L'Instant de Guerlain pour Homme Eau Extreme

Name: L’instant de Guerlain pour homme eau extrême. Perfume company: Guerlain. Perfumer: Béatrice Piquet (1963-2010). Launched in: 2005. Concentration: Eau de parfum. Gender: Male. Professional fragrance classification: ▪ The Technical Commission of the French Society of Perfumers; E4 - Boisé ambré / Woody amber. ▪ Michael Edwards; Woody Oriental fresh / Oriental Boisé frais. My rating (on paper and on my skin): 10/10, 2005-2011 edition. Date of review: 22 July 2014. On 27 June 2011 the International Fragrance Association (IFRA) issued amendment 46, which restricted star anise and elemi oil. The higher grade of star anise and elemi in relation to the patchouli and dark cocoa note are exactly the blend that give L’instant de Guerlain pour homme eau extrême its lush, delectable spicy, and powdery temptation. This unique main accord can only be fully detected and appreciated along with the other meticulously integrated notes - a little lemon and bergamot, drops of jasmine oil, hibiscus seeds, lapsang tea, sandalwood etc. - during cold days/ in deep winter. When this perfume is applied during non-cold days, the star anise for instance will appear almost absent and the stronger base notes will dominate already from the opening. One should also realize that Mrs. Piquet took the classical fragrance pyramid into account when she was skilfully crafting this perfume ten years ago. This pyramid deserves to be unfolded at the right pace, and for this it requires low temperatures. And ultimately, without becoming ‘scentimental’: I kind of imagine that when this perfume is worn on days that make it unfold perfectly, we not only fully enjoy it, but we also pay the perfumer a small form of public homage for leaving the world a masterpiece. Now, before going into details about the reformulation, I would first like to express the opinion that we, the consumers, shouldn’t judge severely on Guerlain or other perfume companies for reformulating their fragrances. It’s the IFRA that for ridiculous and obscure reasons is pushing the ‘reformulation business’. Still, the perfume companies should be open and honest about reformulations instead of denying everything. For example: I’ve asked the Hèrmes company several times in the past about reformulations and always got a straight answer. Guerlain, my favourite house, most likely doesn’t like this policy of denial but seems to be censored by Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy (LVMH), their parent company. It’s sad seeing the beautifully historical Maison Guerlain being ‘cornered’ between the IFRA and LVMH. During 2012-2013 I tested a total of seven bottles and twelve samples with batch codes from between January 2012 and March 2013. A few of the 75 ml./2.5 oz. bottles had identical batch codes as a few samples, but the samples all came from different perfume stores from the Netherlands, Belgium and France. None of the samples had been made out of the seven bottles, and some samples were original Guerlain samples. During this same period I was able to find a total of six sealed vintage* pre-2012 bottles in mint condition, which I also tested. The batch codes of these bottles were twice 5F01 (June 2005), 7L01 (November 2007), 0N01 (January 2010), 0W01 (September 2010), and 1R01 (April 2011). To be most accurate: I tested them inside as well outside the house, and only on cold winter days when it was between 0 oC - 6 oC / 32 oF - 43 oF and the indoor air humidity was between 40%-50%, so that the nose would function well. I tested every batch at least twice. I had also kept each bottle and sample in perfect condition inside one of my professional wine fridges.** The only bottles that I didn’t include in my investigation was my very first bottle that I had bought in 2006, bearing batch code 5K01 (October 2005). I didn’t include it because in 2006 I wasn’t yet storing my perfumes in professional wine fridges and I wanted to 100% exclude the possibility that that nearly empty bottle might have undergone maturation between 2006-2012. I did empty that bottle in 2012 on myself and enjoyed it to the very last drop. After I finished my 2012-2013 research and investigation, I kept both 2005 bottles and sold the other eleven bottles to befriended collectors in 2014 for the purchase price. The outcome of my extensive investigation: L’instant de Guerlain pour homme eau extrême had been reformulated. The smell was according to my nose much less exciting on paper and