New Frags for a New Year!

[joshmpdx]

With the dawn of the new year armed with bags of samples and a new well lit spark for fragrances, im thinking of ways to approach this particular hobby in a different way than my B&B hobby of shaving with a straight.

The majority of what i've tried so far has been of the Niche variety and fairly hard to find stuff, simply because Henry (prof chaos) generously sent them my way. so instead of jumping into the Niche, im going to begin by jumping on top of the foundation. Designer frags.

I've just purchased what i've come to believe by reading BN and the A-Z guide as foundation and reference to begin basing an opinion on.

From the website "www.midtownperfume.com" i ordered:

• Azzaro Pour Homme
• Caron Pour un Homme
• Caron The 3rd Man (listed in the A-Z guide as Le TRoisieme Homme)
• Caron Yatagan
• Guelain - Habit Rouge
• YSL Rive Gauche
• YSL Rive Gauche Pour Homme (from WhosYerBob)

Clearly i am missing a major element... Hermes! im looking forward to picking up so much from this line i don't even know where to start!

With the new year approaching my first thought is that i'll pick up a scent a month and report in on it. checking in as time flys.
do you have suggestions or recommendations? im all ears!

 

[WhosYerBob]

Check out this chart and start digging - you may want one from every major category!
http://www.leffingwell.com/h&rfragrance/poster_genealogie_masculin.pdf

Oh - and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

 

[joshmpdx]

Check out this chart and start digging - you may want one from every major category!
http://www.leffingwell.com/h&rfragrance/poster_genealogie_masculin.pdf

Oh - and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Yowza! that is quite the map!

How accurate is it? im looking at a few in the same column for instance Jules and Kouros are right next to each other and came out in the same time frame. Are they similar monsters?

 

[The Nid Hog]

Nice call on the Caron--they're great.

 

[Aaron01]

An excellent collection! Did you get Habit Rouge EDC, EDT or EDP? The EDP is a favorite of mine

How accurate is it? im looking at a few in the same column for instance Jules and Kouros are right next to each other and came out in the same time frame. Are they similar monsters?

I own both Jules and Kouros and they're not similar at all! Jules is based off leather and herbs, where Kouros is more about the civet blending with the oakmoss and cloves.

All one has to do is look at the pyramid and you can see that Jules is a monster

Top: albanum, artemesia, bergamot oil, cumin, green notes, laurel, lavender and wormwood
Middle: black pepper, carnation, cedarwood, sandalwood, rose and jasmine
Base: amber, oakmoss, tonka bean, olibanum, musk, fir, Russian leather and castoreum.

I wouldn't pay $250 for a full bottle, but it's great stuff nonetheless.

Clearly i am missing a major element... Hermes! im looking forward to picking up so much from this line i don't even know where to start!

Where to start from Hermes depends on what kind of scent do you want? For a more leather based scent look to Bel Ami, the vintage formulation is spectacular and pops up on ebay frequently. I found Equipage and Rocabar nice but not ones I found myself wanting to buy. Outside of the, overpriced, Hernessence line I really enjoy Eau d'Hermes and will probably purchase a bottle in the future. It's a classic citrus with some spices and a leather base. Some of the reviews are fairly hyperbolic though....

 

[joshmpdx]

Aaron, outstanding, thanks for the run down!

I will need to track down the vintage Bel-Ami as well as Eau de Hermes, where can i find samples of the some of the others, Rocabar, Orange Vert, Etc?

To be honest, im not sure which Habit Rouge i picked up, id guess the Edt, but will update when they arrive.

What are your Gents thoughts on Van Cleef & Arbels? they look like they have a nice selection of some odd stuff such as "First" and "Tsar" along with VC&A "Pour Homme".

 

[Aaron01]

Aaron, outstanding, thanks for the run down!

I will need to track down the vintage Bel-Ami as well as Eau de Hermes, where can i find samples of the some of the others, Rocabar, Orange Vert, Etc?

Besides an Hermes boutique? I've seen some at Nordstrom, Barneys, Neiman Marcus and Sephora. Eau d'Hermes is hard to find though, I've only seen it in Hermes boutiques

To be honest, im not sure which Habit Rouge i picked up, id guess the Edt, but will update when they arrive.

I've tried all 3 and they're all good. I would rank them EDP, EDC, EDT...but that's just my preference.

What are your Gents thoughts on Van Cleef & Arbels? they look like they have a nice selection of some odd stuff such as "First" and "Tsar" along with VC&A "Pour Homme".

VC&A makes some good stuff, their signature frag is quite nice, I hear the vintage version (it doesn't say pour homme on the bottle) is better. But I remember liking the new PH version as well as Tsar, I've not tried "First"

 

[WhosYerBob]

How accurate is it? im looking at a few in the same column for instance Jules and Kouros are right next to each other and came out in the same time frame. Are they similar monsters?

The map is just a classification system to indicate *what* a scent is supposed to be according to the scent notes - not *how* it actually smells. Or at least that's how it looks to me from the pairings I see in the columns.

