hortus conclusus

First, a reminder to enter my Tauer perfume set giveaway HERE ! Well, Fathers Da y is nearly upon, us, and my mind turns to men's’ scents…coincidence, maybe. Today, I’m think ing about Ralph Lauren’s ubiquitous Polo line. I have to start this series of reviews of the entire of polo colognes by conceding that it does boast some of the most gorgeous ad copy in the universe. Especially now that the beautiful Nacho Figueras, the player for the Black Watch polo team, is the poster boy. Now if that doesn’t make you want to wear all RL, I don’t know what will… That, and the fact that the RL franchise is one of the most adept at presenting a coherent narrative of images and impressions that somehow convey that most elusive of things, ‘the good life.’ Be they explorers, cowboys, New England Ivy League types, or African snow queens, the lovely creatures that populate the Ralph Lauren universe all seem to possess something, some life, some ease, that the rest of us earth...

I just tried a tester of this straight musky scent and am impressed with it. I then checked online reviews, and was somewhat surprised to see so many people put this down, saying pretty much the same thing, every one of them--an unexciting, well-behaved musk. Suspicious, I checked my copy of Tanya Sanchez and Luca Turin's Perfumes, the Guide , and sure enough, he gave it two stars, and, you guessed it, said it was an unexciting, well-behaved musk. this just goes to show how much of the perfume-connoisseur business is, like other things like wine tasting and art appreciation, an Emperor's New Clothes deal. If one of the big players says something, God forbid someone thinks otherwise!

Ok, first of all, this has to be one of the worst bottles I have ever seen. SO CHEESEY. So. Late. 90’s. In the worst way. That sort of retro-girly-cosmo cartoon aesthetic that looks oh so dated now. But I sniffed, and liked. I don’t love it, but I feel the reviews I found when I was browsing the internets for other people’s opinions about this scent and in the perfume bibles were a little harsh. Ok, it smells a bit like D & G Light Blue. So what—is that a crime?If emulation is so bad, most perfumers should be locked up by now. Luca Turin was especially hard on it—one star? Come on, it’s not that bad. It’s nothing special, but it is certainly wearable. It is a straightforward fruity floral scent, good for a girly spring mood. It’s like carrying around a fruitbowl filled with apples, oranges, and lemons, which some fairy magicked so that the boughs of fruit blossoms were still on it. The sillage is not great, but, again, not terrible either. It’s something I imagine donning for...