Powerhouses: do you prefer them sweet or not?

I like fragrances that are made in the pre-1990's style, you know the so called "powerhouses". Let's discuss this a bit. Let's not focus on whether a fragrance is actually a powerhouse but I'd like to know from you whether you prefer them to be sweet or not sweet.

For men: I'm talking about aromatic fragrances (with or without moss), fougères, woody/leathery fragrances, orientals etc.
For women: I'm talking about loud floral fragrances, chypres, orientals etc.

More specifically: For yourself do you prefer them to be sweet or not sweet? And on someone of the opposite sex, do you prefer such a fragrance to be sweet or not sweet?

Not sweet for me . I l love florals and big perfumes - but not cloying ones - so moss, leather, galbanum - anything with some added bitterness or dissonance works for me.
With big florals from the pre 90s era, sweetness is less of a problem for me than certain floral notes e.g. big tuberose or big vanilla/amber are not for me.
Interestingly, many contemporay men's frags are much sweeter than those marketed to women a few decades ago. I much prefer fougeres and dry masculine leather/woodiy perfumes to some of the modern men's orientals with lots of sweet tobacco and amber/

Usually sweet. I love the orientals, Tabu, Obsession, Ysatis, Tigress, Bal a Versailles, Bev Hills Red, Lady Stetson, Ciara, Opium (original) etc.. I can occasionally do LouLou, or Youth Dew but it has to be really cold weather. I cannot wear most chypres because of very acidic skin, and most loud florals, although I like them for a while, tend to give me a headache.

so I say not sweet, regardless of who is wearing the powerhouse.

I do like a powerhouse in the right circumstances. I like the sweet stuff softer and more elusive.

Great question!

I think I need a reference. I like indolic Jasmin soliflores like A La Nuit and Olene. Are they considered sweet? I also like orientals like Opium. The Caron's. Sweet? What about a chypre like Mitsouko? Not sweet?

I definitely prefer sweet like Poison. I like spices most of all and sweetness and spice go well together.

The powerhouses come from a time before candy floss and sugary tooth ache scents. So, when I think of sweet from back then I think more of Vanilla Fields and the sweet floral in Cashmere Mist or the candied violets in many classics. None of those are powerhouses, but It's interesting to think of how my current nose, that's been exposed to the monstrosities of the modern candy scent, perceives the scents of the past. My entire image of sweet has been flipped on it's head.

What do you consider sweet? Could you give some examples? I am really interested to explore this. For example where would you put Youth Dew, Tabu, Obsession, etc. In the Sweet Box or the Spicy Box?

hi, I asked this question because so far I've always had non sweet fragrances like
- "Jazz (1988)"
- "Montana Parfum d'Homme"
- "Pour Homme" by Van Cleef & Arpels
Similar is "Tsar", though I didn't have that one.

But sweeter fragrances might be more cheerful for me as a wearer and for the person who smells it.
What I consider sweet is:
"Paco Rabanne pour Homme" (honey)
and maybe "Azzaro pour Homme" (though less so, and I'm not really familiar with it)

I'm open to suggestions! - And which one, sweet or not, do you prefer to smell on a guy?

For me, "Obsession" is in the sweet category, though not very sweet.
"Youth Dew" I'd call warm but not sweet.
Also recently I smelled "Must de Cartier" EDT. Which is in the same genre as Obsession but almost lacks sweetness.

Sleuth, I am unfortunately not super familiar with many of the powerhouses for men. I grew up in a house of woman when those scents were popular. However, you have added The Van Cleef and Arpels Pour Homme to my test list. I should take the time to order a bunch of samples of the men,s classics, etc. It would give me a better point of reference for discussions like this.

I don't know much about it either, I'm just mentioning some names to give an idea of what I'm talking about.

Yes it's always fun to test stuff that you probably wouldn't wear yourself. Sometimes it includes really original stuff like for example Youth Dew - I'm glad I sneaked around at the women's aisle

Van Cleef&Arpels pour Homme is a favourite of mine. It's dark, has a little rose and pine. Others say it's rather soapy and not so impressive. That may be so, but I still like it. I'm mostly interested in sweet scents for men, so suggestions are welcome.

I'm noticing I prefer male scents that are heavy on woods or starkly reminiscent of nature, including Oud, with some sort of note that adds luxury and depth, so the Slumberhouses, especially Jeke, Bois d'Ascese, Duro by Nasomatto. So not sweet. Madly in love most recently with Feugeia 1833 Jorge Luis Borges and Friends - Otro Poema de los Dones" thrilling woods with oakmoss, per the label. For myself, I like complex orientals and chypres, florals that contain woods and musks, all smelling more natural than synthetic. Sweet can work, if accomplished, a la Ciara or Tea Rose.

By Kilian A Taste of Heaven is one of my all time favorite scents. It's so different and intoxicating. The Lavender and wormwood give it a real interesting dimension and the vanilla gives it a sweetness and creaminess. It's a bit masculine on me but not too much, thanks to the vanilla. It's just so delightfully and divinely weird and it works great on my skin. I should do a proper review of it sometime soon.

I think this may be right up your alley , Sleuth.

Thanks, I'll try it when I see it!

I like them both sweet and very unsweet.

Sweet goes for orientals and florals, unsweet/bitter for chypres.

A very sweet oriental powerhouse which I very much enjoy is i.e. "Aqaba Classic" (almost a twin of Opium) and an example for unsweet powerhouse might be "Azuree" or "Knowing", both by Estee Lauder.

I really love Givenchy's "Amarige", it's one of the best perfumes in my opinion.
I have tried others, like "Knowing" and feels like I need to wash it off after a while. But "Opium" is good though.
So I guess I like more sweet florals and fresher, not too heavy ones.

Richly sweet, but balanced, like original formula Samsara.

On men, I like ones with just a hint of sweet spice. But warm and oriental all the way. I don't dig fresh and cool.

Powerhouse man Dior Homme Intense. Powerhouse woman Insolence EDP.