on my skin. The star anise and elemi were less present, the cocoa smelled airy and only a hint of the intertwined spiciness could still be detected. The day I made my final conclusion was a sad day, it had lost the magic that once made it a 10/10 perfume. Another indication: Perfume manufacturers often make (subtle) changes in the packaging when they reformulate a fragrance. This was also the case here. A difference was that the older boxes had both front sides described with the name of the perfume and company. On one side was written in French ‘Eau Extrême’, and on the other side in English ‘Extreme Fragrance’. The list of notes was available on the side of the box. The boxes after 2011 had only one front side described with the name of the perfume and the company. The French ‘Eau Extrême’ and the English ‘Extreme Fragrance’ had both been placed on the same front side, and the list of ingredients had been moved to the back of the box. A difference that I noticed in the bottles was that the older bottles had heavy plastic caps (looked like bakelite). The post 2011 bottles all had lighter plastic caps. One could consider the latter to be the same kind of development as the gold-coloured caps of the original Vetiver, Habit Rouge and Héritage perfumes, which were replaced by silver-coloured caps in the past decade. There’s one critical remark that I can make at my own research: In the course of 2013 I felt that I had investigated this perfume more than enough, so I didn’t methodically test any bottle/vial bearing a batch code indicating post March 2013. The reason I mention this, is that Guerlain has reformulated some of their fragrances again in the course of 2013-2014 in an attempt to restore them as close to the original versions - ‘Mitsouko’ for example -, and in some cases the second reformulation smells better than their first reformulation. Also noteworthy: I’ve found just one person on the Internet, a blogger from Italy that is respected by me when it comes to dating fragrances, who took the time to smell different batches made between 2005 and October 2013. I quote twice from his conclusions: “There is no appearance of "Reformulation" (source: Raiders of The Lost Scent, Guerlain LIDGE: reformulated? A 5-samples blind test, Sunday November 24th 2013). And: “There are no significant differences in composition” (source: Raiders of The Lost Scent, Guerlain Lidge: the First and the Last (2005-2013), Sunday January 19th 2014). Despite the fact that this blogger tested twice and came to the conclusion that there had been no reformulation, I have no doubt whatsoever***; the perfume of every later batch that I’d tested didn’t smell as good as the perfume of any of the pre-2012 batches. Moreover, both tests described at ‘Raiders of the Lost Scent’ are unfamiliar with the IFRA amendment. Both test also don’t specify how his bottles were stored since production, while Italy is a warm country. Were the bottles bought locally from stores with air-conditioning, or were they send from different parts of the world, as I’ve seen in other perfume tests from the same blogger. And lastly (this is a short update on 16 December 2023), I've read a post a few years back in which the blogger clearly confuses the code that stands at the end of the list of the ingredients, for the fragrance formula. He claims that because the code didn’t change (code 01740M in this case), a reformulation didn’t occur... Well, fragrance formulas are always kept secret, there is no code for that on any perfume box. So, a perfume formula can change even though the code for the ingredient list remains unchanged on the box! On the other hand, when an ingredient list code does change, there has been a clear reformulation, but not necessarily of the perfume formula. It could for example be a ‘watered-down reformulation’, in which the word ‘fragrance’ now has become third on the list of ingredients, where it used to be second; after alcohol but before water. In short: there can be several forms of reformulations. Just a remark: I wished that the ‘social media people’ (there seems to be a lot of ‘sheep’ nowadays) would use their brain instead of simply following and copying whatever a popular blogger or vlogger/influencer says. It shouldn’t have been that hard to realize that an ingredient list isn’t identical to a perfume formula. Yet, I keep hearing people repeat the same error since... A summary of the L’instant de Guerlain pour homme eau extrême reformulation: 1. It's LVMH's