L’Etrog

It's crazy how much better this fragrance is than its uber soapy sibling, L'ETROG ACQUA. I've never seen or smelled the ETROG fruit myself. I don't know if it smells like limes, but to me, L'etrog smells mostly like limes. On first spray, I get hit with this fizzy, bright, fresh, and slightly sweet citrus smell. This opening tickles my nose the way a carbonated water does. For this reason I am always reminded of a sparkling water with limes in it, on a sunny summer day. About 15 minutes later, this calms down to reveal green, leafy notes that keep this fragrance feeling fresh. There is a VERY slight sweetness rounding out the whole scent, which apparently is the date note. All together, in the far dry down, this scent ends up smelling fresh, lime-y, slightly soapy, a bit sweet, and just the tiniest bit powdery. A super refreshing, well balanced citrus fragrance. A lot of masculine citrus fragrances end up being sharp and bitter, which I'm never into. I'm into this one, though. I can imagine wearing this in Italy, on a beach, when it's 90 degrees. Sillage, projection, and longevity are not great. With notes this bright, I would never assume that they would project or last, but the price is pretty steep for this frag to not perform well. However, if I had $115 to burn, I'd be happy to add a 50ml bottle to my collection, for special days/vacations. EDIT: after burning through my whole sample of this within a week, I have to say, I do miss it a lot. I will probably be buying the full bottle of this, even though it's not a great performer. In all honesty, performance isn't everything, folks. It's about how the fragrance makes you feel. And this frag, although not a game changer, makes me feel great. That's worth the price for me. FINAL EDIT, 1 YEAR LATER: I have the full bottle of this and wore it all throughout last summer. As the weather warms up again where I am, I reach for this bottle more often than not - it is a staple in my collection. It is truly transportive. It makes me feel like I'm on a resort on the coast of California. It has the effect of heightening my mood. It is bright, zesty, slightly powdery, but also luxurious, masculine, and playful. It's also inoffensive, a crowd pleaser, and the perfect sillage and longevity for this type of scent. Occasionally, it's a beautiful bed-time scent. I can't get enough. This is the sleeper of this house!

Remarkably fresh and nuanced citrus based fragrance, L'Etrog by Arquiste captures the Mediterranean's sun drenched atmosphere perfectly. A hesperidic opening featuring bright Calabrian citron awakens the senses and gives the wearer a sense of exuberance. To me, citron seems to be a gentle pairing of sour, acidic lemon and tart lime notes. Myrtle blossom's sweet and pervasive scent softens the sharp edges of the citron. It's as if the blossoms have been hit by the sun's heat all day and are gently permeating the air. Lush date fruit is noticed in the background. It provides a modicum of dried fruit accord, one which is both succulent and honey drenched. Faint vetiver in the base is dry and woody. As with other citrus based scents, the sillage and longevity are poor. Despite this, L'Etrog is satisfying even if only as a radiating skin scent. (161)

The floral note stands out a lot for me, making this perfect for a woman and irresistible on a man. Myrtle stand out for both it's oil, herbal and metallic and it's flowers which are nicely sweet and not overdone. This cologne does not radiate 10 feet from you but it will definitely make someone come closer to you. I like to wear this to the bar. The citron exists as a soft base for melding all the wonderful notes and not as a screeching top note.

I could see myself wearing this on a hot tropical night, drinking gin and tonics, catching the occasional breeze, while wearing white and talking and laughing with friends and flirting with guys. smells like a fresh pack of menthols. in a good way. herbally and fresh. I love this.

Zingggggg! Beguilingly fresh and floral to my nose - way better than many a citrus cologne/splash/woody, and done with restraint and quirky attitude. As you might expect from Arquiste, who I've got a lot of time for. Undeniably bright, airy and exhilarating, with a zestiness balancing just right between sweet and acid. I've never met a citron in real life - though I know they're highly prized - but if it's true that they're a sweeter, more flowery, more toothsome version of the lemon, then this does the fruit full justice. Not at all sickly or syrupy; no soap or cleaning products; its sweetness is organic, seeming to meld in seamlessly with the spicy/peppery/aromatic aura of the citron's rind. The citrus end reminds me of loads of other Stuff I Like (MFK Aqua Universalis, Parfums d'Empire Iskander, Lutens Fleur du Citronnier), but with a slightly drier, more ironic tone of voice - and without any of the often-bullying ingredients those use to eke out the citrus buzz for longer - L'Etrog doesn't need clean musk or grunty oakmoss or heady jasmine to do its thing. HOWEVER... there's the rub ... L'Etrog's burst of blossomy beauty at the start doesn't survive more than 10-20 minutes on me; gorgeous zestiness makes itself felt for about 60-90 mins; a beautiful aura of clean linens and serene white-painted spaces lingers for maybe 2-3h max. If I could afford to bathe in it a few times a day: would adore. Because I can't: will leave it alone, with great respect, but not many backward glances, because there ARE citrus scents of this calibre and classiness that can last a little longer.