Vicomte de Valmont

[stillalive]

Rake, scoundrel, demon in a frock coat. Devilishly seductive, ultimately tragic; a villain undone and redeemed by love. Based on an 18th century gentlemen’s cologne: ambergris, white musk, white sandalwood, Spanish Moss, orange blossom, three mints, jasmine, rose geranium and a spike of rosemary.

Unfortunately this gave me a horrible headache... I was going to swap it but instead I used it to turn my AXE-addicted brother into a BPAL vampire. It does remind me of AXE except that I can pick out some different distinct notes in VdV.

[AthenaRose]

I can see the CK and AXE comparisons, but this is soooo much better than those. It smells amazing on the fiancé and it's one of his favourites.

 

4/5

[Hawke]

Cologne-y. I think I'm smelling sandalwood in the imp.

 

Wet on the skin, I definitely get the sandalwood and musk, which is okay as I like the lab's white musk sometimes. I think I may be getting the ambergris too, though I'm never entirely sure what ambergris smells like. It's a sharp scent with lots of throw. Still cologne-y and definitely more something a man would wear. I'm not girly, but this is too much for me. I agree with a lighter clone of Drakkar Noir. I love that cologne on the right guy, and this isn't terrible, but it's definitely not me, and holy hell, the throw just keeps getting stronger and stronger. Glad I'm taking a shower after posting this.

 

Eventually it calms down into something softer and even a little powdery, but not attacking my nose so much. Still too masculine and cologne-like for me, though. Sorry, Valmont. Go work your charms on some other girl.

[Coldfire]

Imp: Totally a men’s cologne vibe at first sniff.

I smell the sharp of mint and rosemary and geranium

Wet on Me: Green cool herbal crispness. Nose-to-hand.

Drying Down: This is wafting up to my nose and just

slaying me in a good way. I know I have to try this on the Bird.

Mint offsets the rosemary and the rose geranium peeps up between them…

Dry: More white musk joining the play but still this is total

I swiped my boyfriend’s sweater and I wear it constantly. MUST HOARD!

[Iceblink]

There are a million notes in here and hell if I can pick them all out. Vicomte is sharp and manly when freshly applied, but the drydown is softer, sweeter, and only slightly herbal. The orange blossom and white musk dominate with a whiff of rosemary blended in. This is almost making me think of a more masculine Midnight on The Midway, of all things! It's really pretty and could be worn by a woman too. Beautiful!

[vikitty]

Absolutely beautiful, but too masculine for me. Would love to smell this on a guy. ;D

[smokey188]

this smelt very manly and on me it was an acrid tobacco smell with men's cologne which turned quite rancid thanks to the white musk and within an hour it was completely gone.

[voodoocatwoman]

Oh my. This ia such a masculine fragrance that I almost feel like I should be wearing a plaid flannel shirt. I thought it had lavender in it but I don't see that as one of the notes. I can detect sandalwood and musk... but that's about it for my nose.

 

It is a gorgeous fragrance for a man. A manly man. James Bond would have worn this.

[steffanina]

Vicomte de Valmont-

 

In Bottle: Very sharp and cologne-y. I wouldn't put this on if I weren't doing a BPAL review; it's everything I don't like about men's cologne and the men who wear it in choking quantities.

 

Wet: Acrid-sharp cologne. It gives me that green/aquatic vibe.

 

Dry: Softer, less acrid, and if men would wear this in the tiny quantity I have used, I would even like it on them. Very aquatic and...well, I have to keep using the word cologne-y.

 

Overall: Not for me, but it does give me insight into what men's scents should be like when used appropriately!

[marared]

Wishlist frimp from my witch:

 

Oh, this is wonderful. It's so nicely blended that nothing in particular really stands out - I can tell the orange blossom, mint and a wee bit of rose are there, and kinda the sandalwood too. It starts out just a touch flowery, but it dries down to a warm and bright scent that is definitely of a masculine nature, but is pretty darn nice on me. I will be considering a bottle purchase, but I do want a male to smear this on and sniff...

[Leopard403]

The "gentlemen's cologne" makes this completely unwearable for me, which is sad because the other notes lingering underneath are quite lovely.

Luckily, this smelled A-MAZ-ING on my boyfriend; not too cologne-y on him!

[Suu4LC]

In the imp this smells like generic men's cologne. That is not a bad thing-it smells good. It's just hard to pick out specific notes and smells like something you would find at a perfume counter.

 

Yes, this is a very classy men's cologne. For something that is based off of an 18th century cologne, it is surprisingly modern. A bit pretty almost!

