Café Rose

Tom Ford Caffe Rose: First Impressions: Just Beautiful 👌 Alright, folks,this is just a first impression, so I’ll keep it snappy. (I try, anyway.) I’m a Tom Ford fan, and apparently, I’ve entered my “rose phase.” Or Genuine love affair with rose? Who knows! I started with Noir de Noir (first release, Private Blend) and then moved on to Rose Prick. I thought I was done with Tom Ford roses after those two. Spoiler: I wasn’t. Enter Caffe Rose. This one landed in my lap as part of a fragrance bundle. I wasn’t chasing it, but here we are. I gave it a quick test run yesterday, then wore it all day today, and... wow. If I had to describe it off the top of my head, I’d say it’s somewhere between Noir de Noir and—don’t shoot me,Tom Ford Noir. Yes, the original Noir. I haven’t smelled Noir in ages, so this could just be my brain doing gymnastics, but that’s the vibe I get. Now, about that Caffe ... in Caffe Rose. Coffee? What coffee? 😂 the only way you will smell coffee here if you are sipping on an espresso 😂 I’m getting more “morning rose garden after a rainstorm” than espresso bar. Picture this: it’s dawn, you’re walking through a rose plantation, there’s dew on the petals, and a soft breeze is wafting the scent toward you. That’s the vibe. The rose is fresh, airy, and almost... ethereal. The projection is intriguing. It’s not screaming “LOOK AT ME!” but it’s definitely there. It feels like the scent has formed a spacious bubble around me. Not clingy, not in-your-face, just vibing in its own atmospheric way. At first, I thought it disappeared after 4-5 hours, but nope! Move around a bit, and you’ll catch these sneaky little whiffs, like the scent is playing hide-and-seek at the edges of the bubble. Is it feminine-leaning? Perhaps , a bit. But I’m a 6’2” bearded dude, and guess what? I’m loving it. Confidence is key, people , rock your roses. I’ll do a deeper dive soon and compare it directly to Noir de Noir and Rose Prick, so stay tuned for more hot takes. But for now? Dang, Tom Ford. You’ve done it again. Update : Wow ! People say it doesn’t last 😳 it accidentally got onto my hoodie ,3 days ago ... just by skin contact , I never spray on clothes ... and it’s still there and projects like it’s nobody’s business 😳😁 love this juice 🤓 no compliments so far but I don’t care 🤷🏼♂️ 😂

First let me say that near rose perfection is never "boring" for those who appreciate quality rose fragrances. When I first tried Cafe Rose I wasn't overwhelmed either. But after trying it a couple more times I realized what all the fuss was about. Cafe Rose is understated elegance, masterfully created and delicate yet powerful. The wafts that drift passed my nose all day melt me and I can't get enough. Initially, compared to Noir de Noir, Cafe Rose was a bit of a let down. But then the simplicity of Cafe Rose grew on me. I think it takes a few full wearings to appreciate it. Cafe Rose is much more subtle and works for any occasion, day or night....and any time of year. It exudes understated class and doesn't try too hard. The coffee is mild and just enough to give the rose an edge to it...keeps it from being too "rosy". It grounds it and gives it an earthy feel while still remaining elegant. Note: I want to touch on something regarding olfactory fatigue. When I see a comment about a quality fragrance such as this disappearing after a half hour, I know this is not possible. Either a watered down sample was received or it must have been spot sniffed shortly after spraying when can result in significant olfactory fatigue and temporary hyposmia that can last for hours or even days in some cases. That is why people will say a fragrance disappeared but came back later in the day. In most cases, it didn't really go anywhere, their nose just started working again. If you find this happening with a certain fragrance, try avoiding breathing through your nose when you spray it and for as long as possible afterward. I have this problem with many high quality fragrances (because they are so potent) so I avoid breathing through my nose for at least 10 minutes if possible and I do NOT spot sniff anything ever. It solved the problem.

