Vetiver Hombre

I have never been as disappointed as when I discovered that Vetiver Hombre was discontinued. If only I had known in time, I would have bought at least four or five bottles. Everything about it was exceptional – the fragrance, longevity, sillage, the green simplistic bottle, and the atomizer delivering a generous spray. This is a scent that cannot be judged by test sprays alone; you have to wear it and let the whiffs come back to you hours later to truly appreciate it. It is best experienced on your own skin rather than smelled on someone else. Aqua Fresca Vetiver was supposed to be its spiritual successor, so I purchased one enthusiastically. Unfortunately, it remained a successor only in spirit. Fresca Vetiver is good in its own right, but it is not Vetiver Hombre. Even Fresca Vetiver seems to have been discontinued now and replaced by Vetiver Terra- I might be mistaken. I haven't had the opportunity to try Vetiver Terra, so I can't comment on that. The brand is not available in India, and most sellers and retailers have stopped shipping perfumes to India directly. Until I find an adequate replacement, I am holding onto my last bottle dearly. Now, I open it once a year to remind myself of what the good old days were like or if I really want to show someone a precious gem from my collection. This is my 2nd writeup on this review board. And today it feels like finally accepting that love you lost long back isn't ever going to be yours again. You knew it was lost, you told yourself it was lost, you assured yourself you've accepted it and moved on. But on a day like this, when you pen down thoughts, you realize that acceptance was false. It hadn't hit hard earlier bcoz that flicker of hope was still there.

This one redefined my love for vetiver Fragrances. It has such a perfect blend of earthy smell of first rain, sophistication and citrus freshness. Don't know what occasion this one would suit best, I mostly wear on days when I have meeting scheduled in morning but I don't want to wear suit. Formal shirt, trousers without tie. This smells of such calm confidence. I take an extra dab on my wrist /cuff for moments when things get heated and you need something to calm you and step out of it all. Sniff the wrist and you are good. It's very very different from Encre Noir (my another love). This is lighter while EC is heavier smelling, this one is calming while EC is intense. I Don't think i can carry EC with casuals like this one. And its Longetivity works great for me. 6+ on skin, 12+ on shirt collar. Can find sometimes even 1-2 days later when taking shirt for laundry. Absolutely love it. I got myself a 60ml bottle. I have around 20% left and I can't find a new bottle anywhere in India. :( If anyone knows where I get find this one here do PM me. Have found Agua Fresca by AD, Planning to try that out too.

Yet another blind buy success thanks to my fellow Fragrantica fragrance lovers! I have just gone out into my garden (in England UK) where it is damp and autumnal, fallen leaves and moss everywhere and immediately get some of the notes packaged in this attractive bottle. I also detect the soapy barber's shop feel, locked into a smooth, slightly earthy, high quality potion. There is an unmistakably sophisticated, masculine European feel to this one, and I agree with some that this is versatile enough for most occasions. I don't mean to plagiarise an earlier reviewer, but I imagine myself wearing this whilst sitting, sipping a "café con leche" watching the world go by when I travel to Lanzarote again in a few weeks time ;-) Whilst there is a similarity in style to Guerlain Vetiver, Kenzo Boisee, Encre Noir and Chopard Noble Vetiver (the vetiver perhaps?!!), this stands on its own as a proud and unique contribution to a fragrance (and/or vetiver) lover's wardrobe. At as little as £16 for 60ml and £24 for 120ml online, it's well worth a blind buy. I'm going to buy another bottle!

I'll cut to the chase – I love this vetiver fragrance. I got interested in vetivers after sampling L'Occitane's Vetyver and wanted something less pricey. A bit of searching turned up Adolfo Dominguez (AD) which is less citrusy (and better in my view) than L'Occitane's. I have sampled Tom Ford Grey and Guerlain's vetivers in comparison when wearing the AD and they're close enough for me. The AD is lighter than Encre Noir, which has a heavy kick of wood and moss in the base notes. The only downside with AD is that the longevity could be better. I'm going to experiment layering with vetiver essential oil to see if that helps longevity. An excellent and relatively affordable vetiver option.

@buddy m: yes, the Agua Fresca Vetiver is the new name of the same fragrance. I have not noticed significant variations between the two (it seems AD rebranded all these lines as "Agua Fresca + something"). Having said that, it seems that AD launched a new Vetiver called "Vetiver Terra" that is completely different, heavy on tonka and caramel (!)... I believe that those of us who are fond of the original Vetiver will not like it.