African Rooibos Intens

Hey hey hey! The original scent of this flanked, the OG, is one of my favorite and most complimented cool weather scents. This one tones down the spiciness of the original and adds a smooth tonka and a gentle touch of incense. If the spicy boldness of the original scent takes you aback this offers a more gentle richer approach. I laughed when I smelled this because while it is good this intense version is actually less intense. You still get the star of the show here, the beautiful rooibos tea accord. I like this. But the OG still reigns supreme in my heart 4.2 overall

This is a beautiful fragrance! Got it in last night & could not wait to spray it. Upon first spray you get the vanilla and spiciness. Then a little of the tea pokes his head over and you get little kisses from it as the fragrances wears. Im usually anosmic to Ambroxan so I’d it’s there I wouldn’t know. I’m a huge fan of the OG but to me this leans slightly more masculine than unisex. Still going to use every single drop of this bottle bcuz he’s sexxxxy!

Starts out with that PERFECT AfricanRooibos dna with a lot of ambroxan. The tea stays throughout the life but after 30min the vanilla bourbon comes out to shine just as much as the tea. The ambroxan smooths out with the vanilla bourbon, thankfully, and the perfect flanker is complete. Modern, sexy, smooth, long lasting greatness. The og is a masterpiece, and this is an extension of it.

I've said it before, and I'll say it a thousand more times; Chris Collins has mastered the ability to craft fragrances that are unique and tell a vivid story. This is made abundantly clear with the crown jewel of his collection, African Rooibos. The OG African Rooibos is not only one of the most unique tea fragrances in history, but I'd say also amongst fragrances overall. I was simultaneously excited and worried when he announced he would be releasing an Intens version of AR. Variants of classic fragrances are very hit or miss with me. Sometimes they can add a whole new dimension to the fragrance that you couldn't have predicted, and other times, they fall flat and just feel like a cash-grab. Sadly, African Rooibos Intens falls under the latter category, for me. I'll preface by saying that African Rooibos Intens is by no means a bad fragrance, it just doesn't elevate or improve upon the original formula. All Mr. Collins did was add vanilla to the heart, and ambroxan to the base; two notes that did not warrant creating a new scent with. I will admit that upon my first spray of the Intens version, I did get a slightly darker vibe than the original, but the addition of the vanilla note actually downgrades it for me. The beautiful part of the original is how perfectly balanced it is; it checks so many boxes at once. The vanilla/ambroxan combo just makes it lean more towards designer fragrance; it waters down the magic of the OG. It is ironic that he labeled this version as "Intens" when it performs worse than the original. The projection, sillage, and longevity are about half that of the original; there's nothing intense about this. Is the vivid imagery that the original evoked still there; barely. I've honestly been underwhelmed by Chris Collins' latest releases, with the exception of Savant. Other than a slight amount of sweetness from the vanilla, and a bit more mass-appeal courtesy of the ambroxan, African Rooibos Intens wasn't needed at all; if it ain't broke, don't fix it. To me, it cheapens the legacy of the original, which is an absolute masterpiece. The OG is so complex and nuanced, and its "new and improved" version is just a let down, honestly. I think a note that could've greatly helped here would've been an iris note for a darker tone, or even a cinnamon note for added spiciness. If you already have the original, I wouldn't bother getting the Intens version. You lose all of the magic of the original, for a watered-down, ambery version of it. Considering the incredibly high price-point of $325 for the not-so "intens" version, this could and should have been so much more. A word of advice to the wise, if you are going to try to improve upon perfection, don't.

@C.Francisque27 spot on. You articulated exactly what I was feeling about this fragrance. Unfortunately, this feels more like a cash grab as opposed to an elevation of the OG. Collins usually delivers solid releases but this one missed the mark, especially at a price tag nearly double the OG.