Dolce&Gabbana

Ooooh! This is a nice one! Let me just say that I fell down the rabbit hole trying to find THE soapy fragrance. D&G Red Cap was suggested. People described it as fresh, fizzy and spicy. I don’t know why but the fizzy drew me in. I went on Ebay and found a 3.4oz bottle of this baby for about $70 which isn’t bad considering it’s nearly impossible to find in U.S. stores. Now, I know that people are claiming that the German formulation (which I have) pales in comparison to the Euroitalia version. From the batch number, I was able to tell that mine was manufactured in September 2012. From what I understand, all perfumes were watered down after 2012 in order to comply with IFRA so I am sure that the Italian versions are stronger. Does that mean that they are superior? Maybe. German formulations are manufactured by Procter & Gamble Prestige Beaute. The newest formulations are coming from France still under P&G so if you’re interested in Red Cap, do your homework and figure out which formulation is going to be best for you. Also, beware of fakes because they are aplenty. Anyway, I had D&G Light Blue back when it first came out. Funny side note: my best friend set me up on a blind date with a guy and I wore Light Blue that night. I caught a whiff of him mid-date and asked him what he was wearing. It was Light Blue for men. Cute, right?!? We wore the same fragrance on the first date! This has to be fate 🥰 I wish I could wrap up the story by saying we got married and had a Light Blue bottle cake at our wedding but no...He ended up breaking my heart and wasting my time. Certified F boy. That’s probably why I ended up hating that particular fragrance. I chucked my 75% full bottle into the garbage after we broke up. Yeah, I know. Dramatic. Not only that but everywhere I went, I was bound to smell it on someone. I just got sick of it. So, I am already biased against D&G lol. This is like the Matrix, Blue cap will sedate you and blend you with the masses. Red invigorates you and sets you apart from the usual. I really should have gone red! But I feel like nobody talks about Red because Blue is always shoved into the undeserved limelight. I had to do some real digging to even find a mention of this fragrance and how beautiful it is. The YouTube review from Ouch110 was what really sold me. Also, he delves deeply into the reformulation history and breaks down the differences in each one. Okay, Ouch. I will give D&G another chance... The initial spray of this is SPICY. For a minute, I was like, “Wait! Did I buy the wrong bottle?!?!” The dry down is where this fragrance really takes off. I get that fizzy, sparkly, airy sensation. It truly does smell like warm laundry fresh from the dryer. The basil in this gives it that unexpected bitter, spicy twist that sets it apart from your standard fresh and clean scent. I don’t feel like it’s overpowering which you think it would be from the first spray. It’s soft and bold at the same time. Feminine with a hint of a freshly washed baby. I’m not a girl, not yet a woman type of vibe (I hear Britney Spears is actually a fan of this scent). I really love this! The staying power is pretty good. It’s still detectable after the 5 hour mark but definitely gone by morning. That must be why people prefer the Euroitalia version. BUT... it’s still great! I totally get why people keep coming back to this fragrance after almost 30 years. Sure, it does smell “classic”, aldehydes do that. But there’s something sweet and innocent intertwined at the heart of it also. Red, you’re the real showstopper here 🤩. I don’t care what anyone says about your Cool Watery, screechy, overhyped Blue little sister. I live in Chicago and as diverse as we are, I can tell you that I have yet to smell anything quite unique as Red Cap on someone. I smell a lot of Gucci, Mugler, Lancome, Juicy Couture, Bath and Body Works and yes, still to this day, Blue Cap. I actually smelled Blue Cap on a woman at work the other day and I have to admit that it smelled pretty good on her. But overall, Red Cap is much cooler and exotic. I feel like it’s finally gaining the hype and recognition it’s always deserved. Update: As of February 2022, D&G has decided to split from Shiseido and is now planning on revamping/restoring all fragrances back to the Euroitalia quality. Does this mean we can expect to see a revival of Red Cap in its original glory?!? Stay tuned.

I bought this immediately after reading through the countless reviews of this scent and scent memories, and I wasn't deterred that I'd be unable to buy the original Italian formulation. I was lucky enough to get the red cap very quickly in the mail which I tore open as soon as I received it. I didn't really understand it and I couldn't have. It's the kind of scent you just have to smell for yourself. This is probably THE most game-changing scent I have ever got my hands on. I'm now scared it's going to be unavailable at some point and am trying to pace myself in acquiring more bottles. It's kind of indescribable to me, and the only thing I can really convey is the soapy-aldehydic part of it--but there really is alot more going on here. I just can't describe it because I am not literate enough in notes to really discern them. One of the reviews said it smelled like a bank when you first walk in and I completely agree - it's bizarre, but it does. Like when you first walk in to a bank that is highly air conditioned and the smell of money just hits you in the nose. For this reason I wear this mostly to work; it's definitely not a casual scent, really, in any way. In an off-work setting, I can see someone possibly wearing this to an outdoor event, as the sillage is so great on this it would be noticeable even with other smells and in a light breeze. I may try to wear it to dinner at some point but for now it's a power suit accompaniment. Not sure I'd wear it in the heat as it could be suffocating. It lasts all day and then some and to me it never really changes after that first half hour or so. My 7 year old got her hands on it and sprayed it all over herself a couple weeks ago, and while it definitely seemed out of place on her, the projection was stable into the evening, and consistently wafted gently behind her as she moved. The opinions of this scent aren't as hot and cold as I expected they would be, with most people on the "love" side, but I can actually see this one being a love it/hate it kind of smell. It is not safe blind buy. Although it was a huge win for me, I took to it only after my husband sprayed it on his wrist and I had a chance to smell it from a distance. I think was a bit confusing for me when I smelled it on myself. Somehow, the distance made it easier to absorb and fully appreciate the notes; maybe it was because I was perceiving it as masculine on him vs trying to align it with whatever original expectations I had before opening the box. Once I realized how much I loved it on him, I asked him to wear it a few times more, and then eventually took it over again for myself. Not sure if there is any place to get a decant of this, but even if you wind up with a whole bottle and don't like it, I'm sure you won't have a hard time finding someone who will take it off of your hands given the extreme love for this.

