Tag: cologne

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smell this: Bulgari pour Homme

 

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OK, so Vétiver Tonka is a top favorite, and Guerlain Vétiver never lets me down, and we haven’t even talked about Chanel Sycomore yet…but Bulgari pour Homme is my favorite, too.

Bulgari pour Homme smells like the grapefruit of the gods. This is a bright, ripe (sweet) citrus blended with a soft darjeeling-like tea note. The notes list bergamot and orange blossom, but I get grapefruit and more grapefruit. The base is noted as amber and musk, but to my nose neither of these elements translates directly. They serve instead to make sweet notes feel sweeter and to make the overall effect more sumptuous.

Bulgari pour Homme Extrême smells similar but with a bit more of the green, bitter aspect of the pith allowed to come through, and with better lasting power (the regular pour Homme is too weak for some but – as with Vétiver Tonka – if I like the scent enough, I’ll just spray more). Extrême could be seen as the more conventionally masculine of the two, and is the one I would recommend those who prefer a masculine style to smell first. I like to wear both at once, the sweetness of one balancing the bitterness of the other and vice versa.

These are some seriously voluptuous citruses, and you can completely ignore the ‘pour homme’ bit if you like. I recommend that course.

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smell this: Guerlain Vétiver

IMG_6122I already mentioned Guerlain Vétiver in a winter fragrance picks post but it bears further mention. Summer mention.

Nutmeg, citrus, and cedar are the notes–aside from the pure, central vetiver–that stand out to me in this superb, bright vetiver. There is balance, though, and none of these dominate. Guerlain’s is known as a benchmark vetiver; what you smell to teach your nose about these indispensible grassroots. Once you learn to recognize that distinctive vetiver scent (it smells like nothing else) you will smell traces of it everywhere – it appears in the base of nearly all western fragrances.

Fresh and light, just the kind of scent I want to put on early in the morning.

Love the sillage on this; I smell it as I shift and turn all day. I had about 5 different fragrance strips sitting on my desk one day and GV was the only one I could smell at a distance. It blends well with everything. Everything I’ve tried! It smells great in every season, in every context. There is something so reliable about this scent, to me – like it would never let me down.

Ladies! Take note. This is a men’s classic (1959) but would smell fantastic on you. It has for me zero outdatedness, and age is no factor. Gentlemen, put down the stonking aquatics and try this. Everyone else: it would smell good on you, too.