Paradise for Men
Alfred Sung (2003)

Seem to run across a lot of these...aquatish fruity green summer fragrance that opens beautifully - makes promises and builds up your hopes - and then abruptly pulls a vanishing act...IMHO this smells absolutely great...to me , not so much a tropical island with a nice beach...this strikes me as standing in a cool jungle with lots of ripe fruit hanging around and a river running through it...wait , hold that thought... it's been 30 minutes...must reapply...

As with most of the "department store" fragrances I've purchased in the past, they seem to have more essential oil when these fragrances are initially launched. Once they move into obscurity, like this one, it seems the perfume companies start to back off on the amount of essential oil they include in the formulation. I remember this being quite a powerhouse and lasting all day on me (this is when the fragrance first came out and I purchased it at Dillards in Dallas, Texas). Now, after many years and purchasing it again at one of the perfume spots on the internet, it seems as they is any lasting essential oil in the formulation. They may have kept the name Paradise, but I believe they've skimped on the essential oil without telling us. The same thing occurred when Calvin Klein re-released Calvin for Men some years ago. I purchased a couple of bottles; however, it was NOT the same Calvin for Men that I remembered and it lasted less than 15 minutes, compared to all day with the original Calvin for Men. Suffice it to say, I returned them. I will return any and all fragrances that don't live up to the staying power that I remember. It seems nowadays you have to purchase an eau de parfum for them to have any lasting quality. However, when I recently purchase the eau de parfum concentration of Christian Dior's Eau Sauvage, I ended up sending that one back because it was definitely NOT an eau de parfum, but more of a skinscent which did not last more than 15 minutes! Even though the box says eau de parfum doesn't mean it's a lasting fragrance. Sometimes I think the perfume industry is pulling the wool over the eyes of those of us (and the public) by using less essential oil in their formulation. We DO, in fact, notice when the formulations have changed, and when they don't last on our skin/clothes like their former selves. A good example is Fred Hayman's Touch for men. The original had a black top with gold stripes, and the new version has a gold cap, although they are shaped the same. The original smelled like a classier and longer lasting version of Brut by Faberge. The new version with the SAME NAME smells nothing like Brut by Faberge but like some completely new animal! I think when they completely change the formulation, they need to change the name. I ordered Touch for Men thinking it was the original formulation, but ended up sending them back when I was disappointed to find it smelled nothing like the original! How sad that they do this without telling us. It's a waste of time and money having to send the product back because they marketed a totally different fragrance under the SAME name! I'm going to stop buying fragrances and just sticking with the tried and true ones that I KNOW will last long. I would say that most, if not ALL, of the Jacques Bogart fragrances are GREAT and last ALL DAY!!!

I first tried 'Paradise' by Alfred Sung over a decade ago while in college in suburban Northern California. It stayed on my sweaters and jackets all day and was strong, sporty and very aquatic.

Some reviewers that have complained about its performance and poor longevity. Well, my bottle is brand new in its original sealed department store wrapping and its definitely suffered from reformulation as it's not as strong as it used to be.

Of course, being an aquatic fragrance, its not going to last more than a few hours like the rest of them (with a few exceptions here and there), so I was not expecting a 12+ hour wear out of this.

I am getting a good four to six hours out of a liberal application (ten sprays to neck, shoulders, chest, wrists) and its quite strong for the first couple hours with little to no dry down. Initial notes are grapefruit, citrus, amber and marine elements, and it gives off a sharp, aquatic 'sport' character. After two hours, it has moderate projection and sillage. At four hours it becomes a skin scent. It stays on clothes and fabrics for eight to ten hours.

It seems there isn't enough base notes or essential oils in it to carry it much further once the top and middle notes begin to fade, which I am guessing is why people are saying they only get a few hours of longevity out of this. For the price, you can simply apply more of this juice to get more duration out of it.

Overall, this is a decent, aquatic summer scent that is cheap and works well at the pool, beach, or in any warm, tropical or humid environment.

Bought this blindly based on the mostly positive reviews on here. I could have done without Paradise for sure. Although it isn't bad, it's quite boring; plus the cap is a pain getting off. Longevity is very poor too. This is said to have a papaya note, which I honestly don't get. I get a citrus opening, a bit sour, but not in a bad way.. just think zesty. It's like a zesty citrus slightly tropical opening with a soapy vibe as well. Dry down is very boring. A faint musk with faded citrus top notes. It's gone in 2 hours anyways.

Do you know what really ruins most aquatic fragrances? There is a common theme which apparently can't be avoided in order to keep the 'fresh' aesthetic alive; most aquatic scents have too much cardamom and very flimsy base notes.
The very essence of the genre is in the impossibly fresh top notes (which never last). Modern men's fragrances have overwhelmingly avoided the early 90's floral approach to mid range after many failed attempts, and likely because there is a huge American bias in our mindset which states "flowers=women." The bases of these then fresh-but-not-floral creations resort to clouded or screechy synthetic woody bases which do absolutely nothing to support the rest of the development. This means the fragrance is a burst of money-grabbing top notes followed by a precipitate nothingness, a vacuous anti-fragrance borne of the wanting for the opening to last forever (as it is the only selling point) and an immediate need to bail the water out of the boat as the vessel quickly sinks.
Paradise smells as lovely as many dozen fragrances just like it, but only for half an hour. After that it is the same forgettable, sinking ship that most aquatics bring to mind.
If I smelled this on a passerby I couldn't tell you with any degree of certainty what it was.

Great fresh scent, perfect for summer. Lacks longevity