Italian Caramel

Italica is a very polarizing fragrance. I find that some people absolutely hate the Italica DNA and others (like myself) are obsessed. To be honest, I've never smelled the original, but I've tried 3 dupes of this fragrance- this one, Amor Por Italia by Julianna's Perfume (A close second but I find that one focuses more on the dry down), and Voux Patisserie by Paris Corner. This one is the best... absolutely incredible fragrance. This is one of the 3 fragrances I've owned that have made me want to shove my nose into the crook of my elbow or my wrist and sniff constantly when I'm wearing it (the other two being Naxos as well as Indigo by Nest, surprisingly). That being said, this needs like 2 weeks to sit before really enjoying, but after it sits, it's amazing. It opens with a blast of cherry-almond then settles quickly into a gorgeous almond, vanilla, toffee, and caramel scent. I find that the notes in this one are very well blended and don't give me that weird musty dry down that Voux Patisserie does (which I think is due to the tangerine note in it). It also lasts longer than the other dupes of Italica I own, giving me about 4-5 hours on skin and mild projection throughout as it is an extrait. EDIT: I actually bought the original Italica and to be honest, Voux Patisserie is the closest, especially in the dry down... it's like a lighter, fruitier version of Italica. Italian Caramel is a little less fruity smelling than those two, and the toffee is less buttery than in Italica. However, I kind of like it more than the original lol

I've not had much luck with dupes and/or many of the Middle Eastern inspired fragrances currently flooding the niche perfume market. But someone suggested I try Alexandria Italian Caramel. OMG...with the exception of a few key features, Italian Caramel is very truly lovely. It is!! Definitely a close dupe for Xerjoff Italica (which I cannot live without). Italian Caramel opens somewhat less intensely with a bit less caramel/toffee than Italica, definitely no fruity notes. Also, I do not detect any saffron in Italian Caramel's opening. However the mid-notes of the fragrances are quite similar to those in Italica. The dry downs are also alike with a few key departures. So, Italica is DEFINITELY a deeper, creamier, more complex fragrance than Italian Caramel. I would say Italian Caramel is actually a bit "sweeter" than Italica (if you can imagine that). I sprayed one inner arm/wrist with Italica; the other arm/wrist with Italian Caramel. Along with the peculiarities previously listed, Italica performs a bit better with better silage (very minimal) and for much longer (3-4 hrs) versus Italian Caramel (1.5-2 hrs). And Italica's dry down produces a very cozy, warm and creamy sandalwood base. Italian Caramel develops a bit of smokiness instead. But all-in-all, I think Italian Caramel is a lovely fragrance and definitely worthy of its very affordable price!

Opening is milky sweet vanilla, caramel, and almond. Very creamy and delicious. Definitely gourmand, but surprisingly not cloying to my nose. I can imagine a fresh, gooey vanilla and almond danish with a drizzle of caramel on top. The woody background is what really helps this feel like a fragrance and not just a dessert. The “spicy notes” also help ground it. I think it’s cardamom and maybe nutmeg? I can start picking up the biscuit after about 30 minutes. The dry down is beautiful. The best way I can describe it is vanilla plus. Imagine a very rich, thick, and creamy vanilla but with an extra mysterious/magical note. Kind of boozy, kind of musky, kind of spicy (not pepper or hot spicy), and kind of woody. Opulent. I can't stop sniffing my arm. Definitely a love from me. If you are looking for a very elegant and elevated sweet vanilla, definitely try this out.

Just got my 10ml travel sprayer in today. I don't get any caramel...just warm almondy vanilla. It's like I mixed my "Givenchy - Pi" with my "Indult - Tihota"....lol. Overall win! I do like the fragrance, but it's not anything I don't already have. I've made something like this before from aromachemicals. This is milkier and smoother than my creation however. EDIT: Okay...longevity seems quite nice...and I'm loving the scent more the longer I wear it. The milkyness of this is absolute KILLER...I LOVE IT!! Cant' say that "PI" or my composition/creation gives that creamy milky effect... I think I'll buy a full bottle of this after all! 07NOV22: Big bottle ordered!

