Moonlight Whisper Intense

Before we begin, I would like to point out that this Intense edition is not a more concentrated formula than the original Moonlight Whisper, where the perfumer increased the percentage of perfume or strengthened some notes and weakened others. Intense resembles the original; it is a spin-off. The nutty atmosphere is the same, but some peculiar nuances are noticeable only in this version. What is certain is that they are not birds of a feather. So, let’s dive in without further ado. Moonlight Whisper, the Intense version, is supposed to have a sweet and warm touch of caramelized pistachio. Well, I do not detect any sweetness in my nose, but what I get the most is a burst of a rather bitter and slightly alcoholic aroma on me. I feel a lot of bitterness from nuts and seeds, which reminds me of hazelnuts and almonds. The benzaldehyde is sharp with nuances of bitter cherry, marzipan and liqueur. Synthetic, no doubt, but so real, intriguing, craving, like a magnet. Imagine a boozy bitter nut, like an almond liqueur, an amaretto, viscous, juicy. I let the alcohol settle and the scent grows into a deeper bittersweet nutty cream with spicy and caramel undertones. There is an exuberance of ethyl maltol, similar to caramel and toffee, milky and lactonic, with the bitterness that distinguishes almonds. I have read some reviews that associated this opening with that of Pi Eau de Toilette, and in a way, I can confirm that the two scents have some points in common, but then diverge and go their separate ways. However, the real pistachio aroma detectable in the original is not there, but the bitter almond and heliotrope aroma overdoses in the Intense. If you are familiar with its rich, decadent and authentic pistachio flavour, which is delicious spread on toast, poured over ice cream or nestled between cookies, then you will not smell it. If it were, this scent would be inspired by Yum Almond Gelato. Meanwhile, Moonlight Whisper takes on creamy and balsamic tones. I still smell the liquor scents that are reminiscent of an aromatic rum. Mint notes emerge and blend with other creamy and lactonic notes, reminiscent of toffee, with hints of whipped cream and mint leaves. Accompanying these accords are the floral notes of sweet jasmine contrasting with the bitter lily of the valley. Among the soapy white flowers, there could also be the delicate and velvety petals of the rose, with a green hint of geranium leaves. The bouquet remains in the background and the heart is creamy, with touches of resin and talc. Some skins, like mine, might accentuate the rich, powdery and spicy nuances of cinnamon, a veil, a dusting, nothing spicy like Indian food. Finally, the perfume dries down with a relentless creamy base of coumarin and sawdust. Vanilla, tonka, and some blond woods leave a long-lasting and deeply seductive trail. The Iso E Super is detectable but not overpowering, while the sandalwood adds creaminess. The base also features a sweet pine accord, camphoraceous and resinous, with a grassy undertone. Still nutty, the trail is more woody, dry, powdery, a little spicy, and tenacious. Moonlight Whisper Intense is an essence above all bittersweet and floral. However, I do not like to define it as gourmand. The perfume, although delicate, lasts a few hours on my skin. It is labelled as “intense”, but on my skin, it is not excessive and does not have a huge push. It is not too heavy or cloying. I prefer to wear it during the fall and winter without ever being too heavy. It is bittersweet but done in a balanced way. I have read many reviews describing this more masculine version, but it is just a matter of taste and preference. This is just more bitter and deeper, but both fit all genders, if you like them without prejudices or labels. My impressions are based on a bottle I have owned since January 2025 (BC 43040, PD 2024-10-30)

the longevity is insane with this one. you can still smell it on your clothes a week later. i rate this a solid 10/10 for winter especially. it just does it for me. i got complimented a billion times wearing it when layering too! i used the vanilla Pink body lotion and body oil as a first step after the shower, and then i added a pistachio choco body mist from “And other stories”, then i wore the perfume and its scent never left my shirt and jacket. it felt prominent and i always feel powerful and yummy wearing it too. it’s not extremely feminine but it is feminine at the same time. you smell like a creamy pistachio chocolate treat after it with so much vanilla! it is overpowering but very worth the price and more :) it’s definitely my signature daylight winter scent, oh and the long lasting scent on your shirt ends off very coconutty. a week later my top smelled like a frosted coconut. this fragrance is truly magic and so comforting haha <3

Easily, one of Zara's masterpieces in their entire perfume collection. One of their longest lasting scents, it projects, it does it's job. Also one of the rare occasions where I prefer the "intense" counterpart of a perfume. This literally surprised me, I got the bottle right away. It smells comforting, like a nutty marzipan accompanied by a strong vanillic woody notes.The violet helps it ground the perfume and not make it smell "sticky" and headach-ey inducing. Somehow making it smell fresh as well. I bought this in summer so I'll try to be conservative with it's use so I can experience it during winter. God I love it. Edit : So, I used this perfume once, sprayed it pretty heavily, left and when I came back home 5 hours later I could still smell it in the air upon entering my room...loves it.

Wasn't planning on buying it, but after smelling it in-store I couldn't leave it! A marzipan-like yummy sweetness. Longevity is good, I still smelled sweet fresh soapy scent on my wrists and sleeves after 6 hours. I do over-spray though, because I feel sillage is not that strong. After an hour or so it is more like a skin-scent, so I may have to wait for the scent to get stronger over time. If only I could put the bottle down because I keep re-spraying and even before bed I like to have that scent around me. EDIT: Strength and sillage has improved overtime (I'd say 4 months). Love it!

