Journey in smells.

Tony Reviews:  Poison (vintage) by Dior

Time to review the queen of all tuberose fragrances.

Poison has had quite a run. Over 26 years, it has spawned numerous flankers, and various concentrations that have been lost to time and now sit on eBay for upwards of $200. Unfortunately, Poison has gotten a lot more scrutiny than it has praise, and over time has become one of the reasons for people to think they “hate” perfume. What a shame, as there are some fragrances out there that remind me just how much of a joy it is to be alive. And, wouldn’t you know it, Poison is one of them.

I’m going to review the vintage stuff. Gonna be totally honest, while the current stuff captures the “essence” of Poison, it’s nowhere near as refined as the original. The current formulation smells closer to (god help me) grape soda, yes. That, and it has this strange “off” note that I can’t detect in the original. So, I’m gonna pass on the current one.

The vintage formula, however…

I would describe Poison as a small mountain of tuberose with all the other notes living on top. The creamy fruit notes (plum, etc) are prominent, so we’ll say that they are the trees that cover the mountain. A synthetic “hairspray” note is in there, very evocative of the 80’s. However, I don’t find it unpleasant at all. It’s not intrusive, and if anything, it contributes to the character of the scent. Honey helps to give Poison some more sweetness. Finally, the last prominent accord is a stunning, albeit subtle incense/resin smell, which could act as the grass on the mountain. You can’t see it as clearly as the trees, but it’s there. These accords together, in harmony, create a massive velvety-purple smell that feels like silk. For those looking for a lesson in 3D perfumery, Poison is all about texture. The Poison “smell” as a whole goes on for at least 9 hours on my skin before some musk and a creamy, almond-like heliotrope note round Poison off at about 12 hours. I should also note that there’s a neroli/orange blossom note in there, mainly towards the top.

Now, is Poison cloying?  Sure. It’s strong as fuck, but you need to know how to apply it and when to apply it. I am by NO means a fan of strong, sweet fragrances. I can’t tolerate gourmands or fruity-florals for the most part. However, I appreciate Poison, because it’s decadent and lush. It doesn’t pounce on me; it hugs me.

As a general rule of thumb, don’t wear Poison to dinner, movie theaters, on the subway, or at work. Wear it in a place where you’ll need it to break through all the other smells and announce your presence with a warm, inviting aura of mystery. Wear it at your own risk in warm weather. You do not need more than 3 sprays of Poison. More than that, and people might die.

Bottom line? Poison is a classic, through all the jeers and cheers. I suggest trying the current stuff, and if you don’t like it at all, don’t bother with the vintage. If you like it but you smell an “off” note, go for the vintage. If you love it, buy it, but also try to get some vintage, because then you’ll have a front-row seat to the magic. There are still vintage bottles out there on eBay and laying around drugstores. The current stuff is in a squat, apple-shaped bottle (the one pictured, which was actually the old Espirt de Parfum bottle); the old stuff is in a taller, more oval-shaped bottle. This shows with the height of the box, as well. Poison may be out of fashion to many people, but if you can wear it well, then you’ll be a crowd pleaser. 

For fuck’s sake, just stop worrying and love the bomb already.

Smell swell and be well,

Tony :-)

Poison pour lui?

I believe that this certain creation could have been released alongside the original Poison from 1985 in an alternate timeline. To me the scent comes of as a “structurally sweetened” Antaeus by Channel. 

Comparisons aside, strictly speaking of Poisons, this fragrance stands out to me. It is without a doubt the simplest Poison, yet carries the most complexity in according the notes than any of the others in my opinion. For example, oranges and bergamot in the top, so what? Those are very commonly used notes in many fragrances. The middle only consisting of roses, pale, soft and slightly sweet. And concluding of a oh so common base of vanilla amber musk and patchouli. Surprisingly, as with a few other scents of post millennia miracles, Midnight Poison pulls all of the notes together in to one solitary aroma. 

The start is very aromatic, sweet and slightly moist; dewy or even humidified. Heading further into the scent that humidity stands firm and is greeted coldly with drab, dead and dry floral musk which, despite how awful that sounds, fills me with olfactive joy indicative of fall. Viewing the final grasps at life, it’s last takes of air, Midnight Poison shrieks, yet nothing comes from the creatures mouth, dusty woods with a dissipating powdery/sweetness are all thats left upon conclusion. 

