A Spring Must-Have: Guerlain Vetiver

Source: www.fragrantica.com

It's a hot summer day in the French countryside. A gentle spring breeze softly caresses your skin. The smell of soapy green grass enters your nostrils with the feel of the warm sun on your skin with a touch of the nearby woods. The breeze slowly a little stronger and you get a nice waft of the nearby citrus trees. You can also catch whiffs of the spice market in the small village you spent the night in. The harmonious serenade of the natural earth relaxes you and brings the smell of freedom to the forefront of your mind. It makes you wonder why you didn't put on your finest tweed jacket and tee off that morning.

Hey, folks! I am glad you could join me once again. Sorry if that was a bit corny, but I am trying something new. Let me know if you liked it! As you can tell, I am quite passionate about this fragrance. This is Guerlain Vetiver and I truly believe this is an absolute masterpiece. I don't call many fragrances that, so you know that I truly think this one is excellent. I will stop blabbing now and get to the review!

Introduction

Perfumer: Jean-Paul Guerlain
Release date: 1961 (rereleased in 2000)
Class: Woody Aromatic
Scent profile: Classic


Notes

Top
Bergamot, Lemon, Mandarin, Neroli, Coriander

Mid
Nutmeg, Pepper

Base
Tobacco, Vetiver, Tonka Bean

(Many sites list different notes for this one, so my note breakdown might not be totally accurate)


The Scent

Opening

Vetiver opens with a blast of lemon and bergamot accented by neroli and fresh vetiver. It's like a blast of spring air after the snow clears. It's refreshing, beautiful, and uplifting. You get some of that soapy neroli in there as well. Which helps the vetiver smell so clean and fresh. The vetiver is bright and green, but also has earthy nuances, which leads me to believe it's of the Haitian variety. The lemon and bergamot are bright and uplifting, but not like juicy freshly cut citruses.


Dry Down

During the dry down it gets a bit drier. The citruses fade into the background. They are still there, but they are faint. This is where the nutmeg and pepper start to beautifully pair with the vetiver and neroli. It works to concoct a masculine aroma of a gentleman. A nice touch of dry tobacco is in there and something that resembles oakmoss, although I am not sure it's an actual note in here. It also has something that resembles some animalic civet, which was popular in fragrances at the initial release of this fragrances. It's not strong enough to call this fragrance animalic though.

Performance

This isn't a projection monster. It does project for about an hour and a half. It projects more than just a skin scent though for most of its life. I put it on at 3pm one day, then I woke up at 9am the next morning and was doing some stuff on my computer and I smelled something. I smelled my hand and Vetiver was still there. Granted it was only a vetiver and oakmoss fragrance by then, but I was still getting wafts of it. It lasted until noon that day. So, around 21 hours on my skin. It leaves a pretty decent sillage trail though. People will smell this on you, just not from far away.


When to Wear it

This fragrance works best in the warmer weather, but I think it would make a good signature scent and could be worn all year. I am not sure how well the notes would hold up in the winter, but I would still wear it. This is a gentleman's fragrance. I would say to wear it in at least business casual. This would be a perfect year-round fragrance for work. It's inoffensive, classy, and clean. This fragrance best suits men 30+. It does have an old school vibe, but I think it's totally wearable today. It's like a wool sweater that you never throw out because it still works perfectly fine.

Overall Impression

Guerlain Vetiver is a masterpiece, as I said earlier. I cannot even fathom the words to explain how this fragrance makes me feel. I love it. It just takes me to another world every time I smell it. I am sad that I only have a decant of it. I need a full bottle very soon. This has Guerlain all over it. Refined, classy, and ageless. This is a must-have for any man who takes himself seriously. Although this one works so well for me, it is more classic in composition, so I would not suggest a blind-buy on this one. Some might find it dated and old. However, I 100% suggest you sample this beautiful concoction. I also suggest checking out Guerlain's other offerings if you like this one. They are my second favorite house, besides Acqua di Parma. This one has thoroughly and deservedly earned a spot on my top 10, which doesn't change very often.


Conclusion

I hope you folks enjoyed this one! This fragrance is something that I am excited about! I hope everyone has a good day! Remember to say something positive to someone today! Let me know what you thought of the new format in the comments!


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