I absolutely love this! It is as good as the higher priced pistachio perfumes I have purchased and at a ridiculously affordable price. It smells like pistachios throughout wearing, with subtle almond and vanilla,is creamy and smooth. It is a great gourmand and perfect oriental vanilla. I sense no bitterness or synthetic elements at all. I have let it sit for a few months and that has probably improved it by allowing it to settle and macerate. It is not cloying or too overpowering at all on my skin. The fact that I can spray it liberally and even over-spray is a bonus.

Run for it! I bought this great perfume yesterday at Zaras boutique in Oslo, and im already so bewitched, and of cause l should have bought 2 bottles, or maby 3, or, the rest of them left in the shop... It smells so good of mostly the almond, and some pistache, and vanilla, it reminds me of Fazers liqueur fills Maraschino, and it smells ever so good on my youngest son (26), so l also will label it unisex, and l think it's for everybody else who wanted to smell better than the rest of you! And, lots of congrats to Zara for making this extraordinary good perfume!

One of the best scents of the house of ZARA. Sweet, but still fresh and uplifting, no brainer spray in any weather that is above 18c. Sadly, as typical for ZARA, no longer available in the original bottle/formulation and the EDP they replaced it with is not even remotely as well done as this one - they have simply switched to lower cost/quality ingredients and didn't blend them well at all there, so if you somehow still find a lone bottle of this in your local ZARA store, grab it before its gone.

This is the closest I've gotten to amaretto in scent form, and I absolutely love it. Very syrupy, dense and sweet; all of the elements blend together beautifully. Easily one of my favourite perfumes Zara has ever done, and it's a shame it was only available for a year. Thankfully I was fortunate enough to pick up two back-up bottles on clearance before it got discontinued. My only issue is that I find I become nose-blind to it very quickly; you probably don't want to overspray this.

I picked this perfume up in hopes of finding a stronger, and more affordable version of Yum Pistachio. Well, this is definitely more affordable, and stronger! It’s not quite as complex and yummy as the original. MW also is a bit more fresh, smooth, and unisex. It’s definitely close enough for me though! I love this one so much!

A less citrus forward version of Yum Pistachio. Perhaps a little more marzipan and almondy but extremely similar. The powdery dry down is the same as well. Yum!

Yummy Pistachio Almond Vanilla scent! The intense version last longer than the regular.

Intensely pistachio and heavy! Not good for layering, all you’ll smell is this.

If you are looking for a yum pistachio dupe, here you go. It is a sharp pistachio, not creamy. The pistachio note will be with you throughout the day. The vanilla spun sugar vibes are at the forefront even on the dry down. I don't think I get anything woody in the dry down. Overall, it's a pleasing fragrance. Don't get this if you are looking for a Brazilian bum bum cream dupe. It does not have that creamy tropical pistachio vibe.

I am not sure it’s pistachio, but I get nutty, almond marzipan smell. I like it. I also have the regular one, which is less nutty I think. I prefer the OG as it feels more perfumy and aromatic perhaps because of Bergamot and cardamom, though I can’t discern those notes as it’s a well-blended perfume.

Moonlight Whisper isn't silvery, cool or radiant like moonlight is. Just saying, it's a very warm, woody and creamy perfume. Also with the Intense version, this perfume does not whisper.

Too heavy, strong, raw, and bitter. If I had to describe it in one word – cheap. It doesn’t suit this hot weather; perhaps it would fit better in a winter setting. I bought it on sale, so I don’t regret the money too much. I can smell pistachios, but in a sweet way that doesn’t blend well with the rest of the scent. Behind it all, there’s a lingering cheap car freshener vibe. It’s unpleasant for me to wear. At first, it’s really intense, then it starts to settle and becomes more tolerable, but I don’t see the point – there are far better perfumes out there. This one is simply a miss. Rating: 3.5 / 10

When curiosity strikes coz of the hype ... Not sure if i like or hate this, it’s not yummy or creamy nor sweet i don’t know it’s just strong vanilla floral that make me nauseous.Kind of floral mature way. But the dry down not bad i quite like it! I let it macerate if scent changes.. Layering tips: red temp. Sweet and this really nice 😊

Kinda bummed. I had high hopes for this based on the notes and descriptions by others. I have to say it smells really nice in the air....but on me it's very sharp and extremely synthetic. Sometimes synthetic is okay....but not with this one. I can smell the pistachio and almond cream in the background, but only behind this sharp synthetic/chemically note that's making me wince, unfortunately. I'm going to let is sit for a couple of months and see if letting it age a bit will mellow that sharpness. We'll see. If that doesn't help, I suppose I'll try selling it on Mercari or Poshmark - hopefully it'll end up in the hands of someone that loves it and will smell better on.

This was not for me. immediatly smelled like plastic. when that finally wore off the pistachio and some other scent (maybe marzipan?) was just overwhelming. My fourth Zara fragrance fail.

This is a lovely fragrance for winter but I'm in two minds about it in getting it. Yummy fragrance but reminds me of YSL Manifesto and it's flanker YSL Manifesto Elixir which I already have. If you want a yummy,ong lasting perfume and will get compliments, this will be right of your alley.

I was in the waiting list and I finally got it. I expected more. And indeed is more overpowering than I expected.... Not office friendly in my opinion...

the opening is similar to givenchy pi.