Mercedes-Benz Cologne

I love Dior Homme Cologne. It's so bright, and mouthwatering. It's almost perfectly unoffensive. That said, It's performance is in the dozens of minutes range, and at its cost, you're paying something akin to a 1-900 sex line price per spray (do 1-900 numbers still exist? This might not make sense if you aren't someone who lived in the United States in the late 1980's through early 2000's. There were these phone numbers that started with 1-900, and when you called them, you would get a charge on your phone bill, in the range of $1 - $5 or more, per minute. Yeah. Fucking crazy right? They were mostly used for phone sex and psychics, the twin pillars of any stable economy). So, in a quest to find something that has the same, or a similar feel to Dior Homme Cologne, and maybe performs better, or costs less, I bought Mercedes-Benz Cologne. First off, I'm relatively new to the world of fragrance snobbery. You might not believe yourself to be a fragrance snob, but you're reading this right now, so that makes you a fragrance snob. You don't see philistines reading about the paintings of Mark Bradford, or Christopher Wool, luddites following iPhone leaks on Twitter, and you don't find regular, non-snob's, on fragrantica, reading reviews of fragrances; they just go into a department store, have the salesperson spray three or four onto little white cards, and buy the one they saw the commercial for. Even then, that's a borderline snob, since they've already started down the rabbit-hole of "this one doesn't smell anything like that one... How many different smells ARE there?" The true regular person uses the fragrance their significant other bought them. Although, the caveat here, is this applies more to men than women. Women are often less afraid of being seen as "too into" perfume, or any other form of self-care. Mercedes-Benz Cologne does NOT smell like Dior Homme Cologne. Not exactly, anyway. It does have the same feel, however. At least, my bottle does. I’ve heard other people describe the difference being that Dior Homme Cologne smells more natural. I suppose, maybe it’s that. I don’t think it’s just that, however. There is a chemical smell, almost like a faint Windex (I don’t know if Windex is pretty universal, so if you don’t know because you live in some uncivilized part of the world that spells “uncivilized” with an s instead of a z, Windex is an ammonia based window cleaner, that for whatever reason, is an amazing shade of blue, so generic window cleaning solutions make sure they are also a similar shade of blue, so stupid and or uneducated people know what the bottle is for, even if they can’t read, or maybe just don’t bother to. Or, quite possibly, it’s some nefarious plot to get those same people to drink it, because it’s such a pretty shade of blue, and some people like to consume everything that looks “good enough to eat.” Also, and this parenthetical is getting rather long, but I don’t know how to add footnotes to Fragrantica reviews, I should clarify; not all uneducated people are stupid, and I wasn’t implying that, even if it read that way. I meant actually stupid people, regardless of their income or education, although that sort of disproves my point. No major corporation in America would ever try to kill off stupid rich people, just poor people, in general. Stupid or not). Dior Homme Cologne gets described as lemonade over ice, or sparkling iced lemonade, or lemonade slushies. Maybe not that last one. Anyway, it’s some sort of chilled, vibrant, effervescent lemonade-y scent. The Dior Homme Cologne has a bit more tartness to it, than the Mercedes-Benz Cologne. I don’t like typing, so I’ll refer to Dior Homme Cologne as DHC from now on and use MBC for the other one. So the big differences I smell, are that the DHC has more tartness to it, although, after I wrote that I thought “does tartness have a smell?” I mean, sure things taste tart, but can something smell tart? I’m going to have to assume it can because that’s what I thought of. But I also think purple smells like grape soda, so what do I know. So DHC is more tart smelling, and also, DHC is noticeably lemony to me. At first at least. As it dries down, I really have to hunt for that lemon smell, it sort of blends into this overall pleasant smell, that I don’t have anywhere near a refined enough sense of smell to identify individual components of. The MBC on the other hand, never really smells like any specific fruit to me. It’s more of a general citrusishyTM smell. It’s by no means unpleasant, and maybe one of the other people here, with a nose that can catch a whiff of a mystery scent and say “ah, yes, that unmistakable bite of Amalfi lemon grown in late spring and harvested a peak ripeness, but I am also detecting the fleeting remembrance of Sicilian lemon, snuck into the batch by accident, and left in because the result, is quite simply, a masterpiece...” even though it just turns out to be furniture polish. And that isn’t to say they’re wrong, I don’t know the difference between a lemon and a lemon, maybe one smells more yellow? Regardless, I don’t have that kind of a nose. I have a nose that usually says, this smells good, or this smells less good (I know, before you correct me, anytime you use some kind of quantifiable measurement, blah blah blah, I was just messing with you. I know, it smells fewer good). On occasion, though, my nose does say to me, “THIS SMELLS LIKE (and then whatever it is I think it smells like, besides more or fewer good, like lemon, or cinnamon, or fall down drunk who shat himself).” MBC does not last long, but, neither does DHC. If anything, MBC might actually last me longer. That could, however, just be because I spray so much more of it, but I think it does actually last longer. Now, that isn’t to say MBC is some sort of powerhouse projection and longevity monster, it isn’t. But with two sprays on each wrist about an hour and a half ago, as I’m writing this, the MBC is much more detectable to my shitty nose, than the DHC. I go to the post office a lot, it’s a hobby of mine. On three separate occasions, a specific postal employee has asked me what it is I’m wearing, and all three times it was MBC. She’s usually the person working the counter when I go to that post office, say three times a week. I’ve worn DHC and that didn’t elicit a “WHAT are you wearing!?” from her, I’ve worn Aventus, and that didn’t get a response either. Maybe it’s the only thing she can smell. I don’t know. But she was able to pick out MBC each of the three times I wore it, and she’s behind a counter, with a sheet of plexiglass between us (although, it isn’t like a bulletproof window, like you would see at the bank, or a pawn shop, or a bulletproof window store. It’s a COVID barrier, and just sits between the customer and the clerk, but if you move one foot to the right, there’s no barrier, because it’s the post office, and you often have some sort of package exchanging hands, and that could be difficult to do with an uninterrupted pane of six-inch-thick plastic between parties). The batch code on the box I received, 0155, checks out to a production date of 03 June 2020. Now, my understanding is that this is discontinued, but I can’t find any definitive statements of when production ceased. That said, I believe I have a bottle from the tail end of production. Maybe that’s the reason for my singular complaint, or maybe it’s always been bad, or I just got lucky, but I do have one issue with my MBC bottle. So, the actual bottle is great, I love the shape, size, weight of the flacon (that’s just a fancy word for a small, stoppered bottle). I love the color gradient of the glass, going from the aforementioned Windex blue to clear glass. The cap itself is alright, a bit chintzy, but that’s forgivable. On the bottle itself, and my ignorance will show here, because I don’t know the name of this part, but there is a metal piece that sits on top of the bottle, hiding where the atomizer is crimped to the bottle. That metal piece, a sort of disc that is about a quarter of an inch tall, and around an inch and a half in diameter, has always been loose, as in it jingles and jangles and spins around when you handle the bottle with the cap off. I bought this bottle new; it was in a sealed box. Now, this, I think, is also why that chintzy cap doesn’t sit on the bottle level, it’s lopsided. And when it sits on the bottle, that metal piece is cocked at an angle as well. This is just a quality control issue it seems; I can’t imagine that this was intended. Overall, MBC is one I recommend. I mean, if you want a fragrance that (as of this writing) costs under $60 for 120ml (it takes some searching, but you can still find it), smells great, and gives you the opportunity to use it nine or ten times a day, MBC is your winner. Performance isn’t great, but I still haven’t smelled anything similar with even “good” performance. To me, it’s worth it though, because it smells THAT good. I give MBC a perfect 10 out of 10 DHC's for smell, a 3 post-office-ladies out of 3 for compliment getting, and a so-so score of some-of-the-day, out of all-of-the-day for performance...

