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Anyone who has already dealt with Frédéric Malle's fragrances knows that normally you should not expect to find any that come up with a head note that is so captivating. In most cases, they do not open with a pleasing composition of citric or floral notes that immediately excite the wearer. Of course, one can also find examples of Frédéric Malle's work that defy this claim, which are pleasing from the very beginning, especially Bigarade Concentrée or Vétiver Extraordinaire.

Fréderic Malle - Duets are not images of Monet or van Gogh that are quickly revealed; they are more like Picassos or Pollocks, images that trigger emotions ranging from rejection to admiration, even when they are not liked.

I think French Lover is a good example of that

Even before the image of a lush green meadow in spring can form in my head right after I have been spinning and before the idea of foggy, damp, impenetrable jungle is formed, my imagination is kept in check by a brownish veil. The jungle pictures still in the making dissolve, the grass is allowed to stay, but no longer on the summer meadow. It has already been cut for a few hours and the meadow has been replaced by the compost bin, which is already slightly rusty from the inside. The scent of the fresh green cannot spread by itself. It is forced to peel slowly upwards at the rusty inner walls of the compost bin and has to accept that a brown basic tone mixes with it. Only a few more hours will pass before the green has to give way to a straw-flowery basic mood.

It is difficult to smell individual scents from French Lover, only vétiver and pepper, I can consciously perceive. Vétiver is the source of the green earthy note, which is slightly scratched by pepper. Citric or flowery additions are completely avoided. French Lover does not rely on the successive appearance of different scents; the speciality lies in the change of its character, from green to scratchy to harsh. If I should name a plant that is representative for French Lover, I would choose a thistle. Of course you don't have to find it beautiful, but you should take the time to have a closer look at it.

French Lover is a gruff fragrance, not a stalker who wants to draw attention to himself in a loud voice to provoke. He has personality, knows his rough edges, but makes no signs to soften or even hide them; and he claims them for hours

This scent by Fréderic Malle does not want to be a mass scent. The fragrance was deliberately avoided to create a unique composition with personality, which polarizes, does not allow "so la la" and forces the perfume to make a clear statement, which can only lead to a yes or no.

Macedonia means nothing else than fruit salad. But if you think of canned food with diced fruit pieces in syrup, you could not be more wrong. Macedonia is freshly prepared here in Italy with fruits that are available at the respective season. Therefore it goes without saying that such an Italian fruit salad is more colourful and varied in spring and summer than in the cold season. Apples, oranges, mandarins and grapefruit, but also bananas, pears, pomegranate seeds, the list of ingredients is not restricted. Fresh from the fridge, this is a light and refreshing finish to an Italian Pranzo or Cena. When the Macedonia rind is put on the table, it gives off a slightly fruity and sour aroma of fresh, chilled fruit
Napoli is like Macedonia. The top note opens with a full fruit aroma of citrus and apple, which stands proudly despite the strong presence of orange and grapefruit. This combination alone is captivating. It should be remembered that Napoli was launched before the turn of the millennium, when pineapple, apple and other fruits did not yet play a major role in a fragrance pyramid. This top note, however, is neither sour nor sparkling. It seems to me that the ingredients have been rolled in only slightly sweet vanilla powder - almost like sour drops in icing sugar. Thus the fruits lose their acidity. They appear fruity - mild, but without sweetness. I would almost like to say that the fragrance becomes slightly creamy, but not powdery. So I find Napoli a fragrance that can be worn all year round. Although it is already more towards the sunny side, it also fits into the cold season due to the lack of citric sharpness.
In the further course of the piece a flowery note creeps in, almost ashamed and therefore does not evoke any associations with a bouquet of flowers. I would say that Napoli gets an elegant touch, which also goes well with Kiton's dark blue suit
Even though some wood creeps into the base, the fruity character of the fragrance remains from the beginning to the end.
Kiton is not Guerlain and does not manage to tell stories with Napoli, as some Guerlain fumes can. Naples doesn't need that either.

If you consider that this fragrance was launched over 20 years ago, when freshness in the top note was synonymous with an acidic-citric freshness kick, it was already very innovative then. Also he stood at that time with his dimmed freshness rather alone. The bottle in its beautiful blue conveys the character of aquatic, but I can't make it out in the entire fragrance. Contrary to the opinion of some pre-commentators, for me Napoli is fruity-fresh and full of elegance from the beginning to the end.
When I apply two sprayers Napoli on my neck, I am occasionally caressed by a fruity veil, which is easily perceptible on me for 7/8 hours.
So now guess 'what scent I'm going to put on tonight and what's for dessert.

I wish you all happy holidays and a happy new year 2020.

In the meantime I have been living in Northern Italy for more years than I have ever lived in Southern Germany. After all this time, I've adopted pretty much all everyday Italian behaviors unnoticed,
from the morning Caffè al Bar, to the exploring way of driving, the love for healthy and good food and the leisure time at the seaside. On the other hand, I have retained my fraenkisches "r", my methodical work, my planning, which allows me spontaneity only within a certain framework and of course the "German punctuality". For the Italian part of my family and my friends I am therefore still the "German". On the German side I have become "the Italian".

It was exactly these thoughts that crossed my mind when I applied Vettivéru tonight.

The fragrance has a successful start in the Eau de Cologne style, opening with citric notes à la Bergamot and Neroli. When the first impressions slowly form into reflections and associations with Eau de Cologne, a door opens that pulls the nose in another direction.

