Habit Rouge Spirit

First impressions : just tested this morning on my skin and although it is undeniably well made, I am quite puzzled by this new release. Let me explain. I am very much into Guerlain fragrances (I own a lot of them), very much into their HR line too (I own and use EDT, EDP, Parfum, Rouge Privé on a regular basis, and I love them all). HR Spirit is downright lovable too, it is true to the awesome typical Guerlain vanilla-powdery accord and to the fantastic HR DNA, of which it is a warmer interpretation. Its main issue for me is that it sits a bit too close to HR Parfum, although with some differences in the opening and the mid drydown. Nutmeg is present but with no harshness, well integrated, à la Guerlain. Sure it smells a bit more fresh, woody and dry than HR Parfum during those phases, but the far drydowns of both are very similar on my skin. They share a strong and rich vanilla base, which I find very comforting. It seems to me that HR Spirit goes to some extent in Shalimar EDT's direction which is more floral but with which it shares that distinct powerful vanilla-powdery accord and that airiness. I also own and wear Shalimar, and would advise any adventurous male to try this one ;) All in all, I am questioning the point of releasing another flanker, yet so interchangeable with HR Parfum, 12 months down the line. 60th anniversary? Why not, that may be the main selling point. Sure if offers different nuances, but not by that much, and it is also significantly more expensive than HR Parfum. Too many flankers, too close to each other, can be confusing (same issue with the l'Homme Idéal line). Maybe my favourite perfumer could have released something more groundbreaking this time, or created a completely new fragrance to keep us hooked ;) If HR Parfum had not existed, it could have been a no brainer, since it is without any doubt a lovely fragrance. Want a more cost-efficient warmer variation of HR and a better performance? Try HR Parfum. Want a nice addition to your already long collection? Get HR Spirit, or better yet HR Rouge Privé if you still can find one ;) My favourites from the Habit Rouge line : ***** EDT, Rouge Privé **** Parfum, Spirit *** EDP Edit : ended up buying it before it gets discontinued, definitely wanted that nice addition to my HR collection 😂

I got this on Friday and have been wearing this over the last three days or so. Right off the bat it does remind me of the 2024 Habit Rouge Parfum, but to me that similarity goes away rather quickly. I find that the Parfum version projects much more strongly while Spirit feels much more intimate to me. Spirit does have presence, but to me it is much less sharp than Parfum, and is also less sweet. There is definitely a touch of citrus at the top. I get a tangerine vibe with a bit of the lemon from the EDT, and I'm sure there is bergamot as well. The oak is present from the start and I feel like it's the star of the show. I get a very boozy vibe very quickly into the wear, more so than the Parfum version, and a bit of leatheriness as well along with some warm spice, but all of that sits below the oak. I am able to pick up the iris, but it's not very dominant overall and contributes a bit of depth to the leatheriness. The blend is really beautiful and it feels very high quality, but I can imagine that some people are going to be unhappy with the strength. To me this is at its best when it's able to waft into the air, whereas smelling more closely to the skin it almost slinks away. In the drydown, the vanilla certainly takes on more of a dominant role, but the woody influence never quite goes away and blends with it in a lovely way. The vanilla smells extremely high quality, but again it feels more airy than dense to me. It reminds me a bit of the way Shalimar Millesime Vanilla Planifolia behaves on my skin, where it can sort of disappear up close, but then out of nowhere I will get wafts of it in the air around me. The name Spirit seems very fitting to me as it has more of an ethereal character than some of the more boisterous Habit Rouge flankers that have come out recently. I'm still not sure about the longevity, as I've been over-applying it over the last few days, but I will take a brief break from it and revisit it again to see if my thoughts change at all. Overall I really do like this one, and it continues to grow on me the more I wear it. I'm looking forward to wearing it more, and I'm curious to see what people have to say about this one.

