As a lover of anything orange/ mandarin, this is a very beautifully mandarin juicy smell. It’s linear and it’s pretty much only mandarin however It smells like freshly juices mandarins and is beautiful
Imo the best Versace fragrance, can be picked up for £15/30 a beautiful lavender smell. Can wear anytime absolute hidden gem
Very delicate floral scent, not too overpowering . Would advise over spraying and onto clothes also. Could be a nice scent for spring as it’s uplifting and light
First thing I’ve smelled that Rosendo Mateu worked on that I didn’t love. I heard that there was a big cumin note that was really challenging. I got a mini dabber bottle. I got none of it. Instead I got main notes I hate in perfumes. That dingy 80’s cinnamon note found in things like Halston Z-14, ODL Pour Lui, and Bijan man, and a loud ambery/powder note I also find to be sickening. I wanted to like this. This is really dated and likely to be enjoyed by nobody near you. Maybe it’ll grow on me.
While I do offer a couple of comps to this fragrance, there really is no substitute. Sauvage Elixir gets a lot of hate for being overused, but there is a reason that it has been so popular. This is a great cologne. Manly, spicy, musky...the sillage is great and the longevity is outstanding. I've worn a number of colognes, both designer and niche. This is the only one that I've been complimented on. So, yes, I will praise this cologne as the GOAT.
Saying that Winners Trophy resembles Valentino BiR Intense may be a bit of a stretch. But, there are some similarities between them. The biggest differences would be the earthy and powdery notes that Valentino adds to round out the fragrance. At its price point, you can't beat Winners Trophy. But, for a little more, I would recommend BiR Intense. You won't regret that purchase.
Haltane is one of my top 5 fragrances. This is definitely a more mature cologne, I'm not sure how much a teenager would enjoy this (I may be wrong). The praline addition is what separates this from its dupes. A nice blend of woody oud and leather, tis is a year round fragrance for me.
Herod is an amazing scent. A subtle tobacco note under a warm amber/woody scent that is very appealing. I won't fully accept that Hercules by Maison Alhambra is a 100% match, but it is a solid substitute for the cost savings. Herod is simply unmatched in the depth of aroma that you get upon application.
To me, smells slightly to BO, not in a bad way but not pleasant, tried multiple times to see if i could acquire the taste for the scent but really tough to wear for me, seeing if letting it macerate would improve the scent
Eau Duelle EDP is your Chaotic Vanilla.
A dry woody fragrance with a backdrop of frosted vanilla, sharp yet subtle. The prominent cypriol note gives a gloomy cabin-like vibe. It is somewhat incensey in a smokey way, and slightly reminiscent of evergreen trees in the forest. It's a very "cold" scent rather than warming, undeniably wintery. Linear, if that matters.
Beautiful scent, reminiscent of vintage cologne-type of fragrances for women. Amazing longevity!
Mancera is just known for beast mode fragrances. Amore Caffe is definitely one of them. This fragrance has both lasting power and sillage that are unmatched. While I wouldn't necessarily recommend this scent for confined office spaces, I say that tongue-in-cheek, as I will wear it to the office. The only comparison I could make for a cheaper option would be Tiramisu Coco by Zimaya, and they aren't really all that close. You can find Mancera products on discounters occasionally for a very affordable price. Considering that you only need 3 sprays of their scents, it's well worth the money.
Similar to Percival, in that no new ground is being broken with the scent profile, Layton still delivers an extremely solid every day scent. A nice mix of peppery spice, vanilla and green apple, this fragrance can be worn every day. Solid lasting power. Again, with PDM, the only drawback to their fragrances is the sticker shock when purchasing.
While it's not a hugely unique scent profile, Percival delivers a solid mix of common scents blended nicely for a solid everyday fragrance. The initial scent is very much like a fresh soap (in a really good way). When the dry down hits, you start to pick up that amber tone. It is a very nice scent. While you can likely find a similar scent profile for far cheaper, PDM just knows how to blend these notes perfectly. In my opinion, the PDM is worth it.
Only lacking in the vanilla and powder notes of Tom Ford Oud Wood, this fragrance hits the woody oud scent that you are looking for. The smell is very good, not too cloying, and lasts for a solid 8 hours on skin and clothes. Solid choice for those who prefer manly scents.
The Most Wanted has rapidly crept into my top 10. This scent profile is amazing. The spice is smooth. and the sweetness of the caramel mixed with amber is intoxicating. Not a cloying fragrance at all, even doing up to 8 sprays. I would say this is a step up from The Most Wanted EDP, but not by a lot. Both are worth getting in to your fall/winter rotation.