After wearing this for a few weeks, this is my take on MB Cologne. Refreshing, bright, uplifting, mouthwatering summer citrus you'd love to drink. It is really really close to Dior Homme Cologne. It has an almost identical smell. MB Cologne differs in the opening where it is not as sharp as Dior. Dior has this very natural, sharp grapefruit pulp opening like when you peal off grapefruit and smell the pulp where MB Cologne has more of a juicy smoother grapefruit mixed with a bright lemon. But the difference is so negligible that I would say this is 98% Dior Homme Cologne. To me, Mercedes smells a bit better than Dior. Feels smoother, better blended, not as sharp in the opening but it is the same smell, just better done. Imagine if you polished Dior Homme Cologne opening more towards niche. After 15 mins they are identical and as they are drying down they smell the same. Citrus fresh musky with a bit of sweet nuances. MB Cologne lasts 2-3 hours longer which is something to take into account. Not to mention it's 1/3 of the price of DH Cologne. MB Cologne starts smoother but projects and lasts longer where Dior starts sharper but dies down way more faster. Bottom line, this is how a clone should be done. You couldn't get more to the DH Cologne than this. Even Jimmy Choo Man Ice which is similar to DH Cologne... Mercedes Benz beats it and here simply is no reason for getting either Dior or Jimmy Choo when this is around. For this price, for the natural smell so close to DHC, better opening and so much better longevity... You simply can't beat it. I want to put this on your radar because you will save money and get the same smell you love. Same quality. I wanted to cash out for DH Cologne but after wearing them side by side there simply is no reason to get Dior. None whatsoever. It is that good and that close. A little known gem that needs a lot more hype!

