Bottega Veneta Essence Aromatique pour Homme
Bottega Veneta (2016)

Masculine and sophisticated citrus, pine and cedar scent that has lasting strength for me.

I do not get any medicine notes, just pine forest and cedar. Really well done.

A nice, refreshing and natural citrus fragrance but perhaps a little over-priced for what it is. Essence Aromatique is fairly soft, with light projection and about 3 to 4 hours of longevity. The citrus notes are clear and bright, and the Siberian pine is soft with a slightly sweet edge, and it makes for a very nice combination while it lasts. The drydown features a clean, soft and dusty patchouli accord supported by cedar wood and it's a good base for the composition as it keeps everything along a natural, easy keel. But for the price of this stuff, something seems to be missing. While it's nice, there's nothing particularly impressive about Essence Aromatique, and its performance is nothing to write home about. After all, it's an Eau de Cologne concentration, which usually means it will be short-lived and on the soft side. Overall, it's a pleasant, refreshing citrus fragrance of good quality, but it doesn't really offer anything new. Final rating, 7/10. Add half a star if you're into presentations, as this one is housed in a beautiful, frosted bottle which looks great on display.

UPDATE: I ended up getting bored with this one very quickly, sold my bottle off, and haven't looked back or regretted it since. This one's a pass.

Smells like Aspercreme and pine trees in the opening. Can't decide if this is old lady or old man smell but it just smells very dated. A few hours in and the drydown becomes a little less mature, a little less "muscle rub" scent and gives off an airy-spiciness. Kinda reminds me of drydown of TdH without the citrus or woods, haha, the best parts.

Performance is pretty good with decent projection over 7-8 hours of longevity.

This is hard to love. It can smell like you applied Vicks for a sore back or muscles. Once it settles down then it shines but just a bit. Some might find it absolutely irresistible while others will hate it.

Dreadful. Brash, loud, elevator-guy.
Big ol' bergamot, the sign of many guy scents.
Full, nauseatingly sweet with a vanilla tinge.
Could have been a fougere in style but also has gourmand and aquatic vibes.
Yuck is an appropriate term for this early stage.
Pine? Not in anyone's wildest dreams. A somewhat acceptable generic woody dry-down. A plank. No resin.