Cypress & Grapevine
Jo Malone London (2020)

A modern take on the spicy aromatic (with fougére tones) masculine chypré theme. A darkly boisé fragrance from Jo Malone introduced in 2020 and created by perfumer Sophie Labbe. Cypress & Grapevine Cologne Intense by Jo Malone London starts promisingly close in smell to vintage Ungaro III with my full pleasure (fizzy spiciness, rootiness, some nuttiness and something boozy, in this case vaguely viney, in the air) but all this beauty finally (and quickly) evolves towards something more properly woody and barber-shop (yes in a generic way, not so distant in aroma and vibes from scents a la Montblanc Legend Edt 2011) with pencil shavings accents (overall with a really pale evolution), some ambroxan and a charge of spicy muskiness. This fragrance combines woody notes, aromatics, grapewine and a tad of ambroxan I suppose. The dry down is masculine and kind of generically spicy-laundry-barber shop. The juice is supposed to evoke a sort of british countryside's rural atmosphere during the fall season in a wine farm with all its charge of rituals, stale wine cellar aroma, earthiness and woodsiness. Cypress and aromatics provide a freshly spicy opening which is gradually laced to a blend of cedarwood and vetiver with warm amber and juicy grape notes. A combination of woodiness, dry spiciness and ambroxan closes the circle. In to a nutshell this is an easy going fragrance, not particularly evocative, dynamic and with performances in the average. It is not so evokative imo while it plays more as a generic office-scent. Not particularly exciting and not enough for my full pleasure.

Poor performance and generic. Light woody smell with a bit of musk. Jo Malone isn't even worth trying anymore.

Really nice barbershop scent! VERY SIMILAR to Le Barbier De Tanger, but with a lower price point. I would struggle to tell the two apart.