Still Life in Rio

Citrusy, spicy, with a sweet and energizing touch. The scent is simply spectacular and addictive. Unisex. The opening is juicy and zesty, driven by yuzu and ginger. These two come through strongly at first, but gradually settle and blend beautifully with the rest of the notes. It never feels artificial or overly sweet, everything smells natural and perfectly balanced. This isn’t a flat or linear fragrance. As it dries down, the bright citrus sparkles fade gently, giving way to a clean, refreshing, slightly spicy vibe. There’s also a subtle hint of rum and coconut that adds a smooth creaminess, eventually settling into a soft personal bubble. For a citrus-based fragrance, the longevity and projection are more than decent, not intense or overpowering, which makes it a great summer choice. It’s versatile, elegant, and easy to wear, one of those scents you don’t need to overthink. Perfect for everyday use, but also for more special occasions. Considering it’s a niche creation with a fresh profile and a simple yet well-balanced structure, it has tons of personality and charm. I truly believe the price-performance ratio is absolutely justified. This is, and will remain, my signature scent for spring and especially summer. 10/10

I have just repurchased Still Life In Rio. I had it several years ago and enjoyed it very much. The current version is very similar to the one released back in 2016; there are some slight differences in the opening, but the essence of this scent is well-preserved. The opening is citrusy-minty-spicy, with lemon, yuzu, ginger, mint and pepper. It is sharp and aromatic, but pleasant and invigorating. After a while, the scent becomes noticeably sweeter as other notes emerge, namely mandarin orange, creamy coconut milk and rum. I don't detect any leather, and I'm not complaining. This scent deserves its own category named "citric gourmand" because it is so delicious - it smells like a lemon cake with coconut sprinkled on top! In comparison to other summery fragrances, this one projects quite strongly in the beginning, and after approximately two hours it mellows down to a skin scent, lasting for another 2-3 hours, which is okay. Some people will certainly complain that Still Life In Rio is more like a cologne than a genuine EDT, however not all perfumes need to be heavy hitters - sometimes we need something mild, pleasant and office-friendly, to keep us feeling refreshed throughout the day.

Summer holidays in the South of Europe, with a delicious cocktail in my hand, on a beach, wearing a white linen flowy dress. That’s the image it flashed in front of my eyes as soon as I’ve smelled Still Life in Rio. Very refreshing, energising and uplifting perfume, more on the feminine side. In the opening I got a very realistic blend of fresh yuzu, mint, lemon, ginger and coconut. I did smelled coconut straight from the beginning. It’s a photorealistic fragrance, with an obvious mass appeal but has its own uniqueness. Even though citrusy, fresh, fruity, spicy scents have been done millions times already by all houses and at all prices, Still Life in Rio has a distinctive twist that I haven’t encountered before in my perfume testing. Goes without saying that Still Life in Rio goes to my to buy list for next summer season. It’s a scent that’s bringing something new to my summer freshies! Update: got a full bottle. It’s so good!

This begs comparison to Creed's VIW as they both mimic a zesty, coconutty cocktail. I'll say this - SLIR is VIW all grown up. It doesn't have quite the pop in the opening that the Creed has, and the yuzu/lemon is less mouthwatering than the delicious lime juice accord in VIW. But it does come across altogether more sophisticated and elegant and really is quite beautiful. It's addictive in that it's more interesting than you might think and much more complex. It also performs decently well, and excellently for a summer scent.Definitely warrants a sample, especially if you liked VIW, but thought it was too juvenile and/or 'beachy'. If VIW was the guy dancing on the beach with his friends, SLIR is the guy in the sea-side exclusive bar, sipping his drink as the sun goes down. Like a lot, potentially bottle-worthy. (dislike/indifferent/like, but not BW/like a lot, potentially BW/love, definitely BW/masterpiece)

I do not get any booziness out of it altough it does smell like a coctail drink in the opening but also has a clean aromatic soapy feel or dryer sheets. This is not a typical fresh aromatic summer type of fragrance, it is unique in its own way. I get creamy fresh lemon, touch of mint and cocunut in the background with light spices. It does not smell like virgin island water to me at all. VIW is more fresh, has more juicy coconut. If you expect blast of coconut, this is not it! The performance is not bad for a summer fragrance. It lasts around 7 hours and has good projection for about 2,5 hours. It does not lean towards feminen nor masculine, perfect unisex fragrance. I would not pay full retail, but buy it if you could find it less than $130. It is certainly a better buy than those popular designer aromatic fragrances.