Bentley for Men
Bentley (2013)

Bentley for Men has been somewhat overshadowed by its more bombastic sibling, Bentley for Men Intense, but there are nevertheless prominent differences between them. They're both amped-up descendants of Lubin Idole, mingling rum absolute with herbal tones. Bentley for Men EDT goes in a dark and aromatic direction, staying closer to the territory of Idole, whole Intense goes for thick, smoky benzoin.

Bentley for Men EDT is the booziest of the three, with a fruity-sweet opening that verges on "too much," as though taking Idole's delicate opening and transforming it into a campy theatrical statement. The rum absolute used here blares above the rest of the composition, supported by an ethyl maltol sweetness giving it a fruity, candied touch. After thirty minutes or so the sugary booziness calms down and the woodiness takes over.

The mid is dark and aromatic and less sweet than the opening. It's at this phase it most evokes Idole, even though it's a touch more straightforward. The mid is dominated by boozy, soft leather and patchouli and smoky, slightly yeasty bay leaf and lingering dark woods. It will continue to develop into its last, and, in my personal opinion, best, phase - an abstracted boozy-creamy drydown that nevertheless retains an appealingly enigmatic accord.

The original Bentley for Men smells "nicer" to my nose than Intense insofar as it's more in line with the sophisticated aesthetic of the Lalique fragrances (Lalique produces the Bentley line), but it also lacks the bombast that has made its Intense sibling such a much-discussed cult favorite. Personally speaking, the EDT is more to my taste.

A final note, there's a widely noted "vinyl" element in the Intense flanker that I don't identify in the EDT. The prominent vanillin/benzoin in Intense, when mingling with the rum absolute they share, seems responsible for that plastic/vinyl undercurrent in Intense (L'Artisan Havana Vanille ends up with a similar effect). If you find that element intrusive in the Intense flanker, you may find the EDT more appealing.

This is nice. A slightly spicy vegetal leather jus. There was thought, but no imagination as you have seen this before. Thumbs up because it a a car company scent AND it is much better quality than you would expect from such.

Crisp white shirt and quality shoes...for a man who knows how to be.

If you do try it, don't try the intense because you will forget about this one. However, I do see someone liking this instead of the intense version.

Opens with a brief sour wine aroma then sweetens appreciably. Hints of cinnamon, bay and rum form an accord, perhaps with the sage and leather, to give an unfortunate impression of platic...plastic what? car interior? I guess so. This then takes on a baker's yeast aspect. Lots going on, but none of it is for me.

Not like the usual automobile fragrances. Bentley for Men is an nice leather scent – deep, brooding, yet light enough to be very adaptable. Its greatest weakness is its rather poor longevity. It's a must try for those who like leather – i.e. people who are not me.

Under my humble moonshiny nose Bentley for Men appears initially (in the top of its evolution) like an ideal reinterpretation of the great Romeo Gigli by Romeo Gigli ostensibly "re-performed" for the occasion in a "cleaner" (far less complex), easier, more modern and dustier (more peppery ambery resinous) way. I detect also in the top notes a touch of the more classic TSAR's resinous floral greenness which anyway smells more realistically herbal, earthy, barbershop (typically old-school powerhouse), distinguished, tobacco veined and mossy. Faint undiscerned sharp floral patterns get their appearance along the way surrounded by stormy spices, rum and aromatic notes before the longly evolving dry down starts its performance. This final phase waves between a molecular and almost conceptual (gasseous-aldehydic-"hyperbaric"-leathery) "Nu_besque" powdery mist a la Oxygen (and a la Andrea Maack's Silk for sure) and the Cacharel Nemo's (and I would add Versus Uomo's) resinous hesperidic spiciness. In particular a common foundation of diverse elements (pepper-cardamom, bergamot-lavender, geranium, cinnamon, incense, aromatic herbal notes, benzoin, cedar, patchouli and leather) places Bentley for Men in a deep connection with the really close dry down (and not only) of the great Nemo Cacharel with its final (still more than vaguely dusty-incensey) leather-cedarwood-patchouli connection (as finally soothed by benzoin and vanilla). Along the central dry down's evolution we have a weird somewhat salty-citric (orangy-lemony) spicy undertone which i like (probably the part I prefer together with the top) and which conjures me several vintage Versus Uomo's facets. Many (I read around) nail down similarities of this fragrance with the spicy-boozy Idole de Lubin (also because of a common bay rum-spices-leather foundation) but frankly I find Idole more challenging and more boozy spices-burnt sugar oriented (much more stronger the Idole's exotic sugary rum influence). Anyway I finally find this fragrance interesting (in its synthetic range) but not properly that sort of standout aroma many talk about.

A Great Fragrance Overshadowed By Its Even Greater Sister Scent...

Bentley for Men opens with a relatively sweet bergamot and laurel tandem with just a hint of underlying cinnamon. As the composition enters its early heart phase it turns slightly boozy as a fine benzoin sweetened rum joins smooth woods, with the remaining prominent laurel and subtle cinnamon tagging along. During the late dry-down the benzoin driven sweetness tones down considerably with suede leather joining remnants of the smooth woods and cinnamon-laced rum as the composition gently fades. Projection is average, as is longevity at 7-9 hours on skin.

After having such a positive experience with my blind buy of Bentley for Men Intense earlier, the expectations for the regular Bentley for Men by the same perfumer were understandably quite high. Largely Bentley for Men is up to the task and proves another excellent outing by Lorson in 2013. While the two sister compositions are quite similar in structure, there are some differences that distinguish them. Bentley for Men Intense has a much richer boozy demeanor than the lighter all-around style of Bentley for Men. By "lighter" I do not mean watered down, but rather less deep, less boozy and gourmand, less projection and longevity; and at the end of the day somehow a bit less distinctive. If I had not already tried the superior smelling Intense I would be singing this composition's praise more forcefully, calling it one of the best releases of the year (which it certainly is), but the Intense just takes the shared base accord to new heights and is the one most folks will want in their collection. The bottom line is the $90 per 100ml bottle Bentley for Men is an excellent composition, overshadowed by its even better sister scent, still earning an "excellent" 4 stars out of 5 rating. If you already own Intense, Bentley for Men probably is not needed, but the reverse does not hold.

Pros: More versatile lighter version of Bentley that still delivers the goods on overall smell.
Cons: Performance metrics are middling and lacks some of the deep boozy sophistication and polish of its Intense sister scent.