004 Gin Mandarine Musc

One of my favorite purchases of 2021. This was a total blind-buy, so I went in expecting a fresh, citrusy kind of fragrance with some G&T vibes. Although that element is present in the fragrance, to my delight the tobacco is actually the star of the show. This is one of the best and only fresh, summer appropriate tobaccos I know of. The fragrance opens with a bouquet of sweet citruses, zingy ginger, and just a twinge of juniper, but it quickly morphs into a leafy tobacco with just a touch of tonka sweetness, almost Christmassy spices, and smooth musks, while still maintaining its overall freshness and vibrancy. And that's it! Like other Bon Parfumeur fragrances, 004 mostly remains linear the rest of its life (which is about 8-10 hours on my skin, with decent projection even through my mask for the first 2 hours), and I'm totally okay with it. This has become my new go-to dumb reach fragrance. I cannot imagine a time or a place where this wouldn't be apropos. Office, date night, casual hangouts with the homies, maybe even semi-formal occasions - I could see 004 working well in all of those instances. It's like a pair of dark blue, quality designer jeans - it just works. Has signature scent written all over it. The best way I could describe this fragrance is "handsome". A handsome, masculine, tailored navy blazer of a fragrance. Somewhat unisex, but personally I think this would work best on a man. Wearable all year round. Overall, this is not blazing new olfactory trails or some kind of grand artistic statement, but it does smell damn good, and I absolutely love it. For the price, you get a relatively unique (as in it doesn't smell like a designer), natural smelling fragrance with pretty great performance. What's not to love? 9.5/10, because nothing is perfect.

I love the scent of this fragrance but it's hard to find other people liking it too much. If you're looking for a compliment-getter, this is not the one. I still find some people to like it and personally I find it very nice. It is giving me the vibe of going to a restaurant after a day at the beach, wearing this. The longetivity is not good at all on my skin, but I did hear that on some people it lasts over 5 hours. For me, it's maximum 2 hours. That's basically the only negative thing about this fragrance. It's very easy and not strong at all, so only the closest people will be able to smell it on you. There's a cinnamon-ish type of smell that nobody seems to talk about, but me and the people who smelled it recognized it. 8.5/10 Would've been over 9.5/10 if it would actually last, but you have to reapply over 4 times a day. Update!! I let the fragrance sit for about a month now, and after spraying it now, it actually lasts longer than when i bought it! About 4-5 hours now! If you have this fragrance and it doesn't last long, you should try letting it sit for a few weeks. Updated rating: 9.8/10

Fresh and clean -- the terms others are using to describe 004 -- are spot on. Think the lingering aroma of Irish Spring when you step right out of the shower or like the old school liquid aftershaves your dad might have splashed on his face in the mornings. I suppose that places 004 in the barbershop genre, but I'd prefer to think of it as just clean. The predominant citrus to me is tart -- more like a grapefruit-mint combination than the lemon-orange listed on Fragrantica -- but works well, and that mint note makes 004 wearable during the day even in the colder months. Some have mentioned an earthy drydown. I must not be there yet -- it's still citrus-spearminty on me, about 20-30 mins in. Unfortunately, performance isn't great. I've been test spraying it on my hand for the past few hours, and every time, despite being layered on, I cannot smell it after 30 minutes. Blind buy safe but it's so far turning out to be one of those fragrances that you have to carry around with you for frequent reapplications.

It's true that it states Cologne on the packaging. And also, eau de perfume!. I would lean more on an intensity: Eau de Parfum. It is bursting with freshness and spice. With its top notes. It surprises with its Gin & Tonic facet, not alcoholic! Without putting off non-drinkers... It is balanced by its heart notes: a green and lively ginger, racy juniper berries, an aromatic and slightly warm, playful nutmeg! A very aromatic Gin, rounded off by a very nice balance of base notes, barely woody. Base notes tending towards Tonka bean, “warm” and not earthy patchouli, lukewarm tobacco; for a blurry and pleasant background, "a clean cream"... (everything is light) It is a very surprising aromatic citrus. It's true that I noticed, very fleetingly, a note of chlorophyll chewing gum! An almost, strong,tsubliminal note... A bit like this evocation of "Coke" in candy format, also subliminal, on Aziyade Parfum d'Empire water. It's a great success.

Really fresh and spicy scent for the summer. The citrus, juniper, and ginger are so bright and sparkling on initial spray. There is a slight gin booziness to it, but not aggressively boozy. The nutmeg, tobacco, and patchouli do give it some depth as opposed to just citrus. Projection is solid, longevity is kind of medium for me, I do feel the need to reapply after 2-3 hours. More masculine leaning though could easily be unisex. This is a unique, relatively affordable niche scent even within the citrus + ginger summer fragrances that are a dime a dozen nowadays.