Ultra Male

To me, the most memorable flanker of the Le Males. Ultramale is a playful, handsome and sweet fragrance that compared to future flankers, has probably the least similarity to the original. Yes, there is Fleur de Male and Essence which are even more distant from the DNA but if Le Male was a movie then Ultramale would definitely be Le Male 2, Le Male Le Parfum would be the 3rd and Elixir the 4th while the others are like spin offs. In summary, you get a pretty linear scent. Opening is a touch of mint with some sweet cinnamon and fruity pear. Although lavender is listed, it is probably the note that contributes the least to the overall scent. When it dries it becomes fizzy and effervescent, to me there's a slight touch of rose and just a smidge of leather. Far dry down becomes a bit dry-woody from the cedar but even then this is overshadowed by the fruitiness and bubblegum vibe. I'm not bashing this btw I absolutely love this fragrance and compared to Eros by Versace I think this more suited for night time use. I bring up Versace Eros because this is always compared to it even though I feel like Eros is more of a playful all rounder while Ultramale is a full on date night, club banger type of a scent. I don't like to cage fragrances into situations though, you can rock this anytime anywhere. And contrary to many opinions I think this is fresh enough for spring and summer days. Why? Because I've encountered people wearing this on summer season and it smells really damn good anyway. Anyhow, I recommend this if you're someone who has their style together and if you have a flirty personality, I don't identify with any of those traits but I love the smell so much idrc if it matches me. Performance is good (7 hours on skin, 1hr of good sillage, moderate projection), but definitely not as good as older batches. I remember owning a vintage bottle which I ran out of and I feel like that one lasted twice as long and was thrice as loud though I actually prefer how these new bottles smell. I'm really sensitive to coumarin and I feel like the original batches were way too overdosed with that aroma chemical. So yeah these newer formulas have a more natural smell definitely. That aside, I would rank this as my 2nd favorite Le Male, 1st being the Elixir and 3rd being Elixir Absolu, 4th place belongs to the original and I absolutely despise the Le Parfum because for some reason it smells really sour on me and it lasts a measly 2 hours. I wanna take this opportunity to talk trash about Le Male Le Parfum just because I've smelt it on other people and it is just so bad idk why people glaze it but alr. 9/10.

You can’t deny it — this DNA has the world in a chokehold. They discontinued it, people lost their minds, and by popular demand it was dragged right back from the grave. There’s a reason it’s the most-duped men’s fragrance on the planet. As far as people calling it feminine? Listen... every JPG fragrance has a little feminine lean. Not just Ultra Male — all of them. Probably because they’re all ultra sweet. Ultra Male actually smells more masculine in the opening, then leans a little feminine in the dry down. Le Beau does the same thing. And it’s not just JPG. We use the same notes in both male and female fragrances, so at some point they’re all going to smell “lovely” to somebody. Even something like Guerlain L’Homme Idéal can lean feminine depending on who you ask. My favorite from JPG is Scandal, because it’s the strongest and the least feminine-leaning. But whatever — with JPG you either love it or you hate it. That’s the game. Now, is there any real reason to spend $100 on Ultra Male? Nope. Unless you’re like me and you want it for comparison, the flex, or the collection. Because honestly, if you already have: • Ramz Silver by Lattafa • Rayhaan Lion • Al Wataniah Attar Al Wesal • Fragrance World Exchange Unlimited ...those are the dupes that actually capture the pear + vanilla DNA. Some of them even last longer. The other so-called dupes? They open with apple or wander off in some weird direction. The real reason I grabbed Ultra Male again was the bottle design — but even that’s kind of played out now. And I’ve had JPG bottles where the atomizer barely spit anything out, like it was dehydrated. So let’s be real: You’re mostly paying for the torso and the can. Or... hear me out: Spend $15 on Lattafa Ramz Silver, get the right pear and vanilla, save $100, and buy two 1-oz silver eagles with the money you didn’t burn. In a few years when that silver doubles, the fragrance basically paid for itself. That’s smelling good and investing smart. At the end of the day, there are only a few scents I genuinely respect — the ones I want in both the OG and every solid dupe. Ultra Male is one of those. It may not be one of my go-to daily wears like Mancera Red Tobacco, Boss Bottled Elixir, or Scandal Absolu, but let’s be honest — Ultra Male was, and still is, a major influence in the fragrance world. That’s just facts. People can hate on it all they want... It doesn’t change its impact, and it never will.

