Phantom is a straight up abomination to the world of perfume, a disgustingly synthetic mess. You’ve got this overdose of sneeze-inducing lavender combined with a very earthy apple and vanilla. There’s a head-pounding lemon in there too just to make you more nauseous. I don’t even know why I’m taking the time to review this fragrance but words cannot describe how much I dislike it. This fragrance is probably the laziest, dullest and simply the worst excuse for a scent I’ve ever come across. As usual with Paco Rabanne the quality of ingredients is abysmal and the blending is atrocious. This truly is a disgusting fragrance made for 13 year old boys who are enamoured by a tacky robot bottle.

Carmine to me smells undoubtedly like a much more affordable version of Aoud by Roja Dove. It opens straight away with that iconic combination of geranium, lemon and saffron which is sharp and captivating as it is smooth and seductive. From here a smooth leather, oud and rose sets in to darken the scent. It definitely smells like there is ambergris in here, although not listed. That for me is what brings it closer to Aoud, the soft and salty ambergris is incredibly addicting and works perfectly with the oud and saffron. For the price I am very impressed with this fragrance, it is undeniably close to Aoud and so you can save a lot of money by getting this instead. Of course the quality doesn’t quite match up to the Roja, and the blending isn’t quite as impressive but it still smells beautiful and considering the difference in price you really can’t complain.

Gravitas Pour Homme is a seemingly standard fresh spicy fragrance, but with an underlying stink. Initially it opens with bergamot and mandarin, which to me come across fairly cheap and abrasive, coupled with a pretty good lavender I have to admit. From here however, things take a downward turn. There’s a sharp kick of black pepper, alongside cardamom and coriander which I’m assuming are the culprits to this smelly undertone reminiscent of body odour. Personally I do not find this to be a very pleasant fragrance due to this, but even without its strange body odour it would still be a boring and lifeless perfume.

I blind bought Alexandria II due to the immense hype surrounding this fragrance, I mistake I won’t make again as I soon sold it on. This opens with an intensely synthetic and almost plastic combination of apple, lavender and rosewood. There’s some cinnamon and florals in there but they’re quite subtle. Onto the dry down - it doesn’t take a genius to work out that Xerjoff doesn’t use real oud, but this smells like some of the cheapest synthetic oud I’ve ever come across. It’s bitter, rubbery and abrasive - almost smells like a badly kept old man’s basement. This was a very disappointing fragrance for me and I can’t understand all the love for this scent, especially considering how much it costs. I think there are far better offerings from Xerjoff and far better oud-based scents for a similar price on the market.

Promise is a bold and daring perfume, one that really challenges the senses and shouldn’t be dismissed too hastily. It opens with an explosion of juicy apple and sharp pink pepper which is both refreshing and incredibly pungent. From here a duo of two classic roses emerge to balance the harsh apple with soft floral touches. As this settles on the skin - a dry, earthy cypriol and patchouli become the stars of the show. For me this is where people find the scent to be challenging, cypriol definitely isn’t for everyone. There’s some spicy touches and animalic castoreum lurking in the background, but they’re not overly noticeable. I’ll be honest, this one took some time for me to appreciate it. I was so close to selling my bottle but I stuck it out and wore it a few more times, and ended up falling in love with it. I really had to take the time to understand this fragrance and build a relationship with it. Definitely not for casual wear and definitely not mass appealing.

Burlington 1819 is a fresh, invigorating scent for the modern gentleman. Opening with an incredibly sharp, juicy medley of grapefruit, lime, mandarin and bitter orange - it’s then offset by a delicate mint and ginger. Fortunately, the mint in here isn’t dominating and it actually quite subtle, while the ginger powers ahead and takes the lead. There’s a hint of soft oakmoss and dry tobacco, but unfortunately I don’t pick up any rum. The ginger intensifies as this settles on the skin alongside the citrus and a salty ambergris, which makes up the majority of the scent profile. The addition of cumin here is a strange one, in the air it can sometimes give the impression of body odour in the background, as though you’re sweating through the scent. I don’t get this all the time fortunately, but it’s not ideal. I think this is fantastic citrus scent which is very well made, but for the warmer months I would instead choose Oceania or Elysium.

Fall into Stars is the perfect name for such a sublime fragrance, housed in a modest and unassuming bottle - it really does feel like I can fall into this one. On initial spray it casts a bitter, sticky aroma with Peru balsam, pink pepper, bergamot and ginger - before developing a thick, waxy layer of henna flower and rose. Soon after, a soft and dry oud emerges - not particularly animalic or fecal in any way, but with enough unique nuance to indicate some degree of real oud in the composition. The base is also comprised of a leathery, smoky labdanum and smooth saffron, with subtle touches of a sweet, resinous amber accord in the background. This is a masterfully blended fragrance which is wonderfully smooth and lasts all day. To me and some others I’ve mentioned this to, it almost smells like hyperrealistic black olives at times which can be a bit weird. Overall however, this scent is beautiful and captivating, but not quite enough to justify £760.

Purple Gourmand does quite well for itself as a very inexpensive fragrance, however I don’t think it’s for me. Immediately I’m greeted by this rather strange coffee and pear combination which simply doesn’t feel right to me, before noticing a dark burnt caramel beginning to build up strength. From here it then heads in the opposite direction once again with the introduction of jasmine and coconut, resting on a base of vanilla and patchouli. I find the majority of the fragrance is dominated by this intensely sweet caramel, bitter coffee and juicy pear. The quality isn’t bad here, it’s actually quite good, I personally just find this particular mix of notes to be very strange and off-putting. It doesn’t smell like you would expect a gourmand to smell, which might be great for some - but for me I find it strays too far in a ‘unique’ direction.

Explicite is an intensely sweet, floral and feminine perfume which I think is fantastic. It opens straight away with bright pink and white florals of peony and lily of the valley, with a soft, delicious darkness lingering in the base from the praline and amber. There’s a gentle spicy kick as nutmeg and pink pepper introduce themselves, resting on a clean woody base. Overall it’s the florals that dominate this scent, the sweet praline and Amber are present but they are but supporting accords. This is a very feminine fragrance and I’m surprised Fragrantica lists it as unisex. I think it smells wonderful but wouldn’t wear it for myself, and find it’s quite overpriced for what it is unfortunately.