The world of Vétivers is opening. A brightly radiating vetiver steps onto the stage, comparable to Givenchy's Vetyver. The latter has a similar radiance due to its citric top note, emphasising the vetiver more in the further course. With another Vetiver in my collection, Annick Goutal's, Vettivéru has little in common. Goutal's fragrance is determined by two characteristics: saltiness and a medicinal-rooted aura; this is what Verrivéru completely satisfies.

For a long time Vettivéru jumps between these two worlds, but then makes his choice in favour of the Vetiver. Musk and cedar play their part in keeping Vettivéru fresh until the end.

Of course such a fragrance cannot be a Sillagemonster and that is exactly the strength of the fragrance. It is not made for cold days, but it should give you a fresh kick on hot days. Vettivéru can be applied generously to the entire upper body without being trapped in a scent bubble. We reward you for this with a cologne / vetiver aura, which you can discreetly perceive over several hours as an occasional "swath" of yourself.

Vettivéru is certainly not a particularly innovative fragrance from CdG. Yet he's anything but trivial. The balance between cologne and vetiver in the early stages makes you think you're dealing with two scents, until the interplay slowly turns out in favour of the vetiver

In many collections represented here Duefte from past times can be found. They may have found their way there for many different reasons. Often it is the slightly melancholic attempt to capture the memory of particularly beautiful moments or periods of life by adjusting such a fragrance. I did that with Macassar of Rochas and Jil Sander Man Pure. And, of course, Davidoff. All three Duefte I connect with the 80s, with the study time and carefree life (which it was not at all in an honest and emotionless retrospect).

Davidoff starts fresh, but only very briefly yellow-citric. Very fast we green this citrus freshness, no grassy, but rather Mediterranean garden green. At the same time a restrained sharpness develops, slightly shrill without hurting. It gives the impression of spicy soapiness. Many duds from the 80s have this soapiness, which can go from slightly sweaty to urinoes depending on intensity. This is not the case with Davidoff. The soapiness does not superimpose the green freshness but remains trapped in it.

Little by little Davidoff's green orientation fades and leather comes out. The soapiness is still there, but gets a slightly animal touch, which is probably caused by the beaver horny. Thanks to its economical dosage, however, there is no impression of stable smell or animal cages.

In its fresh Mediterranean orientation, Davidoff reminds me of Armani pour Homme. Both date from 1984 and have many scents in common. Unfortunately I haven't had Armani pour Homme under my nose for many, many years and maybe my memory plays a trick on me; but it seems to me that Davidoff is a distant relative of ApH, who has been given a saeuerlich-animalic twist by the addition of Bibergeil

As a child of his time, Davidoff has great stamina and is anything but shy. While I disappeared in the Davidoff Nebula in the 80s, today caution is appropriate with the dosage.

There is the saying "Standing with both feet in life", but what does it mean to me? I spend most of my time working, a little less sleeping and resting and unfortunately even less with social activities. For me it is still important to use "that" and "that" correctly when writing and I don't use Facebook or Instagramm. Do I have both feet on the ground or not?

As a perfumer I also feel more attracted to traditional houses like Guerlain and Caron than to Escentric Molecules and Tom Ford. It is not enough for me to wear a fragrance that I only like, no, it must also have an effect with me when worn; this can be memories, fantasies or sometimes just mixed feelings, which I try to bundle in their pendulum movement between agreement and rejection to a definite judgement.

And then there's Dior Homme Cologne, who doesn't fit at all with what I've just written. No memories, no fantasies, no mixed feelings. Just one of the nicest minimalist flacons I've ever seen. Already the entire appearance in the transparent, light blue bottle refreshes before you even spray a drop of the contents onto the skin

And the resulting expectation of a freshness that will stand the test of time in summer temperatures is not disappointed either. DHC does not offer a guerlinade, nor does it offer the typical Colognes interplay of citric notes. But it wraps you in a cloud of finest retorts - lemon. Not the juicy freshness of ripe lemons, but the coolness of a citrus fruit created in the laboratory sets the tone. At the same time, a fluffiness develops which prevents the retort lemon from appearing too slicing or too acidic. This fluffiness is caused by the skilful use of white musk, which is necessary as a fixation to give the citric aroma shelf life. The fragrance itself has no fragrance development, but rather a shift of emphasis. In the beginning the citrus is emphasized and is accompanied by the fluffiness of the musk, while after a few hours the fluffy comes to the fore, but the lemon remains well perceptible. At no time does DHC drift into powder or get a lipstick effect. If you apply DHC GROSSZUEGIG, and you can do that without hesitation, since it is not a room-filling fragrance, you can still perceive it after 7 hours well on the skin.

DHC is a perfectly made retort - summer fragrance that refreshes, is not intrusive and lasts very long. Still, I don't have it in my collection anymore. Today I generously applied the fragrance one last time and the bottle was used up. Afterwards I went to the cinema and while watching the latest Soderbergh film, I noticed this fluffy citrus note full of comfort.

Of course I have already bought a worthy successor for DHC. This time I chose a more classic Cologne, one that besides smelling good, also tells stories and evokes pictures, Granville. At least I stayed true to Dior.

DHC is a great fragrance, has a great packaging and is for me a product of our time - Facebook and Instagramm. It's not enough for me in the long run. But whether I "stand with both feet in the life" because of that, I still don't know.