Versace
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
An almost shocking blast of peppermint crashes into sharp green apple and a squeeze of lemon, creating an effect that's simultaneously refreshing and synthetic—think mint chewing gum spritzed with apple body spray. The brightness is intense, almost aggressive, with that mint dominating everything else and creating a cooling sensation that borders on the medicinal. Within minutes, the apple begins to soften, but the mint holds firm, refusing to retreat.
As the opening pyrotechnics fade, ambroxan emerges with its peculiar salty-musky warmth, creating an unexpected bridge between the lingering mint and the rising tide of tonka bean sweetness. Geranium adds a slightly rosy, almost metallic floralcy that most wearers probably don't consciously detect but which prevents the composition from collapsing into pure confection. The tonka begins its steady march towards dominance, bringing almond-like nuances and a creamy sweetness that fundamentally changes the character from fresh to gourmand.
What remains is essentially a vanilla-ambroxan skin scent with a cedary woodiness trying valiantly to maintain some masculine dignity. The mint has long since evaporated, leaving only the memory of freshness, whilst the tonka-vanilla pairing settles into a sweet, slightly powdery haze with that persistent salty-ambery glow from the ambroxan. It's warmer and softer than the opening suggested possible, though still projecting that unmistakable sweetness that's become Eros's calling card—you'll smell faint traces of it on your shirt collar the next morning.
Versace Eros announces itself with the sort of brash confidence only a Mediterranean nightclub god could muster. Aurélien Guichard has crafted something deliberately polarising here: a mint-forward gourmand that crashes icy herbal brightness into a plush vanilla-tonka base with all the subtlety of a DJ dropping the beat. That opening salvo of crystalline mint and tart green apple creates an almost mentholated freshness, like biting into a Granny Smith whilst exhaling vapour rub, but it's the heart where things get interesting. Ambroxan lends a saline, skin-like warmth that bridges the gap between the arctic top and the decidedly sweet base, whilst geranium adds a rosy-metallic edge that prevents this from becoming entirely edible.
The vanilla accord is unashamedly loud—this is no whisper of Madagascar pods but rather a full-throated, tonka-bolstered sweetness that reads almost caramellic. Multiple cedar varieties create a pencil-shaving woodiness that attempts to ground the composition, though they're ultimately overpowered by that relentless vanilla-ambroxan pairing. There's a hint of vetiver and oakmoss trying to add gravitas, but they're bit players in this sugary performance.
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4.1/5 (9.8k)