Ristretto Intense Café

Montale Ristretto Intense Cafe EDP opens with a strong projection of sweet, coffee, and rose notes. The opening is delectable, elegant, very sweet, gourmand, bright, intense, and very pleasant. The coffee, roses, caramel, and vanilla are the opening most noticeable notes. The coffee note in this fragrance is evocative of Arabica, medium roast coffee, intense, projecting, and refined. The rose is a feminine, mild, and floral accord. The vanilla and caramel are noticeable, sweet, gourmand. The woodsy notes, white musk, and amber are part of the support notes. The amber adds a sweet resinous touch, and the white musk comes across as a projecting, slightly powdery touch. The woody notes are a faint touch in the background. The fragrance is linear, all featured notes come up as soon as the fragrance is applied and continue into the dry down. Once Montale Ristretto Intense Cafe EDP has reached its full dry down, it can be summarized as a strong projection, very sweet, coffee, vanilla, caramel, roses, and woody fragrance with ambery and white must accords. The fragrance feels comforting, cozy, delicious, elegant, exotic, floral, gourmand, inviting, nicely blended, natural, playful, rich, sugary, sweet, unisex, and very pleasant. BATCH REVIEWED: 2020. WOW RATING: 10/10. The intense, sweet, coffee and rose notes are impressive. DISLIKE RATING: 2/10. The coffee, roses, caramel, and vanilla are very prominent. UNIQUENESS: 8/10. The coffee note is intense, well-blended, a unique fragrance. MASS APPEAL: 7/10. This delectable coffee fragrance is pleasing. PROJECTION: 6/10. Very good, about 6 feet around the wearer. SILLAGE: 8/10. Impressive, about 8 feet behind the wearer. APPLICATION: 4 atomizations. LONGEVITY: 8/10. Impressive, about 8 hours, it projects well for about 4 hours. SEASONS: Winter, spring, summer, fall, colder days, daytime, nighttime, and climate-controlled environments. OCCASIONS: Formal events, outdoor gatherings, office, casual, holidays, vacations, romantic, dating, clubbing. This is an office-friendly fragrance. VERSATILITY: 7/10. A great fragrance for casual or formal wear, mild or cold weather. GENDER: Unisex. The coffee note is prominent, the roses create a slight tilt to the feminine side, yet the fragrance presents itself as unisex. AGES: 25 and above. RECOMMENDATION: Montale Ristretto Intense Cafe EDP can be purchased for about $200. It is a fantastic fragrance with great performance, however, the similarities with Montale Intense Cafe are significant although not the cost. Not recommended. BLIND-BUY: Yes, but only if you are familiar with its main notes. SIMILAR: These are examples of fragrances in the same genre. Grand Parfums Angel Men is a good clone, sweet, fruity/orange soda-like, and blond coffee fragrance; Hugo Boss The Scent Private Accord EDP is a good, unique, short-lived, sweet vanilla, Maninka, coffee, and cacao fragrance; Jesus del Pozo Halloween Man X EDT Men is a good sweet tonka, boozy whiskey, coffee, and spicy cinnamon fragrance; Kilian Black Phantom EDP is a fantastic, intense, delicious coffee, boozy rum, sweet caramel, and dark chocolate fragrance; Kilian Intoxicated EDP is OK, a mild, very sweet, coffee, cardamom, cinnamon, and nutmeg fragrance; Mancera Aoud Cafe EDP is a good, mild, sweet, coffee, woody, and ambery fragrance; Michael Jordan Legend Cologne Men is a good, affordable, sweet, coffee, and leather fragrance; Montale Starry Nights EDP is a fantastic, intense, sweet, rose, sour, apple, green, patchouli, bergamot, white musk, and resinous fragrance; Ralph Laurent Polo Red Extreme is a slightly sweet, dark, and slightly smoky wood, and coffee fragrance; Ralph Laurent Polo Red Intense is a very sweet, cranberry, ginger, amber, coffee, woody, and leathery fragrance; Rochas Man EDT is mild, delicious, sweet, coffee, vanilla, and resinous fragrance; Salvatore Ferragamo Uomo EDT Men is a good, tonka and tiramisu fragrance; Salvatore Ferragamo Uomo Signature EDP Men is a good, sweet, leather, coffee, and tonka fragrance; Thierry Mugler A*Men EDT is a good, sweet, fruity soda-like, and blond coffee fragrance; Thierry Mugler A*Men Kryptomint is a great, spicy, minty, green, patchouli, and sweet fragrance; Thierry Mugler A*Men Pure Tonka is a great, intense, sweet, tonka, coffee, and cacao fragrance; Montale Intense Cafe is a very good, sweet, coffee, vanilla, and roses fragrance; Montale Ristretto Intense Cafe EDP is a great, intense, very sweet, coffee, vanilla, caramel, roses, and woody fragrance. SUMMARY: A strong projection, very sweet, coffee, vanilla, caramel, roses, and woody fragrance with ambery and white must accords. The fragrance feels comforting, cozy, delicious, elegant, exotic, floral, gourmand, inviting, nicely blended, natural, playful, rich, sugary, sweet, unisex, and very pleasant.