policy to comply with every IFRA standard. Due to IFRA amendment 46 issued on 27 June 2011, L’instant de Guerlain pour homme eau extrême has been reformulated since 2012. Why wasn’t it already reformulated between June 2011 and December 2011? Because the IFRA always gives the perfume companies some time to adjust their perfumes. The IFRA always sets a deadline. I couldn’t find an exact deadline concerning the 46th amendment, but I do remember that the first truly draconic IFRA amendment, which was amendment 43 issued in July 2008, had a deadline of August 2010. In reality however, the perfume companies released their reformulated fragrances already in January 2009, just to be in compliance and not to get into any trouble. Fact is that the majority of retailers can and will only sell IFRA compliant products. Being IFRA compliant gives retailers ‘a sense of assurance’. 2. The differences between bottles/vials from 2005-2011 and bottles/vials from January 2012 - March 2013 are obvious to my nose. These aren’t batch differences but indicate a reformulation. Every bottle/vial prior to 2012 smells the same to my nose, and every bottle/vial post 2011 smells reformulated in the same way. The star anise and elemi are less present, and the cocoa smells much less spicy to even boring. Since ‘I only grant’ the 10/10 status to impeccable perfumes, the post 2011 version loses the 10/10 status. 3. Perhaps L’instant de Guerlain pour homme eau extrême was reformulated again between April 2013-December 2014 by current Guerlain perfumer Thierry Wasser in an attempt to restore the smell where possible. I strongly doubt that this happened, but in truth I can’t comment on it since I didn’t professionally test any of the perfume from this period. My advice to people who love this fragrance and will to try to find the original formula: check the batch code first. If you want to be 100% sure, buy only bottles from the 2005-2011 era. Further: the chances are quite slim that you’ll still find a sealed vintage bottle in a store that is part of a chain, like Sephora, Planet Parfum, Douglas, ICI Paris XL etc. These stores had to return their stocks, because Guerlain France ordered them back (ask an experienced sales person in the store, and he may still remember that this occurred). Unfortunately I couldn't exactly pinpoint when the vintage stocks were sent back/replaced by reformulated bottles; one person believed that it had happened at the end of 2011, in another store they thought it had been somewhere in 2012. What happened to the vintage stocks? In the end I found out that they were destroyed...! At least that’s what I was told by Guerlain Netherlands, who were remarkably open about the reformulation in the initial contact. I was told clearly: “This perfume was shipped back some time ago and the stocks were destroyed since they wouldn’t have been allowed to be sold anymore”. I can only imagine that this operation must have been quite costly for Guerlain at the time (Dior did the same thing for example with Eau Sauvage in 2008). I guess this is also the main reason why there are so few vintage bottles around. Specially when compared to older Guerlain perfumes, which weren’t destroyed after their reformulations. Well, the only vintage bottles you'll probably still find in perfume chain-stores are testers. I came across several vintage testers, not only during my investigation but also after, when I was searching for other fragrances. Most testers were/seemed perfectly in balance, specially when stored behind the desk or at a lower shelve, out of direct light (I even found testers with the batch code from December 2011 and had samples made for testing - and these also smelled like my other batches from the period 2005-2011, with the clear anise note amongst others). However, I also encountered a few bottles in which the perfume notes had shifted to a lesser or greater degree, or the overall smell had become dim. Tester bottles are often displayed in (artificial) light, and the citrus note is especially vulnerable to warmth. So smell before you try to buy any tester bottle! I personally had found my vintage bottles in a few perfume stores in the Netherlands and Belgium, which had never been part of a chain. Sadly, such ‘one-man shops’ are close to extinction, since their prices are often (much) higher. Luckily for real perfume lovers, in these stores vintage perfumes can at least still be found! So do try these kinds of stores if you please. And last but not least, there’s