I’m obsessed with this. My journey: Red kool-aid Mr. Bubble (which is probably saffron) Pasta / starchy water / rice pudding Creamy sweets I literally have been wearing this every night for months. I had a medical issue that made me very sensitive to scent, and this is just wonderful to me. I think the difference between this and Italica is that Italica has less of the starch and moves more quickly to the creaminess. I don’t care; I love it.

This is an almost-dupe for Italica. To most, it would be exactly the same. But I’m trying to train my nose and have concluded that Italian Caramel smells a bit sharper and the almond/marzipan note stands out more. Italica seems creamier and all the notes kind of melt together beautifully. Both are lovely, and Italian Caramel is a perfectly acceptable dupe. But Italica (to me) is superior.

@Bijousmere: Does not smell like Bianco Latte. It is "Xerjoff - Italica" with enhanced creaminess and huge lactonic attributes. I prefer this to Italica, but won't pickup another bottle anytime soon.

Have not smelled the Xerjoff that Italian Caramel is compared to, but this is a beautiful lactonic gourmand that smells exactly like a cake/sweets bakery but not sickly sweet. It's wonderful.

My bottle of this ran out. Bought the original... I prefer the AF offering...it's creamier...has a stronger milk note. I will be picking up another large bottle of "Italian Caramel"!!!!!

Nice gourmand scent but not overly sweet like the name suggests. Creamy lactonic from the almonds and milk and sweet sirupy from the biscuits and caramel. Love it.

is it weird that I want to eat this? Maaaaaaan this is really good juice. Alexandria is, hands down, one of the best clone houses out there.

I love this scent but not projection Scent : 9.5/10 Longevity : 5/10 Sillage : 2/10 After 10shot/time and few day used

I have a snippet of a review at the bottom. Adding. I got a small decant of the 2021 Xerjoff Italica. My bottle now of Italian Caramel, now a year old is actually better to me. It is smoother, creamier and a teeny sweeter, that said -- they are VERY CLOSE to the same scent. I literally was going to blind buy the 2021 Italica because I love the Xerjoff bottle -- but after comparison? Hard NO. The price is not worth it when it is literally the same scent but me liking Italian Caramel a bit more.

I think that maybe this is batch-specific, meaning the scent varies from one batch to the next. That’s the only reason I can come up with for why people smell Italian Caramel so differently. Then again, it could just come down to chemistry. I’ve never tried the original, but this is a creamy caramel biscuit on me. Perfectly unisex. I think it’s lovely!

I have the original xerjoff italica and it is my favourite perfume ever. I must say this one does smell very close to the of, however the staying power is wicker on this one. Considering the price difference, I would definitely suggest to anyone to buy this if the wan to try italica but do not want to splurge on it.

The difference between this and Italica is that it doesn't quite capture that lovely true "biscuitty" note as well as Italica does, and it doesn't last as long. But other than that, it's still very similar. Like Italica, this is very almond heavy. For an Italica dupe, you could do worse.

Yes! Thank you Fragrantica (Jerne) for adding. The scent of toffee caramel, almond, milky, in a spicy woody base. A gourmand unisex scent. Scent is a dupe for Original Xerjoff Italica and quite close. Seriously close.

For me,It smells like Lataffa Khamrah but less boozy.

Italian Caramel comes off as an almost fresh/soapy version of Italica and I don't think it is a very good dupe at all. If you love Xerjoff Italica as is, honestly, none of the dupes I've tried come even close. Dua Italiano is actually my favorite rendition, but that's because of some of the issues I had with the original Italica. Go see my review on Italiano for more details. Spoiler alert - I sold my Italica and replaced it with Italiano.

There is something about this perfume that is quite artificial and I don't really like it. I am also not a big fan of almond in perfumes. It's not a bad perfume, it's actually quite pretty, but I cannot stand that smell...I also have Cacao Dreams and I like it much more than Italian Caramel!