I enjoyed this fragrance, it has lots of elements I like and are complimentary when applied in this composition. The opening is a fresh citrus but dominated by that juniper note which I love and just like ADP it's super luscious and thirst quenching. There's a dry peppery edge too which perfectly compliments the gin & tonic feel, nutmeg and sage also works well. I didn't really detect allspice but I did only try it once and am awaiting samples to give it a better review. I know what to expect from this line and a great deal of spice was never going to materialize but would've been welcome. After that bright, peppered juniper dies down it becomes a familar cedar base. No better or worse than the rest of the Blu line and a welcome addition in my opinion. Longevity is not the best but acceptable, I got a few hours from it.

This fragrance is lovely. I just don't think of AdP's established lines like Blu as having new editions, I just look at a swathe of blue bottles and think...I've tried all of those, when this one popped out and I thought....wow I haven't actually. So this stuff starts out with a fresh dry GnT like juniper, settling to something much more recognisable as blue, and Mediterranean. It's herbal, slightly powdery and with a cedar, cypress base, I can definitely smell a hint of all spice and nutmeg in there too. I love a cypress based scent. Love one. This is nice but didn't excite me exactly but you know what you're going to get with Acqua di Parma, decent quality and good concepts all around. Thumbs up from me.

Oh dear Guerlain what have you done here? This is so far off the mark it's unbelievable, very disappointing. L'Homme Ideal takes generic to the next level but even that statement makes it sound too exciting...it really isn't. As soon as I got my nose on the top notes I knew it was a tiresome tonka bean and super sweet almond which goes too far and makes the whole thing a creamy, powdered mess. That's not the whole story though because it does have some interesting notes poking through that main accord like orange blossom. I say 'interesting' but entirely ill conceived in my opinion, it's like curdiling fizzy soda and milk...doesn't work. I think what they're trying to achieve is the delicate suede like feel of something like VC&A Midnight in Paris but fails miserably and becomes more like Burberry Brit Rhythm or some other bland Tonka release of late. It's got a strength to it though I'll give it that but it's that synthetic, aroma chemical strength not due to high quality ingredients just unrelenting innovation meaning longevity was good. Anyone would think I didn't like tonka bean but that's not the case at all, just rare to find a truly good one with complimentary notes. Yeah so it's not a good outing from Guerlain in my opinion, which is a shame because I was anticipating this one.

Gokhanburak53's comment needs to receive some balloons! I noticed when I was sampling this juice that it was indeed dreamy actor Kit Harrington on the campaign posters, I'm probably about 98% straight but even I go a bit gooey eyed for Jon Snow! Shame he's promoting this generic rubbish then isn't it! Nah that's a bit harsh actually but I do honestly think Jimmy should stick to shoes and not crowd an already heavily crowded market place unless it's a worthwhile release. The fleeting very top notes of exotic fruit in Jimmy Choo Man is very synthetic but plugs into a zone of my brain which appreciates that sort of thing. It's kinda like Eau de Lacoste Red and countless other fruity scents containing a pineapple (type) note but soon over. Then comes the killer, a slightly salty aquatic note (maybe calone) and that generic crowd pleasing and hard to define, mundane accord. Oh no I thought, here we go again with another vulgar aroma chemical cocktail but that's only some of the tale. It's a little like a weak, watery version of BdC, I can certainly see where comparison could be drawn. However, this is lacking in spice to give it further dimension and take it out of the realms of boredom. Now if I'm perfectly honest I quite like the drydown, yeah you heard me... I like it. It just becomes a soft pleasing affair with non of the annoying elements that jar with me. Additionally, I have to say I found the longevity to be very good for such a 'blah' scent. My girlfriend really liked it too as soon as I sprayed it in the store she was immediately drawn to it. I had made my appraisals pretty quickly and proceeded to tell her it was cheap and generic, on closer inspection and a further try I'd stick to that but it's by no means worthy of a 'dislike' vote here. I have about 4 sample vials of this which I will probably give to my friends. Just frustrating that I try all these new fragrances hoping for a surprise beauty like Valentino Uomo but alas no joy here.

I'd been anticipating trying a Huitieme Art and having it blow me away, Monsieur was the one to do it...Bravo! I don't think there's anything 'plain' about this scent at all it's a great mixture of notes. A distinctive, fresh, incense fragrance with a delicious backbone of woods, it's warm but without any of the heaviness of amber you tend to find coupled with incense. This contains unmistakable top notes of papyrus and that classic combo with sandalwood which I'll be honest I don't always think the balance is right (Le Labo Santal 33) but here it's superb. I get olibanum in the opening too then a hint of earthy patchouli and vetiver as it dries down. You could be mistaken for thinking that it doesn't contain enough light and shade, what with all these woody notes. However, spice comes from the sandalwood, fresh, clean natural notes from papyrus, vetiver and incense, heavier base tones of oak and oakmoss...this makes for anything but a dull affair. Stunning, Masculine and great quality, lasting power but subtle and well priced Huitieme art Monsieur is a wonderful perfume. I might just get myself a bottle.

