Baroque Rouge 540

I can't tell the difference between this and MFK BR540 (smell wise). I have tested this against the OG on my skin, and they smell exactly the same. I thought I was crazy, so I asked friends and family to tell me if they can tell the difference. They can't! Nobody I know can. I already have BR540 (which now I regret) so I don't have use for a dupe; but I've been buying Alhambra Baroque as gifts for others I know that love the OG MFK, and everyone looooves this! I even get calls from other friends, who heard from another friend, and they ask me things like "hey, I heard you know a good cheapie BR540? Can you get one for me?" This is an absolute hidden gem in Fragcom. There are very few reviews on it on YouTube, and I just recently saw it pop up on Fragrantica. But I've been buying this stuff for a couple of years now. I can say with certainty, you can stop looking everywhere for another BR540 dupe; this is THE one to get. Ok, so it does sound too good to be true, so is there a catch? Well, I'd say Baroque is not as heavy in projection and sillage as the OG, but don't get me wrong, it is a strong projector! However, this one is 15-20 bucks for 100ml where as the MFK is 400+ (and still going up) so you can afford to overspray this one if you choose. Having said that, I have retired my journey with BR540 altogether. I gave away my bottle to my significant other and honestly I can't stand the stuff anymore. There was a time that BR540 was one of my favorites of all time, but I used it way too much, to the point that now I find it repulsive. Never thought that that would be a reason why I would stop using a fragrance, but that's all part of the experience I suppose.

First off, not sure if the notes are accurate here. In my own search I found multiple pyramids for this. BUT one did mention ambergris, oakmoss, cederwood & leather. So with those in mind along with saffron ....this is the type of notes I'm getting with this scent. It's giving a very airy crystalized sugar effect. To me it's not a dupe of BR540 straight but rather it's a simplified aspect of 540. I received this about 6 months ago and have let it sit for almost that long so my bottle is super strong. I only need to get it out of storage to smell the scent in the air. So I highly suggest maceration with this. My bottle is a beast in both longevity and projection now. Love the scent and very happy I picked this up. Side note: In comparison to the red bottle extract version of this...it's a little bit stronger but sits closer to skin. This one is more airy, as mentioned, and projects way more imo. 10/10 rating Decided to edit this post and put in the notes I found(as mentioned ^above) & believe to be the real ones: Top Notes: Jasmine(Egypt Grandiflorum), Saffron Middle Notes: Bitter Almond, Cedarwood Base Notes: Oakmoss, Leather, Tonka Bean, Musk, Ambergris

Bought this bottle four months ago. The first impression was absolute disdain because it reeked of alcohol the first spray. I tried it in for several days hoping for any other smell to manifest but that did not happen. In my disappointment, I chucked the bottle to the side and forgot about it. Flash forward to this year, when I found it while packing my stuff. I was set to discard this altogether, however I gave it one last spray and I honestly was electrified. It smelled amazing! It’s much closer to Ariana Grande’s Cloud than the original inspiration, but I am in love with it! I did not think it would perform well given the initial impressions, but after a day worth of packing and doing intense work, I could still smell it on my skin and clothes. People have noticed it too! It’s the first thing they notice when I enter the room. It’s not cloyingly sweet and it doesn’t slap you in the face like the original BR540, but it makes itself known like a breeze under your nose. I’ve been wearing it for days now and I am still smitten over this bottle. What a steal for $18.99!

For the price point (around 30 euro) this is a great fragrance. To my nose this dupe and BR540 are near identical in the air. On skin I notice the Baroque is more linear and quickly moves to ambroxan and musk after about 20 minutes, while retaining the almost syrupy sweetness of saffron throughout. I don't get much mandarin, nor do I get much of anything floral on my skin but everyone's chemistry is different. I have not experienced any nose blindness, and while this seems to go to skin scent after about 60-90 minutes for me, I get wafts throughout the day for anywhere from 6-8 hours. I'm fine with that at this is quite a sweet fragrance which could be overpowering for some people if projection was high. Overall I rate this quite highly, and especially for the price, this is a winner if you like the BR540 vibe.

I think a lot of people will be or go nose blind to this scent, much like they do with Baccarat Rouge 540. I did with BR540 but a reviewer on it's page here had a trick for this issue. It seemed way too simple but it worked for me and I've never had problems smelling any version of 540 since... 1. Spray it on something, shirt or some cloth in another closed door room ...& try not to smell it as you do so(hold breath). 2. Leave the article in that room. 3. Come back 5 minutes later and smell the room air & article. May not work for everyone but it's worth a try imo.