Alain Delon Plus / AD Plus
Alain Delon (1987)

Alain Delon Plus (1987) is for all intents and purposes a revision and performance bump to the original house-launching Alain Delon (1980) fragrance for men. The original scent was a floral chypre with some fougère touches that sort of acted as a precursor to things like Oscar de la Renta Pour Lui (1981) and a bit of soapiness that linked it to scents like Paco Rabanne pour Homme (1973), making it difficult to categorize but easy to enjoy for fans of geranium, which was easily the original scent's most prominent feature. With Alain Delon Plus (sometimes referred to as AD Plus), then-modern inclusions of aromechemicals in addition to a greater focus on florals created something smoother, more chic, but also more potent than the 1980 scent. Alain Delon Plus was the powerhouse that Alain Delon was not, and also a more conventional and sensible alternative to the full-tilt animalic rose chypre that was Alain Delon Iquitos (1987) released in the same year. Like the actor, the entire house never had long-term sustained success outside France, but those who knew the brand loved it, and felt part of something special not everyone else was in on. Alain Delon Plus also seems to try a little harder to bank on the sex appeal the actor himself was known to have in the 60's and 70's, as it's very sauve, approachable, with touches of youthful sweetness mixed into the clean soapy aromatic fougère/chypre hybrid formula. Alain Delon Plus was overshadowed by Iquitos in the end, because the scent seemed to linger longer in the aftermarket after discontinuation.

The opening of Alain Delon Plus is breathtaking, with a soft cloud of lavender-scented aldehydes and that old-school Earl Grey-style bergamot mixing with laurel leaf and rosemary. The "poor man's neroli" known as petitgrain adds some citric floral tones that really set up the geranium core which returns from the original Alain Delon fragrance. The geranium doesn't dominate this time as it did in Alain Delon, however. In place of this fat Geranium note comes a more-balanced geranium playing with a drop of rose, still playing with carnation as it did in the original as well, but honeyed and spiced with benzoin and cinnamon. The orris of Alain Delon is replaced with the aquatic soapiness of dihydromyrcenol, making me think of Drakkar Noir (1982) and Givenchy Xeryus (1986). Considering that along with Houbigant Duc de Vervins (1985), this style was gaining traction over the animalic patchouli monsters of the decade, it's no surprise Alain Delon would be given such a makeover into Alain Delon Plus, then amped up in performance to be the proper powerhouse the original was not. Oakmoss and cedar also return from Alain Delon, but amber is replaced with the simpler and smoother labdanum, while balsam fir stays but tonka gets switched out for a bit of castoreum leather. This last part makes Alain Delon Plus feel a bit more chypre than fougère at the end, and omits powdery "brown" for a fragrance that relies more on woods, mosses, and the clean floral orchestration. Best use is pretty much all seasons, as a general signature. It's pretty much that good. Wear time is all day, and do we need to mention projection? Probably not. Also this one feels just a tad "younger" than its older brother, at least in how it wears.

Alain Delon Plus is every bit the "plus" its name suggests, but unlike most powered-up alternate versions of pillar scents, is really so different in its own right as to be considered another scent entirely. I would be strained to call Alain Delon Plus a flanker for this reason, even if it technically is, instead seeing it as a revision of the original if anything. Lovers of this early clean aromatic fougère style (a precursor to the 90's fresh fougère) will absolutely love Alain Delon Plus, as it is essentially a clean floral fougère/chypre hybrid much like the later Giorgio Beverly Hills Red for Men (1991), that leans more into the chypre elements into the dry down rather than the expected rounded fougère tones. Sadly, discovering discontinued fragrances from dead houses like Alain Delon is a race against time you're rigged to lose unless you're flush with cash and don't mind dropping a car payment to buy perfume, meaning if you already have anything I've compared this to, you may be better off staying away. I say this because despite it's refinement and beauty, it doesn't bring anything new to the table, and didn't really then either. The whole point of Alain Delon Plus was to capitalize on trends of the late 80's, and it likely did so enough to justify its existence in the short term, but considering it didn't get another lease on life like the original did when Art & Fragrance briefly had the house, I'd say long-term viability was doomed from the onset. Alain Delon Plus seems to really appeal to the "all things 80's" subset of vintage collectors, and I like it better than the original myself, but is less unique and less loved than some others from this house. Thumbs up

rbaker described it precisely: amazing top and middle notes (starring a delicious floral sweet smell slightly spiced by laurel) and then... a stuffy and absolutely powdery drydown. Sufocating in hot weather and definitely dated.

The opening is sensational: laurel, lavender and rosemary-based herbal deliciousness combines with touches of petit grain and bergamot for freshness. Natural and beautiful. The drydown is a flower basket to highest quality, mainly carnation and geranium with a light rose with lavender in my skin. Later, a gentle honeyed sweetness arises.

The next phase statrts with a very nice cypress note and hints of cedar. The later base is a bit dull, with a somewhat attenuated moss impression.

Overall mostly a wonderful chypre of the highest quality, just the base does not hold up to the initial top level of this scent. I get moderate sillage, good projection and a wonderful longevity of ten hours. 4/5