To me this is a very nice combination of three elements for me, sharp citrus in the opening a touch green, then the patchouli comes on stronger and although prominent might be one that non patch lovers might like. The base to me is amber and cacao although that chocolatey effect might be coming from the patchouli. I thought it was pretty damn nice and the quality shone through.

Wow! As a big Prada and Andrier fan I was so glad to try this line and discover that not only are they a departure from the usual, clean stylised sophistication iv come to expect from both, these are supremely interesting, different (for Prada) and really well crafted. The opening of Moonlight shadow...carried me away..(eeeekkk!) no it really did, it’s out of control, sweet, figgy chocolates with a robust smoky spice undoubtedly coming across like oud or something to me. Really bravo on that opening. However, the drydown doesn’t quite live up to it. Don’t get me wrong it’s pretty amazing, just loses some of the complexity of the opening but I’m being harsh because what perfume doesn’t? The scent a big dry, dark cedar woods leather and that cumin really lasting. Great stuff.

A tea fragrance that I've worn a couple of times now but for some reason haven't reviewed? The bright slightly peppery, bergamot opening is soon joined by the tea note. Tea is strange, I love it but it's a mysterious smell, kinda cerebral and like all the best things, multi-faceted both bad and good. The pendulum seems to swing perpetually between, stale and awkward, to sharp, smokey and sublime. 12 wouldn't be out of place as a Duchaufour or L'artisan creation. The vetiver and tea works very well together but not exactly bringing anything new, which is fine. Not every fragrance can be a breakthrough and It has undoubted quality but the longevity wasn't great and I feel this is just one for the tea lovers, because if you don't like tea this ain't gonna work for you.

An absolute KO!!! Rituals have made the ultimate meditation on an oriental woody fragrance here. The smell is as complex as it is simple...if that makes any sense at all? The biggest note in here for sure is a sweet creamy bed of sandalwood and resin, accented perfected with incense and pepper in the opening. The picture that denotes 'Oriental notes' on here pretty much sums up Elixir d'Orient in one image. A kind of shimmering pool of golden, warm beauty. It starts to evoke hints of orris and leather such is the powdery smoothness and sweet hint of pencil shavings on a bed of amber and vanilla. I know there's plenty of reference points in feminine perfumery for this stuff and I'm sure I wanted to say Dior hypnotic poison but my knowledge of ladies designer stuff is pretty dire. References I'm more comfortable with are things like Donna Karen Fuel for Men and Atelier Cologne Santal Carmin both of which have this sort of vibe. Elixir d'Orient is very gentle natured in the same way, staying close to skin with occasional wafts reminding you just how nice it is. This is soft, sure, this feminine...absolutely and nothing you haven't smelled elsewhere before, but consider for a moment the price, the quality and the CRAZY longevity (I've showered, washed my hands god knows how many times and can still smell it about 20 hours later, albeit incredibly softly) I got from this scent and it's all shaping to be an absolute winning formula. Bravo to Rituals. Update: The longevity on this perfume is simply the most persistent I've experienced of any perfume I can remember anyway. It was nuts! I sprayed 6 sprays on the back of my hand, now hands are usually not a good place as they get washed and used to do stuff more than other parts of the body so I was amazed that this lasted about 3 showers and multiple hand washes per day. I swear I could still smell the faint, warm vanilla from application Thursday afternoon to Sunday! Completely insane! It's a very subtle and slight fragrance even when first applied but lasted really well.

My first introduction to Rituals was an advent calendar I got for the missus and ended up going 'wow that smells nice.' to many of the products. The one I liked best was the Rosewood and pine but unfortunately they don't do a perfume of that, but when I visited my local store to discover as much, I sampled some of their perfume offerings and I've gotta say I was impressed. The therapy vibe is extremely apparent in everything, and I have to say they all make you sigh a little sigh of comfort such is the cerebral nature of the creations. This one, Bleu Byzantin is probably the most accessible and has a more fresh approach. The juniper note at the beginning of this is really big and unlike the usual dry, g&t, quinine vibe it comes across as watermelon and salty aquaticness circa 1992. This could be a distraction but the herbal pine in the base is very zen, soothing and with a touch of mint it all comes together to make something vaguely familiar but extremely well executed. This wasn't my favourite from the line by any stretch but the solid, salty sea and woods drydown was pleasant even if the fragrance itself is perhaps a little shortlived. The price is great and packaging and overall look of the stores made me think their products were far more expensive than they are.

Limoncello has a very distinct taste and smell, not just lemons but yest, lemon oil, those compressed lemon pastes they have in north African cuisine and obviously booze and a frosted effect from being chilled in the freezer. Lacoste L.12.12 Eau fraiche really doesn't possess these qualities to my nose at least. Yes there's a delicate citrus in the top notes coming across cold and refreshing, not disimilar to that D&G Light blue Zest edition that came out in the summer. However Eau fraiche is a bit weirder than that and has far more in common with unusual modern, woody perfumes like escentric molecules, than it does with citrus and edc type fragrances. Don't get it twisted, I don't mean it's an ISO E Super fragrance or anything but it does have a stale, cedarish bed and a very slight nature to it, which sits incredibly close to the skin. I found it interesting and not really the fragrance I had expected to find from the notes. It's no Eau de Lacoste Blanc but it definitely warrants further investigation and is more than I'd bargained for. I've gotta say the bottle looks nice with that fade effect too.

