Born in Roma The Gold Uomo

Today’s review marks my return to the house of Valentino, a brand I enjoy for their consistently high quality designer releases, with Born In Roma Intense remaining my firmly established favorite from their portfolio. Released as a captivating limited edition that has unfortunately since been discontinued, the elusive Uomo Born In Roma The Gold has rapidly ascended to a position of high intrigue among collectors. The premise of this composition suggests a radical departure from the crisp, mineral woodiness that defines the core of the line, or the heavy, one-dimensional sweetness of its flankers, promising instead to deliver a luminous, resinous, and deeply warm olfactory experience. By purportedly marrying abstract solar brightness with a dense, heavy foundation of amber and vanilla, the house is navigating a space that attempts to capture pure liquid opulence within their signature studded aesthetic. Standing before this rare and fleeting release, the question remains whether The Gold can truly justify the chase and challenge my reigning favorite for the crown, or if it is simply a collector novelty better left as a footnote in the brand history. Let’s see if this fragrance stands as a brilliant pinnacle of gilded luxury or if it is merely a flash in the pan. Opening: The opening is sweet, powdery, and ambery. The primary notes I get are vanilla, solar notes, amber, and spices, with the vanilla and solar notes leading the introduction. The vanilla is what my nose picks up on first, delivering a creamy, sweet presence that is very Valentino in its presentation, feeling identical to the gorgeous vanilla utilized in Born In Roma Intense. The solar notes join it swiftly at the top as a bright, powdery, and radiant accord, carrying just the smallest undertone of a luxurious suntan lotion aesthetic. Working underneath this glow, the amber functions as a vital supporting note, adding a welcome layer of warm and resinous depth to the introduction. Lastly, a blend of spices lingers quietly in the background, presenting a warm, cooking style character that calls to mind cinnamon and allspice, all beautifully supported by the present nutmeg. The result is an opening that is unapologetically sweet and warm, yet remains uniquely bright and sunny thanks to the radiant lift of the solar notes. Dry Down: The dry down transitions into a sweet, ambery, and spicy experience. The primary notes I get are vanilla, amber, spices, and Virginia cedar, with the vanilla and amber now stepping forward to lead the composition. Structurally, the vanilla remains the undisputed star of the show, maintaining that same sweet and creamy Valentino style identity from the initial spray. However, with the solar notes now fully dissipated, the amber has risen to take their place, commanding the heart with a more prominent, warm, and glowing resinous accord. The spices and nutmeg continue their supporting role, albeit with a stronger presence that introduces an almost camphorous, cardamom like nuance to the blend. Beneath this warmth, the Virginia cedar forms a solid foundation of dry woodiness in the background, acting as a clean architectural stage for the primary notes to work off. Interestingly, I detect an almost aromatic quality here that reminds me of the lavender from Born In Roma Intense, but with no dedicated aromatic note listed, I must assume it stems from those unique cardamom like nuances in the spice blend. The result is a much sweeter and deeper experience that falls directly in line with the classic Valentino DNA, drawing remarkably close in profile to Born In Roma Intense. Performance: The initial projection is extraordinarily strong and easily capable of filling an entire room. The sillage perfectly matches this massive presence, casting a dense and heavy scent trail that is impossible to miss. After about three hours of wear, the performance remains largely unchanged, stubbornly projecting across the room and leaving that same heavy trail in my wake. It is not until the seven to eight hour mark that the projection finally begins to draw in, sitting at a still respectable three to four feet with a lighter but completely noticeable trail. The fragrance ultimately becomes a true skin scent around the ten hour threshold, demonstrating the exact level of exceptional, powerhouse performance that I have come to expect from Valentino releases. When to Wear: Born In Roma The Gold is a definitive fall and winter fragrance that functions beautifully for both daytime and evening wear. The radiant solar notes in the opening shine excellently under the sun, while the dense vanilla and deep amber backbone allow it to transition perfectly after dark. Regarding occasion, this composition stands out as an exceptional pick for special events like date nights or anniversaries, yet it possesses a sweet, easygoing nature that allows it to double as a cozy casual option. However, I would not select it for formal wear where its sweet profile might feel a bit too playful, nor would I recommend it for an office environment where its heavy gravity could easily become oppressive. Blind Buy: For established devotees of the Born In Roma universe, The Gold stands as a fairly safe blind buy. It respects its heritage by staying very close to the tried and true, mass appealing DNA that the house has masterfully curated, while introducing a highly compelling twist via the solar notes. Even for those who have not yet experienced this specific line, this release serves as a relatively safe entry point, completely forgoing any polarizing, animalic, or overwhelming notes that might deter a newcomer. Final Verdict: When evaluating Born In Roma The Gold, it becomes clear that this release demonstrates exactly what a flanker to an established line should be, a fragrance that stays close enough to the existing DNA to be instantly recognizable, yet remains discernibly different. I can truly appreciate how The Gold takes that immensely popular profile from Born In Roma Intense and injects a bright, fascinating twist with the solar notes in the opening, while staying completely faithful to what made the original so beloved once it hits the dry down. The performance is also nothing short of exceptional, keeping pace with the stellar reputation of the house. All things considered, I think this is a highly successful entry into the lineup. However, I still slightly prefer Born In Roma Intense, and with the two profiles tracking so remarkably close to one another, I cannot find a justifiable reason to hunt down and pay a massive collector premium for this now discontinued limited edition. That being said, if I happen across a bottle at an acceptable price, It'll be difficult to resist the urge to scoop it up. Scent: 8/10 Longevity: 8/10 Sillage: 10/10 Versatility: Average Compliment Factor: Very high Gender: Masculine Value: Fair