A guys perspective... This scent for me is being viewed from the window of having already tested the original Montale Intense Cafe. I think a lot of guys struggle with certain aspects of the original IC, especially the top and earlier parts of the dry down. They do present as being quite a feminine leaning mix of floral and gourmand. I know for myself there’s a big portion of the opening and earlier parts of the dry down that while without hesitation I absolutely love and appreciate, I’d much rather be smelling on a woman than myself. That said, as the original IC dries down, some of the more feminine aspects tend to ease off as the notes merge and the scent becomes more melded and unisex. The point at which the feminine aspects disintegrate enough to be wearable for a guy will be different for every guy though. That’s based on all number of matters such as skin responses, personal affections and preferences for gourmands, florals, etc, etc. All those things impact wearability of the Original Intense Cafe for a guy. One of Ristretto’s purposes I believe is to not just create a more coffee centric version of Intense Cafe, but one that’s also more accessible for guys. It’s certainly a well presented option for a guy that’s comfortable with a floral gourmand. The increased coffee creates a scent that’s darkened by intensified coffee - during which that darkening also absorbs more of the floral aspects. Coupled with that the reduction of vanilla in the base (a part of what creates the more overt gourmand aspects of the original IC) does cause Ristretto overall to become more accessible for a guy - in theory that is. There is an issue with Ristretto however. By making those darkening changes, Ristretto loses a lot of the dynamic evolution that the original IC has. Part of the pure joy of the original is the way it so radically evolves from a somewhat lighter floral gourmand to a rich jammy darker floral gourmand during which the olfactive gourmand experience is highly evocative and extremely pleasurable. Ristretto on the other hand loses an aspect of that evolution by starting already somewhat darker, then evolving to even darker, during which some of that more opulent gourmand experience IC has is lost in Ristretto. So what we are left with is one scent at the lighter more opulent end of the coffee spectrum (Intense Cafe) and another that’s at the darker more intense end of the coffee spectrum (Ristretto). So in effect a lighter roast and a darker roast. What IS missing though is a MID roast, which in coffee terms is a HUGE part of the market. I know for myself when making espresso coffee at home, I’ve always had the very best results by mixing a rich chocolatey dark roast bean with an opulent full flavoured lighter roast bean. The combination of the two is a divine, blissful full flavoured taste experience. I can’t help but wonder how that would translate by layering Ristretto along side Intense Cafe. Food for thought!

I used to have the hardest time with the Intense Café DNA but now I'm hooked. If you're interested in trying this, you've probably been disappointed by the lack of coffee in the OG Intense Café, like I was at first. Yes, Ristretto has more coffee but don't set your expectations too high because coffee is definitely not the main character. It still is rose. I now love rose more than I used to a couple of years ago but I think one really has to love rose to like the OG or the Ristretto. Ristretto opens up with a blast of dry and bitter coffee beans mixed with an opulent rose in the first couple of minutes. After the opening phase, the already very potent rose gains in intensity but contrarily to the OG, coffee is perceptible in the background. It stays quite dry and bitter and not only this helps taming the sugariness of the rose in this perfume, but it also gives it a very interesting and slightly dark facet. I find it quite unusual. You could spot this perfume from miles away and recognize it instantly. Speaking of spotting the perfume from miles away--- yes, longevity is eternal and sillage is massive. But it's a Montale, what did you expect ;)? For the love of everything that's holy, do nooooooot overspray! You will kill everyone and everything breathing in your surroundings, including yourself. That being said, Ristretto feels smoother, slightly less in-your-face and less sweet than the OG. It feels like less of a nuclear bomb, which I find great. The dry down is a delicious vanilla pod tinted with caramel, very soft and contrasting with the previous stages of the perfume. It gets more sensual and inviting. Ristretto is always evolving, you can't get bored with this. However, I wish it had the super creamy vanillic of the OG and that is just to die for. It would have been so perfect and I wouldn't feel the need to have both in my collection haha. Lastly, if you're wondering which one is the most beautiful rose-coffee perfume including Delox, I definitely feel like Delox wins the match. You can't deny how smooth and refined the latter is. It's the Intense Café DNA without Montale synthetic DNA (not that I mind it, I really like Montale). But on paper, I didn't end with the creamy vanilla accord I get with Intense Café. Still the dry down is very sweet and beautiful. If you only want to own one and care more about the overall feeling vs subtle differences, get Delox. If you want a tad more coffee, get Ristretto Intense. If you want more rose and a creamy vanilla, get the OG Intense Café.

