John Varvatos XX Intense

Wow, this is very nice. Blind bought XX Intense tonight since Macy’s just got it in stock and no tester was available. I’m a fan of the original John Varvatos and the 2020 XX release, so I figured this was a safe bet and I’m pleased to say it was! Basically a fresher and more zingy version of XX with some added ginger. The coffee note is light but noticeable. Can still detect the original JV dna in the background. The blending here is incredibly smooth and high quality, approaching niche quality in my opinion. JV XX intense would make a beautiful and classy signature scent for year-round use even during summer. Can definitely see this one pulling compliments as well as it leaves an elegant sillage, and I must say the bottle is absolutely stunning in person. Get your nose on this as it is a fantastic release.

My gf and took at trip to the mall and my main goal was to find a fragrance and get her whatever after, I JUST WANTED MY COLOGNE lol, but anyways we take a stop at Macy's and i dang near took a lap 2 times looking at every top named designer brand but nothing stood out or make me double sniff, i go over to John Varvatos collection and i had XX EDT before and loved it, so i knew i was in for a treat, i smell every one but XX EDP brought back so many good memories, i smelled the EDT for old times sake and was confused why i never gotten the EDP because the EDT is sooooo much lighter and not as strong so i used atleast 4-6 sprays back then, this one 2-3, 4 when me and her go out because she loved it more, yes get this for a smooth masculine smell.

Just lucked out on eBay for a preview bottle - I’m a collector of JV fragrances and IMO he can do no wrong - if you’re a fan of JV scents, this fits right in - it feels like an evolution of XX - with some more spice - more bittersweet as opposed to just sweet maybe? Again I’m not the best to judge this because I like all JV scents, but if it’s any indication, I like this one a LOT.

XX but darker. Still has the sweetness of XX, but the cedar and tonka give it an incense leathery type feel without having actual incense or leather overpower the dry down. As most JV, this is blended perfectly. A mass appealing designer scent with just enough niche characteristics. A great grown up going out fragrance.

This is a very strong fragrance off the start but the more its on your skin the more aromatic it is and its really fresh and I feel like you could wear this every season but its just my opinion. I’ve gotten multiple compliments from this and its mass appealing.

Smells just like Polo Red Extreme. Its crazy. Coffee and Blood orange for sure in the opening. This is wonderful. If you missed out on Polo Red Extreme try this! Its super close, and it smells higher quality than the Polo.

Got a sample of this from the Macy’s sampler box last year and ended up getting my husband a full bottle for Christmas. Slight differentiation between sample and full bottle, but still great scent.

It's a very nice fragrance. It took a while, but the folks at Varvatos finally fixed their longevity issues in this one. That rose note with coffee creates some real magic in the scent.

Nicer & fresher take of the original XX. I don’t get much coffee but this is my favorite release of the year, pretty unique & can be worn anytime of the year.

A new hidden jem for a mature man 30 and beyond ✨️ This JV is absolutely his best in the XX line up in my opinion.

For the majority I haven't really been wowed by John Varvatos fragrances. So I wasn't really expecting much . But I must say I was pleasantly surprised by XX Intense. When first applied it does take a minute for the alcohol to dry up. Once the notes start to open up you get the bergamot, small whiffs of the finger flower and a kind of creamy verbena. You get that with a slight coffee undertone . The coffee with the citrus mixes very well but unfortunately the coffee note does down a lot . Like once you start hitting the mid notes it's just about gone. The mid notes while not very strong are definitely there. It's not floral but that cyclamen and geranium are present. They add just enough floral to mix in just right . Once this has totally dried down and settled , maybe 20 minutes later. The majority of what you smell is tonka, cedar, cyclamen , verbena and what I'm guessing is the damascone. Its like a musky tonka with light floral and citrus. It does have a synthetic smell in my opinion. You will catch small hints of all the notes except for the coffee . I think the tonka drowns it out. It reminds me of a fragrance that I just can't put my finger on . Once it's been on awhile it does get a tiny spicebomb characteristic but definitely don't expect spicebomb at all. If this goes the route of other Varvatos fragrances and hits discounters at the $28-$35 range I say it's worth a buy. Performance is not too shabby. It projects for a good 90 min just from skin application. After about the 2 hour mark it's a skin scent and becomes an intimate skin scent at about 4 hours . I was able to smell this on my skin about 5 hours later . It's a very masculine scent ..something you would smell at a rock concert . This would smell great worm under a leather jacket . Scent - 9.0 Performance - 7.0 Bottle 8.5

The bottle looks sick. For me, the drydown is where this starts to shine. Past the generic aromatic-citrus opening is a masculine coconutty-vanilla smell, and this stays on both skin and clothes for more than a day. For those who want to imbue their skin with a non-overpowering coconut vanilla smell, especially for an entire day, consider trying this out. Pretty versatile too. This does not smell like coffee to me, and the floral notes are quite discreet. 7/10

Overall, this one surprised me. On the opening I wasn’t quite sure how I felt about it, but after wearing it through two full dry downs on my skin, it really started to grow on me. It settles into a very pleasant, clean, fresh aromatic fruity floral scent that feels versatile and easy to wear especially for the office or everyday use. For around thirty dollars, it’s a fantastic scent and a great, affordable addition to the collection.

I have a sample of this. I like it, but I do see the similarities to Coral Fantasy. It won't be a full bottle for me since I already own Coral Fantasy and I do feel there would be some redundancies. However, this is a nice scent that feels like it could be worn anywhere or anytime.

It’s a shame it lasts so little, even as a skin scent, because it smells great and is suitable for any occasion, but at least on me, no matter how many sprays I use, after two hours it has completely disappeared. If it weren’t for that, it would be one of my favorites.

I loved it initially, but it fades off quickly into just a nice perfume. The "nice" stage lasts for a good while - maybe 5 hours or so? I like the sour fruitiness of this (the initial scent). It's a very unisex smell. I like it! The bottle is beautiful!

A ginger-infused citrus that dries down into coconut, vanilla, and chocolate veiled in a fog of spice. XX Intense smells like I'm looking at a red sky.

i love it but the notes be cap

The good news is that this is a jack-of-all-trades fragrance. The bad news is that this is a jack-of-all trades fragrance. It's moderately pleasant, has moderate longevity (I'd say about 5 hours) and projection, and is of moderate value. This would be acceptable in a vacuum, but there's a lot of competition at this price point, and many competitors stand out more in one way or another. Eros Flame feels younger and bolder, Gentleman Society Extreme feels classier and leans heavier on the coffee, and Polo Red Parfum gives you a juicier citrus opening if you're willing to deal with poor longevity. In a way, it feels rather defensive, as if the designers didn't want anyone to trash its reputation. I don't think anyone will, but I don't think anyone will go out of its way to praise it, either. It's merely "nice." Appears to have been clearanced at my local Dillard's, so it may already be on its way out. Male. Apparently it "captures the soul of rock 'n' roll," which to me makes it feel like it's marketed towards the 30-35+ crowd and older, but it still doesn't feel like a particularly mature fragrance, so we'll say "older young adult to middle age" for the appropriate age range. Three-season appropriate: fall/winter/spring. Safe for both office and casual.

I am not sure this is my vibe, but I can say that as far JV and performance, this is by far the best performance- fragrance this house has ever produced. I happened to try this and the new Armani Acqua Di Parfum at around 1 pm. I woke up this morning and the scent of the JV is still lingering in my left hand. The Armani is lingering in my right hand too. They are very different, but long-lasting for sure. In my opinion, neither one is a blind buy, but neither one is offensive. I like them both. Neither one is doing anything when compared to what is already in the marketplace.