River of Love

Wow! This one hit me like a ton of bricks, sheesh... I already had 2 La Rive perfumes (Vanilla Touch and Eternal Kiss, blegh and decently yummy respectively), but I really wanted to try a few more. They're being sold on the most fancy perfume site of my country, making me think that if théy connect their name to La Rive the others must be at least decent. So, a few weeks before Xmas 2021 I decided to make sure Santa's bag would be full of delicious smelling goodies. That turned into a LA RIVE haul to be precise. 😉 (Fleur de Femme, Taste of Kiss, My Delicate, Cash, Beauty Prestige, Wave of Love, Cuté, Moonlight Lady Prestige, InFlames, and River of Love) I had plenty of testing to do and decided River of Love would be the 1st try. I'm used to certain "cheapies" needing chill time after travel and if you let them sit their alcohol clouds will disappear and their true scents appear... stronger with each week. Angel...uhm, cough...I mean River of Love decided to show me that not every cheapie is a mess on arrival. As the 1st exception to my rule, in a very good way, it turned out to be surprisingly well crafted, and most likely had at least sóme maceration. I sprayed on my wrist and BAM... and wonderful, alcohol-free (in smell and coughs-inducing experience I mean) scent appeared and it was Strong with a capital S! That opening is pretty much a 100% dupe of what I remember from Thierry Mugler's Angel (I haven't had an Angel scented skin in a looooong time). While my memory could be a tad hazy, I don't think so. Muglers star perfume is rather particular in its opening and you don't forget that. The opening and the step to the heart do happen in extremely quick succession and as with most perfumes that have 101 notes I can only catch a few - none of the fruits unfortunately, at least not clearly noticeable, except a fresh bergamot that becomes a softer opening note as soon as the maceration starts. It remains, but as a vaguer citrusy whiff that disappates very quickly as a note that can be pointed out, but will become part of the blend. No screechiness, no rather loudly screaming notes...I am guesstimating it's a good blend as far as my nose is a "Nose". After the initial opening I've met with different incarnations of RoL, all pushing another note forward as the strongest. That was surprising too, as the first spray showed a full blend. Still, the maceration that happens automatically as soon as you've sprayed had quite an effect on some parts of the pyramid. At one point it was a horrifying Bergamot bomb and I prayed that would change asap. As you could read above, it certainly did. The La Rive I have now has been steady in its scent for over a year now, say since end winter '22 (bought November '21). The dry- down leaves you with a strong honey, that's mixed with a whiff of bergamot, luscious vanilla, some Nutmeg, a soft accent of sandalwood and amber, and a sweet jasmine. On some days, influenced by my hormones or diet probably I get a bit of caramel, plum and green patchouli and no jasmine or amber. But the first description is 99% of the time the fragrance on my skin. I remember Mugler's hit being a tad more spicy and chocolate forward on me, so River of Love isn't an identical twin, but certainly coming very close. In my humble opinion that's really okay. It's still close enough to be a great replacement for anyone who has either little budget or who doesn't like the reformulation. If you were just salivating over the pyramid and/ or looking for a perfume that isn't a dime a dozen with Oriental, Gourmand and Chypre accents River of Love is also a great buy. Besides its dupe quality and bizarrely low price, RoL is simply yummy and highly addictive to me. So, what about that SPL, eh? Probably sucks for a €7 perfume, right? Wrong! In the very beginning it seemed to lose the intense projection it has at the start. To be fair: I had just opened the bottle. And indeed, once RoL calmed down and became the scent I have had for over a year it also performed steadily. Steadily above average. I sometimes get anosmic to the smell (strangely enough not every single time), but have learnt that others can still smell me just fine. The scent projects at armlength (don't know about sillage, alas) and beyond that in the first two hours. Also, the longevity is really good. I have very dry, perfume eating skin and can count the fragrances that last beyond the 3-4hr mark on one hand (I have 180 perfumes atm and about to do a haul soon, as I'm planning to sell off about 1/3rd of my collection). La Rive's little star stays with me for about 6hrs before it turns a very soft skin scent. And I don't even need to overspray as is normal with most of my fragrances. Layering with, for example, a honey, jasmine or chocolate scent - oil or edp - helps to boost that to a full workday, including your travel time. I'm going to assume that River of Love will be an absolute gem in SPL terms on normal skin. Beastmode, I don't know. But certainly one to stay, stay, stay... and not to overspray! For the price I'm truly amazed what you're getting. I hope La Rive will keep the prices low and not suddenly kick them up while messing with formulas like some other dupe houses I know (Zara- cough - Zara). I know by now that this is going to be a keeper. And with my bottle closing on empty I'm already looking for a new one. Season wise this La Rive is definitely suited to the colder months for most people. Even though I'm a live and let live kinda person and think you should wear - clothes and perfume - whatever you want, whenever you want I have noticed River of Love is simply too much on a warm day when the temperature reaches 20, 25 and up degree Celcius. It's why I wear it the other three seasons (or on those typical Dutch cold, rainy, windy summer days), though I'm sure many won't use it in spring either. I do like it the most in Autumn and Winter. It's when I prefer to wear my gourmand-like fragrances. But you do you. I definitely recommend River of Love to anyone, whether you can afford niche or barely have a euro to scratch your behind. Of all the La Rive's I bought it's one of the few that has ended up in my regular collection (ones that remain there for years). I'm about to test a fancy-schmancy dupe for Angel soon (€52/100ml as opposed to €7/90ml) if I can get all the funds together, mostly because A. RoL only has 3 more days in him B. the packaging of this new perfume is divine, and C. I'm very curious how different it'll be on my skin. With those gazillion notes it wouldn't be that surprising if the Maison Des Rêves I'm talking about smells entirely dissimilar. Whether it does, or not, a second bottle of this just reviewed delicious blue liquid will absolutely find its way to me again!

