Ralph's Club New York

This is my new signature fragrance. As soon as I saw the notes I went to Ulta to smell it and immediately fell in love and ordered my own. Black currant, bourbon vanilla, orange, balsam fir, sandalwood and geranium are some of my favorite notes in general. This stuff is amazing. Sweet, woody and fresh. Perfect for year round wear, mass appealing and it lasts forever with great sillage. I have the type of skin that doesn't hold fragrance for long but this one manages to linger for hours. Very masculine but not overly generic and not headache inducing for my girlfriend who is sensitive to strong colognes. Ralph's Club New York opens with a sweet blend of blackcurrant and mandarin orange citrus with just hints of bergamot, the lavender isn't too strong (doesn't give barbershop) but is well blended on top and inside. The dry down is predominantly a very strong yet soft vanilla and creamy blonde woods. Balsam fir keeps it sweet the entire time (very Christmas Tree-ish) and underneath everything is a slight essence of bright florals. As for comparisons, it does not immediately stand out as similar to any of the fragrances voted above (seems people are voting anything with the name New York in it) but I'll say it's adjacent to the smell of Abercrombie stores/Fierce, yet modern. The drydown almost reminds me of Scandal Absolu by JPG, caramel-y woods. It does not smell like Myslf L'Absolu to me, it just has a similar "sweet & fresh" vibe. Myslf L'Absolu is more like a laundry detergent while this is not. Does not smell like the new Prada Paradigme or Hawas to me, at all. Finally, for me this is by far the best in the Ralph's Club lineup, closest to the EDT. I would agree that it is closest to the Polo Red DNA in terms of RL's other fragrances but this is it's own thing. 10/10 on all fronts. I foresee myself consistently purchasing this for as long as they sell it.

When I was in Heathrow I sprayed this on one hand and Polo 67 EDP Extreme on the other. Had I known I could have gotten EDP Extreme 2 weeks earlier than the rest of the U.S. I might have bought it for the flex, but I was actually blown away more by Ralph's Club NY at the time. I'll own both eventually, but for today I get to enjoy this beauty. Bright aromatic mandarin and juicy sweet blackcurrant open backed by lavender that grows more apparent in the heart alongside sandalwood giving off a fruity fresh yet grounded sensation. The heart lingers for a while before darkening into a warm, masculine base of vanilla and mossy fir; that vanilla comes forward into the heart to make the sandalwood texture feel creamy similar to how the lavender sneaks into open to aid in an almost fougere freshness, creating multiple bridges to the fragrance's complexity as is dries down. The overall scent profile is amazing and reminds me of the first time I wore Coach Platinum EDP, which while a very different scent somehow evoked the same fresh masculine, playful yet mature concepts. Both that Coach and this Ralph's Club get a really high love rating from me. I can't wait to also try layering them as it could tease out the geranium while enhancing sandalwood in addition to creating a more diverse fruit cocktail open as pineapple and blackcurrant intermingle, all with a suede-like creamy smoothness.

This is a really nice one. I LOVED the opening. It's so bright, fresh, and fruity with a tad bit of spice to balance it out. It's honestly amazing. I was so excited thinking I'd buy a full bottle, but as the day went on, it became a bit more generic. The drydown smells very much like Dylan Blue, Invictus, etc. Because of this, I can't see myself buying a full bottle. If the smell of the opening lasted thru the drydown I would have immediately bought it. But as it is, it's just another blue fragrance to me. I'd buy this second hand for $40 or so, but no way I'd pay retail for it. EDIT: I've gotta say, even though I already loved the opening, this one has really grown on me even more after finishing my decant. The opening is even better than I already thought, and the drydown is better too. It still slightly reminds me of Dylan Blue / Invictus, but it's more elegant, which a powdery vibe to it. It's perfectly balanced in terms of sweet & spicy. It's not too sweet, not too spicy, but a perfect blend of both. This could easily be worn all year round, even in the summer (with probably the exception of extremely high heat). This one is a love for me now, and I'm searching for a full bottle to add to my collection. Very great scent by Ralph Lauren.

This is gorgeous stuff. It doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it sure consolidates the fresh & sweet trend that's been around for quite some time now. Starts off very vibrant, fruity and bright, and settles into a quite creamy woody vanilla that lasts. The lavender at its core gives it a fougere touch that adds masculinity and versatility. It's a good jack of all trades, especially for the crowd under 35. More mature men will have better options, and it does feel more fun than serious (more casual and outgoing than formal / professional / romantic), but you can still pull this off in any occasion and feel confident that you won't offend anyone, quite the contrary. Just keep it light on the sprays when going to work, as this thing performs very well, and during the hottest days of the year, as the sweetness might become a tad cloying if you overspray. Other than that, it's one of the very best releases in the designer world this year. And don't listen to people saying this smells like YSL Myslf L'Absolu or Prada Paradigme. Prada Paradigme is a whole different vibe and while Myslf L'Absolu does feel like it's in that sweet/clean/fresh ballpark, they're still completely different scents. 8.5/10

Picked this up on a whim while at Macy's checking out the new polo 67. I ended up grabbing both. I see some people here complain that this is juvenile, but the reason i bought it is to my nose this a nice slightly more mature version of the popular "blue" fragrance. The black current is nice and very interesting. I think that's part of what makes it more mature to me. The apple in many of these scents always comes across as teenager to me. This is richer and with the vanilla lavender comes across almost melon like to my nose. The dry down feels very familiar in general. You know it soft vanilla with light florals behind. The modern blue thing. This is probably my new favorite of the type as i am finding it more pleasant than Dylan blue which would have been my previous preferred of this type of scent. These in general are not my favorite kind of scent (blue) but they make a great dumb reach and this is solid option for that. I'd give it a 4, but giving it a 5 based on my experience with other fragrances of the "genre"