Barber Cologne Elixir Black

Just bought this sweet deal for my boyfriend at Bath & Body. I sprayed the white and the black elixers on each of my hands and experienced them change while shopping. The White started out more mainstream citrusy aeromatic and I prefered that to the opening harsh agarwood blast of the Black one, but within ten minutes they completely morphed... The White one changed into a boring and predictable generic fresh scent - VERY reminiscent of Polo to me. However, the Black elixir did something wonderful. In relatively little time the once loud sharp oder faded to a warm, mysteriously alluring vanilla wood. A friend commented that it almost turned toward a feminine softness, but I disagree on the drydown being outwordly feminine. It's totally sensual to me. I can't wait to gift it to my BF. This scent, while wonderful, lacks strong projection and doesn't noticably last longer than ~4 hours, unless you're really getting your nose on the skin. That said, this fragrance, which B&BW staffer described as being part of a luxury brand (?), was cheaper at full retail price than their own signature line colognes... $22 versus $34, albeit it's a smaller bottle. Hell of a good deal to me though. I will say that I would pay as much as 4 times the cost for improved sillage and longevity. MUCH more appealling scent than anything else at Bath and Body Works in terms of men's frags, no doubt. Do yourself a favor and TRY THIS ONE.

Great scent. Just picked up on 3. Buy 2 get one free so i went with the white, black, and green. I love this one out of all three. It is so soft and settled it has the same scent flow of Yves Saint Laurent La Nuit de l'homme. Great long lasting, it lasted on me for about 8 plus hours. I will not buy again due to the fact that i have so many colognes that it will be just sitting waiting his turn to get used. I would def. recomend this one out of all the Bigelow collect.. Great for the buck and great smell, received many compliments. thumbs up....

An amazing fragrance! My batch lasts to the next day on clothing, although with 8 sprays, but sillage is intimate after the first hour. Would be a perfect date fragrance because it will last without choking anyone out, or smell offending, and you can’t really overspray. Well worth the $34 i paid at their shop for a 2.4oz. All their frags are great, try the Blue for the office.

Finally they add this. Very nice fragrance that can be bought for a reasonable price. It's identical to John Varvatos but much more affordable. This is a very simple but nice, sweet and slightly musky fragrance best served for a romantic night. Elixir Black could actually be pulled off anytime except maybe the extreme heat. At only $20 this is definitely a good buy.

This is a very good fragrance for romantic settings. This is a wonderful fall/winter scent. To me this fragrance has some elements of La nuit d L'homme. It is sweet yet smoky and overall very sexy. My wife loves this one on me so that's another positive.

This was my first "masculine" fragrance buy as an out trans masculine person, and it holds a special significance for me in that regard. I chose it because it was a great fragrance for the price (it used to be available at Bath and Body Works and was their best "male" option by far). It's woodsy fresh and spiced but also brisk and versatile, not a headache-inducing, overpowering department store cologne or a stinging, nostril burning aquatic fragrance like many barbershop style colognes are. It's a hot shave in a sparkling clean salon, while you're wearing freshly shined leather shoes, and somebody is whipping up a pastry dough loaded with vanilla in the bakery next door. It smells like starting off your work day early, with the right attitude. A great workhorse of a fragrance, assertive and long-lasting with great sillage, it's well suited for daytime, professional settings, and casual events. Years into my transition and with far more fragrances in my collection, I still think it's great! Now that you have to order it off the CO Bigelow site it's more expensive than when they had a deal with Bath and Body Works, but still totally worth it.

Vanilla being listed as the main descriptor is a bit odd for Elixir Black, as it comes off much more like a fresh spicy with vanilla as part of the mix but certainly not an individual standout. Overall, I get a root beer vibe from this, and not with all of the sweetness you would typically associate with the soda or candy itself, but more of the root and alcohol aspect of it. I definitely don't get oud but there's something woody and spicy about this. I liken it somewhat to The Body Shop's Activist, which is slightly sweeter, and this is especially obvious when smelling one on each arm back and forth. Short-lived and not a projection monster, but a bargain at $19.50 for 75ml, this is a nice casual cold weather option that can be sprayed liberally and often, and is great for daytime usage. 7 out of 10

I had this frag a little while back. I thought of it as sweet spicy. It is plesant, a good value and price point. I thought it was very similiar to my D&G 'The One for Men' so I got rid of this one. (If I didn't already have that one, I would have kept it.) I do think it is similar to the John Varvatos Vintage. I'll have to go back and review it again, as I just got Vintage a few days ago. Update: ================================= Not very similar to Vintage, I think this would be closer to the original JV. I have both sprayed on a tester strip right now. Vintage has a stronger leather scent and isn't as sweet. Elixir Black has a sweeter overall flavor (vanilla?) and a bit tangy high note that Vintage does not have.