eBay and other online fora. You will have to ask the seller for every batch code and hopefully he’s willing to provide it. A batch code can be found within a white square at the bottom of the box, directly above the barcode, and must have been pressed into the paper. The batch code at the bottom of the box can also be found underneath the bottle. Both batch codes should always be identical. An aside remark: English is not my native language, so there might be mistakes here and there in the text. Anyway, I hope this lengthy review proves helpful and I wish the lovers of this beautiful perfume good luck in finding a well-preserved vintage bottle. S. Singh ________________________________________________________________ * In my opinion the word 'vintage' has (attained) a different meaning in the world of perfume than in the world of wine, clothing, books etc. It doesn’t mean that the materials used derive from one specific year (like with wine), that it automatically represents a certain quality, or that is has to have a certain age before it can be labelled as vintage. The first/original release of any perfume becomes a vintage as soon as it’s reformulated! ** After contact with Mr. Jean Kérleo, former master perfumer at Jean Patou and founder of the Osmothèque in Versailles. And after extensive personal research, I started storing my (vintage) fragrances professionally in high quality wine fridges several years ago. My wine fridges are very reliable, have no temperature fluctuation at all, or sometimes a fluctuation of less than one degree at the most. They further have specific air humidity control, no internal lamps, etc. I’ve noticed that there has been a growing number of perfume collectors since 2010/2011. If you are someone who only rarely spends money on fragrances and finishes a bottle in about two years, there's no need for you to invest in an expensive storage device. On the other hand, what totally baffles me is the fact that there are plenty of people with large and expensive (vintage) perfume collections who have never spent real thought, time, or money on professional storage... Well, I can assure you: if you want to keep your perfumes in perfect condition -like on the day they were manufactured/the day you acquired them- professional storage is an absolute necessity! *** I personally have no doubt about a 2011 reformulation, but one should always be cautious when making a public statement without having hard evidence. So, could I still be wrong? This is possible; ▪ I wasn’t able to find a company or person who owned a gas chromatograph. So there is no scientific evidence that this perfume was reformulated. ▪ I’m not a perfumer of course. I can smell quite accurate, but nowhere close to a trained perfumer. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- • Note - 23 July 2014: I forgot to report when I exactly started to suspect that this fragrance had been reformulated. This was in February 2012 after I’d bought a brand new bottle with batch code 2N01 (January 2012) in Paris. It was very cold that day and the first thing I noticed was that the star anise smelled weak. A few days later, back at home, I did a side by side comparison with my very first bottle from 2005 (batch code 5K01 - October 2005, bought in 2006 in the province of Limburg), which was still for about 20% full and noticed again that the star anise-difference was obvious, along with less elemi and a cocoa note that smelled airy and boring. After this I compared both bottles with an original vial I’d received from the Guerlain store, also with batch code 2N01 (January 2012) and noticed the same differences in comparison to my first bottle. Both the January 2012 vial and bottle smelled identical, as described above. Then, for a few days I attributed the differences in smell to aging of the perfume from the 2005 bottle, but this felt unsettling since I’d become fairly good in recognizing aged notes. One evening I looked at the bottles and boxes more closely and noticed the differences, like the lighter cap. From there on my investigation began. First the hunt for as many perfectly preserved, sealed bottles that I could find as possible. Then the meticulous comparisons of many batch codes during cold winter days. The discovery of the 46th IFRA amendment - Annex I Part II and my email questions/conversations with an IFRA employee. Also conversations with a chemist about methyl eugenol, estragole etc. I finally finished my investigation in April 2013. Since