 

[tsmba]

I dug out some of my "pre-B&B" scents and have been enjoying them. Two that come to mind are Azzaro "Chrome" and Chanel "Allure Homme". Both are outstanding and don't cost an arm and a leg! To my nose, the Allure bears a strong resemblance to Endymion.

 

[joshmpdx]

Besides an Hermes boutique? I've seen some at Nordstrom, Barneys, Neiman Marcus and Sephora. Eau d'Hermes is hard to find though, I've only seen it in Hermes boutiques

I sent an email to Hermes with a request because as much as i love Portland, we don't have 3 of the 4 shops you mentioned.

I've tried all 3 and they're all good. I would rank them EDP, EDC, EDT...but that's just my preference.

How different are they, is it fairly substantial? i take it they are still the same fragrance?

VC&A makes some good stuff, their signature frag is quite nice, I hear the vintage version (it doesn't say pour homme on the bottle) is better. But I remember liking the new PH version as well as Tsar, I've not tried "First"

That interesting, i'll keep my eye out.

what are your thoughts on the Chanel and Dior lines? i like Pour Monsieur quite a bit and am also interested in Antaeus. there seems to be a lot of hype surrounding the Dior Homme, is it worth looking into?

 

[Aaron01]

I sent an email to Hermes with a request because as much as i love Portland, we don't have 3 of the 4 shops you mentioned.

I checked and I don't have any samples of Eau d'Hermes, if I did I would send you one... It is pretty hard to track down, if Hermes can't send you a sample, sometimes I see samples on ebay and places like The Perfumed Court should carry it

How different are they, is it fairly substantial? i take it they are still the same fragrance?

EDT and EDC are fairly similar, there are just some slight differences in strength of notes and whatnot. I just seemed to prefer the EDC more, though I would be happy owning the EDT.

The EDP is fairly different. It has agarwood (aoud) which is not present in the other two and it has a stronger note of vanilla, which I do enjoy when done properly. It's clearly Habit Rouge, but there are quite a few differences with it and the "classic versions"

what are your thoughts on the Chanel and Dior lines? i like Pour Monsieur quite a bit and am also interested in Antaeus. there seems to be a lot of hype surrounding the Dior Homme, is it worth looking into?

I owned Chanel Pour Monsieur and it had terrible longevity, it would fade to nothing in a couple hours. Antaeus definitely didn't have that problem and based on your other purchases you would like it.

I've never tried Dior Homme, so I can't really comment on that one

 

[StylinLA]

Dior Homme is major try before you buy. It's much lauded by perfume critics and BNers as a revolutionary new direction for men's frags. It may be a direction that many of us don't want to take. I got a 30ml bottle and am kind of mixed on it. It's opening notes for about 30 minutes smell just like the inside of "mom's purse." I mean exactly! Try it and see. It then turns into a more wearable iris prominent scent, with hints of cocoa and leather- hints. Pretty subtle scent on me. Longevity not great. I haven't given it a true workday wear test yet. The hype around it is largely based on how unconventional it is. I wouldn't call it "feminine" per se but it's a trifle baffling. I can't think of anything comparable. It does not smell similar to 3rd Man, but it has that same kind of complexity and it is a well designed frag.

Anteus is at the opposite end of the spectrum from Dior Homme. It's a great in-your-face 80s powerhouse that's been slightly tamed these days. It's real GRRRRRRRRRR kind of stuff. Strong. Bold. Masculine. Perfume critic Luca Turin thinks these days it would be better on a woman, but man, I'd like meet that chick. A tad animalic. I'll always keep some of this around. When I'm in the mood to wear a high projection power frag, it's Anteus or Van Clef and Arpels Pour Homme. They know when you're coming, and when you've been there. These were called "power" frags for a reason. I think many would consider Anteus a classic, and one of the survivors of the 80s.

Chanel Pour Monsieur Concentree is pleasant enough. A bit "barbershop." Classic. But like Aron, it's a little weak in the longevity department for my tastes.

 

[warlandsboy]

+1 for the Dior Homme, one of my personal favourites along with Dior Homme Intense.

 

[joshmpdx]

Fella's, thank you for your input!

Hedi Slimane who seemingly commissioned Dior Homme is an interesting dude, searching out his fragrance lead me to his blog, photographs and eventually the the band "The Drums", all of it is so excellent, DH may just be an easy blind by for me. so much for not getting wrapped up in the marketing.

after some searching i was able to find some Hermes and Guerlain at Nordstrom which not being marketed out front was literally hidden in the back. without full bottles in stock it was easy for me to ask for samples.

My first tester was of Bel-Ami, and i was surprised how little i liked it. Henry (Prof Chaos) has sent me samples in the past, and i can only compare it to what i imagined MPG's George Sand to be, as the sandalwood was too strong for me in Bel-Ami however with GS it's hardly (to this newbie's nose) noticeable.

I was also able to snag Cuir de Russie, Pour Monsieur and Antaeus by Chanel, as well as Heritage by Guerlain.

My first order from WhosYerBob, just came in, Rive Gauche - Pour Homme; it's utterly fantastic!

 

[Townyj]

I have 6ml of Creed Green Irish tweed on the way and a bottle of Guerlain Vetiver.... Hopefully they will keep me at bay for a short while.