L'Homme Idéal L'Intense

I originally ordered this off eBay {learned my lesson - don't do that} and was very disappointed when I did not receive the black older, original bottle, as was pictured in the listing, but instead got the clear, newer bottle. However, if the black bottle is any better than this clear bottle - Holy GUACOMOLE. Because this is *so* good. I still do not understand what makes the difference in this dynamic but most fragrances follow the idea that there is an opening, a middle and a base. Some are cheap, and synthetic and lack the complexity and are super linear and one-note. But there are fragrances like this that seem to do something very different. This fragrance seems subtly different every time I smell it and seems to move laterally rather than across time, if that makes sense. Sometimes it smells more smokey, sometimes I get a bit of rose, even a fleeting glance at the pepper note. But the main notes I always get are gorgeous, gorgeous triad of almond, vanilla and patchouli. I cannot think of any better word to describe this fragrance than just PLEASANT. It's *so* nice. It is the smell of relaxation, comfort and happiness. It's the feeling of kicking up your feet after a long day. It's the feeling of being done with a big project. It's the very smell of "ahhh, now I can relax". I don't know how else to describe it. It's about the most addictive scent I've ever put my nose to. It is subtly sweet and warm, but still very masculine. Super well balanced, harmonious, and it's worth saying again - GORGEOUS. No question, easily a 10/10 scent. Performance on this is solid EDP-level stuff, with a good 6-8 hour longevity and solid sillage/projection. This is one of only a very small handful of fragrances that I have noticed women silently love - meaning I have noticed that wearing this (as well as Mont Blanc Explorer and Sauvage) that women at work stood obscenely close to me while talking to me. I don't want to pretend that fragrance is some type of chick magnet, or that it's all about what other people think - but it does help to know that people like whatever it is you choose to wear (or at the very least, are not offended by it), and I can say when someone stands WELL inside your personal bubble while talking to you, for no other perceivable reason, it's a good indicator that it's an appreciated fragrance. That said ... can't think of anything to deduct any points for. I love the bottle and the weighty metal cap. Good atomizer. Price is reasonable. Performs well. But most importantly; it smells - I'll say it one last time - GORGEOUS. I will eventually get my hands on a black bottle of the original, and that may even dethrone Sauvage Elixer, but for now I give this the highest score I'm willing to give it 9.9/10.

I got this today, so this is just a first impression. This is the first of the Ideal line ive had, ive stayed away because of the reputation they have of being sweet. Well either i picked the least sweet of the line or the sweetness has been exaggerated because i was pleasantly suprised to find out this is a very tame sweetness. I like it alot and it def feels like a guerlain, so im happy thus far. Doesnt seem to be super strong but well see over time. Notes like the pepper and leather make this interesting while remaining "mass appealing" generally. To be honest, theres similarities to even stuff like habit rouge and coriolan, but its got that extra modern touch where young dudes can rock it too. But ill tell you what, if you're in your early 20s or about to be and you like this?....You have class and you definetely have good taste. Its like Thierry Wasser took all the best things from guerlains most classy famous mens fragrances from the past and just left all the "old man notes" out (though i hate to use that term haha). Especially the leather, this has an incredible leather accord and it all lifts it up. Imagine if Jean Paul Guerlain created the original formula Armani Code, giving it the "Guerlain treatment"...thats the vibe here. Sexy, good for dates, crowd pleasing, but this is french as hell and built expertly with an actual opening-mid-drydown evolution and complexity of notes/accords. This is not "the cheap guerlain line" or "the first guerlain line after they started to go downhill". May God strike me down: but this belongs proudly right next to Heritage, Habit Rouge, Vetiver ect. And those are some of my top 10s. Its a shame im just checking this line out now, i always believed the people claiming "the last 'real' guerlain masculine was l'instant pour homme"...no way, this is great. P.s. after a couple wears, the performance is actually quite good on this. It lasts a work day and i noticed whiffs still here and there after the halfway point. People have noticed and complimented it too, this is all with 6 sprays. Thats another thing, fantastic atomizer on this bottle (2020 bottle)

