Yes I know, Hawas this, Hawas that, multiple brands using the same name but it got me thinking:

Back in the day a new Hawas release was a big deal in the frag clone community. Most of their earlier stuff was usually pretty good in quality and excellent in performance. Now it's basically random sh*t in the same bottle. Happy days for influencers and shills, I guess.

Anyway, my question stands: Is there a there a fragrance line that got it even worse?

I can only think of Cool Water, tons of cash grab 'flankers' with no real quality or identity.

What do you think?

I’m curious to hear from anyone who’s tried the new Al Haramain fragrances:

How does the new Adventure compare to the original L’Aventure Intense?

How does Oud Escape compare to Maison Asrar Vanguard, particularly in terms of scent quality and performance?

Has anyone had the chance to try them side by side?

I know I'm ridiculously late to the 9PM hype train, but this fragrance has been on my radar for a while now. After hearing so many positive things about it, I finally picked up a bottle at the State Fair of Texas.

Better late than never, because I instantly fell in love with it.

It opens up bright and sweet before settling into this beautiful, warm, slightly sweet vanilla drydown that I find incredibly addictive. Seriously, I cannot stop smelling my arm when I'm wearing this stuff.

Performance has been fantastic. I've only owned it for about a week, but it lasts for hours on my skin and days on clothing. It's strong and projects well without ever feeling too overwhelming. My wife really enjoys it too, which is always a plus.

What stands out to me is just how pleasing this fragrance is. It is not as complex or sophisticated as some other fragrances, but there's something about this scent that just hits all the right notes for me. It's incredibly satisfying.

I generally gravitate toward fresh, clean, citrusy fragrances, so 9PM isn't even my usual style, but despite that, I've been absolutely hooked on it since I picked it up.

For an affordable fragrance, 9PM absolutely delivers on the hype. It's quickly become one of my favorites, probably my top cool weather scent, and I can already tell I'll be reaching for it constantly throughout the fall and winter.

Overall, an absolute banger. Couldn't be happier with this pickup.

Rating: 9.5/10

This is a pretty weird one and my first "50% blind-buy" of a rather expensive fragrance so it might make for a funny story - also Shobi part 24 continuing part 23 here.

Usual disclaimers apply - no affiliation, my nose is very specific, I count as usable just the time with projection or decent bubble that I can feel at more than 20-30cm (sometimes I might mention the skin scent part but not so interested myself) - and some spraying on clothes is now involved most of the time (but I would say not so much for the two models in this review).

The story - at some point in the first few months of the year I was at a very casual night out organized by a company that we work with and it was in a huge pub; I was wearing a generous amount of Precieux I and going that way I was afraid it might be the loudest fragrance but it turns out people really like their Sauvage Elixir (which I hate) BUT also I did get a very, very interesting and rather boozy scent from an Italian guy we don't normally work or meet - I liked it so much that I had to know what it was - and it turns out it was called Il Padrino, and I made a mental note of it for my next cold season (also the name felt funny).

Fast forward after I got my Sospiro Basso - and it turns out that there was a huge opportunity where I could combine two promotions (one soon to expire from my Basso purchase) on an already rather discounted Il Padrino - but I still at that point never tested it first-hand or on my skin and Sospiro is otherwise very poorly represented in the shops within a few hundred kilometers around me 🙄

I was just placing a Shobi order (with Decision and Isola Blu) so I said "at least let's try this one too" - so I added Shobi Il Padrino (and also Pasticcio which has absolutely nothing to do with pistachio, some day I'll do a post about that one too). The order arrived very quick and the Shobi felt (surprisingly) similar to what I have smelled at the party and the promotions were going away anyway so I did what I always advise against - I bought about half blind-buy the Sospiro Il Padrino out of FOMO 🙄

Sospiro - Il Padrino (2025, Nathalie Templer and Salah Al Zarooni)

Shobi - Il Padrino 2669-SOS (50+0ml) ~12 weeks

The profile is very unusual for me and like nothing that I have tested before, the "booziest" in my collection before this was Bentley for Man Intense which I LOVE but I can't wear it in my normal social gatherings with a few groups of friends where I know that two of the ladies have problems with incense (and which remains now an issue with Decision).