I'd have to admit, I was super surprised when I smelled the original Intense Cafe EDP. I had ordered a bundle of 3 samples. They all had that "Montale" synthetic accord to them, but I remembered Intense Cafe smelling like a creamy version of Roses Musk. It was literally creamy, semisweet, dense red roses. Ristretto Intense Cafe Extrait is nearly identical, but there is a burst of fresh dark coffee beans in the beginning. I mean it literally smells like coffee beans - NOT a perfume version, not a "note" or "accord" - straight COFFEE BEANS. This primarily lasts for the first 20mins or so and then it drifts off into the background while the creamy red roses begin to take over. Apart from the opening, I'm not sure if this comes off as a gourmand. The original certainly didn't. You must like the original to like this one, as the whiffs you get become identical into the mid. You could, perhaps, notice the smallest subtleties if you test them side by side. I honestly do not experience the wood, musk, and amber until it becomes a skin scent (1 year later, lol). For example, after I shower and there is the slightest hint of the fragrance left - that's when those notes appear to my nose. I honestly don't get the caramel at any point - perhaps it adds to the creamy dense texture. I am definitely keeping this in my collection, as I've always wanted at least one Montale fragrance. Most of the fragrances I've wanted to try from the house are rarely on display or even available in stand alone samples - they have way too many, haha. All in all, I wouldn't say this scent is for everyone because Montale is not for everyone. It's barely for me, haha. They all have such a strong profile that is signature to the house and it makes the experience with their fragrances not as fun. Sure, there are houses that have a signature essence, but each of the fragrances stand alone and don't remind me of the other ones. I'd like to get my hands on something like Vanilla Cake since it is such an edible profile... see how that synthetic accord works with it.

So I've been testing both Ristretto Intense Café and Intense Cafe today. Had each one on my wrists to compare them well. Carefully checking how the notes develop. And I can definitely say now, those two fragrances are nothing alike. For the first two hours at least. ;) First of all if I didn't know what I'd been testing, I wouldn't even say I'm dealing here with some coffee fragrance after the initial spray of Intense Cafe. No wonder people complained about lack of coffee there. Intense Cafe does smell Montale, yes, all the characteristic Montale vibes're present there, but no coffee though. It's more about rose and vanilla. Pretty nice, I'll give you that, but for someone looking for coffee?... pretty disappointing as well. Now, Ristretto Intense Café from the first spray smells like you were having your face hanging over the cup of delicious, sweet coffee, still steaming, hands on the hot cup, and looking through the window at snow slowly falling down on the evening street. That cozy image came to me immediately once I smelled my wrist. As the most prominent notes of the head are coffee itself, together with vanilla and caramel. After about half an hour rose starts to appear. But more gently than in her older sister's pyramid. As for coffee, it stays, but somewhat less sweet than at the beginning. This is the moment when woodsy notes are coming out too. Amber and musk? I can't detect them. Not during the first two hours anyway. Then comes the drydown. And in those last notes these two fragrances have the most in common. Montale famous musk, rose and just a hint of coffee in both. I must admit, I'm a litlle disappointed that coffee, so strong and marvellous at the beginning, dissolves so at the end. Having said that, I still might be thinking of buying at least a smaller bottle of Ristretto, that's how absolutely mesmerizing first two hours with it are. Winter is coming after all, and everybody deserves good, hot coffee. :)