A misunderstood man often taken as a malnourished woman.
Midnight Poison.

Anup

Fragrances for Heroes?

Is it just me, or are there really no fragrances that have been made for heroes?

I’ve noticed that, over the years, there have been very few fragrances that one can call “heroic”.  Azzaro Pour Homme?  Sure, but it’s a bit old.  Habit Rouge? Nah, too powdery and dandified.

In this world of masculine fragrances, there seems to be little between the affable, playful fragrances of a young man (citrus, gourmand, etc) and the more conservative, reliable fragrances of an older man (aromatic fougères, etc).  That being said:  where are all the fragrances for the men who are heroes?  Fragrances that make us feel daring? The Indiana Jones of fragrances, perhaps?

Maybe that’s one reason that a lot of men consider fragrance to be too “girly”. There’s no fragrance for the action hero in all of us.  The 80’s was all about action heroes, but now those fragrances are considered dated.  No longer in style.  I’ll wear them, but perhaps what the masculine fragrance world is pining for is a fragrance that makes the dude inside of us all feel like we’re in a kick-ass action movie, and that we can take on the world.

Coriolan by Guerlain, as pictured, is probably the closest we’ve gotten so far. Of course, it has been discontinued.

Smell swell and be well,

Tony

  I’m sure we can all agree that this particular fragrance has Chypre Dna in it’s bones. An odd release for Avon considering the year was 1985. At that point in time i was under the impression that perfume houses had moved more towards Florientals and Chypre/Oriental hybrids. Regardless of it’s pedigree, this scent continues to turn heads, for better or for worse.

  Imari starts with a sticky herbal paired with an extremely old fashioned aldehyde. The type of opening found in fragrances of the 60’s and 70’s. I think the opening, being the most prominent part of the whole fragrance, is what confuses me the most about this fragrance. There is also a shrouded sort of woody fruit smell, that is very strange because it also comes off quite whimsical. 

  To those who are fairly new to perfumes this scent is going to smell of old woman and with that in mind if you’re new to scent, stay away from this. With slightly more experienced noses, this will be appreciated and understood for what it is. An awesome Chypre Floriental/thing that needs to be in every perfume-enthusiasts collection eventually.

Firstly, an apology.  I have been away doing bunches of perfume shopping lately and haven’t found the the time to just sit in front of my monitor and write.  Even now i realize that i am totally distracted.  Boyfriend making dinner, 12 hour shift, i swear it doesn’t end.

                                               Addressing the “Lola” Fiasco

 I think that the use of vinyl on a perfume bottle is a new thing and people easily associate it with Lola. That weird one that looks like lola on meth doesn’t get much attention though.

Secondy, an apology.  Justin Beiber’s perfume “Someday” has won it’s way into my heart.  I KNOW I KNOW, you don’t need to say anything, his music is overplayed, the only people who even like him are 12 year olds and possibly have braces.  All that aside we adults can try to take this creation seriously now, ok?

                                                  My Fragrantica review

I’ve been wanting to review this fragrance since it’s announcement on this website. How most of you children are able to disregard something so quickly just because it has the poor boys NAME on it is simply beyond me.
Enough lecturing, this is a sweet slightly bitter floral fragrance. In the top i get pear, but not the meat of the pear. More like the skin on the pear, with just some of the juices left over, the sweetness i get from this note is slightly green. Also in the top i get the juicy raw glucose scent from the red berry note (challenge for you, how many red berries can you name off in 30 secs?). 
Now to the middle. The jasmine, which smells like a more toned down powdery version of the jasmine you’ll find in Alien. Very nice, and executed well, the jasmine could have easily overpowered the entire composition. Also in the middle we have Floral notes(I get a creamy honeysuckle, almost a sun-kissed vibe). 
Lastly in the base we have what they call musk, but, i’d be inclined to say that it is actually white musk. Which as most of you will know, white musk is a much softer sweeter, more synthetic musk scent. It would surprise me if it WASN’T white musk. And obviously alongside the white musk we have Vanilla to finish the fragrance into a creamy sweet, slightly floral aromatic. 
This is a great fragrance, i had my sister smell it without knowing what it was and she was IN LOVE (she hates the Beiber). 

:ADD ON: The dry-down

(After a few hours of it sitting on my hand is has turned essentially into that raw surgery glucose scent, with a whiff of velvety honeysuckle. Simply gorgeous.)