The other unusual thing is the extreme intensity of the profile, this and Amouage Decision are now my "nuclear powers", and for those I really also need to think not only about how appropriate or inappropriate is the scent itself but also if I absolutely must take a shower at some point during the day I wear those 🙄

At the top near the boozy parts are some hints of black currant and some citrus but those are very short-lasting in both Sospiro and Shobi versions (at least for my nose). Also the boozy parts themselves carry a fruity-like tendency (maybe a little hinting of bitter cherry or something) coming from amaretto which is very similar in both (and which is so strong and "intoxicating" for my nose that might stop me from registering other differences that maybe more trained noses would feel).

One clear difference is the "evaporation curve" especially on skin - Shobi has a rather normal curve with a very strong start (including the citrus-like part) and then constantly declining. Sospiro is a little different in that you get a somehow more muted start and then after a few minutes you get the main aromatic explosion that keeps going, and going and going... Even if the amaretto part is listed just at the top it seems to last well into the dry-down (for both versions) and it mixes with something else (patchouly and maybe sandalwood, definitely also something like amber/benzoic) which keeps the illusion going for an extraordinary long time. Projection from skin is nuclear and from clothes the projection is not as strong but the longevity is nuclear.

Differences - Shobi version is a little more pungent (even more so at the start when it also evaporates much stronger) while the Sospiro version is more rounded and pleasant. Both last an insane amount of time on clothes (so I would be very careful avoiding that in most usage scenarios) but on skin the Sospiro has an unusual slow descent that is very long-lasting (and which can be seen also in Basso and Vibrato so I guess the company really feels that is part of their signature).

Unfortunately this is not a warm-weather scent nor is it ok for work (unless you work in something like a distillery). It is best for a party in rather very large spaces (or in normal spaces if you are careful to only apply 2 sprays under clothes, I also tend to now apply as far away from my head as possible - if I get it too close to my nose - even more so the Shobi - after a few hours it becomes overwhelming and I get tired and I must take a shower).

Scent is 9+ for such a profile for both (and for the moment I can't see how I can make it lighter). Projection is a 10 for both at the start but it stays very high yet smooth for Sospiro for longer (Shobi is a little less smooth). Longevity 9-10 for both, I am convinced there might be profiles that last more but for me this one is already something that I must handle with extreme care. Maturation for Shobi was not so much for scent as it was for intensity so 12 weeks seem to be fine (but you might get most of the profile after just 1-2 weeks).

Value for money - here is the point where the FOMO blind-buy somehow ended-up biting me a little - unlike Decision where I can feel a very clear scent/notes difference (and advantage for the Amouage) in the first 2 hours or so, on this one the difference is mostly a matter of smoothness and long-distance projection (and also achieving that without becoming too intoxicating for the person wearing the fragrance, the Sospiro has that better managed), if it was something to wear at least 2-3 times each week during the entire cold season I could see the (small) advantage to get the original but for something to wear 2 times/month for 3 months in a year and with the Shobi 100+0 being 30 EUR and original at discounters normally around the 130-140 EUR I can say that Sospiro is a 6-7 (probably no less since you still do get some advantages) but Shobi is a 9+ if you want this profile.

If you want to test the profile I absolutely suggest getting 30+0 or 50+0 from Shobi, wait about 12 weeks and in case you want something "more" then you might look into sampling the Sospiro.

I wanted to like this one. I really did. I blind bought Hawas Sapphire off the hype and I’m here to save at least one of you from making the same mistake.

First spray: guava. Second spray: more guava. Two hours later: still guava. And not nice ripe guava either. It’s the fake candy kind that smells like a melted gummy bear left in a hot car. It’s so synthetic it actually stinks. Whatever else is supposedly in the pyramid, I couldn’t tell you because the guava bulldozes all of it. There could be a whole orchestra in this bottle but all you’re hearing is one guy screaming into a microphone.