Okay, WOW! This is amazing stuff! This just works so perfectly. No words or detailed review can do this justice. I had sampled intense cafe and it was a lovely scent that I was somewhat mesmerized by but had kept putting off pulling the trigger on it because, although beautiful and can definitely be pulled off as unisex, I found it leaning a little too feminine. Gorgeous scent but I really didn’t get much more than just a very beautiful creamy, vanilla rose with some slight hints of coffee. Right before purchasing intense cafe I thought I’d give ristretto a try by sampling and man am I glad I did!! This is the answer to some of the qualms I had about intense cafe! This is all that Intense cafe is and then some! You definitely get more of that realistic dark roasted coffee notes which I think makes it a few shades more masculine than intense cafe. The dark coffee notes definitely shine through and gives this a bitter dark tinge to it that weaves and balances out perfectly with all the sweet, smooth creamy notes. This has that sharp lovely coffee note that lasts throughout most of the fragrance and sits perfectly in front of the rose and creamy sweetness. The coffee note is so prominent and right when you think the dark coffee note might sting your nose all the sweetness just hugs everything together, smoothes it and prevents this from ever becoming too much even when smelled up close. This is intense and dense but Oh, so very smooth. This is so intense and sweet that you expect it to become cloying or overwhelming but somehow it never does. It keeps you going back for more, sniffing wherever you sprayed it wondering if it will be too much this time but instead you’re left speechless at how beautiful, comforting and smoothly sweet this fragrance is. And the scent bubble and wafts that you get while wearing it are heavenly! 10/10 Masterpiece

Rose & Caramel Macchiato... Despite the name, this scent is closer to caramel macchiato made with rosewater, and then a few pumps of rosewater added for good measure. There is a nod to Turkish coffee with rosewater, but this is a lot sweeter. Opens with a burst of coffee & rose with the signature base DNA of Intense Cafe Montale, which for me is a bit like balmy, congealed vanilla or gummy-bears flavoured with vanilla & Coca-Cola. The rose here is a velvety, spicy and rich taif-rose. This continues and deepens into the heart, picking up some woody facets, roasted facets to the coffee, and expanding the rose to include powdery, musky, and more intensely floral tones. This all rests on a fluffy, caramel-vanilla base with hints of white-musk and amber. The coffee here is stronger and more present than in Intense Cafe - for some it will be not enough and for some too much, depending on your perspective. This has the Montale signature beast mode performance, and while the scent profile works year-round the performance will make this more suitable for fall & winter or open air venues. For outdoors in summer, I like to spray this once or twice on a ball cap and layer with an orange-citrus scent like Mandarine Glaciale Atelier Cologne or something similar. However, one spray on the skin indoors is more than enough. It's a love for me. Enjoy! Update 05/18/24: I thought that maybe there was a nod to Turkish coffee at one point, but after smelling scents like Intoxicated By Kilian & You're Drugged Paris Corner, I realize this is as far away from Turkish Coffee as those are close to it. This is definitely more Caramel Macchiato, rose & amberwood/ambroxan in the base, with that characteristic balsamic zinginess about the caramel-rose combo that Intense Cafe and similar scents are known for. Love, love, love.

Another blind buy I'm not that happy with. I have an old decant of Intense cafe (another one that didn't go bad even after almost 8 years) and one spray fills the room. I din't wear it much because it gave me a headache sometimes, but I loved the smell very much. Everybody raved about the ristretto, and I thought, okay, more coffee, less sweet, not so much in your face version would be perfect. Well, there is more coffee, alright, it's classier, definitely less sweet and less rose-y, but! on me Ristretto sits really close on the skin and doesn't project at all. I really do like the smell of Ristretto, but I want to smell it when I wear it. I can barely smell it on myself, unless I bring the spray point to my nose and this is a massive disappointment. On a positive side, it does last and it does smell pleasant close to the skin. And there are fragrances that have beautiful sillage but aren't that pretty when smelled closed to the skin. Meanwhile I'm getting used to intensity of Intense cafe, so I have to get a FB of that one before fall. I'll still keep Ristretto hoping it will project better when warmed up under warm sweater and also maybe layer it with Intense Cafe. Also I think it is more wearable for men, who shy from too much sweetness and florals.

My very first coffee scent! Hyped up to the Gods (a couple of years ago) but well worth the hype! Even these days, Ristretto Intense Caffè is my most favourite coffee perfume. It’s an excellent blend of ristretto caffe, sweet caramel, pink rose, smooth vanilla, warm amber, and hints of clean musk. It’s a very mass appealing scent, with an intoxicating scent trail, but with some complexity. I appreciate that it is not just pure, black coffee. I have tested not long time ago Akro’s Awake and that one is just that. Black, unsweetened coffee! This has a cappuccino level of coffee in it. Feels more gourmand... It has a good contrast and balance between bitter coffee beans, gooey caramel, rose, vanilla, amber. It feels more warm and approachable, easier to like and wear, for day to day use. A very feminine coffee scent. If you like Ristretto Intense Cafe you might also like Carthusia’s Terra Mia. Way more underrated than Montale and with a prominent hazelnut accord! Tiziana Terenzi’s Delox is sweeter and way more floral leaning. The other fragrances listed as being similar I have not tested or don’t own, so I can’t comment on resemblance. Amazing performance, I think it outperforms all my other coffee scents, and very, very decently priced!

