The Last Day Of Summer Eau de Parfum

Blind bought this... and all I can say is wow...Presentation is a heavy textured white box with gold foil printing with a Victorian/baroque style all around. The lid lifts off to reveal the fragrance laying in the box atop a handsome striped ivory satchel with matching bird motif. It has the feel of an ornate coffin upon opening. The bottles are stunning and feel very high quality. Quite heavy in the hand and the cap fits so tight it could easily support the weight of the bottle when pressed on. ‘The Last Day of Summer’ is in pristine white gloss lacquer with realistic looking reflective gold print that has a slightly raised texture imitating a hand painted gilded bottle. Two pops of green print fill the bow tie on the wreath surrounding the perfumes title. The top of the cap is adorned with the same bird and a band of gold, with the cap appearing to be an antique ’stopper’. I am not exaggerating when I say the atomizer on this bottle is the best I have ever seen or sprayed, similar to some Dior’s. A longer that usual sustained fine, fine mist comes out producing a voluminous dose, almost seemingly powered by aerosol. This aroma is a dank, earthen smell unlike any fragrances I can think to compare it, yet doesn’t feel ‘heavy’, cloying or oppressive. The nutmeg plays a big role here and provides just enough nutty sweetness to lift the patchouli and very rooty smelling Vetiver. The sillage it produces is just gorgeous: you get floating trails of musty green woods and a vibe that tricks me into thinking I’m smelling high grade sandalwood. While I can understand anyone wanting to smell like this, as it comes across very natural and earthy, it does read to me slightly more masculine, only very slightly...This is likely due to the very earthy use of Vetiver. It even seems to imitate a subtle leather accord... I can say I have nothing in my collection close to it, however, I do feel it is at home amongst other Alessandro-era Gucci fragrances that use daring raw earthy notes, namely Gucci Guilty Absolute Pour Homme. If you hate Vetiver you may want to skip this one, it has a very rooty earthy feel. In my mind it conjures mosses and lichens growing on a fallen cedar tree on the forest floor with the first chill of autumn bringing a slight moisture to the air causing the smells of these natural growths to atomize up into the air and hover near the ground. Lovers of earthy smells must get your noses on this one, it produces a calming feeling, a slight sense of melancholy knowing the end of summer has arrived and that first rustle of leaves makes you take notice and know fall is approaching and with it darker days and colder nights to come, but with the seasons change new beautiful landscapes of colors and smells you forgot you had missed during the hot days of summer. An aptly named perfume and well executed vision-in-smell of what the last day of summer smells like.

Most fall focused scents that try to capture the feelings and ambience of autumn end up reminding me of fall candles. Kilian Smoking Hot is good but I get that vibe from it as well. This one hits that mark without giving me that synthetic feeling. I was finally able to aquire a discounted bottle over a year after trying it at the boutique. It just hits that vibe perfectly for me without being cloying. The cedar nutmeg combo is really great here, and it lasts a long time without shouting across a room. My friends who I've let try it, really like it, and want a bottle. Unfortunately, it's been discontinued, so many won't get a chance to check this one out without paying a truckload of money on a blind buy. Highly recommend you try it if you get a chance. P.S. Watch out for fakes. I bought a fake bottle of Midnight Stroll from a poor guy that had no idea he'd been wearing a counterfeit, which are unsanitary and dangeroust to put on skin. The scent should be rich, elegant (midnight should be strong) and not smell cheap. Pay close attention to the bottle and packaging, and try to feel the real bottle bag so you know the texture. The draw strings on the bag should not be frayed and coming apart. I posted pictures of the counterfeit in fragram

This fragrance is very high quality. I wear it like aromatherapy after a shower in the evening. when I first tested at Gucci I was surprised at how masculine it was considering how feminine the bottle is. it starts spicy and warm. it dries down very soft and very woody, although it took a few weeks for the woody scent to macerate and mature. it reminds me of a chest of drawers or antique armoire lined with aged burgundy velvet. regarding performance: this redefines the word "eternal". it is hands down the longest lasting fragrance I own. I can easily smell this on my skin 15-20+ hours after application. with a nice long spray and sumptuously fine mist, it also happens to be the best atomizer I've ever used, and must contribute to its longevity. 9/10 overall because of its linear dry down, and heavier use can get cloying into the second day 😅 update: this woody cedar blends well under many other scents with woody bases, and blue fragrances. believe it or not even Fahrenheit layers beautifully over this, making the dry wood wet and aromatic. of course it also goes well with other Alchemist Collection scents, esp Autumn Leaves

oh my god this is so good On first spray, a bright/sharp dash of freshly grated nutmeg - combined with the cypress & cedar it has a tough cough-syrupy edge. The nutmeg here is so pure and true. When I cook I always use freshly grated nutmeg because the already-ground stuff does NOT compare in scent or flavor, and this is very fresh, you can smell that oily medicinal edge when the newly exposed surface of the inside of the nutmeg hits the air. Then everything calms down a bit, the cough syrup/medicinal vibe disappears, and what's left is fresh spice on a bed of conifer forest and a soft gentle layer of vetiver underneath it all. I feel like the vetiver is perfectly used here, sometimes if there's too much it projects forward on me and that's all i can smell, but here it is a wonderful supporting note. I can't stop sniffing myself and everything is beautiful. Like sunshine through the trees in the mountains. The name is poetic but this feels more like the first breath of fall than the last day of summer. Don't care, I love it.

I love this scent a lot. For me the opening and heart of the fragrance are very unisex, but the dry down was a bit feminine, mature and powdery. I'm relieved I dont like the dry down because I really can't afford to love this as much as I love the rest of it. I'm wearing it today in 90F heat. Inside, in the cold air-conditioning, it's sweet amber and smokey patchouli. When I wear it outside it lives up to its name. It reminds me of the very dry dead grass at the end of summer with the smell of the flowers that have dried in the heat. After an hour hitting golf balls at the range it's still lingering close to my skin. I personally like this more in the cold weather months.