River of Love opens with an innocent, cloud-like sweetness, the whimsical magic of cotton candy and creamy coconut. Fruity notes cut through the sugar, melting away the top notes as the sweetness deepens into rich, warm honey and dark plum through a sophisticated bouquet of orchid and rose. A dusting of deep spices intertwines with delicate florals, adding warmth and depth. The base is thick and seductive, blending earthy patchouli, dark chocolate, caramel, and amber with woody sandalwood and deep musk. Everything comes together beautifully, creating a captivating fragrance unlike so many others. It wraps around you with spellbinding depth as it melts into the skin, leaving behind a delightfully haunting trail. A beautiful ghost of sweetness and shadow that lingers long after you walk away. Whether others love it or hate it, your scent will be unforgettable. My daughter has been a longtime fan of Angel. Personally, I have never enjoyed it on my own skin, even though it smells wonderful on her. If needed, I like to prime my perfume bottles before their first use and let them sit for a while to allow the fragrance to mature. However, to my absolute surprise, the very first spray of River of Love completely took me back. It is undeniably beautiful. While it shares that unmistakable, iconic Angel DNA, La Rive has created something uniquely smooth and refined. I actually find this version far more pleasant, wearable, and balanced than the original. I am honestly shocked by how much I love this fragrance. I have to say I'm quite impressed with La Rive. Their fragrances never fail to garner me compliments every single time I wear them.

Smells like pre-reformulated Angel but a slightly lighter, more subdued version. Elated is an understatement. Now I can overspray till my heart's content and bask in all the glory that is OG Angel. This smells 100x better than what L'oreal is pumping out in the Mugler packaging. You can actually smell the top + middle notes while they transition into the base notes and everything is AMAZING. Patchouli is still there but it's not front stage and center nor is it pungent and aggressive. I can't even complain about the longevity or sillage because the cost + scent justifies this and overspraying solves it, lol. It's getting difficult to find Thierry Mugler labelled Angels and I'm honestly tired of looking and chancing the risk (especially online where integrity isn't always a priority). I'm curious as to whether New Brand's Blue Sky dupe compares and whether it smells similar to the OG Angel. I'm satisfied with this one and find it very wearable, addictive and inoffensive if you're a fan of Angel.

This smells closer to the original Angel from years ago, than the current authentic version. I’m not sure if the current Mugler Angel is a reformulated Clarins or the new L’Oréal one since L’Oréal acquired the Mugler brand. It’s diluted, missing many notes, dies after 2 hours. The official Angel is a weak shadow of its former power house self that filled a room with one spray and lasted 12+ hours. This River of Love blows it out the water. Sales associates at the store said it’s probably because the knockoff brands are slower to change their formulas since authorities pay less attention to it during ingredient regulation changes and contractual acquisitions with the official brands. So those of you missing the original Angel, THIS is much closer than the current “real” one.

I am so happy to have found River of Love. Backstory: I received a new bottle of Angel for Christmas, but discovered the reformulation of the once-iconic fragrance to be a disappointment. So I set out to find something that would give me the same early-2000 vibes I was seeking. Lo and behold, it came from a €10 bottle of drugstore perfume. River of Love is beautiful. It smells, to me, exactly like the OG Angel. It's really a well-blended, sensual masterpiece and I am so pleasantly surprised by the affordability. I will be dousing myself in this scent for the rest of the winter and buying multiple backup bottles.

Just received River Of Love today in the mail, sprayed it on at 11am it's been bout 30min now and so far so good smells like Angel closer to the original formula, let's see how it goes the rest of the day. I own both older formula and newer formula and I like both, will update later. Edit: OK been wearing it for bout 5 hours now and still on my skin but very faintly however it's still projected around me off my clothes, it definitely smells closer to the original angel in the beginning but as it starts to fade it gets closer to the newer formula a mix between the two, but for the price well worth it.