My thoughts on the subject haven’t changed much at all and that review is pretty old.  I remember purchasing Beiber only a week or so after it’s initial release.  You wouldn’t believe how many tester bottles my Macy’s went through!

Smell swell,

Anup

An Introduction to Tony

Well, hello everyone!  This is Tony, the third member of this blog.  I’m the youngest one here - 18 years old as of typing (I was born March 6th, 1993), and fragrances are probably the biggest aspect of my life besides my friends, sleeping, and eating.

I wasn’t always into fragrances.  Originally, up until the age of 12 or so, I was quite compulsive about action figures and video games.  I loved to collect (and play with) action figures, and I was a big gamer as well.  I was quite shy, awkward, and introverted, and I got in fights a lot because I was little.  Then, when I was 11 years old, in July of 2004, I was at a bowling alley one night with my mom and some of her friends.  I had a MASSIVE panic attack, and some how over the next week, OCD-like symptoms surfaced and I began to have to wash my hands regularly, take showers, touch doorknobs, repeat things in my head, etc.  But perhaps the most peculiar “ritual” that came out of that was smelling things - now, every time I was at the store with my mom, I had to go to the personal care section and smell all the soaps/shampoos.  And, of course, I would buy (or ask for) the ones that I thought smelled the best.  This evolved into an interest in men’s grooming, skincare, and haircare, and at 14 I joined the men’s grooming forum, Menessentials.  This was my first touch with product reviews and fragrance discussion.  Out of curiosity, I went from there to Basenotes, probably the biggest fragrance forum in the internet these days.  Once I discovered Basenotes and started reviewing at age 15, my hobby really started to grow.

It’s my dream to be a perfumer and create fragrances that are accessible and affordable, yet artistic and utilize good raw materials.  I try to be open-minded, but at the same time I can be *VERY* biased.  I’m quite picky and at the moment there are maybe 20 fragrances out there out of the hundreds I’ve smelled or owned that I’d actually wear. I’m not really a fan of gourmands, fruity-florals, powdery fragrances, rose fragrances, or anything overly sweet and synthetic-smelling.  Even though I’m quite young, my interests usually go towards classical perfumery; fragrances from the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, and some from the 90’s.  As of writing, my favorite house is Guerlain.  However, I’m open to anything I try, and I will try my best to give it a chance.  Look forward to more blog entries from me! :-)

Tony

meteora20:

i usually don’t like perfume at all! but THIS smells so damn good! :D

My personal favorite men’s fragrance.

Hello everyone! This is Tony, and I thought I’d write my first review on here.

Jubilation XXV by Amouage

Pricey but worth the penny, Jubilation XXV was the first fragrance I smelled from Amouage and still the best in my opinion.

Jubilation XXV is divine in virtually every way possible. The incense, woods, spices, and dry, darkened fruits combine to create a sensual fragrance evocative of the desert and all its mystery, but still bearing heart and soul. That’s just the thing - a lot of (OK, most of) the highly expensive niche and luxe fragrances I’ve tried are noticeably high quality with good usage of raw materials, but they lack heart and feeling. They smell like empty money. Amouage fragrances, on the other hand, have highly impressed me so far, and Jubilation XXV is no exception, being a rich oriental that I can move around in and not feel weighed down or bloated, if you know what I mean.

Jubilation XXV begins on my skin with frankincense, dried fruits, dry woods, blackcurrant and a resinous labdanum note. I appreciate Bertrand Duchaufour’s use of labdanum; it’s one of my top favorite notes and needs to be used more in perfumery. Anyway, the combination of these elements sets the stage for Jubilation XXV and it stays that way for a while. The incense smooths over in time and the woods come out more, but it retains the character established in the top notes. There’s also a dry woody note in there that combines with the fruit to smell kind of like pipe tobacco. I enjoy it a lot.

Overall, Jubilation XXV lasts over 10 hours on my skin. It projects like a motherfucker and leaves no prisoners, but the opulence and elegance make it fun to wear. I literally cannot stop sniffing my wrist when I wear it, and save for a brief woody-amber note in the drydown, I can’t find anything off-putting about it. However, go easy on the dosage. I put on six sprays and my mom (who was in the house at the time) told it was really strong.

Bottom line: Try Jubilation XXV. It’s amazing, and you won’t know until you try.