then I’ve smelled a later batch (3U01 - July 2013) just once in a store in early 2014. However, this was too brief to call it a proper test. My impression though, was that it smelled identical to the 2012 and 2013 bottles and vials that I had. • Update - 29 July 2014: The graceful art deco styled bottle with the ‘black frame’ has sadly been discontinued. This happened already since April 2014 judging by the batch code, but it only became clear to me last Saturday when I visited a local perfume store and suddenly noticed a new tester at the Guerlain section. Both the eau de toilette and eau de parfum now come in the same transparent bottle. I’ve tested a sample of this 2014 eau de parfum version twice since then, and despite the at first glance seemingly non-optimal circumstance of warm weather for tests (approximately 20-22 °C), I’ve come to the following conclusion. Yes, I think this is another reformulation! In comparison to the original 2005-2011 L’instant de Guerlain pour homme eau extrême, it smells lighter and is weaker in both longevity and projection. However, since the cacao, patchouli and sandalwood in the base have now been toned down as well, the remaining star anise and elemi in the top have become more in line with the rest of the perfume again. I'm fairly confident to say, that the 2014 a recalibrated version is to the original perfume. It has less quality and smells less layered and sophisticated. I also detect hardly any smokiness that was present in the eau extrême from the lapsang souchong tea note. The 2014 edp version seems much more suited for spring, non-high heat summer days and early fall, while the original 2005-2011 version a truly deep winter fragrance is. Arguably there are three versions of the eau extrême/eau de parfum. To be clear, these versions are not worlds apart. They all smell alike, but to a fragrance aficionado with an experienced sense of smell, the differences can be substantial. ►The original version: 2005-2011. This version is the very best, as was intended by perfumer Béatrice Piquet. ►The first reformulated version: January 2012 - March 2013. This version was either continuously produced until early 2014 (I personally think so). Or was reformulated sometime between April 2013 - early 2014 in an attempt to restore it as close to the original. This version smells ‘restricted in a few notes and less balanced’. ►The second reformulated version: In production since early 2014. It’s the exact same bottle as the vintage, but now fully transparent. It looks just like the 2004 released eau de toilette bottle but bears the indication ‘eau de parfum’ on the front. I call this the ‘recalibrated and lighter version'. Lighter, since it contains less quality in comparison to the vintage, with less longevity and sillage. It’s better suited for spring, non-high heat summer days and early fall in my opinion. • A final update - 16 December 2023: 1. All Guerlain perfumes for men were moved into the rectangular, so called ‘listerine bottles’ in 2016, with changed caps and labels. In 2022 all Guerlain perfumes for men were transferred again, but this time into the square ‘Guerlain L'Homme Idéal’ bottle. In a few years they’ll probably be transferred again to a different bottle design, until the classic perfumes for men - Vetiver, Habit Rouge, Héritage, L’instant de Guerlain pour Homme and Guerlain Homme - will be discontinued someday by LVMH. I didn’t investigate whether Guerlain perfumes were reformulated again in 2016 and 2022. I did smell a few in perfume stores, and the L’instant de Guerlain pour Homme eau de parfum seemed minimalistic and drier: just some citrus and for the rest patchouli and cacao. But I didn’t do any proper side by side testing, and I also didn’t check whether the code of the ingredient list had changed. I wouldn’t be surprised though if several Guerlain perfumes have changed after 2014, due to LVHM policies and more IFRA/EU regulation since. 2. I even found two more pristine pre-2012 bottles in older perfume stores in Europe after 2014, and decided to keep them because this original version became ever-more rare with an ever-more increased price. I was very glad to be able to restock it, since I had been ‘foolish’ in my decision to only keep two vintage bottles back in 2014. In a (niche) perfume world full of reformulations, discontinuations and synthetic launches, I’m very glad to own the high quality Guerlain bottles of yesteryear. Perfectly preserved they will last me a lifetime!

