Vintage Collection Garofano

I have a sample set of Lorenzo Villoresi's Vintage Collection, and each scent keeps outdoing the previous one I've tried. Garofano, the Italian word for carnation, is aptly-named - it is a spicy floral bouquet. It is one of the best carnation-led scents I've tried. Instead of being interchangeable with clove, Garofano is a photorealistic carnation scent, just like the garden flower. It is dewy and green initially, complemented by spices, and rounded out by other floral notes. It doesn't become clove-like until the drydown, and even then, it never becomes flat. Garofano is carnation-led from initial spray, dewy and petal-like, underscored by green notes. It is the whole flower; not just the eugenol molecule, extracted. Some subdued lavender adds a barbershop-style brightness up top, and geranium adds peppery greenness, both enhancing the carnation. The opening is remarkable - a photorealistic rendering of the carnation flower, and is the best phase of this scent. As it develops, soft, powdery rose emerges, rounding out the geranium. Soft peppery spice enhances it, with warm cinnamon coming to the fore here. Sweet white florals follow, adding smooth creaminess. Ylang ylang is most prominent to my nose. Vanilla keeps things sweet during the later stages, but is dry and muted. As it progresses further, the carnation becomes clove-like, and slowly retreats from being at the forefront of this scent. Here, it serves to enhance the sweet white florals. It becomes increasingly dry as it fades, with dusty spices and dry vanilla lingering alongside soft musk. I get a subtle hint of woodiness too as it dries down. Remnants of the carnation linger until final fade. Sillage is strong and longevity is long-lasting - Garofano also performs better than the other Villoresi scents I've tried. It is an autumn/winter scent, unisex in my opinion. A good-quality carnation scent, Garofano is a beautiful, elegant spicy-floral that is wearable despite its artistry. 4/5.

What a beauty this is ! Looks like an unpopular one, if not unknown ! Wow, I am impressed. It is one of the most realistic dianthus / garden carnation scents I've ever found, spiced a little and with a soft cloud of insense all around . So elegant and unusual ! Silage and lasting power are both good . It isn't sweet like the Comme des Garçons Carnation which I adore , it is slightly herbal powdery and insensy ( but not too clove orientated ) . Well blended and without any screeching notes, a timid masterpiece that didn't get yet its well deserved fame . Gorgeous !

An elegant spicy floral. Floral not in the manner of lush white flowers nor delicate violet/roses, it is not a stereo-typically romantic bouquet- if you have read Sense & Sensibility I would say it suits Eleanor more than Marianne. Garofano is only slightly sweet and the proportion of flowers are in equal parts to the green, peppery spices and powder I smell, personally I find it more dusty/powdery than musky but that adds to its old-fashioned charm. It is quietly appealing and has a very good longevity and average projection. I would recommend to those who love their spicy florals and "vintage" florals.

Garofano has the same rose, musk and geranium base that LV's Musk has, but there's much more going on. Blooming carnation with a metallic tinge, jasmine and cyclamen so high-pitched that they smell like aldehydes. There is cinnamon balm for warming up and distant echoes of overripe sugary ylang-ylang. It's a small chorus of flowers fighting for attention, keeping the senses awake, sometimes feeling like cacophony. I would guess it is best suited for summer, as it fits the abundance of smells Nature produces in this season, not necessarily balanced or ordered. I kind of like it, but it just keeps talking: "Hey, I'm here, I'm a carnation, I'm a rose, I am musk, I'm a fragrance", and I guess I like that other moments when I can forget about what I'm wearing..