Apollonia

Apollonia- marketed in recognition of the Apollo mission to the moon. Cold and dusty. Airy and otherworldly. Xerjoff absolutely hit the mark. This fragrance is unlike any fragrance I’ve ever smelled. Nothing warm and inviting in this beauty. Orris dominated. The musk is only there to keep the longevity for sure. My mother used to grow Iris beside of her house. I remember digging up the bulbs to replant them in other locations or to give them to her neighbors or family for their flower gardens. If you have ever cut open an Iris bulb, which is Orris root of course, then you will completely understand why I say the musk is only in this fragrance for longevity. This fragrance is very airy. It reminds me of opening a box of Kleenex and smelling the fresh airiness. Very comforting indeed. Extremely unique. Lasts for days on clothing but not so much on the skin. I’ve seen here that people reference this to Narcisco Rodriguez. I completely disagree. I absolutely despise those fragrances. The musk is so synthetic. Not to mention all the other white floral associated with NR fragrances. Nothing at all like the quality musk in Apollonia. Apollonia is unique and absolutely beautiful. But believe me. Not for everyone. You must really sample this one before you blind buy it. The bottle and presentation are amazing. Pieces of artwork just like the lovely juice inside. Xerjoff really knows how to blend a fragrance to perfection. Even if it is not something you personally would wear or enjoy, there is no denying that they got a grip on blending to perfection. Another beauty given to me by my beloved 😍 Note: Please do not go down the rabbit hole of listening to what other reviewers say a fragrance reminds them of. More than likely it’s just the way they are smelling the fragrance and believe me FRAGRANCES ARE SUBJECTIVE TO THE INDIVIDUAL.

This smells like space. It's very airy, there is nothing sharp or harsh about it, and there is no way you could not appreciate this scent. It is interesting how transportive Apollonia actually is, like it makes me remember being in outer space as though it evokes some memory. It's not overbearing in any way. For the simplicity of the fragrance, one would think from the scent profile that the scent is just ok, but I'm surprised to say it's amazing-- there is nothing about it that is just pleasant or nice or commercially made to be mass appealing or dramatic-- nobody wearing this fragrance could say they just like it. It's extremely beautiful. This smell is so addictive and good but so simple, I can't explain it. It has a personality, this scent. It isn't clingy, it isn't "look at me", it isn't boring at all. The person that wears this is a curious dreamer, an airy, free and innocent person who is utterly transfixed with existence. This is what I want to smell like all the time. You could wear this fragrance for the rest of your life and love it and never tire of it... I can't say that about any other fragrance I own because sooner or later, you tend to get tired of scents. Even the most beautiful scent you will want to put away at some point and take a break from it. This scent feels like more than signature, it's so vast and spacious that you could wear this anywhere and feel like it's a larger expression of who you are, like you're paying homage to some mission many eons ago from some far reaches of the universe. Like you're a living expression of the purity of humanity. What a life changing scent, to create such emotion and understanding.

I waited a while to do a review, as im sure mr Zayas jumped on the bandwaggon of being the first to review, probably before he even smelled the stuff! Myself and my wife were invited to the release of this at Fortnum and Mason, along with Sergio and Kostas, and the team set up an awesome VR system. The scent for me is xerjoffs best, (i actually bought two boxes there and then) I wear it, as i find it the most seductive and alluring scents in my arsenal. Its TOTALLY unisex, as it flips from side to side, and has an amazing drydown which changes the characteristics totally. When first sprayed, almost everyone would get a femme vibe, but the beauty of this scent is the drydown. Its got to be given some time to evolve on the skin, before you judge. Turins flower which sergio uses a lot is prominent, but it really does give both a light fresh airy scent to what seems to be a heavier deeper undertone. The depth is filled with Musk, and some other note which is really hard to understand (sergio states there are FOUR notes but one is kept secret) When we wore the VR and it showed us walking on the moon, the assistants wafted Apollonia under our noses, and it really does affect the senses in a wierdly wonderful way. My favourite Xerjoff right next to Naxos and Cavour1

Apollonia, as the feminine form of “Apollo,” means “belonging to Apollo,” Apollo being a recognized god of the sun. Though I indeed believe and enforce that any gender can wear any fragrance, I do see Apollonia as the feminine counterpart to this duo, the moon to the sun. The moon is maternal, feminine, and soft. Apollonia is exactly that: She is your nurturing mother, or the skin of someone you love closely. She is nostalgic and familial, but also romantic and intimate. Apollonia is a very natural white musk in a bed of orris butter. The white flowers come to play, but they are very small and only whisper softly, the kind of flowers that would grow in very dry moon dust. There is nothing overdone about this fragrance at all, it is subtle perfection and does not smell like a perfume. Indeed, it is much more personal than that. Apollonia speaks softly and does not need to shout to be heard; she is intelligent enough to use very few words in the most powerful way. Although I think Apollonia represents the divine feminine, I genuinely think anyone could pull this off. To me, femininity is the understated dichotomy of softness and power that Apollonia embodies, and femininity can be worn by any gender.

The simple note tree belies the true complexity of this scent. When it opens, its quite familiar to me. During the first few minutes, the dynamics and tones of the scent remind me of Etui Noir by Miller Harris. Etui Noir is a great love of mine, so I do indeed appreciate it. (I am not one who relates to perfumes only through the other perfumes they remind me of, but in this case, the familiarity truly colors my experience with Apollonia.) As it dries, the texture shifts and and develops subtly. It is dry and subtle, musky, with dusty white flower petals. It doesn't have punchy citrus notes or dark, voluminous base notes. It's sort of uniform in composition yet somehow dynamic. It can take a minute to figure it out. I love it. It's office appropriate without being boring. The projection is moderate and the longevity to my congested nose is moderate-long. I have a 15ml mini, and looking at the FB price on my favorite discounter, it is very reasonable for a Xerjoff. I get a similar overall effect from Etui Noir, though EN is more leathery and less musky, so I'm undecided if I'll buy a full bottle once I work my way through my 15ml bottle. Still, this is a wonderful blend.