Orangerie Venise

Armani Orangerie Venise is one of the most recent releases from the Prive collection, composed by Dominique Ropion. I smelled it in passing in Neiman Marcus some weeks ago and was rather instantly taken by it, as it’s fairly rare nowadays that a citrus/neroli-intensive type of fragrance stands out, but this was clearly did it, and so I was generously gifted a couple of samples by the nice store associate. Orangerie Venise smells of a mix of neroli, petitgrain, orange, and florals, in that order, with some interesting complexity that renders it neither particularly bright nor especially woodsy, so it doesn’t veer into the territory of, say, Tom Ford Neroli Portofino Forte. It’s overall fairly smooth, but with just enough citrus bite, via the orange bigarade I gather, to remind that it’s a citrus fragrance. The base notes are cedar, moss, and ambroxan, and create an easy, woody, albeit forgettable bed for the rest to land on. It’s sophisticated, inventive, fresh, and interesting, and frankly a bit difficult to explain, given the abundance of neroli fragrances in the market, but the key takeaway for me is that it’s nuanced and performs reasonably well, all things considered. Priced at $175 for 100ml retail, it’s at the more modest end of Armani Prive, contra the dark-bottle fragrances in the $300 range, but it’s probably available even cheaper with discounts or (eventually) on the secondary market, so it’s not a bad deal and likely to get better. This is surely on my radar to retry and perhaps grab a bottle of. 8 out of 10

This is a truly sensational neroli by Ropion. I've been smelling a lot of neroli fragrances lately and this one stopped me in my tracks. I always think it's a shame when lukewarm reviews come in early, in case they influence the way the fragrance is received. It's green, sweet, fleshy and bright, with not at all bad lasting power for a fresh fragrance. I really adored this on the spot, and wearing it for the day didn't lessen my appreciation. Elegant, and brilliantly done. You can smell that this has used more expensive ingredients than some. Yes, from Tom Ford to 4711, Diptyque to Jo Malone, they all share the characteristic linear neroli accord, but this one stands apart for its complexity and good taste. Simple but special.

I picked this up the day Bloomingdales got it in stock. I had wanted to try it for months as I have really enjoyed many of the Prive line and have trouble finding citrus and nerolis that works off my skin. For me this one is a winner. After 2 hours the cedar has come through more and I agree with lovescully's reference to Cedre Olympe which I have. This one is now a staple in my warm weather rotation along with Vetiver D'hiver and Eau de Jade (which I often layer together for a bergamot blast). It does sit close to the skin, and has moderate longevity so at Prive prices no one should blind buy, but once we get out of these lockdowns, try some on your skin for a few hours and see.

This is better than I thought, but not what I expected. This doesn't really smell of oranges so much as smelling like orange blossoms. The performance on this is very good and man does this smell expensive - you can really tell this one is higher end. Ironically, this one, to me, smells a lot like Artisan Pure by John Varvatos, which was a pretty big seller for JV a few years back - granted a much higher-end and smoother version. This is complex, but really good. Performance on me - so far 9 hours and going and I'm still getting solid whiffs of it so the projection is very good too. You can certainly wear this easily for spring, summer and fall. 8.5/10 This is a winner

This fragrance smells like a cross between an orange creamsicle and an expensive lotion. It smells so elegant and as an orange lover, I catch small wafts of very-appreciated, high-quality orange for 1.5-2 hours, then it becomes an intimate skin scent. Longevity is pretty lackluster, I only smell it on my skin for four hours. I'd use this on a date with someone I haven't seen for much time yet because this is very intimate and safe but still unique. 8.5/10