I have to give it a like because I don't dislike the smell and I'm not going to be one of those guys who says 'No leather AT ALL here.' in my review because I suppose this sweetened, oriental mass does pose as what constitutes leather notes in many fragrances, however I would sympathise with that guy. The truth about this line is that they are good and better than expected from one aspect due to Ferrari's earlier efforts. On the other hand due to all the hype they've received, they actually fell sort for me. Bergamot and bright Neroli are fairly nice and decent value for money, as I'm sure Noble fig will be. However, I'm not convinced about this leather one. It's too sweet and icky, just an baggy composition of crowd pleasing spice laden oriental stuff. It's like spicebomb without any of the bomb, or the spice really! Cinnamon and clove yes, on a woody/gourmand/sweet leather/vanilla base. I'm oldskool, I like my leather to be leathery and masculine. I can enjoy Tuscan leather although that's really quite sweet, because it has real smoky leather facets and luxurious ingredients, this just seems lacking and certainly not in the league of the king. In some respects I'm glad it's not another TF clone. Sorry, I really hoped this would be a good budget leather, it does smell good but good as a throwaway oriental fragrance, the leather in the name and on the bottle threw me, oh and the performance isn't too good either, maybe another wear is in order?? I wasn't overly impressed anyway.

I've still not seen this in stores in the UK (not that I've looked very thoroughly) but considering it came out last year you'd think it would be. I've been pleasantly surprised by the Polo lines 'Luxury' output, the leather one was pretty good and the Oud one was excellent. It's not often I post a comment here unless it's a review but when the notes or concept of a fragrance grabs me, it compels me to comment without having sampled yet. I think cashmerean is a great modern ingredient, warm, cozy slightly powdered and ethereal and the notes of myrrh, cardamom and orris surrounding it in here sound like Supreme Cashmere is going to be a winner. I will update this with a review when I've tried it...can't wait.

Great name, great perfumer, this won an award I seem to recall (or it was shortlisted?) I actually love the Olfactive Studios brand, and I got the sample (along with a box of others) for free! This was lining up to be an absolute corker. A bit of background is needed to set the scene for this review. I had reviewed Lumiere Blanche on my Instagram feed and stated that like many Olfactive Studios fragrances, they are magnificent concepts and great openers but lack lustre drydown and fleeting in terms of performance. (Woody Mood ironically is anything but) On balance I don't put that much weight on the performance aspect as many reviewers do, some fragrances are supposed to be like that. However, when you get something deep, rich and complex you kinda hope it will last and stay that way. Selfish and unrealistic perhaps but it's more out of disappointment than anything because I really like the smell. So I sort of slated OS for this and received some comments from Celine below my post. I can hardly blame her really, if someone even hinted at slagging off my baby, I'd claw their eyes out!!! Anyway, she was very lovely and gracious about it and gave her justifications for the concentration of Lumiere Blanche. Needless to say I felt bad as I was clearly a fan of the house regardless of my minor gripes. She suggested that I try her newer release Woody Mood and proceeded to send me some samples which was incredibly kind of of her. So it's terrible that I have to say.... I really don't like it at all. I appreciate that it is innovative and frankly brilliant perfumery, mixing a warm, dense woody, oriental with the modernity that Duchaufour seems to bring to everything he does. Elements in here I definitely like and as I said above the quality, performance and concentration of Woody mood are all off the charts, and I'm not surprised it's received critical acclaim, but there's no accounting for taste though and it's just not to mine. The opening is typical of the house very unique but right away I'm confronted by a smokey, rubbery, unusual woods, typically challenging and typical of BD. I get the tea note and the cacao and there's a conspiracy of clary sage and a kinda leathery smell, which make it more serious and dark. It's a bit like the new Dior Santal noire (If I had to back compare) but this has far more notes and maybe the sequoia is what's bothering me? I really don't know? I loved santal noire and I don't love this. It takes several hours for WM's more troubling notes to subside however and I'm left with elements I think are pretty gorgeous. The point is I don't like it, but I absolutely respect it. Facts are if it was just another spicy sandalwood or oriental with oud or leather sure it would be nice but wouldn't be breaking any new ground. I love the fact that I don't like it, because other people do and Woody Mood is truly unique stuff.

Zino is one of those fragrances, I’ve never owned it until now because I fall In and out of love with patchouli heavy scents and this was one I was never really fussed about. I’ve recently bought it and I got the new reformulation which clearly doesn’t have the strength and depth quality of the original but what reformulation does? Zino however has gotten off pretty lightly compared to some, especially men’s classics from this era. This modern bottle captures the spirit, pretty well, lasts okay, retreating to a skin scent but a really nice one, so yeah I wouldn’t give it too much of a hard time. The scent itself to me is reminiscent of heritage, and Givenchy gentlemen but has a totally different take on the patchouli and sandalwood macho vibe. The opening is bright, musky, dirty, citrus/lavender opening out to geranium and into the clary sage/patchouli rosewood/Santal accord. It smells, grubby manly but smooth and refined at the same time. If the chief of the company and wants a perfume named after him you can bet it’s gonna be pretty special and it is.