astrow1986

I went into Zara fragrances with a healthy dose of scepticism. In my head, they were mostly going to be trend-chasing, inexpensive, and a bit too “inspired by,” since that’s how Zara often shows up in dupe conversations, whether it's fashion or perfume. When you see endless lists and threads treating Zara as a shortcut to designer-style scents, it’s hard not to expect more copy-paste than creativity.

What piqued my curiosity was learning that Jo Malone regularly collaborates with Zara on some of their perfumes. I tried a few, including Energetically New York, Sunrise on the Red Sand Dunes Intense [which is designed by someone else], and then this one. And credit where it’s due, Vetiver Pamplemousse Elixir didn’t smell like a cynical knockoff. It smelled juicy and fresh.

On skin, it opens with a bright, realistic grapefruit blast. Juicy, fresh, and mouth-watering, but in a clean, natural way. Surprisingly, there is no grapefruit listed in the notes. It’s the kind of opening that makes you keep sniffing your wrist throughout the day, not because it’s loud, but because it’s genuinely satisfying. After that, it settles into a dry, woody base that gives the citrus some structure and keeps the whole thing feeling grown-up and neat. Performance is another pleasant surprise. For a Zara scent, it lasts well and projects more than you’d expect, noticeable but not pushy. It is definitely a unisex scent that would work better during spring and summer, but I have also thoroughly enjoyed it in these dreary January days.

And the bottle deserves a mention too. It’s simple, minimalist, and looks genuinely classy, with a nice weight in the hand. Even the magnetic cap feels premium. For 35.00 euros per 100 ml bottle, this is definitely a steal.

Lalique Encre Noire à L'Extrême came onto my radar because I was looking for something in the same general mood as the discontinued Gucci Pour Homme from the early 2000s. Not a dupe, and it doesn’t try to be one, but it scratches a similar itch for me: dark woods, smoke, and a serious, grown-up vibe.

What I wanted was very specific: incense in the air and dry wood, almost like an Orthodox church after mass, mixed with a hint of pencil shavings. À L’Extrême gets surprisingly close to that idea. The core is vetiver, but not the clean, sporty kind. It’s earthy, rooty, smoky, and dry, with that inky, stern character Encre Noire is known for. On top of that, you get a warm resinous layer and a punch of frankincense.

Compared to the original Encre Noire, à L’Extrême feels denser and darker. It has more weight, more resin, and more presence. This isn’t a friendly, easy crowd-pleaser. Definitely don't buy this blind. It shines in colder weather or at night.

And then there’s the price. It’s hard to argue with the value here. You get a niche-leaning atmosphere of vetiver, incense, resins, and dark woods for a price that’s usually low enough to take a chance on.

If Rital Date was my introduction to Versatile’s sense of humour in gourmand territory, Culot Thé is the one that convinced me they can do clean and elegant just as well. It’s their take on fresh tea, with citrus up top, a bit of jasmine, and a fizzy, tonic-like brightness that keeps it feeling crisp.

I have a soft spot for tea fragrances, and this one really hits the spot. Especially with it's affordable price point. It opens with bright citrus and a bit of clean ginger. After a few minutes, the tea note comes forward. The jasmine stays light and airy, more of a lift than a floral statement. The overall feel is modern, genuinely wearable, and very unisex. It works in warm weather, it works in an office, and it works up close without making a scene.

The funniest part is the note lists you see online, because they can look a bit wild. You’ll see things like garlic and wasabi mentioned, and I get why that makes people curious. Personally, I don’t smell either of them... In terms of how it wears, it stays close to the skin and doesn’t try to fill a room. It’s more of a personal scent than a projection monster, and it’s easy to top up when you feel like it.

Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche pour Homme will probably always be a milestone fragrance for me. It was the first “proper” designer bottle I bought with my own money during my student years. Looking back, I was also absolutely influenced by the ads at the time. They had that unapologetically sensual, old-school masculinity that made the whole thing feel a bit aspirational and slightly dangerous. That tight, moody close-up of a man holding a telephone receiver, eyes closed, bare skin, hairy chest...

The scent itself is classic clean barbershop, executed with real elegance. What makes it special is how convincingly it reads as expensive grooming. On skin, it really does feel like high-end shaving cream, the kind you’d imagine in a serious barbershop with hot towels, steel tools, and quiet confidence. Crisp, smooth, and put together. It’s masculine without being aggressive, polished without feeling cold, and old-fashioned in a way that reads refined rather than dated.

It’s discontinued, and so was its later, reformulated and repackaged version, so you can’t really just walk into a store and get your bottle. For a fragrance that nailed this kind of classy barbershop character so well, that feels like a total crime. It’s a genuine loss.

Versatile is a brand that reminds you that perfume can still have a sense of humour without turning into a novelty. I first noticed the brand because of a throwaway comment on a Czech pop-culture podcast called Poprask. The hosts were talking about La Foncedalle, another of Versatile's perfumes, the one that leans into weed, beer, and roasted chicken. That oddball food-forward attitude pulled me in, I ordered the discovery set… and Rital Date was the one I ended up buying in full size.

On skin, it’s exactly what I was hoping for. It smells like basil pesto with a squeeze of bright lemon and a smooth, glossy olive oil kind of feel. The opening is zesty and sharp rather than sweet, and the herbal pesto vibe settles in, becoming surprisingly wearable. A big part of the charm is that it’s meant to stay close. This isn’t a room-filler; it’s intimate and skin-focused, the kind of scent someone notices only when they’re actually near you.

I like the simple design of the bottles and their compact size - I usually travel with one of my Versatile bottles (I currently have four). If you’re tired of syrupy and sugary gourmands and want something classy, unconventional, and oddly elegant, Rital Date is a standout.