Fortitude

I wrote a little about Fortitude a while back, I found my travel spray in a box of others today and put a spray on my forearm. I figured I would jump back in and add to my thoughts below: Fortitude is a very interesting fragrance, it starts out as an almost 1:1 of Tumi Continuum, as it goes into the drydown, it develops some incredible depth with multiple levels of dry tobacco leaf supported by tonka bean, patchouli, nutmeg and sandalwood which develop into a stunning a cocoa accord. I own a bottle of Tumi Continuum, but it has always been to simple and too linear for me, Fortitude is MUCH better in my opinion and came out years before. It's blatantly obvious that Continuum was inspired by Fortitude. Performance is very good with 8+ hours on skin, days on clothing. Projection is great in the first 2 hours. This is a fragrance best suited to Fall and Winter although it would wear nicely on cool rainy spring days and cooler nights in the early Spring and late Summer. This is a fragrance that I would classify as masculine in terms of traditional fragrance gender conventions, but there's no reason a woman couldn't wear it. It's like a more mature gourmand fragrance. Although the notes and scent profile are different, I would say vibe wise this would make a good alternative to the legendary Dior Homme Parfum 2014. It could also be viewed as more grown up (and higher quality) version of something like Luna Rossa Black. Fortitude has to be one of the most wonderful cold weather fragrances I have had the pleasure of smelling, especially when I think of gourmands. Yes this a a tobacco fragrance but it smells almost like a dessert. Robert Graham Valour is also a borderline masterpiece and layers well with Fortitude. I have only smelled their other fragrance Courage one time and it wasn't anything special, but Fortitude and Valour are both absolutely phenomenal. 93/100

Listen up: Maceration is a real thing I started as a fan of Robert Graham's Courage, so when I saw a great deal on Fortitude I gave it a chance. When it arrived I opened it up and sprayed it on a card. Much to my disappointment, it was pretty lackluster. The tobacco note seemed cheap and the rest of the notes just seemed like a syrupy mess. It wasn't terrible, but it was flat and blah, not at all like Courage... So I shelved it. Then some months went by and the holidays rolled around. Wanting a "Christmas Carol"-like Christmasy scent, I thought I'd see if the cold, late fall, wintery season changed how the scent came off.. so I opened it again. This time when I sprayed it, it came to life. It was bold, strong, strikingly masculine, and robust. I was shocked. This was in no way the same fragrance I had smelled several short months ago.. The tobacco is dominant, and rich, and deep, and sweet thanks to the supporting lively patchouli and the smooth vanillic tonka. I never thought a tobacco scent could "sparkle", but this one does. If you want a masculine tobacco scent that commands respect by giving the image of a victorian ship captain smoking a pipe, but also has a subtle warm soft sweetness that says you also have a heart...Give this one a shot.

Nice! A warm sweet delicious creamy tobacco / tonka bean opening which gives this scent a vanilla vibe. A couple of hours in the patchouli comes out and adds a little spiciness to the scent. I do not get a Tobacco Vanille vibe on my skin, I get more of a 18.21 Sweet Tobacco vibe without the wine note. I have not tried Soul CoSTUME NATIONAL so I cannot comment on that one, but based on this one I will have to give Soul a try. I do get a Mugler Pure Tonka vibe, but lighter, during the dry down phase. I am not saying it smells just like Pure Tonka, but it does have that same feel, but lighter, to it. Fortitude is a non-offensive fragrance, meaning that not everyone will love it, but no one will hate it. That makes Fortitude a great office / daily / signature scent. Although this is marketed to men, I can easily see a woman wearing this. I can also see this one in either casual or a sports coat. Bottom line: If you like sweet tobacco scents, this one is worth a try.

I've been wearing this for a year now. I got a full bottle after running out of a sample, then found out it was being discontinued. Ever since then, I've bought backup bottles and watched this disappear from the internet. I'm legitimately heartbroken. This is an INCREDIBLE fragrance. Very simple, but powerful. My favorite tobacco fragrance, favorite tonka fragrance, favorite patchouli fragrance. They all blend together so very nicely. The longevity isn't beast mode, but it'll last a good 7-8 hours and smell nice the whole way down. Dries down very creamy and ambery. Everyone that got their hands on this... congratulations. Everyone else... well, I don't know what to say except that I feel your pain. I hope this comes back someday, or that a really good clone of it gets made, because Robert Graham Fortitude deserved better.

A tobacco scent with a strong, sweet whiskey-like tonka beans, & a hint of patchouli herbal muskiness. Sweet & softly woody. Reminds me a lot of Mancera's Red Tobacco & its clone Alexandria Hafez 1984, minus the spicy accord. Yet, because of the spicy accord that gives a lively warmth to RT/Hafez, I prefer them over Fortitude. Still, Fortitude has a hint of spiciness, likely from the patchouli. Also, in comparison, Fortitude feels a little mute or flatter compared to RT/Hafez. It's the lack of a spicy accord again. However, people who like Spicebomb & Bvlgari Man in Black will love Fortitude. It's right there with them. To me, if you draw a Venn diagram between RT/Hafez & Spicebomb/Black Man, the intersection is Fortitude! Overall, a lovely winter tobacco smell with strong tonka. Mature & elegant. Big "Like"!