I have the 2016 bottle, clear rims, new reformulation, all that jazz. This is a much celebrated fragrance that has even pleased the high held noses at basenotes. Considered by many to be a must-have, and a masterpiece, I finally pulled the trigger on this juice to expand my ever growing collection. As a fragrance hobbyist, I felt I needed to have it. Also, it's Guerlain, which is often synonymous with quality. I expected great things from this one, given how hyped up it was and still is. A bit of a disclaimer, I don't care who made it. I don't care how expensive it is. I don't care about the perfumer politics, of which Guerlain has a lot of in that regard. I also don't care how many other people like this, or what pedestal they put this on. I know that this scent is somewhat of a legend in the community. At the end of the day, it's all about the scent, and that's what I'll be reviewing this based on, nothing else is taken into consideration. I'll be honest here. I don't like the opening. In fact, I really dislike it. It's bitter, smells off, and reminds me of oranges going bad. Unpleasant, really. It's as if every note in this juice is screaming at you all at the same time. A big mashup of notes, all at once. As if you mixed all the colours of playdough together and got a brown ball of "everything". For all the hype, I was very disappointed. Some say it's a love it or hate it thing, and compare it to Amen by Mugler. Thing is, I love Amen. I love daring, unique fragrances. Amen is delicious. This one smells like rotting oranges in bitter cacao at the opening. Very dry. I almost scrubbed it off. Interestingly, the opening reminds me of Amen Ultra Zest. Except where Ultra Zests orange opening is bright, delicious and sweet, LIDGE's is like the same orange opening dug up from a grave. Decaying, bitter, hauntingly offputting. I have never scrubbed off a perfume before. Most perfumes, if bad to my nose, at least have some redeeming qualities and aren't total scrubbers. This one's opening? To my nose, on my skin, was rank. But when you've been in the game this long, you know better than to scrub a perfume off. You always should wait for the development, the drydown. And here's where a 5/10 fragrance in my book, turns into a masterpiece 10/10. The drydown is heavenly. It's gorgeous. It deserves the hype. It deserves the praise. It deserves the title of masterpiece that so many award it in their reviews. It's almost indescribable. The disgusting, bitter, rotting orange opening turns into a dry, soft, smooth, masterfully blended cocoa, with anise and patchouli. This is quality stuff and I quite enjoy it. It's delicious without being gourmand, and it's very pleasant. Here's the caveat though. It takes a while to get to the good part. About 40m-1hr, on my skin, before I get to enjoy the fragrance. And that's not all, the projection is a bit poor, at just over an hour to 2 hours, before becoming a closer skin scent. So, is it worth the wait? The poor projection? The harsh, offputting opening? Possibly. The drydown is very good. Longevity on my skin is decent, at about 6 hours. I think the beastmode longevity others are getting is lost on me, and for whatever reason, my skin eats this one up. Unfortunately, the drydown is a skin scent, and the 2 hours of projection is the opening, so you're kind of stuck with the loudness of the opening, of which I personally am not a fan of, to represent you. All that said, I strongly discourage blind buys of this one unless you absolutely cannot find it anywhere. The opening is such that it may not be worth the wait for you. But if you do manage to trooper it out and wait for the drydown, it will blow you away with class, sophistication, and a wonderfully blended professional aura. This is for older men. For compliments, men love the scent, but probably wouldn't wear it often personally. Women hate it, lol. Perhaps more mature women may prefer it, but those around my age range certainly do not. 20-30. I will however give the opening more chances. I have this lingering suspicion that it will grow on me, or that smelling it up close is not the way to appreciate it. I feel it may be a lot better smelling if you simply get whiffs of the opening while you move about, instead of closely smelling your skin, while the drydown works in either scenario. I can't see myself reaching for this guy very often unfortunately. It may be one of those scents I simply own to appreciate rather than to impress or smell presentable to others. Nonetheless, this is certainly a very unique scent. Some people love the opening, and I can understand why. However, it is not for me, not yet. Perhaps when I'm in my late 40s this scent will be a familiar face, finally ready to embrace me and my wrinkles. This scent is very classy, and honestly rather timeless, both ancient and modern. It doesn't feel dated year-wise. However this is for a mature, older guy in a suit, paired with a classy older woman. Younger guys can probably pull this off, but they probably would seem kind of odd wearing it, like it doesn't belong on them. Kinda like if a guy in his 40s was wearing Abercrombie's Fierce or something. Yeah he can pull it off, it's a nice scent, but it's just seems odd, like it doesn't belong on him. Depends on the situation I suppose. All things aside, there is one thing I cannot fault this scent with, and that's it's uniqueness. Nothing you find will smell like this. It's very different. Scent: 5/10 opening, 10/10 masterpiece drydown. Longevity: 6/10 Silage: 5/10 Projection: 2/10 Personal Appreciation: Ultra Zest from the grave/10