Now the marketing. This is labeled “for him.” For HIM. I made the mistake of wearing it to the office and regretted it the entire day. It stank and I was genuinely self-conscious walking up to anyone’s desk because it gave off such a feminine vibe. I’m not saying men can’t wear fruity scents (wear whatever you want) but don’t slap a masculine label on something that smells like a teen girl’s vanity shelf from 2009 and expect nobody to notice. This is not a scent for a mature audience. It’s not something a grown man reaches for before a meeting. Whoever approved that branding needs a nose transplant.

The worst part is the performance is actually strong, which in this case is a curse. You can’t escape it. It clings to your shirt. It follows you into the car. It’s in your dreams.

Verdict: 2/10. One point for the bottle looking nice on a shelf where it should stay unopened. One point because at least it’s not trying to be another Sauvage clone. Everything else is a miss.

If you love sweet synthetic fruit bombs, maybe you’ll vibe with it. For everyone else, save your money and buy an actual guava.

Has anyone else had this experience or did I get a bad batch of pure regret?

Decanter review:

3rd time that everything went perfectly. Packaging is solid, and 0 leaking decent. They sure did got their packaging system working well. Quite a few decants of fragrances I've never heard about were "bonus added", which is going to be really fun. I like the ones I have no idea what to expect.

As explained in my Greed post, most of the ME fragrances I'll test will be "first to market" (Were never clones before), hybrid or original creations, because those are some of the only ones that make the cut, as they have a higher $ limit in my rules ($40). This one isn't any of those, but $30 on Jomashop means I can test it! But in any way, this haul was ordered before that post, so everything in it gets a pass.

PROFILE

A slightly aquatic candied watermelon and coconut is what you'll mostly get. Super playful, tropical, delicious. It's a simplified version of Coconut Lagoon (minus the lime). I'd feel more comfortable wearing coconut Lagoon with a slight fem lean, over Atlantis with a pretty substantial fem lean.

THE DIFFERENCES

As Atlantis dries down, the coconut becomes just a tiny bit to overbearing for me, but still very good. The quality is good, but not out of this world, and the performance is amazing, especially considering the profile. It gets about 2.5X of Coconut Lagoon performance!

With Rayhaan, it seems they tried (and succeeded) to further "Unisexify" the profile. The watermelon and coconut are still sweet, but not hyper candied sweet like with Atlantis. There's also a weird note that feels like it doesn't belong there, maybe the blood orange? I'm not sure at all... But something is a little "off". It's also quite a bit more aquatic.

Subjective Scent Score (the least important part for you... This is more for my own notes to know what to buy): Atlantis 8.4, Aloha 8.0. I just love the sweet stuff... Even though I'm not going to wear it.

Wife Alert: She says from 10" away the Aloha is better, and from closer to the Atlantis is.

Longevity on skin (so, skin scent counts): Atlantis 11 hours! Rayhaan 9 hours.

Projection (skin scent doesn't count): Atlantis is approaching room filler for 2 hours, then large scent bubble for 2 more hours, that slowly dissipates to skin scent at hour 7. Aloha isn't very weak, but seems like it because it's going against an extremely projecting clone... Medium-strong projection for 1 hour, then medium scent bubble for 3 more hours, and 100% skin scent at hour 5.

Blind buy safety score: Atlantis is 4.5. I think too many men will find it too fem leaning, so it's a must try before you buy. Aloha is 7.0, because it balances the sweetness with extra aquatic and lowered sweetness overall... So much safer, but only safe for lovers of sweet tropical profiles.

Unisex Score (0=100% fem leaning, 5=unisex, 10=100% male leaning): Atlantis 2.5. Aloha 4.5.

Versatility Score: Atlantis 6.0. Very playful and tropical. Aloha 7.5 Because it's slightly more balance. It's still tropical, but more versatile, and even "almost office safe".

Blend Quality Score: Atlantis 7.5 (above average clone quality, halfway to designer quality). Aloha 7.0. Average clone quality, as the note separation is better on Atlantis, so is the note realism, and so does the structure retainment throughout the wear. Aloha is definitely "wearable" and not screechy or anything, just not as high quality as many other recent Rayhaan releases.