This is a great find... I bought the Mercedes Benz Cologne online from Amazon India, as it is not available for sale at any of the retail stores here. I bought this cologne 75ml full bottle based on the reviews of some popular Youtube fragrance reviewers, so it was a blind buy, but it turned out to be very good. This cologne opens with a fresh, invigorating blast of citruses (lemon and grapefruit) that smells really classy at the same time very refreshing and amazing. For the first 15-20 mins, the citrus smell tends to be on the sour side, but afterwards on the drydown it turns sweeter once the ginger and musk notes come to prominence. I wore this today when the weather was warm and sweaty (ambient temperature around 30 degC) & I was able to get strong projection for upto 2.5 hrs, after that it started getting weaker, but did not quite become a skin scent until the 4th hour - all this time it kept me feeling fresh and invigorated & it was really awesome. I feel this cologne is perfectly suited for our Indian tropical climate, although I am not 100% sure how this will perform in peak summer season, when the outdoor temperatures hit 40 degC and it sweats like hell... Most folks in the community are saying this cologne is a copy of Dior Homme Cologne 2013 version - now, I haven't tried out the Dior cologne yet, but for me the Mercedes Benz Cologne is very much like Versace Man Eau Fraiche, but with stronger and classier citrus notes and base notes. Price-wise, the Mercedes Benz cologne is twice as expensive as the Versace one, but only half the price of the Dior one. So it is definitely value-for-money. My overall rating as of now: Smell: 9 / 10 Projection: 8 / 10 Longevity: 9 / 10 Value-for-money: 10 / 10

Another master work of simplicity by Olivier Cresp. This is really the perfect summer refresher scent. As I run through all the potential replacements for my last half bottle of MBZ Cologne (Dior Homme Cologne, Chanel Allure Homme Cologne, Jimmy Choo Man Ice), I am reminded of just how right Cresp got this one. To me, it just plain smells better and brighter than both DHC and CAHC, more enjoyable to wear. I suspect it's the interplay between mandarin and lemon verbena that feels more literal and uplifting. Lasts about as long as DHC, longer than CAHC and a LOT longer than JCMI. The Dior and Chanel sport something of a subtle but sharp, grassy/rooty quality (vetiver or lemongrass?) that takes them down a peg for me. The Choo opens really nicely, but morphs a bit into a slightly more patchouli/musk backbone - so it's probably the least similar. If I were to choose one to replace this, I think I'd go with the Choo, as it comes off a bit cleaner to me, and costs about 1/4 of the others. But nothing I've tried so far matches the pure citrus brightness of MBZ Cologne. Why on Earth did they discontinue this, and so soon? Can anyone recommend another very similar potential replacement for this one?

I'd literally been searching for this GEM for a good year... After reading countless reviews on how good it is for a cheapie, I just knew all hope was lost. Thinking I'd have to be in Germany or something to find one. One Friday night I'm watching Dallas from Chaos Fragrances do a review on this exact frag, comparing it to the usual suspects(great vid BTW). I check Fragrancenet like I always do just to be sure, low and behold what do I see... Mercedes Benz Cologne 4.0 oz for around $30 with coupons, so I immediately snatch it up. I even grabbed a backup bottle a week later seeing how long it took me to come past just one. Haven't seen it on Fragrancenet since, but it's currently available on Cosmetics NOW USA for around $50. Legit thinking about grabbing a 3rd! I know this isn't a review, but I like cherishing wins. Go grab one while you can. But, Blue Hole from Zara does a pretty good job for less than $20. Sharper lemon, pretty linear, and good projection. MBC is the champion of the bunch IMHO. Vibrant Leather Cologne is prob my next purchase in this genre.