I like this a lot. Clearly it is meant to be an impression of Angel. This starts with a blast of what smells like juniper and possibly lime. I get the patchouli almost immediately. This mixture is softened by the fruits and sweets. I like this better than Angel, honestly. It's addictive and dares you to wear it. I’m definitely all aboard the La Rive train. *OKAY, OKAY - I just bought Angel again and still love it. Angel *is* better, to me, but I still love this too. It’s interesting- La Rive’s interpretations are really good, but they’re their own thing.

finally it arrived today. the opening is very sweet and cotton candy like but quickly changes into a vanity fair with sweet scents at night and fireworks. deep and dark. it smells like sweets and fruits. Sadly its only lasting with moderate sillage for 2 hours. still decently smellable on the skin after 3 hours. different to the current (not thierry but loreal) angel mugler. when i tried the new angel it was just overpowering and headache inducing pure sweetness of jasmine. no thx.

Wow I am in awe over this one! Angel is my all time favorite perfume and this is the best dupe I have smelled. This does not have great sillage and doesn’t last that long but for the price (I got it for less than $9) it is totally worth it. I like to layer this with Angel and feel like I can re-apply this to my hearts content since it is dirt cheap. Beautiful and sturdy bottle and overall a very solid dupe. If you love Angel, I promise you will love this!

Right now I have Angel on one arm and River of Love on the other and dare I say, River of Love smells better. They were neck and neck early on and very nearly identical but now that they're both in the deep dry down I prefer River of Love. And most surprising of all to me, after about 5 hours Angel is starting to fade and River of Love is still going strong. Needless to say I am very happy with this purchase.

THIS IS INCREDIBLE! I've never owned Angel, but I smelled the original formulation when it first came out. It was too "mature" for me at the time, even though I've been an Alien enthusiast since I was barely out of high school. However, River of Love is stunning. Deep, complex and gorgeous. Sweet, gourmand, patchouli, heady, a night time perfume. I want to drown in this. I need ten more bottles.

This smells like the TM Angel I remember years ago. The opening brings a swift sharp aroma of alcohol and sweets, but about a minute in it starts to mellow out. It's a beautiful interpretation of Angel & I would consider this a safe blind buy given the low price. I'll always have a bottle of this in my collection. If you loved TM Angel you'll love this.

I LOVE this. Angel is my favourite perfume. I really can't tell much difference! The only this is this is a bit weaker, and doesn't last as long (naturally). But smell-wise, it has exactly what I want. I'm so happy I don't have to spray my beloved comet all the time now that I have this! I absolutely recommend.

It smells like pine tree with flowers and fruits, and when it dries down, it smells like vanilla cotton candy, beautiful. The first time I hated this parfume, but now I love it. This perfume is not for everyone...You'll love it if you like the way Pine tree smells.

I have tested many la rive perfumes and this is the only one I approve of, and I have it in my collection next to the original Angel EDP. It's less complex and much more airy but it's a good fragrance and I think many people wouldn't know you're wearing a dupe.

Spot on original Angel Dupe. I like today's Angel too, but it still misses that 'something' which I found in River of Love. Sillage lasts 2-3 hours, but for the price, baby i'ma be taking BATHS in this. <3

Trying out the second of the 6 La Rive fragrances I bought and I must say I am very impressed with this one. It is just like Angel from what I remember. It's just a little lighter on first spray but the patch is definitely there and the chocolate. I think I get a hint of coconut and it has a nice sweetness. It doesn't have the strength of Angel, but it is a really nice perfume. It stays close to the skin but I can smell it on myself. I have just had a shower and guess what? River of Love is still going strong. I'm definitely not disappointed in this one and I'm glad I have it in my collection. I'm going to wear this for the rest of the day and will respray and pay more attention to what's happening with the notes. I'll be back later to edit.

It is a fresher, less balanced version of the OG Angel by Mugler. More "screechy" some would say, but to me this zest (reminescent of a fresh gooseberry) is quite enjoyable, especially for the warmer months. The drydown is less focused on patchouli compared to Angel. It doesn't take a wet, earthy turn, but stays true to gourmand. Tonka bean and vanilla get more prominent, overall giving off a cappuccino foam impression. All in all, for this price it is an enjoyable fragrance, it shares similarities with Angel but it is not a 100% dupe. Can recommend.

In comparison with Angel, this has a citrusy top and is more zesty and juicy there. But compared on each wrist, Angel grows and also gains in citrus tones whilst River of Love goes softer. But i love using this to spray this on my little cushions on the sofa. Makes for the most dreamy lovely atmospheric room fragrance. An absolute beauty.

The best dupe to Angel Mugler. If you want to save some money, get this. Performance is great for this price. One of the better La Rive fragrances!