Why did you get so much hate on your release? I never understood the harsh critics of perfume influencer's, given that they're only looking into their personal liking rather than what others could think. (not everyone) Gold Uomo reflects that example perfectly, it got its critics on social media, but PLEASE smell it first before you judge. I would rather grab Uomo Gold instead of coral fantasy. Im a fan of it, I love the spicy notes with the solar notes adding to that touch of smell that it is not to strong. It really performs, I'd say on skin 7h, I seen myself wear this almost to any occasion or even in every season. It COULD be to harsh for summer but let yourself be the judge of that. I owned it on release, giving me the chance to start in the Summer, it did not disappoint, it grew on me and became something I would reach for a lot. Please, try it, if you can't then listen to their critic's. Since every opinion / smell differs, give it a try it could be worth it. Not BB safe, given its special, or almost the same to purple and of course the designer price. imo: 7.5/10

To sweet for the hot, to light for the cold. Not sure if I like this enough to wear it anywhere in between, I just got it as a gift. Reminds me too much of one million, and I do NOT like the one million dna I think it’s unbearably sweet idk what they put in that stuff to make it smell how it does. If you like the one million dna and want to wear it year round, this is an easy pick. Otherwise, 🤷🏽♂️. I can’t get over how much this reminds me of one million. Edit: I got over the one million smell, it actually smells More like bir intense but a lot brighter and way more pleasant. I lied I love this stuff. I should have taken the time to really try it out and in this fall weather it’s great. Reminds me of the sun and it’s not at all too sweet or too pungent. A nice bright warm vanilla nutmeg mix. This is great get your hands on it

I smelt this in a store and that was enough to make me fall in love with it, if there were words to describe it would be like a warm spring fall day with vanilla and amber it’s a very mass appealing fragrance that many would love it may not be for everyone as most don’t find the “Uniqueness” of this fragrance compared to the BIR line when in my opinion this fragrance has some of the BIR dna but it still differs from its predecessors very much for it to be unique and most wouldn’t know from a whiff of it to be a BIR fragrance. Great for all seasons day , night more or less night but still versatile and not to strong to give everybody a headache

Really good sweet amber and spice, I get a lot of the nutmeg and solar notes and it all blends well. Much like the Donna version, this flanker reminds me of the first Uomo Roma a bit. The wear time is really good, 4+ hours and it also does well in the heat. For me, this is a good spring through fall scent. Projection is great, for the price it's a decent amount of juice. Not sure this is an *outstanding* new release, but I do enjoy it nevertheless. Masculine leaning, work safe. Purchased from: Sephora

I've had this for a few months, and I just got a decant of JPG Scandal Pour Homme Absolu, and they're almost identical. This might be slightly sharper, but honestly, if I closed my eyes and smelled both one after the other, im not confident I'd be able to tell them apart.

