In searching for an EDT to match my Salter's Almond shaving cream, I roamed around the product information and reviews on Basenotes, and bought trial-sized vials of Lolita Lempicka au Masculin, Rochas Man, and Angel*Men, before reading about Cafe Noir by Ava Luxe (San Diego, CA-based Serena Ava Franco). I knew I had to have it... and I was right!



Scent: Opens with a blast of roasted coffee beans and toasted almonds (maybe the vanilla and mocha?), mellows quickly to a chocolaty-coffee, followed by a lengthy coffee dry-down with a hint of spices.



Complexity: I'll leave this for others to judge, but I'm not a big fan of complexity qua complexity. There's enough going on in Cafe Noir to satisfy my nose.



Staying Power: In a word, "formidable". I sprayed some on before I left home at 11AM, and when I got back at midnight I could still smell it, albeit subtly. (NB: two days later, and I can still smell it on my shirt...)



Packaging: Both lovely and sturdy; surely this photograph shows-off its bottle, cap, and delicious color.



Quality of Atomizer: I must've gotten the one faulty atomizer in the lot, because it just doesn't work well. OTOH, the atomizer unscrews easily, which permits not only applying it in individually-measured amounts, directly to pulse-points, but also allows one to decant it into smaller vials for carrying on one's person or sharing. NB: I emailed Ava-Luxe about the problem, and they're sending me a new atomizer assembly... good customer service!



Price: At $75 for 60ml, and $45 for 30ml, it's not inexpensive. However, it is an Eau de Parfum, and a little goes a long, long way.



Quality: Despite my frustration with the atomizer, I find Cafe Noir to be the highest-quality scent that I've ever used, and I recommend it without reservation.



Cafe Noir takes faceturbation to new heights! I give it a

------------------------------
My 2007-2009 SOTD entries
Two of anything is the start of a collection -- Hy Goldenberg
Home-Roasters Say: "Wake-up, and smell the coffee!"

I bought this without trying it first. I like hard to find/small perfumery fragrances so I thought that I would try it based on your review. Excellent quality, and very unique scent! I can't wait to try more frags from Ava Luxe. Thanks JB.