If you love coffee you will LOVE this. I make fresh espresso shots at home A.) To save money and B.) Because it tastes WAY better. This smells just like as if you made fresh coffee. The coffee note lasts the entire time which is a good 8+ hours for my skin chemistry. Just a note: Everyone's skin takes fragrances differently not only in longevity but also in how the profile works with your specific skin. The DNA in this fragrance smells exactly like Xerjoff's k'bridge club to me -- and it is just as addicting. To me, it does not smell like roses at all. It's a very strong dense aroma that I cannot place exactly. I do not get any of the specific notes aside from coffee the rest is just a well-blended deliciousness that I crave to sniff every day now. I usually sniff the atomizer if I'm not wearing it for the day just to get the smell of it and then I'm good to go, as odd as that sounds. If you have k'bridge club I do not see the need to rush to buy this, unless you really want the addition of the coffee note -- OR if you're like some of us and just need to smell everything because the olfactory side of life is what makes you the happiest. Happy sniffing friends. :)

Immediate, bold, roasted coffee blended beautifully with rose on initial spray. This was love at first sniff! The coffee really softens the rose from being the star of the show and the caramel, woods and vanilla give it a bit of body and sweetness. With this fragrance I feel that you can really pick out each note without question and it is really well-rounded. This is what I was hoping cafe rose private blend by tom ford would have been which was just a rose bomb without any coffee at all- to me and not even a fraction as nice as this. To me this is definitely full bottle worthy. This fragrance does go the distance and can be rather loud, so i feel like a minimal spray is all you need, it can easily turn beast mode. If you want to amp the coffee a bit more, since in the dry down of this it tends to be a bit creamier losing some of the initial coffee top notes, mix this with Coffee addict edp by Theodoros Kalotinis- it's an amazing, true coffee/milk/sugar fragrance

If you love gourmand fragrances, do yourself a favour and buy this one. This one was a blind buy for me as I had smelt and own samples of Montale's Intense Cafe, but was aware the notes (from reading reviews) stated that this fragrance was far more on the coffee side. I love fragrances that smell edible and sweet, but classy and not juvenile in any way. This is exactly that, timeless and jaw-dropping. Mine arrived just in time for Valentines, and my boyfriend absolutely loved it on me. As soon as I sprayed it on myself my eyes widened, and my jaw legitimately dropped, this was far better than I had expected and I couldn't help but constantly remark on how good I smelt throughout the night. One spray is more than enough, and it's such an incredible perfume that I'm reluctant to even spray it day-to-day, afraid of when the time comes that I will need to buy another one but I for sure know that it's well worth it!

My sample smells like coffee-vanilla liquer. Maybe the rose note got spoiled. It is sweet and syrupy. Winter and autumn only, day and night wear. Floral note peeks out from under the coffee liquer, but I cannot help but to think it spoiled and my sampler has around a year. I would not want my bottle to spoil that quickly so I'll pass even though I loved it on initial impression. If you buy it, better use it up within a year. Fortunatelly once it settles it becomes beautiful. I am still not convinced it is coffee that I feel. Roses become more prominent, and a very oriental base. It is indeed very similar to Delox at this point. But Delox is sweeter. It is strong. It completely swallowed my Devotion that I am wearing today and I have Ristretto only on my wrist. It is in between Delox and Terra Mia, which I think are superior. Terra Mia is less gourmand and more earthy.

