Opium Pour Homme

On the brink of being fully discontinued... I tried to find it in stores, and they said they will soon take it off the shelf. I managed to get a good deal on it. WOAH, this is something! Where has this been all my life? One of the most interesting and well-done thematic executions for a fragrance. The name Opium fits it so well. The initial spray is a hazy, fruity, minty black currant leaf combined with a strong, powdery, syrupy licorice and star anise. From the get-go, I'm getting a medicinal vibe, but not at all in a bad way. The opening lasts quite a bit until it settles immediately into a strong base of alcoholic vanilla and a very strange, lightly animalic, musky, woody amber of tolu. I am not so familiar with this note, but I can see that they couldn't have picked a better balsam. The animalic nuance stood out to me the most, so I've registered it from now on. It will, to be honest, catch you off guard. It has such a dirty, vulgar, sexual attraction to it as well. Like, this bottle is everything god forbade under the sun. It has allure, bravado, and it has mystique, but it has a self-corrosive personality. It smells like a week-long cocaine bender. A specific scene in the film Pulp Fiction comes to mind while smelling this, when Vincent loaded up his veins and went for a drug-fueled drive. It's so top and base-heavy, not much real complexity to it - just two transitions with slight hints of a crackling pepper (I'm interpreting it more as cloves) and galangal, which is like a more rooty, sweet version of ginger. It's about the quality blend however. Very narcotic... every whiff is addictive. It's blended so well. The creator had a vision in mind and executed it flawlessly. Nothing synthetic, boring or cheap-smelling about it. It's playing such a difficult game of balancing an alcoholic sweet vanilla, heavy blackcurrant, undertone spice, powder top of a musky, woody/animalic balsamic, and a "sterile" aldehydic soapy backdrop. The more I smell this, the more it's becoming a genuine favorite. I can tell right away that it will not go away in just a few hours, and it only needs 2-3 sprays. I don't want this to be any stronger than it already is. With all that said, it has a unique, nostalgic, masculine, classy/trashy vibe that's hard to pull off and requires a lot of confidence. I love this. Might pick up the EDP if I can find it. EDIT: Found the EDP and made a review already. Since this fragrance is still around I'll give my take on it here for those curious about the EDP; I have the EDT and love it a lot, so it became a favorite. So, I was curious what the EDP does. This one is gone, gone. Finding a bottle is pure luck. I happened to find a store that had a supply error with a tester, LOL. I pointed it out and wanted to buy the tester, but sadly wasn't allowed, so it had to be returned to the supplier. Dang it... but the lady was so kind to give me 3 samples, so I have like 10ml now. It's not as common these days that EDT/EDP meant "making it more concentrated." Instead of a label to sell a variation that smells completely different. Modern aromas are really strong these days, so EDTs can be just as strong and lasting. But it seems the case that this is actually an higher concentration of the exact same fragrance! With a much more pungent black currant opening, and it was already out there in the EDT. It does what the EDT does, but with a delayed fuse. Some of the soapiness is a bit muted compared to the EDT, making it slightly spicier. The EDT was already strong AF, but it was more balanced. Side by side, I honestly prefer the EDT, and I think I've already mentioned in my review for it that I don't want this to be stronger. The black currant here is bordering "too much" but the rest is the exact same unique personality the EDT has, but just delayed and slightly spice-forwarded and not as soapy. They're genuinely the same, and now I understand why they decided to scrap the EDP, because the slight difference is completely redundant. The touch of soapiness the EDT has makes it a more pleasant wear. However, it's still amazing. Get your bottles for the EDT while you can. You're gonna miss it when it's fully gone. Heroin addiction/10