Another hit by Maison Alhambra. Much like almost every Middle East fragrance, this one needed to macerate a bit upon opening. When I first got it, it almost smelled stringent. After a couple of months of maceration, the mango note of this fragrance was highly developed. Sceptre doesn't have the amber and warmer notes that GoF does, but it is a very good substitute.
As far as dupes go (and I'm not saying Maison Alhambra is a dupe house!) this one is solid. It is about 90-92% close to the scent profile of Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille. The only thing missing is the slight cocoa tone that TF has. The main notes are identical with the MA, but it's a little more on the sweet side. Great fragrance at a great price.
This opens with a hard ginger note so if that's not your thing stop here. The vetiver comes through after about 15 to 30 minutes
This is a basic citrus woody fragrance with a big ginger and vetiver profile. It's subtle really well balanced. The powder comes through a lot after 5 or so hours really finishes out with the iris powder profile
I feel like this is a good all year round fragrance the ginger and vetiver do make it stand out so I can see it used for a special occasion but I think it's a perfect everyday scent.
Seems to lean a little more feminine, possibly the iris is why but as a man I'd wear it anytime. If Ingenious Ginger is your thing try this for sure
Maison Alhambra is a solid cologne house. Although considered dupes of high end fragrances, if we only knew of Maison Alhambra, it would be considered a niche brand. Their replicas of more expensive fragrances are often 90% similar, and cost a fraction of the price. This one is no different. Why spend upwards of $500 on LV when you can spend 1/12 that for Immortal?
There is no designer fragrance that Curve could be considered a dupe of. This is a stand alone scent, that is very affordable, and would be considered a great starter budget fragrance. The original Curve (slightly similar in profile) was a huge scent for me back in the 90s. So, the appreciation I have for this cologne is certainly based on nostalgia. Be that as it may, I do believe that Curve Black is a solid fragrance.
My mom's signature scent throughout my teenage years. I recently bought her a full size bottle for her birthday. She only had a mini in her bathroom and hadn't worn it in years. She was thrilled and immediately doused herself in it. Her smile was beaming. She was in the recovery center at the hospital at the time and had made quick friends with two other ladies there. She showed it to one and she asked her kids to get her a bottle for her next birthday. It smells like a well rounded approachable person. I may need to buy a bottle for myself, so I can bring my mom to work. She's a freaking cool lady.
Masterpiece. Dior Homme Intense (2011) with monstrous performance. It has darker, more leathery side that makes this stand out. Gutted this was replaced with Dior‘s new re-imagination
Monstrous is a word I usually reserve for the likes of Megamare, a perfume so synthetic and tenacious I can't bring myself to even touch the nozzle for fear I won't be able to get rid of the smell for days. However, Beach Hut Man is monstrous, yet also captivating and addictive rather than domineering and brutal. Nothing else smells even remotely similar to this, and worn in the right context, it shines as a masterpiece of perfumery. Said context is out in the hills of the French Riviera in sunny, mildy warm winter weather. I wore it to go hiking up a small mountain just by Nice in January, and I was like "NOW I get it!", whereas before I'd found it too much. I mean, it is too much if you're going to be indoors at all, or perhaps being indoors requires application with a roller, just one dab to each wrist. Either way, since my hiking day I've been in love with this perfume. Thr orange blossom in the opening is the best rendition of this note for me, it's staggeringly good, and heartbreakingly fleeting, leaving a bizarre but beautiful amalgam of woody green notes. Indeed, this is one of those perfumes where the notes blend seamlessly into one cohesive smell, and you really have to squint to discern them, it's pure genius. Update: Just received new formulation. I hope it will open up and change as it breathes a bit, as for now it's a let down. This is one of my favourite perfumes, and the opening gives me joy every time. Well, here it's a different story. The mint note is different, in fact it smells like the same cheap mint used in You Or Someone Like You, with the same cat piss nuance. It's not spearmint any more. The orange blossom is nowhere to be seen. The sillage smells closer to the original, but up close it's like a cheap dupe. It doesn't smell bad, but it makes me feel sad that my love has been butchered. Update: I'm warming to the reformulation after the bruising experience of wearing it the first time. It'll never beat the old version, but in its own right it's a good perfume. It's slightly more polite than the original so could be useful for workplace wear. The myrhh is more apparent from the start, and the very far drydown does smell more like the original. I can't put my finger on what's missing, but whatever it is is the thing that takes it from 10/10 (my only perfume with full marks) to perhaps 8/10.
