The Perfect Smoking

The spices are very well blended with the sandalwood. Expect a really elegant skin scent that can be subtly felt, but extremely pleasant once you put your nose on it. As I said, zero projection, but it somehow suits the type of smell. I actually think this is an acquired taste. I did not really smell anything the first time I sprayed it on my wrist inside a Zara store, but I was intrigued by it and decided to get a bottle. Once it arrived I have actually used this a couple of times during the quarantine, and really like it. In a way you may just use this as a "second skin" or something. Once it dries down, the smoky notes start to arise a bit and that's what's left on your skin, with a somewhat ctirusy feel. Interesting fragrance nonetheless, and weirdly non-linear for a Zara fragrance. 7/10.

This is not a Wonderoud clone. This one is very similar to Blackpepper. But a much lighter version. A really great release. Unexpected release. Not really Zara style fragrance. This is a great fall scent. Its smells like black pepper and in the drydown you get the incense and woods. This is a cozy day chilling in a cabin in the woods somewhere kinda scent. Must have from Zara.

This cheap fragance made me love sandalwood! Which I almost hated before. Its fresh and warm, mysterious and soooo pleasant to sniff. Not the best performance but for daily use I find it great. If you find it for half prize ant the end of some season (like zara usually does) its a steal! 8€!

Because of the name I expected a more smoky, cold weather friendly, intense fragrance. On the other hand this fragrance is fresh enough, classy and highly chill which was surprising for me. Pretty good scent to buy. Well done Zara

Well, well, well...The day has finally come and my signature scent, Comme des Garcons Wonderoud, is cloned! Or an attempt was made :) And without a doubt i bought it at first chance. Now let me first mention that I am on my 5th bottle of Wonderoud (and 3 bottles of Wonderwood gone) so I have used it in every possible situation in every stage of my nose. Wonderoud is so magical, it is one of those scents that you really need to wear over and over again, and sometimes give a break to get the best out of it. It’s one that easily causes nose fatigue, one that can make others crazy because while you think it is thin air - people around you are getting slaps of it. I really dont expect any of it from this Zara copy, but we’ll see. So far it successfully gives that CdG DNA, but only the highlights. And I must say I get whiffs resembling CdG Blackpepper too as it settles down. So kind of of a Wonderoud / Blackpepper mash up. I am loving it. It is fresh, simple, airy. So for the price and my love for Wonderoud, this is just amazing to have. I will elaborate my review after more wearings and a side by side with Wonderoud! UPDATE: Yes, just as expected, if you are buying The Perfect Smoking only to replace Wonderoud, you will be disappointed - that is if you are not anosmic to any aroma-chemicals used in Wonderoud. Then you might think this is a good clone. Please keep in mind that Wonderoud has some tricky ACs that one can't smell all the time (or never) and there's more going on than you might think. Luckily I can get (for the most times) the nuances in Wonderoud, the magic of synthetic Oud, magical sandalwoods from Javanol and Pashminol - even after washing my clothes. With this Zara creation those "wow" moments will not happen, but for daily use it will do the trick. The Perfect Smoking is very light, airy and certainly gives the "obvious" parts of Wonderoud, without reaching to same quality, complexity and longevity. But then again, the price justifies just to try it out and see it for yourself.