THE OPIUM SUNDAY NOON SWEET OBLIVION It's Sunday afternoon somewhere between Savannah and Baton Rouge. There's nothing like southern comfort, wearing a tuxedo, eating vanilla cupcakes and drinking a spicy-sweet iced liqueur. It's sweet, it's strong, it's different, it's elegant, it's attractive. It's Saint Laurent, it's Opium! Opium is a very impressive fragrance. In the beginning, there was "Opium EDP", "Opium pour Homme EDP", "Opium Parfum" and "Opium pour Homme EDT". It got complicated later on with several flankers both for women and men. My favourite "Opium Pour Homme" has always been the original EDT for being more masculine, subtle and wearable. I had several flasks over the years and currently, I have only the last reformulation. My memory must trick me with the continuous use of this fragrance and I don't recall if the EDT first version was very different from the current one, or not. Twenty-something years went by and I am still in love with this fragrance. I know it's not as fashionable any longer as it was two decades ago. Probably younger men consider it old fashion either because they prefer the new wave of "Bleu", "Nuit", "Dylan" and "Sauvage", or because they never tried this YSL rough diamond just for being a release from the previous century. Well... young guys out there!... give it a try! It is at least as oriental and spicy as many expensive modern offers, if not more. It opens with a very strong sweet blackcurrant note and also strong star anise that adds a pungent sweet liquorice note to the fragrance opening. The opening sweet strong notes endure till the beginning of the drydown. The heart notes give you two spices to embrace a bit of the initial sweetness. The black pepper note is slightly stronger than the blue ginger although the latter kind of gives an Eastern tonality to the fragrance. The bottom notes propose very strong and pungent bourbon vanilla accentuated by the warmth of the ambary tolu balsam note and the cedar woody note. The dry down consists of a long voyage through an Indian / Chinese oriental sweet ambary scent and yummy vanilla. Let's check the sweet math of Opium EDT: ____________________ Scent Opening: 9.0 (a fantastic near animalistic blackcurrant note with anise) Scent Dry Down: 10.0 (super alluring balmy vanilla) Longevity: 8.5 (8 hours+ with two sprays) Sillage: 8.0 (more than 6-8 feet at its peak with 2 sprays) Uniqueness: 9.5 (Penhaligon's LP 9 is younger and very similar to Opium Pour Homme EDT; The similarity with Opium flankers does not count 🙂 Compliments: 8.5 (close to a serious compliment grabber. It's a head-turner because it arouses a lot of curiosity due to its pungent sweetness; some ladies just find it irresistible) Wearability: 8.5 (Use it day or night during all seasons except in the Summer) Versatility: 8.0 (You may use it in almost any event, although some perfumes are more adequate for specific situations. Avoid using it on the beach, sunny events and workouts) Quality: 10.0 (faultless) Presentation: 7.5 (elegant, effective and simple but a bit outdated) Price: 9.0 (100 ml non-tester for 31 Euros + shipping) ____________________ Overall rating: 8.79/10.00 between 8 and 9 = recommended; Opinion: One of the best exotic oriental scents for me. I like it very much. A vanilla gem. Recommended? Yes, but only if you like the scent of strong Orientals & sweet vanilla. Is blind buy worthy? No! Do try it before you buy it. I recommend this fragrance; I "order" you to try it at least! Music: Nina Simone's "Sunday in Savannah"

“The Roaring Nineties” was the fitting title of a book on the zeitgeist and economics of that decade. “Winning” the Cold War opened up the entire world and set the stage for spectacles of every thinkable inspiration and both real and imaginary journeys to any place on the planet, with an ever accelerating pace. Little wonder, then, that towards the mid decade, amidst the first war on European soil since 1945, there was a need to create a mental escape room from it all — a feeling that inspired soothing yet sexy music albums such as Morcheeba’s Big Calm from 1997. Jacques Cavallier’s Opium pour homme captured that notion impeccably, and released already in 1995 it was my companion to the latter part of the 1990s where we all spiralled faster and faster towards a new millennium. Gifted to me for Christmas I was immediately stunned and the setting of just that season was its perfect backdrop. Yet it smelled of nothing I was used to in men’s perfumery; Oriental does not mean Christmas spices in this context. Opium pour homme is in a sense the powerhouses of the 1980s adapted to a new, global reality where everything was new and familiar at the same time. It is more sophisticated and more traveled; well trained and muscular but calm; eager, curious and open eyed, but learned at the same time. The barbershop vibes in OPH are somewhat exotic and new, even to this day. Where scents such as Jaïpur pour homme layered oriental spices atop the classic barbershop base, OPH integrates it all in a manner that feels innovative 30 years on. Perhaps it is the tolu, I would not know. And while we talk about spices: some of Cavalier’s stroke of genius here is to use galangal and other scents that are not quite the everyday orientals every one was and is familiar with, adding to the blend of the new and the known. There are also some animalic nods in the direction of Aramis, and perhaps Dalí pour homme, but executed like it was an elegant fantasy beast from a Japanese manga universe or the winning album of the French cartoon festival in Angoulême 1995. All in all, OPH is not easily categorised, but that is also the point and a great strength. Performance is perfect, if you prefer a strong EDT performer to the “beast mode scents” of the new millennium. It is quite linear after the first 30 minutes. I should mention that OPH is by far my most complimented scent through the years, yet it is absolutely not a summer scent. I mistakenly brought an unlabelled small bottle with me for a summer’s holiday the other year. OPH was in that context as misplaced as wearing an ushanka — the Russian winter hat with furry ear flaps. A note on vintage, reformulations etc.: I bought a bottle in 2018 that was perhaps slightly off compared to the original. But my 2023 purchase brought me straight back to my last “vintage” bottle from 1998. Do not hesitate to try.

