Habit Rouge L'Extrait

The Eau de Toilette version of Habit Rouge oscillates so closely between the heady, undeniable freshness of citronella and its counterpart overdosing of bug repellant. The smell of supple leather in luxurious cars, the brisk sweet freshness sweeping one with its trailing sillage, and the dark undertones of leather and vanilla spiced with a breath of carnation – together in the scent like lemonade, marshmallows, and an easygoing, yet present and persistent aroma. The extrait variation changes this accordingly. As an extrait, naturally, it is tighter, less ephemeral and clearly less aldehydic than my beloved eau de toilette. It takes a detour; a plunge into a territory that instead of calling to mind a minimalistic dandy from the EdT, we get a more sombre gentleman in a dark charcoal suit with cinnamon red socks – refined, smooth, and no fluffing around – just an escape into the territory of the substantial, the immediately rich, similar (very nostalgic and redolent) and verging gluttonous and luxurious to the extreme. Luxury never screamed or shouted. It should never be crass. It thrills me to report that the extrait version is not crass or luxurious in a pompous way, it is a game of undertones; a hushed and low hum. I find that the extrait has immediate depth and pairs nicely as a layering with the EdT – it gives it restraint and longevity, a hint of brevity, and creates new details at its depths. Interestingly, Habit Rouge done in the oozingly luxurious Parfum format to a close degree calls to mind the modern and base note heavy works of Tom Ford or similar. There is almost immediate emphasis on the deep and luxuriously sensual base notes. This may sound like heresy, but Habit Rouge done in this concentration isn’t too far away from the base stylings of Tobacco Vanille or Tuscan Leather – they all feature different and unique formats of sweetness, but equally spread themselves towards magisterial tones of ochre and mahogany hues of austere balsamics and moreish leathery qualities. The speckled, tonic-like notes of citronella and the cologne effects are reduced majorly in the Parfum, however are still present, covered and warmed with these deeper notes presented at the get-go. If Habit Rouge EdT was pure white and refined confectionary sugar, then the extrait is a raw muscovado sugar rich in molasses and with a more rounded and enveloping sweetness, complimenting this ‘orientalness’ further when compared to the duotoned contrast saturated in, and found in the eau de toilette. Instead of sparkle, we have pleasing muted effects – not pastel, but restraint demonstrated excellently, in a very Guerlain way. Citrus still makes an appearance, forming a brief exposition into a more profound field of patchouli and leather rounded with vanilla, which are already faceted richly. On one hand I want to say that this isn’t Habit Rouge, and if this was marketed differently as a new perfume in 2008, it would have been easily distinguished from the EdT (or even the EdP). But, then I remember that I love plurality and the ability to do comparisons as such. So, I am inclined to give this a great rating, but am torn between whether or not I rate this on its similarity to the EdT, or the genius tenacity on Wasser’s part for its departure into an alternative field of classical leathers touched with a hint of flirt, florals, and fruits (Knize Ten, Tabac Blonde, Cuir de Russie, or heck, even Daim Blond). I choose the latter. 4/5

Perhaps blasphemously to fans of tried and true original Habit Rouge, this is probably my favorite version of the scent. The supple, somewhat creamy, ever so slightly smoky leather note is so well-balanced. Because of that, it feels in the same world as "Shalimar" but definitely reads like a masculine counterpart to that scent with leather and florals dominating the more subtle vanillic drydown. I always thought of HR as "citrus powder," but smelling the leather in this has finally allowed me to recognize the leather note in the original, and I can't believe I was missing it the whole time. Dense and classic, like a resounding and beautiful orchestral chord, but still wearable as a modern, classy evening scent.

Sorry not sorry but this is better than the vintage original in my opinion... I would say it competes with vintage Chanel Pour Monsieur for the best male fragrance ever made period... Masterpiece. I can't imagine any guy (or gal or anyone) not falling in love with this perfume, honestly.. pure class... I don’t even like to say things like this, but I don’t own clothes nice enough to wear to match the scent of this beauty... It's honestly that beautiful.

Expensive, but gloriously complex and rich. Masculine parfums are an intriguing concept - one that I hope catches on, especially if they continue to be this good. It's a bit different from the classic Habit Rouge formula - much less citrus, in favor of a gorgeous rosewood/rose/oud/vanilla combination. A few drops of this over the EDT or EDP is the height of luxury.

Be aware that the Extrait is discontinued now. HR Extrait is the concentrated sum of all the other HRs, a fantastic frag I mostly use like Kentington: a spray on each wrist, and then covered with whatever other HR falls into my hand. Luxury at it's best !