Totally love this coffee gourmand fragrance. It opens with tiramisu and literal espresso. It softens a bit quicker than I'd like (losing the literal, bold coffee flavor) into a more subtle woodsy/rosy/amber scent that is similar to its sister scent--Intense Cafe. Still, this is a total win for me. If you love coffee and rose, it's hard to imagine you wouldn't like if not love this. I just put on a sweater I was wearing yesterday that had this on and I was impressed with how much the scent stuck to the fabric. It was that wonderful experience where you just want to keep smelling your sweater. Unisex. I picture this on an artist or a writer who spends a lot of time in coffee shops. A great fragrance for cozy evenings with a book or a nice morning fragrance to pair with coffee and cold weather. 8.5/10

Well let me put in my 2 cents 🤣 First of all, don't fall for that only women can wear women fragrance. Lies. That's a marketing scheme. Wear what you like and love to wear. I smell better than most women 😆 how do I know? Cuz they tell me!! Don't fall for these people saying it's to feminine or to manly crap. So in a quick spit of the truth. I've had my bottle for a little over 3 years. It starts with a shut your mouth in your face RISTRETTO for about 3 hours until it calms down. Then the rose and powder shine through with the RISTRETTO peeking from the corner 😆 Last about 14 hours on my skin. So if you wanna smell like coffee rose and powder then go for it. I get compliments everytime I wear it 😆 then again a have a massive collection so when it comes out you will know I'm in the room ❤️

This is masterpiece!! Seriously, I am in love and this is one of my signature scent. I did not expect much as all those perfumes with coffee note usually do not have any coffee in it and leave me dissapointed. But wow!! Montale did not dissapoint. This is not heavy on coffee, you will smell it only at first spray maybe 30 min then it fades to bacgkround and support rose very well. I dont think its same as intense cafe. Intense case is full rose perfume. Ristretto its better version with dark bitter coffee that pushes rose from being candy sweet. Also, longevity is great!!! Ristretto is oily perfume and stays on clothes forever..it projects well and it attracts people. I will definitely be buying one more bottle. I want this in my collection forever.

Ristretto Intense Café by Montale is an absolute treat for coffee lovers and gourmand enthusiasts. From the very first spray, it greets you with a rich, dark coffee accord that smells incredibly realistic; deep, roasted, and beautifully bold. The sweetness is perfectly balanced, giving it that irresistible café-au-lait vibe without ever tipping into cloying territory. As it evolves, the creamy, smooth nuances and subtle woody undertones add depth and sophistication, making it feel warm and comforting throughout the wear. The performance is excellent, with strong longevity and a memorable trail that lingers in the best way. This is a scent I genuinely enjoy wearing and one that I absolutely love for its intense, delicious coffee character.

This is one of the first fragrances I tried once I got into this hobby. Immediately, this brought nostalgia as this was my ex's signature scent. Of course it was the original version, but it certainly brought back memories being that these two are pretty much the same. I love this one better because the rose disappears quicker than the original. The original gets annoying when the rose note is just lingering. On clothes, the rose will last forever, however. I love this scent, and I especially love the dry down. It's the loveliest warm and sweet vanilla coffee scent. This lasts all day and past that. In addition, it will fill a room. I love this scent and the price is nice. 10/10

Two words that best describe this scent on my skin: Walking Café! This fragrance is straight-up coffee beans on the opening and slowly transitioning into a creamy and milky latte but still with its strong espresso base. My friends literally said I smell like a coffeeshop. LMAO. The rose is there, but only peeking and just complimenting the overall scent. The rose in this scent is like the rose decoration on the coffeeshop. It's there but the coffee notes are just very strong. Please note that this scent is hella STRONGGGGG. Two spritz go a loong long way. Security in my office can literally smell me upon arrival while I was just getting out of the lift. So, mind the spray.

Really, really nice sweet gourmand fragrance. I'm not sure what other people are talking about when they say they don't smell coffee in this. Right from the initial spray, you get a blast of bitter coffee, almost photorealistic. It smells like someone is brewing coffee in the morning. The coffee is tempered with florals, especially rose, and caramel sweetness. The coffee persists but smooths out with less bitterness on the drydown. Caramel sweetness becomes more prominent, supported by the florals. It becomes really well-balanced. Long-lasting. One or two sprays should do the trick.

I didn’t think coffee and rose would be a good note combination, but it is. This smells exactly like the inside of a coffee shop I used to be OBSESSED with as a kid. It is very gourmand, very classy, projects well and lasts a VERY long time. I can still smell it on my skin after 12 hours, however the scent changes a lot as the time passes. After a few hours it turns more vanilla and amber, I can’t really smell the rose and coffee anymore, and then it smells exactly like MFK gentle fluidity gold. I don’t have much else to say, I just adore this perfume.

