L'Eau d'Issey Gold Absolute

To begin with, I'll say that I'm not a fan of the original L'Eau d'Issey, which I find sharply aquatic and cleanser-like. But I do love some of its flankers, including this beauty, Gold Absolute. To my nose, Gold Absolute is a beautiful lily/osmanthus, and I smell both very distinctly. GA opens with this gorgeous, clean lily, bearing some resemblance to the OG L'Eau d'Issey -- but somehow without the objectionable sharpness that I dislike -- and it dries down to a delicious, nectar-sweet, apricot-fruity osmanthus. The overall effect of Gold Absolute is a fetching cool-warmth, skating on the edge of gourmand, but never entering fully into that territory. It's absolutely lovely! After determining how Gold Absolute relates to the original L'Eau d'Issey, I tried it next to the couple of osmanthus perfumes I have, namely, Dolce & Gabbana The One and Narciso Rodriguez For Her EDT. The One immediately struck me as much sweeter and more extroverted in character than Gold Absolute, though they are in the same general ballpark, with their lily/osmanthus combo. Surprising to me, however, was how much NR For Her bears a resemblance to Gold Absolute -- to my nose, at least. The difference mostly shows up in the intensity of each fragrance -- Francis Kurkdjian's creations are often quite penetrating and intense -- and For Her has a stronger presence than the gentler Gold Absolute. But, come the later drydown, Gold Absolute and For Her are super-similar. Yet, in spite of the similarities, I find the warmer, gentler character of Gold Absolute more endearing and approachable than the colder, though beautiful, For Her.

Whoa...just received this in the mail, I was so excited by the description and definitely not disappointed by this blind buy! It opened with an explosion of white flowers, I got A LOT of lily and lotus at first, then it mellowed and I can detect less watery and more honeyed tones in the osmanthus and jasmine notes. Hoping it continues to warm up with the amber into the drydown, I may end up layering it with my super creamy Gold Sugar...BEAUTIFUL!

Addendum to my previous review: the process of the drydown is pure magic. I envision a waterfall of white flowers, gradually changing in hue to golden as they emit honey and apricot notes, until they arrive at their ultimate destination of a warm pool of amber. Magnifique!

I prefer Noir Absolu, it seemed deeper and stronger, yet the notes are identical...

XD am i the only one who wears this in winter? I think its perfect for winter..