Douro is an aromatic with a touch of the classic fougere about it. For me it's a pleasant fragrance and worthy (and expected) to be in the penhaligon's line but one of my least favourite. Nothing offensive about I just think it's not herbal enough, not spicy or mossy enough, put simply Douro is just not ballsy enough. The composition has the balance of other similar Penhaligon's scents which is usually a positive thing but dare I say it makes Douro a tad on the boring side. Opens, with fresh bergamot, citrus classic note of lavender, then becomes a slightly, floral mossy, musk. Nothing jumps out at me, but not offensive by any means.

This fragrance is a masterfully realized piece of work. I instantly remembered trying it a few years ago when I (semi) blind bought it recently. A thoroughly rewarding choice it was too, There's no doubt it's vastly better than anything Gucci have on the shelves currently. Pour Homme II has character, depth, and a charming class about it. Opens freshly, a brisk bergamot and tea and slight hint of violets which makes you think it's some fairly average fodder. However has it dries down the tea gets stronger, a bit drier and musk chimes in to offset any sweet or powdery notes with some bitterness. It's so interesting that the spicy element of cinnamon/hint of tobacco and pimento conjures up a subtle V&R spicebomb type aroma at the heart of this fragrance. PHII predates it obviously but maybe it could be great for those who like the concept of Spicebomb but not the sledgehammer execution. It also reminds me of Penhaligon's Opus 1870 which is a very beautiful scent, a peppery, rose, cedar affair that has a similar feel to this also. But then this has the violet, tea and woody notes that I enjoy too, it's masterpiece of a fragrance and more enjoyable the more you wear it. It's not obtrusive and lasts longer than I'd anticipated on my skin, with mild projection...I'd say average in both departments. The trick here is that PHII is so subdued it could never be annoying or cloying due to a great balance of spicy/sweet/fresh/dry/warm...everything really. My girlfriend instantly loved it too in fact she wore it the minute it arrived (and tried to convince me to give it to her) and it smelled great on her. Love this...can't recommend it highly enough.

I've been waiting a while to get my hands on this. I've also been a fragrance lover for many years but didn't expand my collection beyond about 10-12 fragrance until recent years. Strange that this one passed me by when it was out, because now looking back on the late nineties/early noughties era there were a few real gems around and I'm surprised Versace Man got tragically overlooked... by me anyway. I sometimes shop in a store which specializes in discontinued or rare fragrances still in production. I asked about this one and they said they sold the last bottle several years ago and that I'd be lucky to find a decent one now. She said be wary of things on ebay and I suppose bottles could be 10+ years old now. However, I believe from my experience (and dependent on the fragrance of course), as long as you store them properly it shouldn't be too much of an issue. My verdict is.... this is a wonderful scent, a deep sexy oriental that blows anything Versace have in stores at the moment (possibly with the exception of Oud Noir?) out of the water. Then they go and discontinue it. A fresh opening then, deep amber and really nice leathery, tobacco accord is complex and wonderful with the absolute epitome of my favourite spicing from cardamom, pepper and wonderful saffron and labdanum. The saffron is a really big player in this fragrance without dominating it in anyway, it feels soft and classy but deep. The drydown is lovely, long lasting but not very strong which is fine by me. I love Versace Man comes highly recommended and it's a triumphant blind buy for me.

I love bright uplifting tea fragrances and this could be described just that way, however something in here doesn't work. The top notes seem a little like citrus/petitgrain/verbena to me and then there's a strong cedar and a hint of something more interesting perhaps the Myrrh and cardamom which actually give this fragrance some depth. It's an odd one this, I honestly don't really get it? Perfectly wearable and nothing wrong with it, the drydown has some interesting element (again I can't place?) that makes it seem very high quality. It could be rose? It's very very faint but that could be it. It's a sharp musky fragrance and I have to be brutal, I don't think I'd wear it. Longevity was okay and it's certainly a bit of an enigma.

Hyle is obviously a classy scent, it has a real air of sophistication and is a fragrance of high quality. However, taste wise this is not my thing due to the salty aquatic note and the way it seems to have curdled with the creaminess. The opening and throughout there's a nice lemony note which works well with the Calone type salty sea breeze accord which is handled more gently than something like Invictus or Eros but still a bit weird. What surprises me is the main and last (but by no means least) note myrtle...isn't listed here? it's huge throughout giving a moisturiser sort of vibe. In many ways this is a great mixture of those three main elements despite me not really liking it but I have to way up whether I'd wear it or not and I simply wouldn't but there's nothing wrong here, it's a fresh, clean summery fragrance that some will love. That myrtle holds the citrus for a long time like neroli or white blossoms do and as a result the longevity is very good. Worth a try but not for me.

I tried this years ago and despite being a real violet fan I've never taken to this or Paul Smith fragrances in general but I felt I should revisit it and make sure. Fresh opening of herbal/citrus basil which comes off a little like tea. Then it sweetens up massively and becomes very floral, mainly violets but I can smell lavender and maybe a bit green with some hiacynth? Something about this scent I just find a bit awkward and cheap the opening hour or so is really big and intrusive but it just dries down to a powdery violet and woody vetiver musk...which in all fairness is okay.