Dolce & Gabbana
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The candied lemon announces itself immediately, a blast of sugared citrus peel that's simultaneously bright and thick, like breathing in the air of a confectioner's kitchen mid-glaze. There's a sticky, almost crystalline quality to it, the lemon's tartness muted but not absent, wrapped in granulated sweetness that clings to the air.
Orange blossom emerges within the hour, but it's the creamy, honeyed aspect rather than the green or fresh—imagine petals crushed into warm vanilla custard. The citrus softens into a hazy, fruity backdrop whilst the floral-gourmand marriage takes centre stage, buttery and enveloping with a hint of waxy indole lurking beneath the plushness.
What remains is predominantly vanilla—dense, slightly caramelised, with ghostly whispers of orange blossom's sweetness persisting like the memory of honey on skin. The drydown sits close but tenacious, a soft, edible skin scent that maintains its gourmand identity until the final hours.
Devotion is an unapologetic love letter to Italian pasticceria, rendered in liquid form by Olivier Cresp with the kind of technical precision that prevents it from collapsing into sugary chaos. The candied lemon opening—proper citron confit, not fresh juice—delivers that crystallised, syrup-soaked intensity you'd find in a Sicilian lemon tart, where the peel's essential oils meet caster sugar in sticky harmony. This isn't a fresh, zesty cologne; it's confectionery citrus, deliberate and indulgent.
The orange blossom heart keeps things tethered to the floral canon, albeit barely. Here, the neroli facets are suppressed in favour of the flower's creamier, more indolic character, which melds seamlessly with the vanilla base in a way that recalls orange blossom honey rather than soliflor purity. That vanilla is plush and prominent—likely ethyl maltol-boosted—giving the composition its almost edible density. It's the sort of vanilla that coats your palate when you imagine it, thick and rounded, with just enough of the orange blossom's waxiness to stop it feeling like straight buttercream.
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3.8/5 (174)