Potion Royal Black

If it were a color, it would be blue-black. If it were an emotion, it would be desire. If it were a genre, it would be Film Noir. If you have wished for a rose fragrance that can’t be construed as being effeminate this is worth a try. I blind bought Potion Royal Black two years ago and have had no regrets. I guess I have been on a rose kick lately, but I just love the concept of DSquared2, both the fragrance and the fashion. The clothing is just behind Ports1961 for me: artful and intriguing, not conniving. This resinous treasure opens with a rose of the heirloom variety imbued with incense and leather. The three notes seem to transform into one aromatic, ever blooming posy before your nose. Tobacco intercedes immediately thereafter and, smelling something of an unlit cigarette, coaxes the dainty petals into showing their masculine side. Pimento warms the skin and adds just a touch of piquant fermentation. Guaiac and cashmere woods inhabit the base instilling the bouquet with depth and luxury. I did not, to my relief, detect an over-abundance of the ubiquitous bergamot and musk here, but they are present. Overall, once the composition achieves its final form, it holds onto the skin with the tenacity of Japan lacquer and offers excellent projection. There are mossy shades of vintage Chanel Antaeus in its structure, but they are faint chimeras. If you weren’t walking the earth back in the early 1980’s when the original Antaeus was released, and ever wondered what it was like, this would be a reasonable but incomplete study. Potion Royal Black is an atmospheric gem particularly suitable to late autumn in temperate climates and is worn to its best effect in cool, crisp air. Of course, living in a climate controlled universe (as most of us do), it is possible to turn down the thermostat on a random rainy evening and just spray yourself into a sleepy, rose scented nirvana. I like to take it with me to cosmopolitan cities like New York, London and Berlin the same as to bed. Great for living large, such as evenings out on the town or even when you just want to draw a little extra (positive) attention to yourself, say on an important date or for an event. I wore this to Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in New York last month and received several inquiries from other attendees. I can safely report that nobody else smelled like this. The best part is that for all its niche appeal it can be had for the price of a less distinguished bottle. I call it bargain priced individualism.

Okay so I went to my local perfume counter and said to some of the women there..."You know me by now...what else do you have that I will like?" I always use certain fragrances as a reference to (hopefully) help them alert me to new ones...In this case it was Robert Piguet 'Bois Noir' and Amouage Interlude Man. She came up with this one from DSquared. It was a new one to me, the He Woods are a mixed bag and I'm not overly keen really...but I figured hey I'll try it! A pale comparison with Bois Noir which is in another league(not even gonna mention Interlude) was my conclusion. It smelled cheaper, I'd figured they were the same price but when I discovered this one was half the price it changed my perspective slightly. Really not a bad effort at the high end opulence that I crave from a spicy, Oudy, smokey, Incense scent at a designer price. Also the rose strikes a pretty good balance in Potion Royal Black, all in all not bad. For me though, I like designer fragrances for being a composition that you wouldn't see in the niche realm and this attempt is slightly redundant for me. It just highlights that If I want this sort of smell I will have to be prepared to pay for it and in truth will get something much much better than this. Update: My original point above was not very objective. I'm speaking as somebody who loves dark, eastern, incense fragrances and is prepared to pay top dollar so this doesn't really appeal to me...but more broadly speaking this might be the finest designer fragrance you can get and not to be sniffed at! (If you pardon the pun...this most definitely should be sniffed at! in a really good way.) Tried this again the otherday as I was really quite impressed the by this the first time, considering it's price point. It starts out as a really smokey mess quite frankly and is very pungent with spices and I'm not sure what it's supposed to be? You can actually sniff through the layers of resinous, smoke and reveal what struck me as an almost feminine rose scent underneath. However, as it dries down it seems to get deeper and darker and in the very deep drydown 8+ hours it becomes my favorite a gorgeous leather (Think almost Tuscan leather or Clive Christian 'C' PRAISE INDEED!) but by then it's so faint it's just barely in the realms of existence. Quite a journey this fragrance takes you on...layered and really a bold outing for a designer house with awesome longevity, so well done to DSquared.