A real pleasure to have this in my collection. It is rich and full bodied. Elegant yet mountaineer. It is not anything that would offend anybody. Office approved. It will last 12+ with moderate sillage and mild projection. Standing still you won't get it, but when moving about it leaves a very nice scent trail. It is NOT like the ONE, nor is it like Spice Bomb...get your noses checked... It would be closer to mixing Bentley Intense and Bowling Green. It is silky smooth and almost creamy. A light tobacco, honey, forest, deer skin, natural scent. the top is spicey, the dry down is boozy leather and woods. Longevity 10/10 Sillage 8/10 falling to 2/10 the last hours Projection 8/10 falling to 1/10 at the end Overall 9/10

I was sent this as a sample a while ago when I purchased a different fragrance. It was a very small sample but loved what I was smelling so I decided to do a little more research. To my surprise, it was around $50 for a 100ml bottle so buying it to test it out more was a no-brainer. I'm not going to go into the note break down but I can tell you this is what D&G The One EDP wishes it was. This is pure class from start to finish and I get a solid 6-8 hours on my skin. This is a very clean woody/tobacco/patchouli fragrance that just does it for me and is an easy "dumb reach". With the cold weather here, I'm glad this on always within arms reach.

Extremely spicy and sweet open, heavy on vanilla and resinous scents, almost an amber, smells like sugar cookies and mulling spice. After a half hour to an hour, the spiciness dissipates and the tobacco takes center stage. It's still sweet from the tonka but more like a light Virginia tobacco than a cherry pipe tobacco or a spicy cigar. Sillage starts off heavy and radiant and fades to moderate in an hour or two. Still clinging to a shirt over a day later, has become even sweeter, exuding vanilla and honey. Great colder weather night scent. Layers well with Robert Graham Valour.

So I purchased a sample of this a while back because I absolutely love The One EDP by D&G. On first impression I didn't really care for it that much :( Then, a few months past and I went back to try it again and WOW this smells awesome!! What changed in that time span?? I wore this on one arm and The One EDP on the other and I preferred this. Like, it wasn't even close! It smelled sweeter this type but what I really like was it was coming off my skin very well. It kinda makes me sad because I keep finding more and more fragrances that I prefer over my first true love.

This opens with a brief bright citrusy note that dies down quickly, it's a bit out of place but don't mind it as it doesn't last long, then quickly turns into tobacco with an underlying sweet slightly powdery, fizzy tonka. The tonka in the mid is creamy and beautiful with notes of vanilla, tobacco, and powder, sweet but not overly so. Very enjoyable. The drydown is a nice slightly spicy, slightly smoky patchouli. It's very beautiful, very wearable. Can be compared more to Jazz club than to The One. But more wearable and less vanilla/sweet than Jazz Club. Wonderful!

I feel that this fragrance goes under noticed and it deserves some hype. Rumor is it is discontinued, but it can still be gotten online. I picked up my bottle for about $80 or so and I could not be happier with this purchase. I am big into tobacco fragrances and this is in the vein of Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille but not as sweet. It is classy and sophisticated with a gentle silage. I find it to be sweet but again, not nearly as sweet as Tom Ford making it more wearable and versatile. There definitely is some boozy, cherry tobacco vibe but this is wonderfully done.

I don't know what's in here - there has to be more than 3 notes - but every time i smell it my brain just goes "YESS!" and i am deleriously happy. A true testament to the power of smell to affect ones mood. I've been searching for a signature tobacco frag for years, and most seemed either too syrup sweet, or dusty dry for me. Fortitude hits the mark perfectly.How? Not sure. Maybe it's the blend. So while i am not a man with significant disposable income,sometimes you just know a good fit when you smell one. i bought a bottle right away.

What an excellent tobacco warm boozy scent this is. Just the right amount of aromatic tobacco leaf, tonka, vanilla, and patch. This is definitely on the sweet creamy side of tobacco but not a cherry type al a pure havane. It is also not powdery. Very good performance on me! Stunning bottle for sure and at the price, I would say worth it. Give these a try if you can find a Robert Graham boutique (Not sure where they are sold otherwise).

My favorite kind of scent. Tobacco and vanilla/tonka. Wearing this while walking around downtown New York in November is how life should be. Some reviewers say citrus but I personally do not smell that. There is the patchouli note and something that comes off a tad spicy but its mostly just well blended tobacco and vanilla people will notice. This is an excellent cold weather fragrance.

This stuff is amazing! One sniff is all I needed to know that this will be an easy cold weather grab. Bright, boozy citrus on top for a couple of minutes that reminds me of a whiskey old fashioned. Then, drying into the tobacco/ patchouli/ tonka combo you’ve read about. I‘ll probably be buying a backup bottle if I ever find one.

I gave a small decant to the man in my life. I love it when he wears it. Sweetened tobacco scents are my favorite on him. The scent stays for 24 hours (from just after a shower to until the next one) and clings to clothes just enough that they smell like him. I'll probably get another decant of this once what he has runs out.

Mostly tonka, pleasantly powdery and sweet. The patchouli flirts a bit, never fully rounded out and constantly shifting. I tend to dislike tobacco but the balance here is perfect. A very wearable unisex scent, though I prefer it on women. Longevity and silage are moderately strong, the exact level I personally enjoy.

This is a very nice juice... very similar to Tommy Bahama Men IMO. This is much stronger with a slight incensey vibe. Nice tobacco in the start with lots of patchouli and some Tonka. Overall this would be a great fall and winter scent for casual situations. This is a try before you buy of course... Enjoy!

This stuff is fantastic... Been adding tobacco frags to the collection lately, and this one is really nice. It slightly reminds me of Man In Black Essence with better performance. It doesn't have the oud that Essence has, but it comes across in a similar way, and I'm really enjoying it. 8.5 out of 10

Tumi Continuum is great, but since smelling this, I am no longer as impressed with the Tumi, as it was clearly a derivative of this. This is like a niche version of Continuum. Similar opening, but deeper and richer. The drydown becomes a very nice amber. Performance is great.