The opening screams three things: Patchouli, roses, and coffee. The coffee and amber blends so well with each other that it’s almost unrecognizable over each other. But together, they create that bitter, warm, and a bit darker background. The patchouli offers a green liveliness to the fragrance that really jumps right at you on the first spray. The roses here reminds me of the roses in Rose Prick (which I also own). It’s the creamy kind but never reaches the creaminess of the Rose Prick. Probably, if you take out the strong effervescent and lively patchouli, this fragrance could be mistaken as Rose Prick because of the prominent spices on top particularly the pepper. But I guess overall you could say this is a milder Rose Prick, but probably a lot more fun than Rose Prick. True to Tom Ford fashion, I’d say this is a formal event or date night perfume because this smells very rich, mysterious, sexy, and elegant. But I’m more of a “wear whatever whenever” kind of guy so I’d say you can go away with wearing this to the office; that patchouli offers a bright and lively green-ess, makes you smell like a boss, someone who knows what’s doing, just becareful with your sprays because this can go very dense very quickly after 2 sprays. UPDATE: I finally got to give it a full day of wearing and indeed, the first 2-3 secs of spraying has this distinct almost sharp bitterness probably from the coffee mixing with the patchouli. But this is very beautiful, romantic, and definitely a boss perfume. You’ll be fine with 2-3 sprays. After that, it gets very heavy. I own a range of TF fragrances and this easily became one of my top favorites if not my favorite.

I love Cafe Rose as a stand alone scent but I've been pairing it with Intense Cafe lately and the results are stunning! Both are exceptional rose, coffee scents in their own right, but where Cafe Rose is a little dryer, less sweet and spicier/leaning more towards the masculine side, Intense Cafe is amped up with vanilla and is very sweet as a result so the two together create the perfect balance of sweet, vanillic coffee and dry spicy saffron rose. Not a cheap combination but I suggest giving them a try if you already have both. Edit: I've worn through several ml and every time I wear it it starts off strong, even abrasive, then quickly mellows out. This isn't a bad thing, I enjoy the harsh opening rather. After it dries down the scent stays mild and just right, hovering over my perfect comfort zone for the better part of 2 hours. This is the phase that keeps me loving it and is also the part where I start looking for bottles to purchase online. But then SUDDENLY it drops off into nowhere land and I can hardly press my nose up close enough to get a whiff! I mean suddenly! This is my process with Cafe Rose every single time and I don't understand. The issue isn't that I'm burning my nose out by breathing in the initial blast too deeply because I do give it a little time to "burn" before obsessively smelling my wrists. I haven't had this issue with any other fragrance before. It's not even a gradual fading, it's an instant shift from moderate strength to practically gone! And I don't know, maybe I go anosmic to it after a couple hours but I somehow doubt it. Very strange but I still love the scent.

One of my most favourite scents is the classic, common tea rose. It grows unassisted in the suburbs of Stockholm, between the concrete and the children playing on swings. It grows in the asphalt and graphite gardens between little entrances where people go up to their small apartments and where families from different parts of the world cook their unusual and tasty smelling dinners. In my late teens and early twenties I used to sniff them every time I walked past, even though it usually wasn't even necessary, because the scent lingered in the balmy never ending twilight that is the Swedish summer night. Cafe rose smells like a summer night when I was very young and very carefree. It is extremely calming, it is simple, nearly soliflore on me, there is tea blending in, perhaps a small cup of coffee resonating between the warmed up walls of the apartments, someone smoking a cigarette, a discreet giggle when a boy is kissing a girl goodbye on the doorstep. Urban romance. There is no refinery to this yet, it smells rich. Rich in it's simplicity and rich in memories. I love Noir de Noir, this is not the same, nor do I think was it ever intended to be. NdN is several hours earlier. NdN has taken off her shoes or tie, the jacket, nonchalantly swinging over the shoulder, walking home after a particularly exhausting party. It is bright already, the dew lingers on the rose petals... Oh that kiss earlier was so nice... I will sleep and wake up and there might be a text message on my phone. And perhaps we shall dance again in the Swedish summer night.