u/AbdullahAbuHelmiJr

After a couple of people mentioned the Extrême flanker in my last post I just had to try it for myself.

For around ~$78 for a tester bottle, I couldn't pass the opportunity of trying it and giving it a couple of full wears.

Extrême is the plum, tobacco and leather flanker of the bunch. While Extrême's leather note is supposed to be punchier, it is almost as subtle as the EDP's leather note. The plum, however, is clearly present in the opening and heart of the fragrance.

I do not like boozy fragrances and if plum is done closer to a "ripe" and almost liquor-y way I would not like it. But this is blended so smoothly and beautifully that I actively notice the plum note without it putting me off or coming off as too boozy, rather ever so slightly warm and sophisticated.

The tobacco note was a little disappointing, tbh. I wasn't expecting the heaviest or loudest tobacco note, but it's almost too tame. This is very smooth and well blended to the point where it lacks the tobacco punch I was looking for. Nothing takes away from the beauty, smoothness and the high quality of this fragrance. It's only my expectations that were misplaced.

Compared to the EDP, They open up quite differently. EDP is cherry and almond, bright and very sweet while Extrême opens up a little darker but only just, and a little less sweet (but still very sweet) with an ever so slightly boozy and well blended plum.

The faint tobacco and leather notes start to take over 1 hour into the dry-down while the EDP remains lighter thanks to the still-present cherry and remains slightly airier. You can "feel" the difference in thickness or "weight" of the Extrême, but only just.

Are they similar? Yes, very much so after ~2 hours in.

Is it redundant to own both? depends. Can your nose smell the subtle differences? if yes, I'd encourage having both. But for most people having both is redundant imho.

After a couple of people mentioned the Extrême flanker in my last post I just had to try it for myself.

For around ~$78 for a tester bottle, I couldn't pass the opportunity of trying it and giving it a couple of full wears.

Extrême is the plum, tobacco and leather flanker of the bunch. While Extrême's leather note is supposed to be punchier, it is almost as subtle as the EDP's leather note. The plum, however, is clearly present in the opening and heart of the fragrance.

I do not like boozy fragrances and if plum is done closer to a "ripe" and almost liquor-y way I would not like it. But this is blended so smoothly and beautifully that I actively notice the plum note without it putting me off or coming off as too boozy, rather ever so slightly warm and sophisticated.

The tobacco note was a little disappointing, tbh. I wasn't expecting the heaviest or loudest tobacco note, but it's almost too tame. This is very smooth and well blended to the point where it lacks the tobacco punch I was looking for. Nothing takes away from the beauty, smoothness and the high quality of this fragrance. It's only my expectations that were misplaced.

Compared to the EDP, They open up quite differently. EDP is cherry and almond, bright and very sweet while Extrême opens up a little darker but only just, and a little less sweet (but still very sweet) with an ever so slightly boozy and well blended plum.

The faint tobacco and leather notes start to take over 1 hour into the dry-down while the EDP remains lighter thanks to the still-present cherry and remains slightly airier. You can "feel" the difference in thickness or "weight" of the Extrême, but only just.

Are they similar? Yes, very much so after ~2 hours in.

Is it redundant to own both? depends. Can your nose smell the subtle differences? if yes, I'd encourage having both. But for most people having both is redundant imho.

I got this 100ml bottle for around $78. Sweet and elegant cherry with a high pitch almond with a warm touch of tonka and cheeky vanilla.

I have posted here before that I received a "new" batch of Hersh 2, an LV Imagination clone and that I wanted to test the new white crown batch vs the old gold cap batch. Here's my review after a full day and some of wearings.

The older batch's box has the barcode and QR code on the side, while the new batch's box has them on the back. Also, the 2 in the name "Hersh 2" is shiny and glossy in the new batch's box. Old box only has "EAU DE PARFUM" While the new box has "3.4 FLOZ" and "e100ml" alongside the "EAU DE PARFUM".

So I have received my old batch Hersh 2 with the gold cap and have spent a full day with both of them.

DISCLAIMER: I am extremely anosmic to Ambroxan. I cannot smell it for the life of me. Ambroxan-heavy DNA's like B540/TK NO.10/TK NO.4 are completely undetectable to my nose, so I may actually be anosmic the white crown Hersh 2.

I can confidently say that they are truly different. It feels like the white crown is a lot more airy and soapy and tea-y than the gold cap, at least in the first 30-45 minutes. The gold cap is a LOT more citrussy. and I mean a LOT more. Smelling both on my forearms closely makes them feel like the white crown is a "watered down" version of the old batch. It's worth mentioning though that the white crown has much softer and more soapy/tee-y smell the the gold cap. Which I find a lot closer to imagination. It might be that I am anosmic to Ambroxan which explains me smelling the citrus but nothing more initially from the gold cap. Also, the gold cap is less floral.

The white crown smells to me generally to be lighter on the citrus and more soapy tea clean while the gold cap is a lot heavier on the citrus opening which also lingers for longer.

After 30-45 minutes the gold cap basically turns into what the white crown started with. While the white crown is completely undetectable to my nose.

The atomizer on the white crown bottle is a joy to use. It is fully pressurized, not just mechanically sound to use, but fully pressurized with the finest mist you could spray.

All in all, I'm seriously contemplating keeping both, which is a scenario I genuinely did not have in mind. This could simply be an immature bottle of either of them so I shall let them both mature in my drawer for 2 weeks and revisit this and decide if I want to sell one of them later.

Thinking of Althair or Pegasus next. Will definitely be getting my hands on Naxos and Ani at some point.

What are your thoughts on expensive summer/freshie fragrances? are they worth it? What am I missing?