Opium, the sin of the skin Yves Saint Laurent Opium Pour Homme EDT, is a piece of art of perfumery, synonymous with masculine luxury. Please do yourself a favor and add it to your collection until it's too late. Warm, alluring, Opium Homme is a creation of the house of YSL, a response equivalent to the perfume launched for women, well known by the community. I don't know if he wanted to be a success from the beginning, but over time he gained his respect and now is a reference of world perfumery. It is so well composed and the quality of the ingredients is so good that even a less trained nose can discover almost every note. For me, YSL Opium Homme is the perfume that highlighted the best note of bourbon vanilla, and the combination with blackcurrants makes it particularly syrupy, sweet and slightly aromatic. The star anise in the opening and the pepper give it some spicyness, tilting the balance towards to the masculine side. Tolu balm, cedar and vanilla bourbon together bring the scent into the category of woody spicy orientals. Very chic, Opium creates the addiction, having a special refinement typical of france perfumery, the transition from one note to another being done smoothly. The scent, as you would expect, has no sharp, no rough edges.. . Vanilla practically covers him with a soft blanket, creating a feeling of addiction from which his name is probably derived. Lascivious and seductive, Opium has an elegant and masculine touch, a little sober marking a high degree of complexity. The performance is amazing considering that we are talking about a fragrance that has passed through several formulations over time. YSL probably wanted to keep this jewel of the senses intact. It lasts on the skin for about 8-10 hours with a sillage and a projection of over two hours. The scent does not change much over time which is a good thing because you will have the beautiful feeling of the opening until the end. As for the bottle glass, elegant and classic, typically masculine, typical of the '90s. It is an elegant, seductive, extroverted perfume that offers and demands attention. Wear it to special events and you will feel special. Be careful to match it with a correct, distinct outfit and it will shine. Otherwise you will have ironic smiles. The fragrance must be well known and feded with good taste. A superb autumn perfume, in which you want to immerse yourself, induces a feeling of well-being, it dresses you in some pleasant aromas that you would never want to get rid of. Jacques Cavallier created here a masterpiece of perfumery, a painting of aromas. If it had appeared today, it would no doubt have been part of the Le Vestiaire de Parfums collection.

Yves Saint Laurent Opium Pour Homme EDT is deceptive, I have the 2022 reformulated variant but it's DNA is still very similar to the original formulation. It's deceptive because modern fragrances are designed to primarily match their initial spray scent, then as time goes on you'll see slight changes in the scent profile; yet with Opium PH EDT its sneaky, the first spray will be an offensive ginger/spice/pepper assault & nothing else, but after 5 minutes the fragrance completely changes, once the harsh spices fade you're only left with hints of that opening "spice bomb" & what follows is the most unique fragrance journey ive ever experienced in 40 years. OPIUM EDT is the antithesis of linear. It's dynamic & that's even with new batches. . . After 15 minutes you're enveloped in a creamy, minutely sweet, vanilla musk, with hints of citrus & powder. For a 1995 fragrance its a modern spin on the monolithic 20th century spiced ammonia scents from Grandpa's bathroom... if you sniffed this on first spray you think it's a generic old man scent & you're right... but the magic is waiting 10 minutes.... it's dry down after an hour reminds me of another hard to find fragrance Prada L'homme, but without the iris. . .you don't get anise & black currant in their true forms, only their earthy citrus variants. This is not safe to blind buy, it's vanilla is perfectly in the middle but by no means gourmand, it's true vanilla without the sugar... earthy, Slightly animalic, it's actually if old spice has improved its scent DNA & added hints of freshness with creamed citrus undertones. FOR SPICE LOVERS, the opening is deceptive, while the spice will be there always, it's not as powerful as its opening, so don't get upset. It goes from 100% pure spice to 75% spice. I do consider this a mature scent but not as mature as a Terre D'hermes that I see 40 plus. Opium EDT once dried down is good for late 20s and above. Definitely not a teenager scent but if you like it then sure. Fall/Winter/Cold Spring days/Dates/Under Spray if using indoors for work, honestly this is a 1 or 2 spray fragrance for indoors, so it will last you easily a year plus, and for price you can't beat that... Lastly, I know many men don't layer but you should because Opium is a great base layer for fragrance combinations...if you want to sweeten it up or even make it more vanilla I'd use those scent types...