Smoked chili almonds served from a warm leather pouch. I love the masterpiece that is L'Homme Ideal EdT, but sadly my nose is overly sensitive to sweetness. I wanted Intense, even though I lost the gorgeous fresh top - and I love fresh fragrances. But in Intense I get something not as cloying and possibly even more interesting. The thing about L'Homme Ideal Intense is it's quite unique lack of anything fresh. Usually even dark fragrances start with a blast of citruses etc. Here, no. In fact the opening feels like a dud. Did it go off at all? Why is there nothing happening? But there are things happening, even without your usual bergamots and all. If you know the opening has chili, you will certainly notice it, it's very realistic. And the almond of course, the almond carries all the way through from the beginning to the end. But people like me, we buy this not because the opening sold us. We've come to Intense not because we sprayed a tester strip in the mall and the opening was so gorgeous we rushed to the counter. We sprayed Intense on our skin and couldn't stop sniffing it throughout the day and we fell in love with the middle and the base. The almond gets smoky and leathery in a very masculine, powerful way. Intense is a sexy, manly smell. If I smelled this on another man, I'd hate to admit that he smelled more manly and interesting and mysterious and classy and powerful than me. That's why I bought this. Now I'm the manliest etc. man in the room. Yeah, I'm joking. But only a little. Fantastic for winter day or night, classy, not loud, but lasts all day. I'm very stingy with Loves but this is a hard Like. EDIT: Oh heck how I love wearing this guerlinade-nectar, rated Love.

The EDP is cherry cola, this is spiced Cola with rum. A prickly peppery yet sweet opening, later turns to a smokey vanillic nutty flower bed. The spices never fully dissipate, but on the drydown they take a backseat to the smooth blend of almond, vanilla, tonka and floral notes. I surprisingly get a lot of realistic Chilli Pepper, which is lovely and not something I've come across in many parfumes. The patchoulli is really subtle here, which i enjoy, it support the scent by adding a slight aromatic feel, but without the sour balsamic qualities that I've noticed sometimes come with a more prominent use of patchoulli in fragrances. The leather mostly blends with the base notes and isn't easy to pick out, I'd say it's more of a "leather essence" as opposed to a realistic depiction. The EDP has a very prominent cherry cola smell, which I like, but to my nose is a bit excessive and gives the scent a candied, artificial flavoring feel. L'Intense retains this quality but tones it down. It has more nuance and is exactly what I would've wanted the EDP smell like. The contrast of sweet and spicy, make this a more masculine, professional and balanced package. Very addicting scent. @Cdonutsrun bellow is smoking something, maybe that's why he could barely smell this when he was writing his review. Don't let yourself be skewed and try this for yourself before deciding. This does not smell like every other magazine men's parfume, neither does it smell cheap. It's a cold weather scent that has vanila, that's where the similarities to spicebomb end. It has a very distinct scent profile as does the rest of the L'Homme Ideal line.

I was looking for a good night time cold weather fragrance and stumbled upon this after testing its cousin the EDP. I was actually aiming for that one, but I only wanted a 50 ml bottle and the store only had this one in that size. The matte black bottle was super sexy (it's an early batch), the range was the same, so I decided to test drive it. The opening is overwhelmingly spicier than the others within the Idéal range. This may be a bit off-putting for some, but this is a fragrance that you really need to be patient with, as the drydown is definitely where it's at. Compared to the EDP (a more linear fragrance throughout), it will have a sharper, fuzzier, slightly medicinal opening and less of that cherry note, but I do still get the almond with the tonka that form the signature of the line. As you reach the half-hour mark you start to get a glimpse of its full glory. The overwhelming spices at the top become much more subdued as it settles on the skin, and the smooth mixture of vanilla, incense and leather takes the scent to a whole other level. It's one of those fragrances that really change throughout its dry-down for the better. It's sweet and smokey in a unique, daring and very french way. Some people have mentioned a kind of "cola" accord, and I can see where they're coming from. It does have that sweet soda thing going on, but with a smoky, spicy and mature presentation. I won't recommend this as a blind buy due to the very heavy spicy opening, but I think it still has enough of that mass-appeal factor, especially in the drydown. Very decent longevity and sillage. 8.25/10