The Chronicles of Kapow or The Ultimate Fragrance Buyer’s Guide Until I Find a More Pompous Title: Entry Number 17 I just bought it. A sort of blind buy. There was no tester yet in the shop and there were only 3 (hidden) bottles. The sale assistant let me buy one with the promise I could bring it back if I was not satisfied. Well, I am keeping it. By the way, the official launch is at the very end of march (31st), at least in most European countries. So, spoiler alert, this one is a solid proposition, full bottle worthy and, in my opinion, one of the best flankers of the line with Habit Rouge Privé and Habit Rouge Parfum. The Habit Rouge DNA is definitely there, dah. The scent makes me think of Habit Rouge Parfum more than any other member of the family. My first impression about the opening was these two (HR Parfum and HR Spirit) are pretty close. However, when I compare them side by side, the differences are quite obvious to my nose in the opening. Then, in the dry down, the differences are even bigger. HR Parfum (rum) is gourmand while HR Spirit (oak barrel, but not boozy) plays a very distinctive partition. In this flanker, the powdery iris is dancing with the nutmeg on a bed of a superb double dose of vanilla in a very comforting way. The fragrance keeps a sensual and almost animalic touch (something earthy and discreetly smoky and leathery). The oak is the star of the show. It is not intrusive or over exposed, it is a composed statement. It makes you think of a whisky or a cognac aged in oak barrels, but not one of those just playing the oak card in an abusive way. It is there, but it gives enough space to the other flavours to express themselves and to evolve. The more I wear it, the more it grows on me. Performance is good. The scent remains subtle. I like that. It makes the fragrance very versatile. Thus, in my book, HR Siprit is a solid A. It is becoming addictive. I am glad to have it in my modest collection. It is a limited edition, but it is still signature material.

Best fragrance in my collection in 2025. In fact, it shares my Top 1 spot with its almost twin brother, Habit Rouge Parfum. While the Parfum is more extroverted and restless, Habit Rouge Spirit is the quieter, more introspective and refined sibling. Here, iris plays a supporting role, helping to smooth and elevate the vanilla accord without ever stealing the spotlight. The opening has a subtle boozy, liqueur-like nuance that feels elegant rather than loud, followed by a base that gives me the impression of a discreet patchouli presence, even though it’s not officially listed. The quality of the materials is outstanding and fully lives up to Guerlain’s standards. This is a distinctly masculine fragrance that balances classic structure with a modern polish effortlessly. It asks for more serious attire, though not necessarily formal. Perfect for quiet seduction and, above all, for making a confident, understated statement. For my personal use, I wouldn’t consider it a daily signature scent, as it clearly asks for the right occasion. I do not recommend a blind buy: this fragrance was not created to please the masses, but rather to be appreciated as an olfactory work of art. Performance is excellent, with over 12 hours of longevity on my skin and solid projection during the first two hours. The current standard Guerlain bottle presentation is a significant improvement over the older “Listerine-style” bottles. This fragrance will never leave my collection.

Sampling the most recent version of Guerlain Habit Rouge, Spirit Parfum, released earlier this year, and my first reaction is that it’s markedly similar to last year’s release, Habit Rouge Parfum, with a few key differences. Spirit is less sweet and boozy, pivoting a little more toward an ambery smoothness and leather while still emphasizing an iris center. So perhaps, simply put, Parfum is sweeter and boozier, and Spirit Parfum is less sweet and less boozy, even though Spirit Parfum’s advertising emphasizes that it was aged in Hennessey oak barrels. Both are exceptional, and I could certainly see why someone might regard them as redundant, but the differences are there, and I’d certainly recommend that everyone try both. Even the iris-averse could find something to love in them, and I regard them as excellent uses of iris, definitely somewhat sharp but not to the point of taking away from the overall experience. I’d rate them similarly superlatively in terms of composition, performance, and value. Concentration is, of course, parfum, and retail pricing is $200 for 100ml, slightly higher than last year’s $175 for 100ml for Habit Rouge Parfum, though both seem to be available on the grey market, also. $2 / ml and under for this quality is very good value in the current market, in my opinion. 9 out of 10