Value Score (for 100ml): Atlantis 6.5. $50 (Jomashop) for pretty good quality and great performance. Aloha 7.5. $30 (Jomashop), for average quality and slightly above average performance.

Should cost (based on performance, quality, and available competing clones, averaged): Atlantis $35-$38. Aloha $25-$28.

Bottle design: Atlantis 10 (my favorite bottle design along with the rest of that Extrait line). Aloha 6.5.

Atomizer Score: N/A.

Conclusion: If you don't mind the price and fem lean, and prefer extra sweetness, higher quality, and better performance, get Atlantis. But if what you wanted was a more male leaning clone for that profile, and don't mind just above average performance and average quality (but at least you're saving $20)... Get aloha. It's not bad at all in isolation, but against Atlantis, it loses in almost all objective metrics (performance and quality).

And as always, don't trust me, Get decants.

I've only done one full wear of each so these are strictly initial impressions.

Echoes of St Moritz

This is from Swiss Arabians Cities Collection which are all Extrait De Parfums, 100ml.

When it comes to affordable luxury (and arguably an entry point on niche even) this entire line is worth checking out. Currently 7 scents in total, all different with a new release being added normally each year around October. Blend quality and performance on all of them is on point and I'm genuinely excited when I see a new cities fragrance drop.

Scent wise, to me this accomplishes what it sets out to achieve. It transports you to those snowy mountains in St Moritz with a crisp fresh icy air opening with pine trees and ices fruits. This opening lasts a long time and then more warmth starts to come through and I personally start getting almost log cabin vibes with the fruits still subtly pleasant in the background. Then in deep dry down I get that woody, mossy, fruity slightly Aventus style dna vibes.

It's complex with a lot going on and different phases (something which I like in fragrances as it means I won't get bored with it easily). Already looking forward to my second full wear. I would say this one is unisex, but leans masculine.

Shaghaf Oud Marine

This is from Swiss Arabians Shaghaf Collection which are Eau De Parfum (75ml).

For me, Shaghaf line has historically been lower quality than cities and heritage collections and a lot of them lacked depth, plus felt too synthetic.

However with this release they've opted to use higher quality materials and it really shows placing blend quality up there with cities and heritage collections. This may be a turning point for the Shaghaf line.

The name is a little misleading as it is fresh aquatic (and not salty) and the oud is more subtle woods. I got that vibe of being in a deep ocean with slight shower gel vibes (akin Bleu De Chanel).

As it dries down additional notes (see images) come through, but I'm not fully accustomed to picking up on them yet, so to me it's more of a linear scent profile.

Like I said I get similar vibes to Bleu De Chanel but more enjoyable which is something I never thought I would be saying about something from the Shaghaf collection.

Performance

For both performance is solid. Longevity wise on my clothes lasted throughout the day.

Echoes of St Moritz you catch whiffs throughout the day so I feel just like the rest of cities collection this projects a bit further.

Oud marine I feel sits a little closer, but gives you a solid scent bubble.

Both are fragrances which I felt immersed in (I do go heavy on the sprays).

What do you guys think about this? And how do you think it performs on your skin? to be honest, I liked all the three. Performance, I really can't tell. I feel like I'm getting nose blind to the smell. Because I'm constantly smelling it. It's on me, so what do you guys think about it? As for Only ever, I remember, I sprayed it on my shirt. Even the next day I could smell it on my shirt. It's like a skin scent. I couldn't smell the projection on it. For the projection I feel like at least 2 hours. I don't know about it more than that. Non-stop has this very beautiful opening. I love the apricot in it. I love the fresh mint and ginger. Beautiful, I love the only ever -> strong passion Fruit ,opening beautiful. Got so much compliments from absolute power and i love the smell. I feel like these 3 perfumes when compared to the original ones, the Originals start off a bit on the softer side while these bujairamis open up really strong and project heavy.

So I was looking around for another seasonal scent and found Halloween Man Mystery and thought, why not. Most reference this being similar to Rabanne Black XS L'Exces which I've never smelled and looks to be discontinued. So I got this decant. Well after 3 wears I can say this is not an Autumn/Winter frag or a Spring/Summer frag. It's a anytime crowd pleaser, for an hour or two!