How does one follow up such a well written review as the one before this one? I love this frag so much that I'm compelled to add my two or three cents on the subject. Im a sucker for dark manly rose scents. I own Club De Nuit Intense by Armaf which is basically NOIR DE NOIR minus $250+, David Yurman's Limited Edition, Aramis Calligraphy Rose, Shade's Wood and now DSquared's Potion Royal Black. Owning these scents gives you an idea of the versatility of rose notes in fragrances. They are undeniably rosy but they aren't anywhere near copies of each other as far as fragrances go. Each has a very unique take on Rose and Potion is one of my favorites. What makes this different from the others is the Incense, Leather and Rose combo. These notes combine to create a very sensual fragrance. It's also very niche in terms of the smell, blend, and performance. As has been mentioned it is very easy to see this scent selling for 5x its asking price and it would probably sell more if that were the case than it does as an affordable designer scent. There are some synthetics used but so what? WIth IFRA rules in play even Niche brands are producing SYNTHETIC scents. The bottom line is the smell and this smells amazing. Scents like this is what frugal frag heads live to find. Something which should be far more exclusive being sold at an accessible price. And because the availability is so scarce chances are no one will smell like you. I collect fragrances because of gem finds like this. This will certainly be one of my night out scents as it gets colder which is when this scent, I believe, would fit best. Its a warm, dense, sweet, but masculine take on Rose. I get consistently over 10 hours (i spray on my Tshirts) with great sillage for the first 4 hours. On clothes this will last forever. So give a couple sprays between your chest and your Tshirt and you will be giving off whiffs of this forever...lol... Simply put...A wow factor Fragrance. If u don't like rose scents this may be one which changes your mind. Its undeniably beautiful. 10/10- This scent is everything I want in a fragrance and is a unicorn compared to the hosts of generic designer scents which all smell the same these days. It gets a 10 because it measures up to the best from the Designer world past and present. YouTube Channel- Simply Put Scents

Potion Royal Black After spraying few times in retail shop I bought the bottle online quite cheap. I think it should have been called "potion ROSE royal" A fantastic rose scent , one of my favourites. I would agree with Santiago below , a bucket of deep red wet roses.The opening is a blast of roses combo with incense and gentle leather. The other notes cashmere wood, musk and guaiac wood are a bit softer but are there. Not sure about pimento, I don't know how it smells. One day a applied 5-6 sprays on my body around 8:30 am. While being in the office, few friends and colleagues were asking what is this nice smell ? Did the clean-lady cleaned the whole office in the morning? At that moment I felt very happy that was my Potion Royal Black. The projection was about 3 meters. When I went home 9pm the rose , soft smoke and incense notes were still on my skin. That make 12 hours longevity minimum. After 3 hours , midnight the scent was still there. So , at least on my skin this fantastic perfume is a beast. However, this is just my nose, and the perfume has been applied on my skin. I do recommend this EDP to everyone. Not sure if the negative reviews are from fake samples or bad batches. Even my signature Epic man doesn't have excellent marks (due to high price). However, it doesn't mean that this will b the same scent in every single person all around the world. Just my skin, my PH my review. I hope it helps. Conclusion: Batch: 00D82BE1 Price online: 50 euros , April -3 , 2016 Scent: 10 Longevity :10 Sillage:10 Overall 10 Cheers, GG

My dear, old friend, I have just discovered how much I have missed thee. I bought this - 100ml - fragrance when it was first released and adored it from day one. I didn't use much of it after the first week and stored it in my cupboard for a rainy day. I moved home a few months after buying it and when unpacking everything in my new home, I completely forgot that I had bought it, mainy due to the fact that it wasn't there when I unpacked my boxes. It had disappeared and consequently, I didn't 'miss' it. Fast-forward 5+ years (to this week as I type) and I found a box in my storage unit and opened it. Eureka! There it was, staring at me, practically brand new, in the original box and 99% full. The smell is exactly the same as it was 5 years ago - pungent, strong, masculine and all-consuming. I won't waste time typing what it smells like as many of you have already done that. However, I will say that this fragrance is absolutely beautiful with incredible sillage and longevity. Its presence dominates everything around it, including me. I had no idea that this is now discontinued and feel very lucky that I own this masterpiece. If you can get your hands on an original bottle of this potion, then beg, steal or borrow it. Even if it's a rare 'blind buy', don't hesitate. Thank me later.

Wow. I am shocked. I was expecting something a little different. This is everything but linear that's for sure. Now I do agree with the fresh rose on initial blast, but the middle dry down this is a masculine fragrance all the way, don't let the rose flower fool you. The rose is the most expensive flower in the world for a reason. The dark smoky leather which is like the same leather in Tuscan leather but just of lower quality mixed with the rose is something that seems so common but in this composition it seems like the original of it. A great frGrance I'm glad it's in my collection and for 100ml shipped on beautyspin for like $40 can't beat it, smelling like a niche offering for that price. The bottle suits the fragrance, it's dark, woody, leather rose and smoke. Edit update*** I been wearing this for a couple days. All in all I like what's being accomplished here. It does remind me it's a designer fragrance from time to time by its quality and smell. I think this one is a little hyped for what it is, I may be saying this bc it got me wanting it blindly and I expected more. More woods and more smoke. All around 7.5/10 not bad....just not bad.