L'Instant de Guerlain pour Homme Eau Extreme I’m going to come clean here. I tried this around 2007/8 I think and I hated it; I mean, really, really hated it. I found the patchouli completely skanky and the hibiscus behind it like a bunch of rotting green cut flower stems that had been left in old water too long. The minor redemptions were the top notes for the first five minutes and that was me done! Well, well, well.......... it’s amazing how your olfactory sense matures as you age and your experience with fragrance grows!! So, I have one question for myself....... how the hell was this not your signature autumn/winter fragrance you idiot?? A friend of mine sent me a small decant of both the original (dark surround) and the reformulated version with the clear surround from 2015, after having a conversation about LIDGE and I waived it away; nah, not for me thanks..... Honestly, I’m absolutely kicking myself up and down the street: what a work of art to have been so dismissive of. In my own defence, my tastes have drastically broadened within that period but I’ve never made such an error of judgement before. That top note combo is just incredible; the Elemi resin combined with the star anise is just killer and the citrus’s sparkle and pop right off the top, even more so in the reform. I get slightly more florals in the reform too but lightly; they don’t punch through at all and the tea note is so subtle and complimentary to the neroli. The patch is very evident, even at the opening and certainly in the original formulation.... it’s big and dirty but in this fragrance, it suits perfectly. It’s significantly less punchy in the reform but it’s still there in a slightly more refined way but somehow more earthy, if that makes sense?! But when you get to the dry-down...... oh my........ if you don’t at least consider trying to eat yourself at this point then there’s something wrong! The cacao, patch & hibiscus latch on to the remaining Elemi & anise ......... HEAVEN! I can’t say I find the woods that noticeable but they’re there for sure, propping everything up. My final confession is that, although I think the original is a masterful work of blending and of the perfumers art, I’ll put my hands up and say that for me, the reformulated version (clear surround, old style bottle) actually works better for me personally to wear. Whilst the longevity seems to be around an hour less on me and certainly not as dense & chocolatey, the brightness of the citrus, star anise & Elemi work better on my skin with the patch/hibiscus combo & the cacao stays just right for me too. It begins to veer of toward citrus-gourmand territory but then stops just short, which again shows a mastery of restraint on the perfumers part. Please don’t get me wrong, I’m not knocking the original by any means because it’s incredible; it’s just what works for me. Off the back of my comparison, I was fortunate enough to find a lightly used bottle of the reformulated version at a fair price and to say I’m overjoyed is an understatement! I’ll try and keep an eye out for the original too, as I’d still like to own it but I suspect I’d wear it less often, which is fine. One final observation I have is that after about 15 minutes & for a short while just going into the dry down, I couldn’t help getting flashes of Maurice Roucel’s Musc Ravageur for some odd reason...... no idea why, as it’s an animalic clove bomb but my brain drew a parallel somewhere. Must be the same stupid part of my brain that made me ignore LIDGE in the first place. Doh! As marcel says below, it’s aristocratic....... it’s class all the way and has a brutish elegance that is so difficult to pull off these days it seems.

L'INSTANT DE GUERLAIN EDT / LIDG (2016): It's a unique fragrance. It's somewhere in between "fresh" (more than the EDP version) and woody-spicy, with certain sweetness touch to it (chocolate-anise vibe that it reminds sort of coconut to my nose.) It's not heavy / incisor at all, in fact I personally find it absolutely exquisite in every aspect: perfectly balanced (the blend is more than good, it's just perfect), delicious opening and dry down, raw materials of high quality, natural smell (nothing chemical), correct projection and longevity. I'd say it's a distinguished 4×4 "all terrain", classy, distinguished and with a slight old-school vintage touch to it, nothing out-dated but modern. Its extreme versatility makes it matching perfectly all seasons, day and night, what in other hand means that it doesn't shine especially in any