So there it is for a few weeks now, the second fragrance of Fragrance One. I have long been reluctant to buy this fragrance, especially because of the price of 220€, I have to admit. But now I found it quite cheap and then I hit it after all. I would like to evaluate this fragrance in an unbiased way, without letting myself be influenced by the almost invariably negative comments at my first impression. I don't like that kind of thing, and I don't think it's fair. First of all, I ask myself the question: What is my subjective expectation of a fragrance created for the man who is supposed to accompany him on a date? - For me, a date fragrance has to be dark, seductive, deep, adult, well thought-out, woody, slightly sweet, preferably (a touch) oriental (e.g. by rose, jasmine, cardamom, frankincense, sandalwood, vanilla, tonka or oud), pleasant sillage (not overwhelmingly strong but not too little) and created with devotion. The flacon may also indicate that it is a date fragrance. I wouldn't think a dark red/burgundy presentation would be bad - by the way, this is one of my personal criticisms of the presentation of Fragrance One, because all bottles are and remain apparently black. I would like to see more color to match the theme of each of the brand's fragrances. Black, for example, for an evening perfume for a "Black Tie Event". By the way, I found the transparent bottle of the second batch of Office for Men even much more fitting for the "Office" theme than the current one, just by the way...
Now let's get to the scent. I always like to smell the sprayer and the cap first to get a first impression of the perfume before it gets to my skin, a bit like opening a wine bottle. So did I this time. "What is this? Is the oud here really perceptible, contrary to what the comments so far claim," I thought. In fact, I noticed something that smelled like oud on the sprayer. Apparently this expensive oud from Laos that Jeremy always talked about in the videos. "Not bad! It can go on like this" was my positive attitude. But the first time you spray it on your forearm, you'll hear: BOOM! Fruit bomb! "What the hell just happened?! Oud, where are you?" was the next reaction. I honestly could not have perceived in the top note that it was a composition of citric fragrances á la zirtrone, bergamot and mandarin orange. What I smelled was an obsalate of overripe synthetic fruit that killed everything. Everything. Lemons and co. can be so wonderful if they only smell natural, Allure Homme Édition Blanche shows how it's done in the designer corner (even if the fragrance character is not comparable)... No, this fruit bomb was too much of a good thing, too much at once and over-zealously created. And yes, the comparison to JPG Ultra Male is definitely there. So I grabbed my Ultra Male straight out of the closet and quickly sprayed it on the other arm to compare the two times right next to each other. Somehow Date had also created something pear-like like Ultra Male in the top note, but obviously with so called "Aroma Chemicals", which are supposed to leave your impression of citrus and pear but are mixed in the lab... In any case, everything seems unnatural, synthetic and unbalanced. In direct comparison, however, Ultra Male is more pear-heavy and even sweeter than Date in the prelude. Anyway, I didn't like the date headnote at all. But cardamom, patchouli, oud and vetiver are still to follow. After about 30 minutes I still smelled top note, still fruit salad. After 45 minutes still, after 1h still top note - but stop! cardamom has actually crept up after the sweetness has withdrawn slightly. But not sweet cardamom, like from La Nuit de L'Homme, but spicier. And the rest? Well, the heart note is more or less skipped, the base note I honestly can't perceive at all, even after 5 hours not really because this top note doesn't want to disappear. But Date for Men won't last much longer, much too fast it seems to become a skin-scent. The highly praised Laotian oud may be gone or may never have appeared. I only smelled it on the sprayer once, and then never again. Not even after the second test.
I'm not sure what Jeremy Fragrance's idea of a date fragrance was. Perhaps these do not overlap with my ideas at all. But for my taste Date for Men unfortunately missed the point. With this I would like to make it clear that this is not a disastrous scent, there are far worse ones. It is certainly very safe and mainstream but my senses tell me that it is not a date fragrance. The points I listed earlier (dark, seductive, mature, thoughtful...), which m.M.n a date fragrance, were not hit. But the perfume is mainly screeching loud at the beginning and then permanently sweet. From its DNA, or from what I can perceive, it is a perfectly suitable scent for the club. Hence the title of this commentary. If it had even more sillage and durability, it would be great, honestly! Especially for the young audience, if the price was naturally more decent, it could become popular. Of course I'm curious if the community would see this in a similar way as I do or maybe have completely different ideas and opinions. Anyway, I was wondering if it was right to get Alberto Morillas on board again. Nothing against Alberto Morillas, he has truly already created great creations. But he creates a lot for the designer houses and they want mainstream and mass. Maybe that's why there's simply a lack of "uniqueness" here, which the perfume industry desperately needs, even for designer perfumes! Creativity is so important and many releases of the last years are just too flat. As a young company, Fragrance One has the great opportunity to do so. But their scent DNA is still heading in the wrong direction. Couldn't Jeremy knock on another perfumer's door? There are certainly a lot of good, creative and open-minded people who can work freely without "budget limitations". So, at least in theory, great perfume art can be created.
Date for Men is a perfume with a character suitable for 16-25 year olds, but for the age groups above it is simply too sweet and playful, not adult, not profound and youthful-naïve. After all, a date should not take place in the club ;-) But I will keep the scent, I will use it. My Ultra Male will soon be empty, so at least I have some kind of alternative. I can't say anything about compliments, but I'm not into that either. I would also like to see more courage, edge and risk from Fragrance One and I am also looking forward to the next creation for men.
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