Condorpilot1

Actually, it's not so "klaro" when you think about whether the combination of chocolate and violet in a perfume works together. Chocolate, after all, suggests that Mancera Choco Violette would be a gourmand perfume, with the powdery and floral accords of violet.

Thanks to the sample kits from Mancera, I now have rows and rows of fragrances from the French house to try them out. Choco Violette was a mystery to me before I bought it but this combination made me curious. Without looking at the pyramid of scents, after spraying it immediately becomes clear that this is not just about chocolate. The hazelnut is very dominant and immediately gives the impression of a bar of milk chocolate with hazelnuts, which I actually like best! For me it is really milk chocolate in the beginning and not dark chocolate. Chocolate and hazelnut are present for quite a long time, in between there is not much room for other fragrances. I can also perceive nougat for a while. To be honest, I don't smell bergamot and orange in the top note, or only with a little imagination.

With this gourmand bomb from the beginning, you wonder for a while where the violet is. In fact, after a good 30 minutes, it waves tentatively at first and then becomes stronger and stronger. The milk chocolate gradually turns into dark chocolate and powdery/soapy nuances suggest violets. Somehow Mancera has even managed to make chocolate and violets harmonize well with each other, perhaps because the violet is not particularly aggressive. I compare this to crème de violette (violet liqueur), which can occasionally (though rarely) be mixed in cocktails. Usually 2 teaspoons of it are enough to make the soapy liqueur harmonize, another teaspoon and it is already too much. So the whole thing is a narrow straight line hike. Mancera has also done this balancing act here and managed it excellently. Not too much and not too little.

In the further drydown the violet fades and the hazelnut resumes its journey. Vanilla and cocoa form a delicate, pleasant base that lasts fantastically long with more than 15 hours. The sillage is very pronounced the first 4-5 hours. Definitely no need to spray twice here, because I can say from my test with a single careful spray from the 2ml tester that the scent has power.

All in all, I liked Choco Violette so much that I put it right on my wish list. So maybe one day he'll be in my collection. I would be happy to advise you to try it out!

I don't know about you, but usually perfumes create a scene in my head when I test them. A scenery in which I imagine exactly what kind of place, environment, people, nature or weather I can pictorially see in front of me when I wear a fragrance. Sometimes it's a bit like reading a book - there are scents that tell you a story. That's how I feel about Pacific Rock Moss (PRM) from Australian perfume manufacturer Goldfield & Banks. Goldfield & Banks tries to translate the authentic Australian nature into various scents, from the hot deserts, glittering coasts and deep, fragrant forests. At least that is the philosophy, as you can read on the manufacturer's website. These lines alone promise a lot, even though unfortunately I have never visited Australia before.

With Pacific Rock Moss, Goldfield & Banks have managed to achieve exactly what they set out to do, namely to wrap a landscape in Australia in a fragrance. Yes, about 2-3 years ago there was a real hype in the community "Fragcomm" on Facebook about this fragrance. One of them somehow started to discover PRM, spread the word, suddenly everybody wanted it and felt that everybody had it after a while. Now nobody talks about PRM anymore but wait until summer comes.

If I now try to describe the scene Pacific Rock Moss describes to me in my head, it looks something like this: Imagine the beach of your dreams. Remote, natural, small, idyllic, palm trees, white sand, surrounded by high, barren, pointed and dark rocks. Simple like a typical wallpaper. You hardly expect to feel this perfect, crystal clear, turquoise water on your skin. You take a running start and run with outstretched arms and the warm sea. That first moment is the opening of Pacific Rock Moss. Fresh and at the same time warm aquatic life envelopes you, you feel the salt of the sea on your tongue and dive down for a moment. When you emerge, you feel like new born, you feel and smell everything in your environment much more intense. You smell the lemons, limes, grapefruits from the nearby surroundings, you smell them from the plate on which they are arranged next to your deck chair under the parasol. You want more and get out of the turquoise water. You get closer and the many citrus fruits become more and more noticeable as the warm water on your skin slowly fades and dries. Suddenly you have the smell of coconuts in your nose - yes, actually coconut (and synthetic apple and in between vanilla ice cream although there is nothing about it here but I smell it), coconut accompanies and harmonizes perfectly with the citrus fruits. On the way out of the water you drive with one hand over a small rock on which the green juicy moss grows. Accidentally a piece of moss sticks to your hand but it smells good. In combination with lemon, coconut and turquoise water it smells like a dream beach. You don't want to get away from that anymore. As it is, it is perfect in this moment.

Arrived at the beach couch you enjoy a cold Margarita cocktail: tequila, orange liqueur, lime juice, the glass decorated with a salt rim. There is no better drink for this place. Maybe a glass of coconut water to sober you up. You don't want to leave this place, the way it is, it's perfect at this moment.

With Pacific Rock Moss you get a lot and shortly after spraying it on you get, so to speak, everything at once. The individual components are so wonderfully coordinated that I at least smell more than the fragrance description suggests. Every single component plays with another one in alternation and that makes the perfume very exciting. That's why it's not as linear as you might think. Nevertheless, I feel that the fragrance is more citric than aquatic over the whole process. The aquatic is strongest in the first few minutes. Later on it alternates between green-moss and citric. These two characteristics predominate until the end.