I would love to purchase this because I'm a big fan of John Varvatos, which is supposed to be close to this. But evidently this is only available as a splash, not a spray, and I will NEVER purchase a splash. An inconvenient, antiquated mechanism for anything cologne or higher. And I ain't decanting to compensate. Too bad. Update: I found a spray bottle of this and am wearing it now. It does smell a lot like John Varvatos OG. One thing I love about John Varvatos OG is the brilliant date note (and tamarind). Elixer Black doesn't have that but the tonka, vanilla, and amber replicate the general sweet smell and the fragrance overall is very similar.

This is warm and inviting. Nothing extreme. Very safe. I recommend using in winter, fall and autumn weather. It sort of has a Calvin Klein Obsession vibe but without cinnamon.

Fresh, smooth and subtle. I have to agree that it smells very much like John Varvatos.

Smells exactly like John Varvatos and Varvatos Vintage. Good for the price.

After reading the other reviews I thought I'd like it. Tried it and thought it smelled like a craft store. Like cheap spicey popurri. Just yuck.

Ah yes, my old nemesis, Elixir Black. Quite literally everything I could want in a fragrance except for one thing; durability and silage. I could just about bathe myself in this fragrance and people could not smell it on me after 30 minutes unless I was hugging them, and even then, it was faint. It got got compliments from people when they could smell it on me, it just never reacted well enough with my body chemistry to hang around for very long (or perhaps I just had bought a bottle from a bad batch, who knows). If you like warm, ambery/vanilla fragrances with a touch of woody incense, try this one.

I've been wearing this (body spray) for years. Had no idea that it had an oud note. I still don't know exactly what part of this is oud, but I love the whole Bigelow Black line-up. Too bad the aftershave is gone. The body wash is the best I've ever used. I told my girlfriend that this is what I wear when I don't know what to wear. It makes me happy but I don't stick out like a sore thumb wearing it. Edit: Recently purchased the cologne and it remains one of my favorite scents. Dark, powdery and spicy. A personal scent, for you and someone close to you, not to fill a room or beg for compliments.

For just over $20 here in Canada, this is a pretty good fragrance. I get some pretty positive feedbacks on this scent. The smell is woody with a strong sweet background. Masculine indeed. The downside is silliage isn't all that good. One has to be within elbow reach distance to notice the scent after it completely dries down. Longevity is decent, it lasted a whole night shift at work, though by then, people (in my experience anyway) would comment that you'd smell like a baby lol. Woody, sweet, aromatic, pretty good in my book. For around $20, you can't go wrong with this one.

Got it as a Christmas gift. as soon I sprayed it on, I could recognize I had this fragrance before, yeah, it was john varvatos. they smell exactly the same, not bad for a non designer fragrance, great smell, strong and sharp at the opening, but that's all you get, the opening, cause 8 minutes after that, its gone.. it does last couple more minutes on clothes.. too bad it has very poor to no longevity and projection cause it does smell good and expensive.. good to take a bath at night, spray it on and have a magic time with wife...

Agree with all reviews on notes/scents - the bottom line is that this is a great price for a good scent. Better than many more expensive ones. A little sweet at first but the drydown is nice. It does not last long but that is not surprising. Lasts better on the clothers. For some reason, C.O. Bigelow products are no longer sold in Canadian Bath and Body Works stores so this is hard to find here now - luckily i live near the border so i can grab it on the occasional trip over. I have a bottle of it in my desk drawer at work.

ooohh you pretty little thing, why you have to project so light??? and be so weak??? you smell wonderful and well crafted but oh my! you die so fast...nice oud/musky/vanilla but i will mourn until they turn you into an eau de parfum...or at least an eau de toilette intense. 80/100 RIYL:Creed Royal Oud, YSL La nuit,Montale Aoud Musk.

Smells great,just like everyone else said.Very weak,becomes a skin scent in a very short time.Not worth it to me.