Eau Absolue

i have the original "champagne cork" bottling. it's all about personal preferences, isn't it? we are each entitled to gush over the fragrances we love, and dump on those we hate. there may be certain families of scents which are attractive to certain groups, is it age? gender? social class? sophistication? experience? smoker/non-smoker? or a myriad of other factors. so what does this have to do with eau absolue? a great deal i think. for me, it is intriguing. sharp, not sweet, citrusy, earthy, complex. i like it. for sure, it is not a love. it is not something that elicits warm memories or sensuality, but nonetheless i enjoying wearing it and enjoy the bracing cloud of somewhat soapy aggression. the south of france in high summer--not the riviera but inland where the sun hurts a little, the air is pierced with dry summer grasses. the artistry of conjuring the particular terrain fascinates me. when i read the reviews posted by others, i check out their profile perfumes. not surprising that certain patterns emerge. not surprising that people with certain preferences have negative or positive takes on this. ok. despite there being uncountable fast food burgers sold (and loved), i must admit to my own snobbishness in finding all those burgers more a sad statement of mass food laziness rather than a sign of quality. and so mona di orio and eau absolue may simply appeal to a smaller group of those who appreciate something different and quite strangely beautiful. 02/12/21 i find that repeated wearing of a scent does not mean a repeated experience. coming back to eau absolue is like returning to a place that is not quite the same as before. however, the beauty and charm remain in the abstract. at one point in my life, i kept lemons until they turned brown and hard, exuding a sharp rich citrus essence. that dark intensity did not carry, and one had to hold them up to the nose, but there was the soul of the lemon. as if lemons could become amberlike gems. perhaps, it is simply that mona di orio had the perfume language that speaks to me. in the all three with which i have become familiar--vetyver, etoile d'hollande, and eau absolue--i love the slight tartness which stimulates.

I found this to be breathtakingly beautiful. It's warm and summery - I definitely felt that Mediterranean vibe (although I've never been there). It wasn't too masculine for my taste, but I think it might be masculine enough to convince my husband to try it. I don't like it when vetiver overpowers a fragrance, and I found it to be well balanced here. Unfortunately, by the time I got dressed and drove to work, it had faded to nothing. I'll have to try two spritzes next time, perhaps in the evening when I'm staying indoors. I hope it lasts longer for others; otherwise, I don't see how anyone could justify the purchase price.

I love this perfume although I didn't want to because it is terribly expensive. I smell a deep rich citrus, married with a smooth pungent animalic note. There must be some warmer aspects like amber, but the overall experience is the combination/vibration between citrus and animal. It sounds awful, but I can't get enough. I wear this to bed, and I wake up and smell it in the morning. It's linear (or maybe I'm sleeping through a lot of development...), but that is just fine. More than enough interest in this one.

This Eau is interesting. It doesn't smell like a fresh Eau. It certainly has more of an animalisitic vibe. There are citruses but also something more stale or animalic. It has character and I like it. It is not something you will wear and forget the the next morning. Unisex and rather sexy. Enjoy.

Animalic citrus Not your typical freshie. It is certainly citrusy, but a resinous, honeyed muskiness underneath keeps popping up throughout the fragrance's development. Quite long-lasting with good projection. Recommended if you’re after a “dirty” citrus fragrance. I love it!

Fragrance citrus-animalic. Mona wanted to reflect here as if it were a memory, his love and passion for the Mediterranean Sea. Opening although citrus, very clementine, bergamot and petit grain curiously not feel anything fresh, quite the opposite, pink pepper puts a counterpoint and fragrance becomes a little more floral and slightly earthy by the contribution Geranium , a touch of vetiver and bay leaf. Throughout the tour, I feel a warmth appears as if the sea will send a warm breeze at sunset. From here and during drying whole fragrance arching chiaroscuro hitting with the warmth of labdanum and a touch of musk with a sudsy point. Eau Absolue is semi-linear effect and so warm that I smell like honey, this is what causes that Animalic point. The fragrance was very interesting, also of good quality, but I recognize that is a rather narrow and not suitable for all tastes aroma. Rating: 6.5

I have a version in a square bottle with the wired black cap. Dirty citrus? Why not? It is more than just a fresh clean cologne. If you are after clean freshies, it may not be an obvious choice, better to try something else. This is more like a niche sensual citrus fragrance, very interesting, and, yes, dirty EDIT: I am wearing it today and associate it with a male-oiler somewhere in the engine room who used Mugler cologne on his boilersuit

