Azzaro pour Homme Intense (original)
Azzaro (1992)

I very much like Azzaro Pour Homme so, after reading many positive reviews of Intense, I purchased a mini bottle. It's similar to APH but different in a positive way and I like it. Still very much a barbershop fougère (slightly chypre?). It is not worth searching for and paying an overly inflated price, though, IMO. Much less of your money would be better spent on vintage Azzaro Pour Homme.

Vintage Azzaro Pour Homme Intense EDT -

I will say this one could easily be a stand in for the original 1st version of Azzaro Pour Homme (oval cap), but unfortunately it is so rare these days that you actually have a better chance of finding an original partial or even full bottle. Stay in the hunt!

Thankfully, Azzaro Pour Homme Intense is a flanker that actually is what you want it to be. A deeper, more opulent and long lasting take on the original with just a speck more animalic notes in the heart. Basically, if Azzaro Pour Homme is a meat sauce, then Intense is a bolognese.

Azzaro Pour Homme aficionados will without a doubt love this, so if you can find it then pull the trigger as you will not be disappointed.

5 stars

It’s alright but certainly not worth the hunt. I’ve only seen one 50 ml spray flacon of this come up in 3 years so the 1992 intense version is beyond rare.

Personally, I find this intense version as quite harsh in the delivery well into the dry down. It’s really very strong, almost obnoxiously strong, even with 1 spray. It is without a doubt true to the original Azzaro Pour Homme but magnified about 5 fold. The complexity of intense compared to the original formula certainly is not there. I find this composition as rather simple with a blend of lavender, patchouli, anise and amber on a bed of oak moss, sandalwood and musk. You can forget any sort of genet so don’t be anticipating animalics in this intense version because it’s not going to happen. What you will get is a wee bit of musk in the end. Overall the aroma is rather cheap and seems to lean heavily on being a crowd pleaser.

I’m not crazy about this. It feels unfinished as if there’s something missing. It also comes across as stark and cold in the dry down. It’s not a happy smell. The other reason that I’m not crazy about this is that anytime I’ve worn Azzaro Intense, I’m always getting compliments and questions about what kind of liquid body wash I use. For that alone, this review is a hair’s width away from being a thumbs down. All of those body washes smell like garbage.

A woody, sweet, bitter, and herbal fragrance which highlights natural-smelling anise and wormwood? If this also had some rose tucked in there it would pretty much sum up what I want to smell like most of the time. Just plain beautiful.

Absolutely revolting that the 2015 'reissue' is simply another steroidal cinnamon-vanilla Oriental ::prolonged, exasperated sigh::.

Slightly amplified Azzaro PHOverall Rating: * * * * I recently acquired a bottle of vintage Azzaro Intense after reading EricRico's outstanding review below. Azzaro is my signature scent, but I sometimes find myself wishing for better longevity out of it (I get 6-8 hours out of the vintage, 4-5 hours out of the reformulation). As Eric and others have noted, Azzaro Intense is faithful to the original. Often, the "extreme" versions of favorite fragrances are so different as to be unrecognizable. That is not the case here. The heart notes and drydown of Azzaro Intense are virtually identical to Azzaro PH. There is a slight difference in the top notes, however, and one that does not favor the Intense. Admirers of Azzaro PH will note that the wasabi-like anise note are here overpowered by a strong fennel. It is a subtle difference, and not altogether bad. But I do LOVE that sinus-opening blast I get from the standard EDT version. Performance metrics, as one would expect, favor the Intense. I get 8-10 hours from the Intense, though a good part of it is as a skin scent. Like Eric, my preferred way of wearing Azzaro is to layer it. I tend to start with 3 sprays of the Intense and add an equal or greater number of the traditional EDT. This preserves those marvelous top notes while adding the superior longevity of the Intense. If you love Azzaro PH, you can't go wrong with this. It may not replace the original, but it can certainly complement it.Pros: longer lasting than Azzaro PHCons: top notes not quite as satisfyingly anisic"

Very good review by Sporenburg (with one point I am going to defer on - see below) overall. I have mini Vintage bottles of Azzaro Pour Homme Intense that attest to the fact that it is deeper, more opulent and the basenotes are richer. It is not louder, but the depth allows it to be a more 'Intense' version. I have both Vintage and current formulation of Azzaro Pour Homme. Vintage is excellent and current is very good. The recent re-release of the Intense bottling was stated here on Basenotes - otherwise, I probably would have not picked it up (as I was keen on the Vintage version and considering a bottle price three times what I paid!) I will put it this way - as Vintage Aph is better than current, Vintage Aph Intense is, inherently (and truly), better than current Aph Intense.

I won't get into note replacement and an imperceptible fecal touch (which I have no clue about - that is something I do not get from any bottling of Aph Intense or regular formulation). I am not convinced that I want to, at this point, settle for current Aph Intense. While it is very good, rich and a nice warm (aura) scent like all bottlings of Aph, I find it to be a deeper progression of notes to heart and base that allow the scent to be more enjoyable.

The top notes being muted doesn't detract for me, but Sporenburg is correct in that. Longevity is a little longer than current formulation - again, an aura scent so you need to apply to pulse point, chest, and clothing that touches skin. It will not be loud (be definitely you will notice the power of the scent in the first 15-20 minutes) but expressive and radiant. A welcome addition to the wardrobe and one I will reach for.

For current formulation Aph Intense (and Aph): An interesting suggestion for those who want the sharper citric-anise opening is to do what I tried. Layer a nice neutral balm on your freshly-shaven skin (or beard/stubble, if you have that), apply a liberal amount of Aph Intense. Let it dry down for 5-10 minutes. Then, since you don't want to reverse order and bury the top notes you are trying to achieve, apply a few well-placed shots (including clothes, so it lasts longer) of the current Aph juice. I got the nice bright citrus to show along with more of the sharp anise. *Important to note - I would only suggest doing this with current formulations and not blend Vintage juice into the mix. It is simply too precious.

Final score - current formulation Aph Intense - 8/10. Vintage Aph Intense from Mini - 9/10.