Cards on the table, right off the bat for Quercia....This is a really, really good fragrance. Not only does it adhere to tried and tested ideas but it has some suprising extra depth and quality to elevate it that bit further. Opens with a signature AdP freshness, petitgrain/citrus/verbena but immediately let’s you know that this is a woody fragrance, with earthy tones and plenty of oakmoss, lending a wonderful masculinity. So far so straight forward but the quality of the woody base really does keep giving throughout, those lime top notes lasting well into the drydown and at the heart of this fragrance there’s cardamom and geranium, all giving a kind of Italian vibe. The most surprising thing for me is the very deep drydown after many hours...there’s the soft vanilla notes which I’m assuming is from Tonka Bean. Faceted, brilliant, strong and long lasting but not invasive...I’m pretty sold on this superb Chypre type fragrance, Bravo Acqua Di Parma.

I’m in two minds about this fragrance. On the one hand I love the opening, the depth, the sheer quality and middle eastern vibe of this fragrance in general. However that is one of things I don’t like...it’s intrusive...invasive even strong heavy projection and a unrelenting smell which I can only take for a short period without nasal fatigue. This is the problem with many UAE frags oils and attars I have, they bang too hard. I also have a slight problem with this being called santal...suggesting sandalwood which is clearly in the mix and might even save this scent somewhat, but it’s undoubtedly an oud. The oud is loud, proud and has that sharp, dankness which reminded me specifically of AdP oud calonia a fragrance I kinda like but actually gave to a friend for the same reasons I couldn’t wear this one. In fairness to the Guerlain composition here oud, musk, rose, citrus and resins are handled absolutely perfectly and combined much more lovingly to create a smoother, much less clumsy and more rounded scent. I like it, I think it’s brilliant in fact, and couldn’t help sniffing it throughout a long wearing experience but for me it becomes a little too much. This is just personal preference because I’m quite amazed by the opening and just how much oud potency and carefully finessed surrounding notes. Another stunning scent from Guerlain but definitely one for unapologetic oud lovers. Update: The deep, deep, deep drydown (approximately a week later on my coat sleeve and a sample card) and I'm absolutely amazed at the smell. Not least because it's still there but because it's warm, soft, complex and truly outstanding. It's not just a base trail either there's mainly oud a soft sandalwood left sure, but it even the subtle heart notes still remain. Crucially it's not harsh at all. Maybe this is the key to having this scent? Spray it on clothes you're going to wear in a weeks time.

I have to say I thought this was a reasonably good fragrance. The opening is nice, interesting, clean and fitting of the name modern leather...probably the modern bit more than the leather. It has a powdered leather which is much more subtle and something you might find in a more feminine and lighter fragrance. The main notes are basil and geranium to be honest, and that’s fine by me as it’s tempered with a edge of masculinity from a oakmossy type note. That’s it really. It has dried down very nicely and actually reminds me a touch of Tom Ford for Men, if it’s available heavily discounted in a few months time then I’d definitely consider adding it to the wardrobe because this is wearable stuff for me.

This is a decent scent and I’m not just saying that because of my usual enjoyment of all things Penhaligons, it really is. Starts out with a new approach which is typical of the house, complex yet understated and apart from fruity top notes and a tobacco/Tonka general nature, it’s something I hadn’t really come across before. However, after the first few minutes it settles and completely changes to a honied, more powdery but ultimately the same scent as TF Tobacco Vanille. I haven’t got a problem with this and even less so for two reasons, it’s not exactly the same and that it has a different opening and drydown, which we will get to in a moment. The problem is that on the whole is this a better fragrance than TV? I don’t really think so. It doesn’t quite have the same balls out strength although the longevity was excellent to be fair. The drydown was much more Tonka bean and a sweeter more playful vanilla than the Tom Ford. So in conclusion interesting opening which fools you into thinking it’s not a clone of TV, then the heart of it IS TV, then the drydown reminds you it isn’t with some softer, refined tones. A good effort, worth trying but I won’t be buying it.

For me the Ideal accord has certain ‘Goldilocks zones’ where it works and this version might just be a departure too far. Here’s the history of my option on Ideal and it’s flankers, I didn’t really like the original, I found it disappointing, sweet rubbish. Then the EDP or deeper version, for some bizarre reason I quite liked even though it was possibly sweeter and even more icky, but sometimes it’s a case of...if you’re gonna go there might as well go all the way. Then the ultimate plateaux was Ideal Cologne which mixed the original accord with more fresh notes, I really liked it and perchased, and actually wear often. Ideal Sport still has vague glimpses of the almond base but they are much more distant now and the top notes and main vibe are that of a generic, aquatic. I find it boring but not unpleasant it’s fresh and when dried down smells a bit more interesting than the hundreds of aquatics it smells like because of that Ideal pedigree. Is it something I’m interested in? Not really performance was fairly good though. Update: I can’t believe I was So blasé about this fragrance, upon sampling again its actually a brilliantly well realised aquatic. It’s a class act, reminding me a touch of amazingreen, classic cologne type fragrances, modern aquatics and a touch of the gourmand basis of the original. I really like it.

