China Affair

I compared Coromandel and China Affair (nice name!) side by side on both hands. CA is 75% of Coromandel. CA smells different, like a very much toned down version of Coromandel but there is similarity; the leathery note plus possible other "higher" notes are missing in CA, it's the biggest minus as for a similarity. CA disappears much quicker: I could apply CA three times, after every hour or so when it was almost gone on hand while Coromandel kept its smell on the other hand. CA is also weaker, Coromandel smells stronger. But CA is an OK scent of its own anyway, I like it. It is sweeter and there's less patchouli. A plus side for CA is perhaps that it is more office friendly: weaker, shorter-lived and less attention-seeking. I think China Affair would be a better name for Coromandel itself. Edit 23.04.26: when using this scent again I had totally forgotten what it was meant to be similar with. I realised it is similar to Tom Ford's Oud Wood, Bvlgari's Man In Black and also Laboratorio Olfattivo's Nerotic, all very good scents. Spicy sweetness caused me to think so. Coromandel didn't even come to my mind. Later the patchouli and more similarity with Coromandel appeared.

I have only tried the Coromandel EDP on my skin once. From memory, the Coromandel opened a bit more masculine on me but the dry down is very similar with the patchouli and white chocolate the most dominant on my skin. I get great longevity with this and it is one of my cooler day dumb reach fragrances. I absolutely love it! Edit 2/2/22. My tastes have changed somewhat and haven’t been reaching for my half full bottle (OG packaging style from 2019). I’ve always felt this had a slight staleness in comparison to Coromandel, and it’s a bit more pronounced now with age. I have a spray sample of Coromandel that I use for comparing to this. Coromandel has a strong patch in the opening which is not as pleasant, but this stale note whatever it is bothers me. I’ve smelled it in other amber fragrances from Alexandria, hence the reason I no longer purchase or buy anything from them anymore and I just spend on samples or decants of the originals now. However, with Chanel’s recent price hike I’ll continue to keep this, as it’s worth the price I paid (about $40). Based on how long I’ve had it, it will continue to last me for years.

Although I've not sniffed Coromandel before, I've owned a few Chanels and have smelled a few more than that. This China Affair has a Chanel feel (power, style, grace, refinement, savoir faire, cosmopolitan). Also, I like this name reference to China as a prominent location where old world traditions gets kept up with new world fresh coats of red lacquer polish. Evocative. Good stuff, a step above just a sweet treat gourmand with this balanced with other complexities there in the mix.

Honestly unless you just have to have the fancy bottle and brand name, why would you over pay for the Chanel OG at $252.88 usd for 75 ml when you could purchase 100 ml of China Affair which is almost identical for $84 usd?!!! Recent almost yearly price increases by Chanel have become ridiculous. Try a sample and see what I mean, then thank me later. Be smart and choose the smart alternative instead! Nice dose of white chocolate patchouli, citrus and incense.

Duh this is a poor mans Coromandel. Not poor in quality though. This isn’t as dense and doesn’t last like Chanel’s but seriously it’s less than $70 for 60ml. It gets you in the ball park. I love how people expect a perfect dupe for cheap prices. There’s a reason Chanel charges so much, well besides greed, they use high quality ingredients. Much higher than a clone house would use. Rant over but it’s a (good) quality dupe for the price. I’m glad I found it.