There were probably also discussions about durability. Supposedly, many PRM's were underground. Recently I read a rumour that the scent was even reformulated and now lasts better and longer (!). Usually the words "reformulation" and "better" are contradictory and never present in perfumes. But I can't say anything about an alleged reformulation. In my case there are a good 6 hours in it, I didn't expect more. The sillage is quite strong in the beginning and becomes much paler after about one and a half hours. Especially when the skin warms up outside and you walk through the sun, Pacific Rock Moss gets stronger.

In conclusion, I can judge for myself that Pacific Rock Moss has really taken a shine to me. It definitely has the potential to be a perfect summer scent, because it combines fresh citric and aquatic notes just the way it should be. The fact that it also triggers such images in my head only makes it even better. It makes me want to go far away.

PS: The scenery of the fragrance is similar to the one of Whitehaven Beach and Lucky Bay in Australia. If you want to see the two beaches, there are of course pictures on the internet ;-)

That I rate Ed Hardy Luve & Luck for Men here is actually complete coincidence. Until a few days ago, I had completely banned the knowledge that I even owned the fragrance from my memory. Sometime a few years ago I was given a gift set with shower gel and the corresponding perfume of the Love & Luck series. Since then the set has been dusty and never been touched. Ed Hardy is in itself a very extravagant fashion brand, which comes along with a lot of bling bling, extroverted and colorful patterns. Anyway, it always looks very chubby. After all, you can recognize it by the bottle. But it has to be said that what you see in the picture here at Parfumo is just the outer shell. The actual flacon is a cheap tube underneath, so to speak. I used to buy fake Ed Hardy T-shirts when I was a teenager on vacation in Turkey, but back then I thought they were really cool and they were really trendy among some vacationers. But nowadays you don't really see anyone walking around in them.

The idea of testing Love & Luck for Men, as I said by chance, came to me in one of the latest YouTube videos of Big Beard Business. The video was about "Top 10 Cheap Fragrances for Life under 35$". I was expecting a lot of good scents but not Ed Hardy, which he compared in his DNA with Creed Millesime Imperial.

So I dusted off the gift set and grabbed the scent to test it. Well, the opening's terrible. Sweet and fruity, squeaky-sweet synthetic liquor, to be specific. Actually, I don't go that hard on perfumes, but I can't think of anything better. Sweet citrus with a little orange in an almost disgusting way. I quickly realized that the perfume could probably be the second most disgusting scent I know (after Clean Air). Then, when that gruesome prelude finally fades away, salty notes are added that are a bit reminiscent of Vintage Rush of Unicorns, which is a clone of Millesime Imperial. I have to say that I've never smelled Creed's "Original", so there's no direct comparison. I like Rush of Unicorns for example quite well, I own it too. But Love & Luck? No way. I can't do that.

After all, after a good 2 hours (the scent has long since become a skinscent on my skin), the drydown is actually something like "pleasant". At least no comparison with the bad start. The sweetness remains there but harmonizes with the salty chords comparatively okay. Shelf life was max. 5 hours. So it's clear that the smell improves with time. The fact that the drydown is getting better, at least now causes me to give the scent no rating in the range between 1-2 points, but a little bit more. So I stick to my fairness and don't reduce Love & Luck only to its opening.

Still better not to buy. Even if it's cheap, it's an absolute waste of money. This perfume can only be worn by very young teenagers, who are probably more concerned about the brand than what's in the bottle. I would even strongly advise them against buying it

Whoa! So there it is, one of Aaron Terrance Hughes' first creations. Sure, provocative might be the name, but does it matter? Not really, the content is what matters. After all, names like "Putain des Palaces" from Etat Libre d'Orange are extravagant.

I myself own two bottles. I bought my first one directly from ATH's website about a month ago and the second one recently from eBay. I have noticed that ATH has now slightly modified the design of the bottle. The cap and sprayer are of higher quality. In addition, the juice has a stronger yellowish color. The eBay bottle was probably from the first batch - both smell and hold the same. This is just an info on the side.

SLUT! Yes that sounds really pushy and aggressive and theoretically the scent could be like that. Aaron describes this as the first fragrance of his "sex range". A fragrance that fills the room, is meant to attract attention and is also perfect as a clubbing scent. And I have to say: yep, the perfume is strong, especially for being a fresh scent. Clubbing? I don't know. Of course, due to the current situation, you can't test it anyway. But it may not be sweet enough for clubbing. But that's a purely hypothetical claim.

Once you smell the bottle and sprayer before spraying, I think most people here perceive the fragrance in such a way that it's not what you expected. No, this DNA was completely foreign to me too. At first the smell reminded me very badly of medicine or cough syrup. At least for a moment. Then in the second moment the perception that I had imagined something completely different. Nevertheless, when I hadn't even removed the cap I noticed that the smell was already perceptible. So it was clear - the thing has power as promised.