Revisiting this after discovering it has been discontinued brings back a plethora of memories. I recall being incredibly young, and my mother giving me money for my trip to Washington, D.C so I could return with some merchandise. Obviously, a young and fragrance-obsessed teenager took advantage of this and immediately when I arrived, I found a Macy’s and tried to scandal my way into discounting Ultra Male just enough so I could have: 1. Enough money to eat 2. Enough to get the smallest piece of merchandise possible Somehow, I succeeded through the help of coercive measures (I went around asking if anyone had a Macy’s membership card and convinced them I would add credit). I got a 4.2 oz bottle of it, and immediately fell in love. I remember bringing a whole bottle of Versace Eros and the instant I smelled Ultra Male; I quite literally gave my Eros away for free to the first person who would take it. I’d say Ultra Male was my first anosmic awakening, and I became incredibly acquainted with the scent, wearing it to essentially any event that allowed me to be eccentric and uncomposed. Hearing that this has been discontinued is truly disheartening because this was really the last good true Jean Paul Gaultier fragrance, with the exception of Le Male Le Parfum. Get it while you can, it really is THE party beast. And goodness, it lasts a damn while. A whole day later I was wearing Caron because my nose has become a little more aristocratic and I’ve stopped being able to tolerate screechy, cloying scents, and I smelled something super sweet and spicy. It smelled like vanilla extract with cinnamon rolls. I then immediately recalled spraying on Ultra Male the night before, and it became apparent. Wonderful scent! It was also made by Maison Francis Kurkdijan, who made Baccarat Rouge 540. Pretty cool.

Buy it. Because it represents the single moment this brand decided to try. Treasure it. They probably will not do this again. This is exactly how I imagined Gilderoy Lockhart smelled when I was reading Harry Potter. This fragrance has large pictures of its own face surrounding it, all winking and flashing dazzlingly white teeth. This fragrance wears forget-me-not blue robes. This fragrance wrote an autobiography called Magical Me and saw nothing wrong with that. This fragrance is a 7.5/10. Solid. Dependable. Nothing revolutionary. But, when you consider the state of this brand's other releases; the reformulated disasters, the flanker fatigue, the transparently cash-grabby juice that smells like focus-grouped mediocrity; this 7.5 transforms into a 10 by comparison. Avoid in: Job interviews, funerals, meeting the in-laws, the gym, anywhere fluorescent lighting exists, and you need to be taken seriously. P.S. If you're a female and curious about Ultra Male, stop being curious and just buy it. The sweetness that some men find 'too much' on themselves will likely sit perfect on you. Rules are for folk who need them.

ultra male is one of the greatest scents of all time perfectly executed and well put, sensational mastery. the blueprint of your favourite fruity scents. i am in love with the scent and all of its qualities. the pear and lavender make me wanna date this fragrance, pure gorgeous. people actually smell this btw unlike pretty much 80 percent of the fragrances on the market, i just love how something like this simple mix can be so attractive. i also have a huge personal connection with the scent it was my first designer and now the only designer i want in my life i would trade every fragrance in my collection for a 200ml bottle i am not kidding, soapy fruity goodness. projects impressively (good very above average) lasts like for atleast a day on my skin and weeks on my clothes. if i had one scent for life it would be this. something about its aura makes it soooo masculine and not at all feminine, i cried on the day it got discontinued, please buy the dupes so that i can buy more of this in the near future even if they cant fully replicate this kingly fragrance. 11/10