شروعی مرکباتی و گاز دار با طعم ترش(برگاموت) و شیرین(نارنگی) و بوی سبز برگ که در شروع خیلی دوست داشتنی کار شده شیرینی نسبتا زیادی توش احساس میشه که شبیه سیروپ های میوه ای هست و میتونه متاثر از نارنگی باشه. یک آکورد سبز و گیاهی که حس و حال کافور مانند ای داره،کمی بعد از فروکش کردن مرکبات حضور پیدا می کنه. ماندگاری روایح مرکباتی نسبتا خوبه و همین موضوع باعث میشه کمی دیرتر به اون بیس هربال و آروماتیک برسیم. کلیت عطر رو میشه صابونی_هربال و مرکباتی معرفی کرد که برای من نیم ساعت اول اش خوشایند بود و بعد خیلی باب میل ام حرکت نکرد. شمعدانی همیشه برای من نُت پرریسکی بوده و اینجا هم اون حالت پارافینی رو داره(سخت میشه توضیح بدم حالتش رو) مجموعا کار باکیفیت ای هست اما خیلی شفاف نیست و یکم گُنگه. برای سنین بالا می تونه جذاب باشه ***************** scent:7/10 longevity:8/10 sillage:7.5/10 purchase value:4/10 ********* overall:6.2/10

Just a warning. The current version (circa 2020) is a watered down and a personal disappointment. I bought both a travel spray directly from Mona di Orio and a full bottle from another retailer and both were in the same weakened state. The original had a stunning intense citrus top note with moderately rich base notes. The current version has that citrus top toned down significantly. The rest of the perfume feels watered down in the base. Mona's beautiful DNA is still there but the beauty is significantly less especially if you're familiar with the older version. If you're not familiar with the older version, this would probably come across as a balmy and light honey scent and might be ok for you. For those who are familiar with the older versions, please try to sample first before buying. The PR team for Mona di Orio advised me that no reformulation has occurred. I'm going to believe them for now and might be true but something has definitely changed in the current formula. Maybe the natural ingredients are different or there's some IFRA changes that have taken place. The same thing has also happened to Vanille, also weakened significantly. That one breaks my heart even more.

On me this smells like extremely expensive French hand soap--the citrus is definitely there but seems to be overwhelmed by the geraniuum. For me this is another house like Creed--good ingredients made with care but ultimately stuffy and unpleasant. Irony: the milk soap I used to wash off the perfume smells so much like the perfume that I can't tell if I got it off. Sillage: 3-4 feet but soft Longevity: unknown, I scrubbed Fabulosity: Dove Soap Value to price ratio: poor

I came avross this twice in the fragrance community, by being given a sample of this -for free- as a complimentary treat. And twice, I was told that ot was awful, that being the reason people wanted to get rid of it. Well, I don’t blame them! Eau Absolu on my skin it oriental bazaar with some citruses and spices, with prominent cumin note. I hate it. I almost dissagree that you can get such a high rating. People, please try a sample! To save hour money...

Citrus opening that is atomic with the petitgrain and bay leaf. You pick up a bit of orangey softness but then vetiver insists on walloping it one. The geranium is pretty evident as well. You really need to love strong intense spicey fragrances to love Mona di Orio scents. The most accessible has to be Vanille which I love along with Bohea Boheme. The usual long longevity and moderate sillage.

I have never met a perfume with geranium that I liked on me, and this is no exception. Just comes across as harsh and medicinal. Most definitely not for me.

This was by far my favourite perfume from MdO i got the whole set of samples in a lovely box for a birthday present and really wanted to love this brand. however i was disappointed. This is certainly the only MdO id consider wearing from the los numeros line. The top notes of bergamot, petitgran, (I don't smell the clementine so much) are a lovely soft balmy citrus. Normally I avoid citrus fragrances as I often find them to sharp and headache inducing, but this creation is just lovely I then get lovely Mediterranean woods and warm bay leaf and a touch of geranium. This is a carefully crafted cologne with good ingredients, it makes a nice change from the usual heavy handed, synthetic, musk overdosed fragrances in this line. I think its better because Mona di Orio is said to have made this for her self, it would certainly explain the inconsistencies in quality! I might consider buying a full bottle for a unpretentious comforting everyday cologne but for now I'm not prepared to spend that amount of money for that. Maybe when I grow up a bit and need a sensible colleague friendly cologne. Certainly though this would be first consideration if Ifancied foraying into the citrus world. And I would still consider trying Mona's new perfume relaunchs, if only to find out if animalic synthetic musk is the predominant note in all her frags or just the Los Numoros line.

OH MY GOD.... when i sprayed this perfume on me, it took me back 23 years when i was a child, my country was under invasion & my whole family members were all living in our huge house's basement, the floors were ceramic (an old rocky ones) so they were cleaning the floors mostly everyday with a lemony essence cleaners, and washing the dishes with a lemony soap, & my grandfather uses the home made luxury incense that my grandmother makes (a pure Arabian incense), while all the furniture were cotton and wool made so when the incense is burned, the furniture sucks up all the smoke and stays there for weeks. so imagine the combination of lemon floor, lemon dishes, Arabian luxurious handmade Incense, wool & cotton with less air as it was in the basement. i can't imagine how stunt i was once i smelled this masterpiece. RIP Mona, and thank you for this love.

I love MdO but this does lack wow factor that I find in so many of her creations. It is nice for people who are bored by classic summer scents as it adds a darkness to the sunshine in her way. However, it is very close to Lux, in my opinion. I will stick with Lux since I already own a bottle.

it's a cologne, yet rather animalic