The sillage after spraying is strong, very strong. So I dared to go for a walk right outside in the warmth to find out how the scent behaves. Neroli and bergamot in the prelude do not seem as citric as one might think or know from other scents. Here they really do appear very natural and bring out their green facets clearly. Unlike many mainstream designers who come completely synthetic with punch in the nose, Slut's top note is soft and balanced after a short exposure. You can tell that SLUT is not a mainstream cirtus perfume, but follows a very clear line of its own. The first minutes are totally pleasant, mainly green, floral and slightly citric. The slut in SLUT is definitely not yet ready. As I walk through the park and the wind gently roams around, I constantly perceive the sillage of the perfume. And it smells just perfect for the current season.

Further verdure, darker floral notes of patchouli and jasmine samba (Arabic jasmine) come through, giving the fragrance more depth and maturity. It's this darker gradient in the heart note that I think is exactly what Aaron describes as "filth" and "dirty". The "Slut" is there now, so to speak, and it's making its mark. With the fading nuances of the top note, it's a great play. You just smell different than "the others", it gives you confidence. The fragrance makes me feel completely at ease outside. Even after hours, SLUT is still around me, always a "Whoa" in my head, I never expected that. SLUT has probably captivated and seduced me. All in all there were over 9 hours of durability. However, I am not quite sure how I should smell in the base note "dirt"...

Back to the topic of where you are perhaps most likely to wear the fragrance: Date? No, maybe not safe enough. Fancy dinner? No, too strong. Free time? Yes, especially outside when it's warmer. Club? No plan, I can't say. Office? Yep, because basically I think it's DNA. You smell fresh, clean, but if office, dose carefully. All in all, however, a fragrance that works much more casually than formally.

Aaron also suggests in a video that you can layer SLUT with Animalix to bring those dark nuances to the fore. I had ordered Animalix at the time to test exactly that. In itself Animalix is an absolutely dangerous beast. Sparingly and carefully dosed, paired with SLUT, you have a completely new fragrance that puts the animal character more to the fore. The result is a completely new composition, but one that is best suited to autumn. This combination is worthwhile. But then again: less is more!

Well, I'm really impressed with the perfume. Although I was expecting something else, I am actually positively surprised by what Aaron has created here. On the other hand, I'm not surprised that he can put his knowledge to good use in creating his fragrances. The way SLUT has become, that's the way it should be. I suspect that these darker tones run right through his collection. At 55 British pounds, he's not particularly expensive in my eyes either. It basically delivers everything you want: unique DNA and very good performance for a fresh floral fragrance

Montale is one of those niche brands that actually likes to play with oud in all possible directions. But Montale can apparently also be a gourmet. Ristretto Intense Cafe is the second addition to the house with a focus on coffee. First came Intense Cafe, now Ristretto is added. Of course, this may become a more tart mixture, perhaps a little more masculine. Ristretto is usually very strong in taste, bitter, nice roasted aromas.

But what Ristretto Intense Cafe implies in its name, he does not hold. At least not by a long shot over the entire fragrance spectrum. In the prelude you get a really beautiful coffee smell in the nose, a slightly bitter smell, like from an espresso, but it is also very quickly underlined by sweetness and takes away the corners and edges of the composition. Already after a few minutes this coffee magic passes and it seems as if a spoon with honey fell into the cup of the barista when he wanted to prepare a dessert. Oops! Well, that can happen, maybe the customer likes his coffee a little sweeter, so I guess you have to play poker now...

Hmm. I won't settle for that. If I were the customer now, I would have liked to order a new ristretto and have the sweetened one returned, because I drink every coffee without sugar.

So back to the scent. As I said, Ristretto Intense Cafe is sweet. After a few minutes, the dominance of honey and sugar is so sweet that it's almost obtrusive and no longer just about coffee. At the very most, it's about powerfully sweetened cappuccino. According to this, Ristretto Intense Cafe is an absolute "top note blender", i.e. the top note is cool but the rest... well, it's not exactly what you wish for.

All in all, the scent process is also very linear. I can only perceive rose with some imagination, maybe it was soaked or drowned in sugar water. After the coffee there is only honey, sugar and in the later drydown sweet vanilla. The scent is definitely unisex, especially the drydown. But as a man I would still like to wear it. It seems to me to be very suitable as a date scent on cooler days.

Big plus point also for sillage and durability. Although it is an Extrait de Parfum, the Sillage is really pleasantly strong. Even after almost 10 hours on my neck I could feel the scent in my nose. It lasts about that long. A short walk in the sun and the perfume got an extra performance boost. This is probably the advantage of an extract with these sweet and partly dark nuances simply sticking to the skin. Often they don't shine so much to the outside but ristretto does that very well and not too obtrusive for my perception.

In my very first test, before I bought the perfume, I tested Ristretto Intense Cafe and Intense Cafe in parallel. On both wrists. On my skin, however, I liked ristretto better in all respects. Intense Cafe had felt even less to do with coffee, was even more linear and didn't last as long.

All in all, I would already recommend it, the Ristretto Intense Cafe. But it is recommended to get a sample instead of buying it blind. Because, as already mentioned, the name does not reflect the whole of the fragrance. This can be disappointing, so you have to know what you are getting :)