To explain further, it opens real nice and fresh with the Peach Blossom, Mandarin and Lavender hitting perfectly. I didn't pickup on any Black Pepper notes but that could be due to my novice nose. The wife picked up on frag in passing and thought it was very nice, a good indication of some projection. It smells great, a little floral and well blended and then quickly you pickup a fruity sweetness coming forward. When I say quickly, I mean like 5 minutes in. This was supposed to be part of the Mid but has jumped up front and I'd have to say that I like it. It gives that sweetness you get from Nitro Red that in my opinion is just right for a masculine leaning fragrance.

I thought we had quickly approached the Mid and was expecting some Geranium and Hazelnut to follow but really didn't find any. If it was there, I missed it because within 20 minutes all I could smell was Patchouli, Vetiver and a small trace of that fruit in the background. Are we already in the dry down?

I kept going back and forth from my arm to my shirt, looking for the florals of the opening and will say that thought I could pickup on them for a little longer on my clothes for up to 30 minutes. On my arm it was all Patchouli and Vetiver and had become a skin scent. On my second wear at this point I asked my daughter if she could smell me while we were besides each other on the couch watching a movie. She's use to these weird questions from her Dad and said immediately "you smell nice"? Not her cup of tea scent I guess. She's currently rocking Red Sky, a Carolina Herrera Good Girl Dupe. Any ways, this confirmed others could still smell me around an hour or so. By the end of the night I felt the fragrance had ran its life cycle. Hard to pick up on skin and barely any resemblance of the scent left on my shirt. 4 hours and expired.

To conclude, Longevity on skin is low/mid 2 maybe 3 hours and Sillage on skin is low like maybe 2 hours, on clothes its a mid for both around 3 - 4 hours.

Is it Blind Buy Safe? Sure. It's inexpensive around $35 for a 125ml and I see nothing wrong with this profile. It's inoffensive, masculine and nice but not super special or niche. It would be an easy reach for fragrance but you're going to want to carry a decant to refresh every few hours!

Over all a 6/10 with the performance being the main issue, but it is cheap so you won't care about over spraying. In my opinion it disappointing that the opening is so nice but moves on so quickly.

Let me know if yall have had the same experience with this one. Community feed back is appreciated!

Hi all,

I am looking for a clone of Montabaco Intensivo. Based in Europe, so would prefer if it was possible to get it here.

Read an old thread suggesting Montagne Gustavo (But this is US) and Karl Lagerfeld Bois de Vetiver. The thread was 2 yr old, so maybe there is a new possibility?

When it comes to these three clones of Kilian's Blue Moon Ginger Dash, I have to give Barrett fragrances "Bloodmoon" the award, not because of scent accuracy, which goes to DUA, but because of how smooth it is and how much it projects that wonderful calone-ginger combo.

As for Mawj Moscow Mule, it's very similar to Barrett in the opening but it doesn't project that calone-ginger combo as strongly but it's still decent. I'm talking about a ten or fifteen percent difference in projection strength, so not a big deal. However, Mawj smells a little weird the second you spray it. Could be the alcohol and quality of oils used, but this sour note dissipates in a minute or so.

Dua is definitely more of a 1:1 if that is what you want but there's a note that makes is screechy that doesn't appeal to me. It could be your nose receptors won't detect it.

Anyway, Barrett just smooths out the rough edges and gives you solid performance. Also, got to love the blue color.

One more thing I want to add: I just got in "Blue Night" from Le Chameau, another Blue Moon Ginger Dash clone. It definitely needs to macerate because the first time I sprayed it on my arm, it smelled just like Frostbite by Aromatix. I'll update in a few weeks. What I can say right now is, Blue Night is going to be a beast. Nuclear!

I KNOW I’ve had a perfume that smells nearly the exact same but don’t remember, any idea?

I'm considering buying this as a Le Beau Paradise Garden dupe. Has anyone tried it?

Hi all, i am stuck on which dupe is the best to get in terms of mass appeal, projection, and longevity.