Here’s part 2 of my latest round-up of Twitter mini reviews.
Aqua Divina from Bulgari (Alberto Morillas; 2015)*
Intriguing, weirdly nutty, earthy composition. Burnt, yet quiet. Grated, rather than powdery. Fine particles on skin.
For Her L’Absolu from Narciso Rodriguez (Aurélien Guichard; 2015)*
Skin-hugging musks of original, lifted by diffusive jasmine & tuberose. Strong addition to the range.
Acqua Di Bergamotto from Ermenegildo Zegna (2015)*
Decadence from Marc Jacobs (Ann Gottlieb & Annie Buzantian; 2015)*
Okay, the handbag bottle is great fun. The scent doesn’t live up to its name. Hazelnutty gingerbread & red berries. Fascinating to compare this gleaming, polished slickness with, say, Poison. Decadence was the real deal in the 80s. Now, it’s rather tamer.
Homme from Balmain (Olivier Pescheux; 2015)*
Please please please no more of this stuff. Boorish woods. Impolite synthetics. Warped citruses. Spares no cliches. Enough!
Emblem Intense from Mont Blanc (2014)*
Oh look, another generic ‘fresh man’ composition. Woods beneath citruses and violet leaf. Quickly turns spiky.
For Men from Michael Kors (Harry Fremont; 2014)*
Tacit from Aesop (Celine Barel; 2015)*
Excellent, lemony, herb-heavy cologne (lots of basil) with pronounced vetivert base. Solid work, if somewhat predictable.
Infusion – Iris from Prada (Daniela Andrier; 2015)*
Iris as floral soap. Lemony up top. Musky-pillowy in base. Static & inscrutable, but is it elegant? Typifies Prada range.
Infusion – Iris Cédre from Prada (Daniela Andrier; 2015)*
The soapy iris again, but with a dry lime note to represent cedar. The iris is heavier on carrot facet. Bland.
Infusion – Vétiver from Prada (Daniela Andrier; 2015)*
Has decent stab at rendering clean vetivert within the soapy signature. Gin-like note hovers in background. Passable.
Infusion – Amande from Prada (Daniela Andrier; 2015)*
Après L’Ondée & L’Eau D’Hiver, Prada style. Almond/heliotrope/mimosa on lemony soap. A study in colour blocking.
Infusion – Fleur D’Oranger from Prada (Daniela Andrier; 2015)*
The mask slips. Overly indolic orange blossom note turns the soapy whole grim and unwelcoming. Medicinal.
Infusion – Œillet from Prada (Daniela Andrier; 2015)*
Cloves & woods just about hold their own in the unforgivingly soapy structure. Shades of Opium. Best of this range.
—
Persolaise
* sample provided by brand
** sample obtained by the author
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I love, love, love your mini-reviews! They give a quick overview into the immense scent production of today. It's hard to keep up with it all so your comments are great as guidelines for me. Thank you! Btw, Aqua Divina is a very decent scent. I almost bought it after the first sniff this summer. Luckily I pulled the break on time because I had at least five other "summer scents" at home…
Neva, thanks very much for your kind comment. The mini-reviews are proving to be increasingly popular, which is gratifying. I'm pleased you find them helpful. And yes, Aqua Divina was certainly interesting.