Warm, intoxicating, and breathtaking. And the best use of rose and coffee I’ve tried. But it doesn’t smell like any cafe I’ve been to lol. The coffee is so laid back it’s almost nonexistent. It isn’t nonexistent though, but adds depth to the rose. Leans a bit feminine imo. And I think it would be better suited for a woman, young or older. I can’t deny how mesmerizing it is on my skin though. It’s overstated and garners a lot of attention. That’s not usually what I go for, but this is just so good.

So glad I picked this up and got rid of OG intense Cafe. The OG is a good scent, but it is a complete duplicate of Mancera's Roses Vanille, which I already own and love. So when I got ristretto, it made good on the OG's promise...COFFEE! Wonderful strong coffee note, followed by sugared roses, vanilla, caramel and soft musk. Huge projection, massive longevity, and while I can still sense the original, it is not redundant in the least! 9.5/10

Rich lady with very loud personal style wearing at least 15 sprays of the strongest high end rose fragrance there is at prestige coffee shop bumping into a coffee nerd who takes their passion towards quality coffee very seriously resulting coffee nerds freshly brewded über espresso spilling all over rich lady’s white custom made silk blouse. Weird and strong, lots of rose with a little bit of bitter coffee. Very oily too. Do not overspray!

I totally get the coffee note in this fragrance! The rose seems to take a back seat on my skin. There is a sweetness that envelopes the entire fragrance in a pleasant way. I don't pick up much wood, but that's fine, as this fragrance is stellar as is. The rose is beautiful, and not overwhelming. Just the right touch. Longevity is great, but not really any more than the EDP Montale fragrances. All in all, I totally enjoy this one!

This just drips deliciousness. I would wear it day or night, any time of year. Its like sitting by a bouquet of roses while drinking a caramel macchiato. Its pink old garden roses, coffee beans, caramel, and cream. All things that I love. It sings out loud and strong, so might not be for office wear or anywhere scent sensitive. I wore it to work and received tons of compliments, but my office is pretty cool.

Wow... I can ACTUALLY detect the coffee in this one. However, it’s still NOT a coffee fragrance, for it’s only there briefly. This is a rose fragrance. This is solely for those who want a more noticeable coffee note. Everything else is essentially the same from the original Intense Cafe; a diffusive, long lasting, inoffensive rose. This can totally be worn in warm weather! Office safe. 8/10

Reviewing batch 2021: at the beginning it’s like entering into a coffee roastery. After an hour the rose takes charge. Sillage & projection is above average but not beast mode like the original Intense Cafe. Longevity is undoubtedly good like all the other Montales. I wouldn’t say its the BEST Montale and im not a fan of this! But whoever wants a potent rose + coffee scent can go for this.

Something about this one makes my mouth water. I'm normally not a fan of rose but this one is totally unique. Against the dark chocolatey coffee, the rose leans more fresh and green. Imagine if you blended black coffee with freshly picked roses and coco powder, you'd get this fragrance. Lasts all day and projects really well too. Perfect for dinner dates or cooler weather.

If you're new to Montale or other niche brands, give it some time! Your nose needs to develop and you might be overwhelmed by the unique scent profiles that you encounter. This one definitely was like that for me. At first I was like: Hmm, I'm not so sure... But now I keep coming back to this for it's delicious coffee, rose, vanilla and caramel goodness. Pure heaven!

I bought a bottle after reviewing the notes. I loved it at the first spray. It's sweet yet refined coffee scent. I spray about 5 times and it lasts a whole working day. Rating: 9.4/10 Season: Spring, Fall, and Winter (more F/W) Time: Day and Night Attire: Casual Unique: 8.8/10 Projection: 6/10 Sillage: 5/10 Longevity: 8/10 Washable: 8/10 Value: 7.6/10

Omg coffee coffee coffee! The first spray smells exactly like those coffee candies! After about 10 minutes the sweet jammy rose comes to play along with the woody note. I think this is the first perfume that I’ve been able to pick out each note. I love this perfume so far. I haven’t gotten to the dry down yet, but so far it’s such a yummy fragrance!

I’ve already had roses musk and i wanted something similar. My sister had intense cafe and for me intense cafe was way similar with rose musk so i was happy when i say this version. It opens with smell of roasted coffee and slowly it smells more and more like rose. Love it, probably i ll always have either this or rose musk in my collection.

Guys, i'm really worried right now is my nose broken? I really don't get much of a coffee as a huge coffee lover🙁 I was waiting straight out coffee with sweet rose, but this smells mostly just that very sweet rose. I don't mind that because i really love rose, but i wanted a coffee scent this time😅 I'll try to wear this more so let's see...

