1881 Essentiel

Keywords: Citrus zest, Basil and Coriander Perfect summer option especially if you like the Declaration accord. The similarity is at least 70%, side by side of course there could be contrasts better smelled, which I have not done but if I smelled this blind I would say a Declaration flanker. I guess Essentiel would perform no less than the Declaration too. I also agree with the reviewer down below, that this resembles Dior Homme Cologne in the opening for a few seconds. I believe I got it for around 20 eur and for the price I have zero complaints. This goes straight into my summer rotation until and if ever it gets boring.

The perfume opens up with a lot citruses, mostly lemon – very acidic. After a few minutes, herbs (like rosemary, oregano) and a bit of pepper start to appear. In the dry-down, soapy notes appear too, but it's not very sweet. It all smells very, very fresh, light, lively, invigorating, but it is not an unique scent, however. I can't find much wood, vetiver or moss in here; after an hour or so, maybe they start to fly somewhere in the background – the scent feels more balanced and less sharp, but it's still mostly citruses and herbs. I find it pleasant, but not too special. I think it's good for a young man, maybe even a teen boy. It lasts on my skin for around three hours. Projection is within an arm's length for around an hour, then it becomes a skin scent.

Nothing exciting. Opens with a heavy sweet citrus. Within 10 minutes this starts to fade and a drier spicier note becomes more evident - basil and artemisia mixing? Any woody note is very faint and within 2 - 3 hours it's gone. The longevity scale here on Fragrantica shows weak as up to 2 hours and moderate as over 3, this belongs in that no man's land. Sillage is soft. Again it's a fragrance that I'll class as like (there's nothing to dislike about it) but I really wish there was a Mehhh button to choose.

Many complain about the longevity of the perfume, I use it in spring and summer and with 4 sprays it lasts 6 hours on the skin, to extend its duration I use a moisturizing cream or I insist with 8 sprays to get 8+ hours. In the first 3 hours it takes me to Sophie Matisse Art Edition Bamboo Harmony By Kilian 90% identical in the first 3 hours (I had Bamboo Harmony, I only have the bottle left), I wouldn't recommend blind-buying, not everyone will like it.

I think my batch has a more prominent pepper note then what others are marking it as above. The pepper, bergamot/citrus, vetiver and cedar give this a clear similarity to Dior Sauvage. Although, this does lack the intensive ambroxan and metallic notes, it still falls in the same ballpark, especially since it came out three years after. Effectively a more tame and mature version of the Dior.