As a perfume lover I was aware of this juice being the stuff of perfume legend, and the discontinuation was much lamented by the perfume community. The current Pour Femme with the small purple cap is an abomination in my opinion, a marshmallow, hairspray mess that actually makes me gag. I bought a Euroitalia miniature on eBay but it had turned, although I could still smell some of the beauty of this and was determined to try a fresh or unspoiled bottle. I’ve managed to get hold of a Beaute Prestige Eau De Toilette bottle, made in France, from FragranceX (so definitely genuine). It arrived today, and I’ve not been this excited about a perfume arriving since I managed to snag a bottle of Versace Blonde. My word, this is stunning! I can see the resemblance to Chanel No 5, sure there are aldehydes in here but they are creamy and well blended as opposed to the punchy, fresh air blast you get from no.5 (and which I love about no.5). If this had smelt like no.5 I would have been disappointed as I have that perfume and adore it and don’t need a dupe. There is a warmth in this perfume that no.5 doesn’t have. This definitely has the richness of no.5 though. This smells like laundry drying in the sun in a hot country, as described by some others on here and I think it will work well in all seasons, even the hottest, where it will bloom on the skin. It’s like a really beautiful body lotion. I can’t pick out any particular notes and definitely not the coriander which I struggle with as a note.it is definitely aromatic as opposed to floral. It reminds me a little of Joop and Gabriela sabatini’s perfume, although it is not a dupe of any of these. It smells timeless, classic and not dated in anyway. The current formulation doesn’t seem to be as beast mode as original versions of the scent but nothing is beast mode nowadays with all these blasted reformulations, except a good oud perfume, Montale, La Vie est Belle or Baccarat. As @simplecreative has said, there’s nothing else out there that smells like this, so the lack of sillage and longevity is a compromise I am prepared to make to have this beautiful fragrance in my life. Why on earth did D&G discontinue/severely scale down the production of this one? It’s signature material, and I, along with countless others would happy buy this on repeat for the rest of my days!

Absolutely beautiful! I'm not a vintage perfume person, as a general rule I like scents from the 90s and newer. This is from the 90s, but has some notes that were at their most popular long before that, namely aldehydes and carnation. Out of all the currently unpopular notes, these are the two that I would love to smell more often in modern perfumery, but I was still a little wary because don't always love them in older scents. Unnecessarily so! Together with the warm base of this fragrance, they smell timeless and not dated at all. D&G opens with a burst of soapy, bubbly, fizzy aldehydes. After many reviews about this being such a sexy, dramatic diva perfume I was quite surprised by how clean it is. There is a sensual warmth beneath the cleanliness, but nothing animalic or otherwise wild. Just a lot of soothing sandalwood, a hint of vanilla that intensifies in the late drydown, a floral bouquet that mainly consists of carnations, and some aromatic, spicy notes which smell like more than just coriander and basil to me. So I really think that this can easily be worn daily as a casually chic and elegant scent. I guess it all depends on your own style and perspective, but if you wear red lipstick in your day-to-day life, this won't feel out of place either. The reviewers who mentioned fluffy clean towels are spot on. I'm sure towels don't really smell different from other fresh laundry, but this fragrance is the texture and feel of a fresh warm towel translated into scent. My sample is from P&G prestige. I have never tried any older versions, nor do I care to hunt them down as I already love this one. It's kind of confusing, some say this is discontinued, some say this is back in stores. Despite my version being made in Germany, which is where I live, it has been almost impossible to find here for years. Other D&G fragrances are everywhere, but for this one I had to order a sample from the US. I hope I'll be able to find an affordable bottle from a trustworthy source online. I need this in my life.

I've been holding off writing a review for this perfume for so long because I love it THAT much..I just really can't find the words to express it. Be still my heart... It started in my late teens, my best friend's girlfriend Cathy used to wear this out with us when we would go clubbing and..from the first sniff I was hooked. Hooked on this absolutely luxurious feminine powder bomb! Back then I never really wore perfumes marketed for women and especially not something as bold as this beauty. This is something oh so very special. As I've got older..I've found myself craving this perfume so much that it has gone into my top 5 perfumes of all time. I simply..adore it. It starts out with a bang..this could easily put someone off...it's quite a jumble of strong citrus notes and basil. It smells like an extremely expensive soap. If you are not a fan of soapy, still give it a chance because it reveals a lot more.. The aldehydes are prominent and give it a glamourous sparkle. This one REALLY needs to settle and warm up before it's true beauty is revealed (as i said) After a while all the notes mesh and waft in a way that still makes me swoon..even after smelling it so many times on different people and myself. I just cannot get enough of it. It's powdery (as i said) but..ultra classy and feminine at the same time. Not baby powder.... sexy powder! It's extremely difficult to describe for me, I just know its a masterpeice. Now I hear D&G are discontinuing it...booooo! I have ran out and bought myself 300mls of this to make sure I'll never be without it and am considering a fourth 100ml. (edit..I'm now on my fifth, I need to go on "hoarders" This scent needs to be tried and used carefully to get the real feel of it. It's an absolute delight to wear and is a huge statement. Too much will knock people out....I'm only just becoming brave enough to wear it myself after all these years. Oh Red Cap...you are breathtakingly beautiful...there is no other like you. THIS IS PERFUME PERFECTION!