Dark Chocolate, Rum, and Vanilla

I will add my 2 cents for whatever it's worth. 2 cents, I guess :) I am in horror (yes horror) that Guerlain discontinued this. Maybe they will bring it back now. They will see how much cash they are losing. I will admit, I love Guerlain's GC, and this is pretty darn close. So I will buy it, and continue to buy it until Guerlain brings the original back. The price point on Dua is more expensive than I would like it to be. But I am missing the scent so much, I will pay it. So hats off to Dua, and shame to Guerlain. If they can make it, surely Guerlain can bring it back. There just isn't anything too new out there nowadays that grabs me. I try too! However, Chanel Le Lion is absolutely fab. Try that if you want a winner that lasts 2 days! Glad I found Dua though. Oh, and yes, it is very oily. I don't mind, just mind your clothes.

What a difference a few weeks make! After letting it macerate, it's come out smelling closer to Gourmand Coquin! Before the maceration, all I was getting were cacao and dark chocolate - nothing like GC. But now, it comes out smelling sweet along with the chocolate. In comparison, GC comes out with a short blast of cacao that quickly turns sweet, which later becomes rose. The rose is very faint in DUA, which also smells a tiny bit synthetic, but as a whole DUA is close enough! Just let it macerate for a few weeks. Also, the longevity is decent, and the sillage great! I'm happy. 😊

THE CLOSEST. 90% SIMILAR to Gourmand Coquin. Fabulous dupe. (especially since Gourmand Coquin is pretty much discontinued) I bought this first of summer and let it sit until now..when I am testing side by side to GC. (the only difference I find is that the Gourmand Coquin is the teeniest more refined, if you will, and I only notice it in the very end dry down).

This chocolate note is so realistic. It's very powerful in relation to the other notes. I can detect a smidge of the rum and vanilla but what you get here is mostly a rich dark chocolate note. The drydown gives you a sweet, less rich chocolate scent as the vanilla emerges and the rose note really starts to shine. The pepper even sticks out a tad more. The rum note doesn't really stand out much for me, maybe it's just masked by the other notes or maybe it's what gives the chocolate its richness early on. This is definitely the ultimate chocolate lover's gourmand fragrance, and a mass pleaser in my opinion. Performance on this is wild. I did 6 sprays on my torso and it was enough to choke out the receptionist when i went to the clinic, and she had a mask on. 4 sprays on your torso will get you a solid bubble for sure, anything more and you're playing with fire. I can't speak for the accuracy of this dupe, but do note that Dua fragrances are weird in that they need time to sit on the shelf before they "pop". Try a couple sprays initially when you buy this, then let it sit for a month on the shelf and try it again, you might find certain notes (like rose) have developed more.

I was apprehensive about buying this perfume, but the price is affordable and I got it used. I was so afraid of this vomit accord people are smelling, and I have to say I smell it too. However, it only lasts about 20 minutes and doesn't project. In the air, I smell something reminiscent of a yellow cupcake with boozy chocolate frosting. The vomit is only when I put nose to skin in the first 20 minutes to half an hour. The vomit smell also lingers a little longer on clothes. So maybe prance about naked for a half hour after spraying? After that yuckiness is gone, the cupcake situation stays pretty linear. It just gragually becomes a bit less chocolate and a bit more vanilla. I like it. It's not going to be a favorite though. I'm back in November 2024 to say that layering this over Nest Seville Orange oil is ah-freaking-mazing! It adds a beautiful freshness and zestiness, and I cannot get enough of it. Love love love love love!