I don't get coffee, but a nice caramel touch added to the original Intense Cafe. It could be layered with something like DSH Cafe Noir to good effect. Very sweet and loud on its own. I love it, I'm just not sure it's wearable out anywhere for my personality. I will use my decant for chilling at home with a nice aura of luscious fragrance.

This is just lovely. I get as much rose as I do coffee. It's dries down to a lovely vanilla caramel and it dries down pretty quickly. A pity because that initial blast of roasted coffee beans is quite realistic and of course the mid and base, not so much. It's summer in South Africa so I can imagine how good this will be in cold weather.

Just received a 100 ml bottle that I ordered and man oh man, this is a stunner for coffee lovers. The top note is coffee and mid note is coffee all the way. Eagerly waiting for the dry down, but already in love with this frag. I don’t get rose or may be it is more subtle. Will edit this as I can’t judge a frag just when it has arrived.

Imagine entering into a coffee shop and the barista is roasting coffee as you step inside. That's the first sensation you'll get when you spray this. Then it'll slowly morph into a lovely rose-vanilla combo with the coffee fading into the background a bit more. Impressive longevity and projection. Bang for your buck for sure!

Right from the opening, you can smell a soft roasted coffee blended with caramel, followed by hints of rose. In the dry-down, the amber really stands out, working perfectly with the rose and the coffee. An absolute masterpiece!!! Gourmand yet elegant and addictive, sexy, great projection, smells amazing. One of my favorites

I ordered this one from TJ maxx as a blind purchase, it's not only a perfume but a feeling, I got a warm colombian coffee laced hug while eating a chocolate Nutella designer donut story , there is a milky thick note perhaps custard alike and then a very sofisticated rose that grounds everything , bought it for about $80USD

Это прекрасно. Мой самый любимый аромат у Монталь. Я так хотела духи с ароматом кофе, купила без затеста и это оказалась любовь с первого вдоха. Не могу им надышаться, настолько он приятный. Особенно хорошо ощущается в ветреную погоду, как и все ароматы Монталь. Поднимает настроение. Это кофе и Роза, очень натурально.

after having Intense cafe, and now this one, I can say this is definitely the better of the two. The OG intense cafe is less cafe and more rose bomb, this dies down the rose and amps up the coffee, and its AMAZING. also this Is an extrait instead of EDP, so I can see this lasting forever. This is a 10/10 from Montale

I love this fragrance, it's one of those you can't stop smelling, it's just moreish. Downside is, I've no clue of when to wear it! It's not quite date, it's not quite night out with friends, it's not daytime, it's just lovely. As strange as it might sound it's just one of those fragrances where it's just for you.

I wish the coffee scent was stronger on my skin, it's barely there but I can smell a lot of rose, caramel and vanilla. The rose has a very vintage vibe but not overpowering. It's very niche, I like it. It's my first time wearing it, I am hoping it'll grow on me and I will be able to sense more coffee in future.

The coffee note in this one had me worried, but it’s really well done, not sickly or nauseating at all, just a perfect balance to the sugary roses. I love intense cafe/roses vanille etc, and this is just a deeper version of those. It’s a love for me. Strong and long lasting as to be expected from Montale too.

Really lovely gorgeous scent, I love the combination of roses vanilla and coffee, but I feel that the roses and vanilla are more dominant than the coffee. Like the coffee is the third wheel. Making it a bit too similar to other rose vanilla perfumes like roses Vanille, rosewood, or even shagaf oud

OMG...why did I wait so long to buy this ???!!! Love it ! IMO...better than Intense Cafe...and also on my skin it smells different than Intense Cafe. (?). Major great performance and sillage....Amen. I get a big dose of coffee note.....cacao/rose..and even some woodiness/earthy too. Awesome.

I've searched this planet for 13 years, searching for a good coffee perfume :)) I even tried to extract it myself, which ended in not so desirable results. I think this one is as good as it gets. So far, the best coffee perfume that kind of smells like actual coffee. It's an awesome perfume.

I nearly gave up on this as I thought this was not long lasting as I expected. I’ve learned, less is more - max five sprays - avoid spraying anywhere in the stream below your nose, spray on the sides of your body. You’ll be able to smell it all day. Best rose coffee frag I’ve experienced

Wow. I liked intense café but this is so much better wtf. So there is a little bit more coffee in this but it’s also much more masculine and it is stronger as well. The opening can be a bit harsh to the people who dislike coffee but the caramel and rose in the dry down is insane 9.4/10