I am SSSSOOOOO glad that I bought this frag a couple years ago. I went online looking for a bottle when I first heard about it, well the notes made me curious soI ordered it. I am wearing it today (the first time in a long time) and it smells so good. This frag is smoky, with a masculine rose and slight incense, leather undertone. The tobacco and woods are there too well blended with the smoke and rose with a dash of incense. This isn't an incensey eastern style rose smelling frag at all. This is blended beautiful and done for well for western noses. It lasted all day 8:30AM til 6PM and I am still smelling it. It shines in this cool 50 degree weather and I smelled in the office thru the day. So performance is very good. This is backup bottle worthy. If you see it you better get it. It will fetch a pretty penny when D/C'd or unavailable. It is a masculine frag done well but a woman can probably pull it off if she is strong and confident. Happy Sniffing

Simplistically brilliant! DSQUARED Potion Royal Black to me is rose done right! Do not be fooled, this is a rose scent! The opening of this fragrance sees our stars; the rose, pimento, and incense just hold hands and skip to the tune of floral, spicy smoke, directly to leather and citrus town. This scent is so well blended and unfolds itself like a classic mystery novel. This fragrance is rich, robust, and elegant at the same time. All the elements of this composition are present, just enough to be detected and accent this wonderful rose scent. As for the rose, the rose to me is a fresh rose, it isn't too jammy it is just very fresh. The transition from the opening to the mid is seamless. We get a light tobacco and leather accord that blends directly to a creamy, yet slightly musky, woody, oud base. This scent is truly a potion because it is magical. To me this is meant to be worn at night at moments when you really mean to make your convictions felt.

This is damn good! I've been looking everywhere for a dark, masculine rose scent and I didn't expect to get it from a designer brand. "Royal Black" smells like something a dashingly handsome, cold-blooded hitman would wear to a dinner date/execution. Black tie, leather gloves, gun smoke and a rose petal calling card. Ooh, this is getting very dangerous... OK, the "gun smoke" is more like incense and tobacco, which drifts hazily throughout, drying down into a subtle whisp of sweetness towards the end. The rose note is dry, dark and -unlike most designer fragrances that claim rose to be a middle note- quite prominent. It provides just the right amount of femininity to make it alluring, but without being soapy or medicinal. I think the combination of leather is one of the reasons for this, it tames the rose and contributes to an overall very masculine and sophisticated scent, that could probably seduce most rose cynics. Great lasting power too.

This is a real change from DSQUARED2, if this fragrance was put in another bottle...I wouldn't believe that DSQUARED2 created this juice. Potion Royal Black has a sexy rose/leathery blend with a smokey incense woodsy vib which makes this a high quality fragrance. I have sampled several frag's with similar notes..this juice gives Kilian or Creed a run for their money. Even the price tops Versace Pour Homme Oud Noir. After spraying this on my skin the first note I pick up is rose immediately followed by an amazing smokey/tobacco vib. After this juice settles, On my skin...I love this juice because there's a hint of sweet tone probably coming from the rose and leather combined. Longevity and Silage is excellent lasting over 8hrs Overall, This fragrance is a complex BEAST yet not overbearing. A classic aroma wearing a tuxedo. A definite high quality juice. Also a true GEM I would recommend in a heartbeat!! 10/10 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

To be honest, my bottle that arrived last month from Perfume Emporium (Australia, I think) via Amazon smells fantastic but the projection and longevity is a big let down. I do not believe that there is a fake on this one being very underrated but I think, it has been watered down a bit or mine was not kept properly by this online store. Those who claimed it has great projection and longevity, will you please write down your bottle and box batch codes here (update/edit review). Projection on my skin is 1st hour then 3-4 hours skin scent. Or maybe this frag is one of those that wearer gets anosmic as I received compliments when I can't smell it at all. Then again on my clothes, it doesn't stay its strength compared to other rose Oud, leather or Oud based that I have: Ferrari Essence Oud, Yurman Limited, Golden Boy, TF NdN, Armaf Club Intense, Gadolphin, Mancera Gold Aoud etc. Batch code 100ml - 20D59BE1 (May 2013)

@Max, you probably found a gone bad bottle.. I once tried this scent, still remember leaving a tray, and some girls noticing it literally from near 8 meters of distance lol by the way: at a first instance I didnt like it, because i never tried rose scents before. then it grew on me and loved it. as said above, girls liked it, i was kind of embarassed at first because of the scent, but then noticed they smiled and started to flirt. amazing. notes i detected were: rose, incense, and something fresh and watery (maybe oud?). It reminds me of a bucket of roses in a water bowl, plus some background incense. quite elegant, can figure this with both a tuxedo or even with black jeans, t shirt and a rocker leather jacket. wish i still could find it, cannot find it anywhere these days.