Og born in roma × yellow dream, great scent with good projection and sillage, should have been an edp like the intense. Cant wait for the winter release! 8,5/10

I don’t have many colognes to compare it to, but it smell really good in my opinion and I get many compliments. A bit expensive for what it is, but good.

This is just a very pleasant smelling fragrance. Balance of fresh, sweet and spicy. Nothing groundbreaking. Just really really nice.

Wish it wasn't a limited release, pretty good not top 5 Valentino but smells good

I find it not overly masculine and actually prefer this one to Donna version.

wtf is a "solar note"???? how do you get it and how does it smell!?!?!?!

this fr last like 15-20hr with only like 2 sparys

Edit: I did really like this at first but it isn't that fun to wear, more easy to wear, which I do like about it. But a whole bottle would get boring eventually. It's more of a solid sweet scent dumb reach. I do see the comparisons to JPG Scandal Absolu, but Scandal has a great dry down that reminds me of Althair, just in the way it goes from super sweet to drier and spicy. I have sampled both BIR Intense and Coral Fantasy (for the rest of the review I'll be comparing it to those two) and what I like about Gold is lighter and has much more lift. The performance is decent and not nearly as overwhelming. Nutmeg and vanilla in the opening fades more into the amber and metallic notes which makes it different. It isn't nearly as soft and dense as the other I'd give it like a 6.5/10 and worth sampling to see if you like it.

I'm starting to think, based on their past recent releases, that their target consumer is Gen Z. It seems like they want to get the youths attention, anyone below 30. These releases have all been youthful, fleeting, sweet, etc. Nothing really hits the way Uomo or Uomo Intense did. It'd be nice if they dropped something outside of the BIR line, take a chance on something for more masculine leaning. Update 12/15/24 I revisited and this was a thought that crossed my mind..... The original Born in Roma but add warm spicy notes (an autumn/winter version of the original). Could the Solar notes just represent salt+mineral+aldehydes? This is not bad at all if you are a fan of OG BIR' bubblegummy, mineral scent.

This is very pleasant, it honestly reminds me of a more masculine version of YSL's original Libre. The initial first minute is very spicy but after a minute or two it becomes a very soft vanilla amber with the slight hint of citrus, spice, lavender and wood. But all are much more in the background with that vanilla/amber up front. Its not necessarily gourmondy or overly sweet at all, I would say its more of an airy scent. It honestly seems like the perfect autumn day scent. Just soft and comforting yet still in a masculine way.

If you miss Boss The Scent Private Accord you’ll love this! It’s near on identical to my nose, only difference is UOMO The Gold has a slight spicy undertone but it’s negligible. There is also a ‘sweet’ element that reminds me of ‘Azzaro The Most Wanted’. Nothing groundbreaking, the longevity is not bad at all considering this is an EDT, I get around 6 hours of projection on my skin, I can detect it on clothing the day after.

This smells good but that's about it. For a fragrance named the gold you'd expect something fancy or a bit daring. But no, this is just a designer sweet amber fragrance. Don't get me wrong, this smells good, this is good perfumery. But I expected more. Performance is good, even if this is a bit soft. It's a good fragrance for fall.

This to me is the best release in the born in Roma line second being rockstud. The limited releases are the best! Update after wearing for a couple days. It’s like a mix between yellow dream & the intense just minus the bubblegum & pineapple sweetness & add some floral solar jasmine.

The opening isn’t that great. The solar notes smell weird, but it gets much better once they’re gone. It’s sweet without being too loud or in your face. I’d give it an 8/10.