Eau de Gloire Cologne

It’s hard to believe we’ve had more than 20 years of this stellar brand. My time how time flies... and my how slowly perfume culture seems to move; despite this brand’s incredible offerings at the incredible hands of Marc-Antoine Corticchiato did it only in the last few years that the brand finally achieved the recognition it deserves. Is Eau de Gloire Cologne a worthy celebratory marker of this brand’s birthday? Yes, yes it is. It is very beautiful. There are the stunning hesperidics up top. When the brand says that they used some of the best materials they can find in doses that would boggle the mind of most other houses and perfumers, that is completely believable. The bergamot is photorealistic, with lime note filing in as evidence to its complexity, and the bitter and mandarin oranges add a sun-drenched freshness - a very apt descriptor from the brand - and mouthwatering quality. These citruses have the glow, the radiance, the bright color of sunshine beaming onto your face like you’ve stepped out of a cave after months, and tears nearly well down your face from that glorious hit of sunshine. They are gorgeous. Their only issue is that you will wish they lasted longer - for hours, if possible, but that’s not possible. The hesperidics give way to laurel and myrtle, which pair with a resinous green incense for crisp, aromatic leafy qualities slightly reminiscent of moss but not damp and less woody. It is far more fresh green stems and leaves, a halfway between moss and galbanum. The three have their own bitter, refreshing, citrusy green edge to them that last through to the skin scent. There Eau de Gloire Cologne stays until it disappears from your skin, a bright, effervescent, green citrusy, resinous, and uncomplicated but yet beautiful ode to Corsican sunshine. But do any other perfumes do this? Yes, there are many. This isn’t a particularly novel structure, most particularly for a newly storied brand’s anniversary. But, in a way this is also the perfect homage and recognition. Parfum d’Empire has always had a habit of playing around with old structures and codes, and presenting them in a modern way that evokes a truly individual style unique to MAC. This is where Eau de Gloire Cologne stays true to form, and stays true to what makes Parfum d’Empire great: a form, a code, a structure that we have had before that is simple, beautiful, and very well done.

Criminally unknown citrus-aromatic cologne, perfect for summertime, and one of my all time favorite warm weather scents. This does share some DNA with the original Eau de Gloire, but they wear completely differently. The original is wonderful but wears a lot heavier, more of an herbal-anisic leather (feels a lot like a modernized take on Bel Ami or Moschino pour Homme). EdG Cologne takes that citrus-herbal structure and heavily accents the opening citrus notes - this has an overdose of naturalistic bitter orange that's really about as good as it gets - shifts the herbal focus to myrtle for a fresh-Mediterranean-breeze vibe, and substantially lightens the base. There are some smooth resins in the base to give it a bit more longevity than it would have if it were a true old-school EDC, but this still wears pretty light and summery. I'd say the overall presentation is loosely in the vein of something like Terralba, where it feels like a coastal breeze without actually smelling aquatic. Longevity is moderate to light, of course, and that's why this is marketed as an EDC - and also why it comes in a 100 ml bottle. Spray heavily and bask in the glow of summer!

A spicy, bitter citrus cologne, basically a lighter, brighter version of Azemour - very natural and I am enjoying my sample. However, If you have other classic citruses in your collection like Eau Sauvage, Hermes D'Orange line, ADP Colonia etc, I'm not sure if this is worth the entry fee.