I could either write a massively long review or a super short one for this, reason being it's not straight forward but then again it is....let's see how it goes anyway. The opening was a surprise, much more masculine and earthy than I expected but then modern does of the generic cleaness and freshness there to keep L'Insoumis relevant, But is 'relevant' really what we want from a perfume? Personally I'd like them to reflect back on 80's powerhouses or classic fougeres, it's about time they had a renaissance in the mainstream. Lalique kind of do this but also fall short quite a bit. Don't get me wrong I love the house, they don't really play along or dance to the tune of the mainstream and I think this avoids that too by being classy, retrained and in keeping with the brand aesthetic. This being said I don't think they have any real masterpieces among their repertoire. Oh just reading a few comparisons to Sauvage, style wise...I don't entirely disagree but smell wise it's nothing like...could there be a hint of ambroxan in here?...I'd say yes but it's low in the mix and likely the other elements of Sauvage that remind people of this scent. The style is very much in the mould of a Sauvage or even an Aventus, fresh fruity top and smoky, earthy base, a classic men's combo. The clary sage, vetiver, pepper and all conspire to make a clean, modern yet earthy brew. The note I get prominantly is patchouli from start to finish and with that clary sage it's the right balance of masculine dirt and modern, powdery, clean, This is a tightrope walker of a fragrance. It's carefully measured style could easily be mistaken for the mundane but when you've been around enough fragrances you can tell what is accidental or bandwagon jumping and what is deliberate, and L'Insoumis falls into the latter catagory. I enjoyed it and found it very wearable the performance was pretty god, subtle but present drydown and the bottle looks nice. All in all I'm glad I blind bought it.

I love being a fragrance nut and it’s because of days like this, you get so jaded by new releases that I let out a disappointed sigh at the mere sight of one, especially a flanker of a decent original which was only out last year. I truly enjoyed Horizon and got several samples on its release, solid stuff but didn’t quite compel me to buy, this intense version is a different story all together. Anyway...this stuff is really very good and no ruff edges or anything just a nice, wearable and well put together fragrance. Grapefruit in the opening is sharp and completely contrasting from a modern, masculine leather, herbal, woody type heart/base. It’s a different feel to the original in that this is without doubt an oriental fragrance but still has shades of the citrus/woody/ginger of horizon without just being an intense version. The difference with this and many new releases I end up liking is that I instantly felt a sense of knowing what Horizon Intense was going to deliver but it was still totally non typical. Performance was okay to good and I couldn’t ask for more really. I want a bottle. Bravo Davidoff for not ruining but building upon the legacy of the first fragrance.

This is quite simply a stunning perfume and another massive hit from the house of Robert Piguet. The opening is similar to many ultra woody, slightly dank but massively faceted oud creations and if that's what you think you're going to get, that would be just fine by the way. Okay so where's the delice part? You have to be patient to be rewarded especially with the deceptive opening, not expecting to be struck by a gorgeous gourmand nature. Resinous, sweet, earthy but delicate all the while, gets my vote for sure.

I'm such a sucker for a fruity little number like this, especially when it doesn't smell cheap and this smells a million bucks to me. Despite having no qualms about wearing anything I do have a threshold and I find Moonlight in Heaven wildly effeminate and would be impossible for me to wear. Incidentally My girlfriend thought it was boring but what does she know eh?...her judgement and taste are clearly flawed. ;) Anyway... The opening treats you to sharp grapefruit and a tropical cocktail of guava, mango running through it. It later mellows for me to a less exotic kind of mandarin but still lovely long lasting fruity top notes, that's what I'm getting at. It's not floral but I'd say there's jasmine or tiare flower or something in here just lifting the whole thing and a vanillary/woody/musk base...I'm sure there's more going on here because this is more than the sum of it's parts. This scent doesn't sound like much and I'm sure there's millions of similar scents out there but it spoke to me....Perhaps it's the pink pepper? (I do love the smell of that) it has a class and a light freshness but also a quality I enjoyed. I'd buy it for my significant other but I may have to exchange her first. :)

Acceptable, likeable, and perfectly serviceable aquatic fragrance. I suppose you could say this of any line but do BVLGARI really need to keep producing these AQVA flankers? I think they do it because this is a particularly iconic and cool bottle although that might be slightly cynical and to be fair there's far worse offenders to pick on. This has the seaweed and saltiness of the AQVA's with some modernity thrown into the mix to make a mildly derivative, 'blue' scent. I have to say the deepness of this particular hue is very nice (yes I'm not being figurative, literally the colour of the bottle). Not to mention, I'm the first to complain when flankers go too far off the reservation (see AQVA Amara) but when they are flogging a dead horse with this Ocean accord, I start to question why? In my opinion the original AQVA and the Marine one are excellent and among some of the best aquatics ever made, these flankers are the difficult albums following a seminal one. So I'm just saying give up BVLGARI? Well no but I'm sure there's new avenues to explore that's all. Just a thought....If BVLGARI do release more flankers and insist on retaining the sea vibe can I pitch a dark, brooding version, still salty and aquatic notes but really heavy woods or incense or something? The bottle fades from deep navy to virtually black and call it BVLGARI AQVA ABYSS (TM) (I want credit for this if there's any BVLGARI creatives prepared to nick this idea)