If you love Montecristo cigars for their quality, this fragrance hits all the same marks. There are three in the line, Montecristo, Blanc and Noir. Montecristo being the 'signature' line, of course. I didn't apply fragrance yesterday in anticipation of getting these samples, and as soon as they arrived I broke them out and applied the Montecristo, as it is the 'signature line'. My initial thoughts on it are as follows;
Montecristo--T: Bergamot, Grapefruit & Pink Pepper / M: Black Pepper, Elemi & Geranium/ B: Cedarwood, Vetiver, Patchouli & Tonka Bean
It opens with a blast of bergamot, balanced by pepper in the back and I never did quite pick up on the grapefruit (which I'm okay with because I don't care for grapefruit). This frag then starts to settle into it's basenotes, I didn't get much in the way of the mid-notes but my allergies are acting up and another wearing may change that. It's in the basenotes that this fragrance really starts to hit on all cylinders for me, the vetiver used in this fragrance is so clean yet earthy at the same time, and the light dry cedar just sets it off. It's not until hours and hours later that the patchouli was slightly perceptible to me. The projection is beast mode yet not overpowering and I got 10-12 hours on longevity, very few last that long on me. So, use judiciously...a little goes a long way. For all you that love Montale, this fragrance puts me in the mind of a Montale fragrance for sure, and it's probably due to the vetiver used. I'd give this a solid 8 out of 10. As a side note, this did come to me in parfum strength, and will be sold as a parfum. I totally love Montecristo and it has found a leading role in my rotation for certain. Find it, and buy it...you can thank me later
As an added bonus, the wife loved it too. She likes brighter and clean scents on me. Hope this helps and I'd love to hear your thoughts on this fragrance as you try it.They haven't launched in the US yet, but I think you can get samples by requesting them on the fragrance house's FB page, Mille Centum is who did this fragrance. I also hear that when they launch in the US, it will be sold at high end cigar shops
