieved this here is truly something to behold. Without going into detail regarding the notes and the subsequent breakdown, I can assure any who may care that this scent is unbelievably good - This is the working man's scent, this is the professional's scent, this is also the scent the you wear while dressed up, this is the scent you wear to the club and this is the scent you wear while out on the prowl.
Whether you're 20 years old or 50 years old, any self-respecting man can wear this. The only unfortunate aspect about this scent is that it was so well blended that it garnered so much attention and thus became something of a hype-monster and thus may not be very unique while wearing it. You know a fragrance is really good when its only disadvantage is that a lot of people appreciate it. Beyond that, this is very close to perfection and is really a must-own whether you have a nascent collection or a seasoned connoisseur.
My overall rating:
Scent: 9/10
Pricing: 10/10
Versatility: 8/10
Longevity: 8/10
Projection: 8/10
