First things first, I'm not wired, people. I'm serious. I'm sitting here polishing some shoes and it occurred to me that I like the smell of shoe polish. I mean, I don't go around 'huffing' it and there is such a thing as too much, but this stuff is so damn good. You may be wondering what shoe polish has to do with all this, and you will find out right soon if you stay with me.
That said, Cool Heights belongs to the ZARA New York trilogy collection, together with White SoHo and Greenery. The opening of Cool Heights is all about fruity and citrus accord, it is fresh, I get a sort of sweetish berries, cherries, and plenty of oranges citrus peel and juice aroma. After trying it at the store, it took me 2-3 hours to figure out what this is similar to. Albeit I've seen many people comparing this with Paco Rabanne Black XS, that feeling is only at the opening for a little while. There is even a spicy edge in the opening, the Sichuan peppercorn characteristic smell stands out. Then, Cool Heights takes a different path and vibe and turns into a fragrance full of woody and smoky subtleties.
About 10 minutes later, the heart begins unveiling its notes, a watery violet appears with fresh and wet facets, yet not aquatic in a salty or marine manner. And here I got the biggest surprise, Cool Heights emanates a lovely mild leather odor, which is ain't reminiscent of a leather jacket or suede glows, but a kind of like freshly polished boots. There is a hint of shoe polish or boot polish odor, smelling like turpentine, tasting like gum, something akin to carnauba wax and Stoddard solvent, with the chemicals so strong that inhaling them produces dizziness and giddiness as huffing gasoline. I hope I haven't frightened you because this feeling is anything but unpleasant.
The dry down is supposed to be nothing but sweetish amber since one of the listed notes is the roasted tonka. Though, at least on my skin, Cool Heights releases a trail full of smoky, dry, and sulfurous woody accords. None of the following notes are listed, yet I get a blending among fumy incense, mild spices, and gentle patchouli which over the fruity notes unfold their effects to mold the ultimate aroma. After a slew of hours, a more comfortable incense vibe keeps rising in the air, yet not a church-like olibanum. The very final trail reminds Vibrant Leather, the leather note is alike.
I have to be honest, this is way more quality smelling than what I expected and it is one of the longest-lasting Zara I’ve ever tried, the performance is around all day long if you wear it as an office scent, whereas the sillage is pretty much close to the skin. I sprayed a few whiffs yesterday evening before going out for dinner, and with my big surprise, it was the first thing I smelt when I woke up this morning and took off my t-shirt. In my humble opinion, Cool Heights is for women and men alike. A natural composition that speaks of culture and wisdom. A scent that is deep, elegant, glorious, and sophisticated, a fragrance for lovers of niche houses with complex, dark, smokey nuances. Of course, cool months of Autumn are the best period for wearing this violet juice, both during the day and evening.
-Elysium
PedroCabral
Stolzman
Elysium