particular ambient, because there are fresher ones for Summer, warmer ones for Winter and other ones better focused for nights, dating and seductive purposes (more sexy); although its aroma is, like I'm saying, exquisite and with such a versatility that's really hard to match. It results to be really delicious and tremendously equilibrated, in the opening as well as in its dry down. A true masterpiece. L'INSTANT DE GUERLAIN EDP / LIDGE (2016): The differences with the EDT are: the EDP is more dense and spicier, less fresh and less sweet, even a bit incisor (too spicy perhaps) especially in the opening. It's less versatile. I don't find it to be as equilibrated and "rounded" as the EDT, although it does certainly have more longevity. Its dry down is better than its opening, but I still think the EDT is a better aroma overall and a more equilibrated scent, in spite of having less (yet good enough!) projection and longevity than the EDP. Both have true class, but versatile class. SUMMARY: I'd say both are suitable for all seasons, day and night, with an outstanding versatility (right in the middle of freshness and warmness), being the EDT even more versatile than the EDP. Suitable for all occasions. Although you have to bear in mind that their 4×4 "all terrain" capabilities (versatility) make them also shining less than others in certain seasons or situations. Even so, their aroma (especially the EDT) is truly original and delicious. Whereas the EDP is good, really good indeed, but the EDT surpasses it, it's simply PERFECT. BOTTOM LINE: I do prefer the EDT version (LIDG) over the EDP version (LIDGE). It's both: more refined/equilibrated and more versatile. Yet classy. It's neither too citrusy (fresh) nor too oriental (spicy-harsh) or gourmand (dark and dense), but something in between all three (like in the middle of the triangle), thanks to the right mix of citrus, anise, wood, cocoa/chocolate, etc, making it just perfect for all year-round use. The EDT comes to be a perfect candidate to be chosen as a signature scent. Opening: EDT = 9.5/10 >>> Delicious, very equilibrated and nothing harsh / incisor. EDP = 7/10 >>> Too spicy. Dry down: EDT = 9.5/10 >>> Exquisite and addictive. EDP = 9/10 >>> Much better than its opening. Projection: EDT = 7.5/10 EDP = 8.5/10 Longevity: EDT = 7/10 EDP = 9/10 >>> A true winner.

The first time I tried this scent, several years back, I was with my daughter and a woman I as dating at that time. We are exploring Walt Disney World in Orlando FL. I was just starting down the path of my fragrance obsession so they were not surprised when I took us off course to a small perfume shop on Disney property. I had read reviews of LIDGE, but had not tried it at that point. I immediately spotted the black rimmed bottle (at that point there was no vintage / reformulation option) and picked it up to sample it. Spraying a little on a paper strip I handed the paper to the ladies. Both smiled and nodded enthusiastically. So I sprayed a little on a forearm to see how it worked on my skin and we continued on our journey through the park. I remember enjoying this scent very much, even in the Florida heat, but I did not buy a bottle that day. Fast forward a year or so later and I came across this delicious scent once again. This time I did purchase a bottle and add it to my collection. At that time, both the black rimmed and clear rimmed bottles where available. I opted for the black rimmed version. Over the years I have worn this several times, but have not done a review of it, until now. So what do I think of LIDGE? Glad you asked... LIDGE opens as a semi-sweet, soft chocolate covered candy with a warm citrus liquid center, mostly tangerine to my nose. Closing my eyes I can almost taste the delicious chocolate and fruit candy as it melts in my mouth.. and feel the pounds it would add to my waist line. About 20 minutes in I get some spice and earth tones as the star anise and patchouli start to emerge. 2 hours in a little powder and wood make an appearance. As LIDGE moves into drydown, the individual notes merge into a beautifully orchestrated symphony, each note supporting and amplifying its fellow note. The mark of a true masterpiece. To my nose, LIDGE is a very complex, classy, refined, quality, elegant and mature scent. LIDGE seems to be a love or hate type of scent. Where you fall on that scale will depend on your age and the place you currently are in your fragrance journey. If you are young and / or just starting out in your exploration of fragrances, you will probably not like this one. Come back to it in a few years. If you are older and / or have been on your fragrance journey for a while, you will love this one. LIDGE fits well in formal wear as well as trendy casual attire, but it is a little to elegant for very casual attire IMO. I get great projection and longevity on my skin. I have not tried the newer versions, so I cannot comment on differences between the black rimmed bottle and the 2 following bottles. Bottom line: Every man should try this one. Mature men should own it.