What a great fragrance. Got this on a blind swap. I had only heard about it but i was not looking to buy it at the time. But i agreed based on the notes. And it is the best fragrance addition I've made to my collection so far this year. Right from the sprayer the Rose in this is strong, almost too feminine. I was almost dissapointed. But spray it on your skin and wait just a couple minutes and the masculine side comes out. The Leather, the incense, the woods, and some smokiness, all hover around a very sweet smelling rose. Amazing. This is what i expected Lyric Man from Amouage to smell like. I wore this on Valentines day. This is my romantic, seductive night out fragrance. When i want to be a little daring. Great offering from DSquared.

DSQUARED2 Potion Royal Black: A dark leathery fragrance with masculine rose. It doesn’t smell like the original Potion, it’s a completely different scent. It has a dark, mysterious casino vibe. Actors in “Sin City”, “Ocean’s Eleven” and the “V” from “V for Vendetta” could wear this fragrance. It is revolutionary, elegant and expensive at the same time. Sadly discontinued. DSQUARED2, bring this back. This is simply the best fragrance I have ever smelled. Scent: 10 Compliments: 9 Versatility: 8 Uniqueness: 10 Projection: 10 Longevity: 10 Value For Money: 10 Season/Time: Cold Weather & Special Occasions Age: 25+ Color: Red & Black Alternative Name: DSQUARED2 Anarchist / DSQUARED2 Royal Red Total: 9.6/10

@Mr Cornells (A belated response.) Looking at your wardrobe, I think that this would be a very pleasant addition. I, as a 30-something male, am not interested in DSquared's somewhat overpriced clothing line (which, like you say, is probably aimed more towards those on the better side of 30). But Potion Royal Black is a welcome fragrance in my wardrobe. I see by many of your reviews that longevity, sillage and concentration are top of your agenda when choosing a scent. In my experience, longevity is very good (around 8 hours), sillage is average-to-good and the conc. is EDP. As many have mentioned, for the price (I picked it up for around 50GBP for 100ml) it is a winner. Go for it.

HHMM... i dun even know how to start !!! i am sniffing my wrist over & over, it takes me to some french hotel's golden elevator where i am surrounded by few mid 20s couples, who are going out to some formal party. Rose note in royal black is of that rich fragrance of that tall pretty brunette and i can smell that leather of gentleman's shoes at same time. It remind of van cleef's pour homme once its settled. It could be coz of rose, musk and leather notes i believe. Its very artistic and beautiful. It has a character !! Try before you buy, there are chances that it might not be for you as its very dark n heavy. Silage is great on my skin, longevity is over 12 hrs easily. 9/10.

Wow!! This was_ in a word_ my first reaction when I sampled this yesterday... What a complex wonderful smell!! It is dark, sexy, woody, leathery... All the ingredients that adds mysteriousness. The incense vibe here is genius and touch of rose that is really detectable. Too bad we are in the summer season's early august and this scent is 100% wearable in winter or late fall. This is now on my "Must have" list. Really gorgeous! On a side note, I am detecting a oud note and I am really surprised it's not listed. Maybe because my nose is now adapted to the fact that if a perfume is labeled black or noir must have oud in it... Still a rookie I guess!!

First impressions: Encre Noire, at least for the first few seconds (maybe the cashmere wood?) Then the rose kicks in. Masculine rose. One of my favourite notes. Buy I wouldn't say this is a sweet rose. And then the leather hits. And, after a couple of hours, I am getting leather. Rosey leather. But that isn't a bad thing! Every sniff I get seems to somehow remind me of a high-end hotel lobby, expensive leather couches lining the lobby. Rose-flavoured couches. But, as I digress, this is a wonderful fragrance, great longevity and projection, ideal for swanky evenings and your normal nights out alike. Definitely one to look out for.

I was not expecting much of it since I'm not particularly fond of rose scents but boy this masterpiece just blew me away. Projection and longevity are beastly. It doesn't smell too rosy or feminine because the leather and woods are equally strong here. I'm pretty sure there is oud somewhere in the composition although it is not listed here. The most surprising aspect of this great flanker is its compliment factor, every single time I wore it I got visceral reactions. It has a perfect ying-yang balance to it and if you like strong and dark fragrances this a must try. 9 out 10

Recently purchased this one blind bought it actually because of the reviews im really hyped about it let see if its worth a second bottle, at first spray can really detect the pimento and insense here just lovely. I then detect the rose, leather maybe just a slight tobacco in the backround, at the base it stays woodsy. how do I describe the overall scent incensey, smoky, woody a real dark, mystery scent definitely night time use quality juice very well balanced and natural smelling a love for me. Does it deserve a second bottle "YES" definitely getting another one.