 

It doesn't change much upon dry down. I hate to leave my description so vague, but it really does smell like expensive, preppy "Men's Cologne" to me. I don't like cologne-y scents for myself. I imagine this would be a great blend to try to bring a wary guy over to the bpal darkside tho

 

 

[rayvn1]

This is insanely sharp smelling! The white musk just screams along with a slightly smooth orange blossom thrown in. It's also extremely cold smelling from the mints. Strong throw and seems to have great staying power.

[femmefatale]

I had hubby try this one since I knew it would be too masculine for me. It's very cologne-y smelling. Reminds me a bit of a better done Brut. Now, that may sound like I don't like it, but I do. I always liked Brut. Though I prefer smokier scents on him, this is a nice change of pace and good for him to wear when he wants something that isn't so...different smelling than the ones he normally likes.

[nali]

Forumite cheshirecat included this as a generous frimp along with a bottle of hers I bought. At first sniff ("Whoa! Cologne!") I knew I'd rather smell this on my husband than on myself. He's tolerantly amused by my BPAL habit, but he's never been a scent-wearing guy himself (unless we count the distinctive odor of Naval Aviation). I smiled and batted my eyelashes enough for him to let me swipe a little Vicomte de Valmont on him this afternoon, though, and I don't think he's sorry. It's a pleasingly masculine scent, not nearly as overpowering as your stereotypical Manly!Man cologne. I've caught my husband surreptitiously sniffing his inner elbows while studying on the couch next to me. In between aircraft emergency procedures flashcards, he has even allowed as how he likes it enough that he'd wear it on a special date.

 

If you'll pardon me, I'm off to come up with compelling ideas for a "special date." Hubba, hubba.

Edited February 24, 2009 by Nali

[aquazoo]

Aftershave, in all it's manly, lime-like glory. Then it mellows down into a soft leather scent.

 

 

[ouch!]

This smells like Cool Water for men when it's wet. Not exact but it reminds me alot of it. It's got that aquatic sort of smell to it. And it's definately masculine. Does smell a bit generic. And it's not something I'd really wear, in fact..I gave the imp to my little brother. :)

 

The dry starge is slightly different, the aquatic tones die down and then it changes to a more herbal scent, slightly unusual too.

 

I won't be getting moreof this me don't thinks!

[liquidtrance]

Smells very.. Soapy on application. !!! Instigating a wave of hidden memory! What does this remind me of?! Almost.. An ocean memory? I guess, based on the description.. Men's cologne… BOD? THAT'S IT. That silly men's cologne stuff!

Drying down to something softer, more feminine. Seems to be drying out into more of a laundry/linen-y scent? And now.. The scent of a hippy solid perfume in a rock jar with a carved lid from my friend Chad years ago...

[Wwindy]

Echoing other reviewers here... This comes off as very much a green/aquatic men's cologne while wet. On my skin -- Irish Springs and nothing else.

[ekolmus]

In the bottle: Astringent! This one goes right up my nose.

 

Wet: Really, really, really clean. Almost soapy, but in a good way, not like my skin is having a bad reaction.

 

Wet, 1 minute later: Some of the base notes are starting to come out. This is a really elegant, manly blend.

 

Dry: Freshly-showered man. This reminds me a little of my own personal favorite, Embalming Fluid, but instead of being softened under the citrus note with tea and aloe, this is sharpened with... with... something. It's hard for me to identify individual notes. Delicious, but not very approachable - it makes me think of an arrogant, well-liked man who knows exactly how handsome he is.

[MellowCello]

This scent came in an imp lot I won in an eBay auction. I didn't read the reviews before sniffing it so I had no expectations of what it would smell like. In the vial, it was very astringent and kinda weird smelling. Then I tested it on my skin and now I love it! It smells like Irish Spring, but a more sopisticated version. I love the Irish Spring scent! most probably because it brings back childhood memories.

[voorishsign]

Ohh, poor Valmont, he's getting a poor reputation

 

I was a bit cautious of this, because while I do like cologne smells, I prefer them to be complex and/or toned down with something else. Such as Herbert West's aftershave plus Embalming Fluid.

 

In the bottle and on wet, Valmont is excessively masculine, very off-the-shelf cologne-y, and I was a bit disappointed because it smells a bit like AXE Alaska, which my dad is quite fond of. Determined to get something out of it, though, I waited for the drydown.

 

And I was certainly not disappointed! On drydown, the moss, rosemary and light florals come out, but the scent stays crisp and clearly masculine, I also detect a certain creaminess, although I'm not sure what that is. I'm getting a full bottle of this

Edited September 27, 2009 by voorishsign

[impolight]

Uncapped, this bottle immediately unleashes an olifactory avalanche of Ambergris, Mint, and Rosemary. There is something quite evergreen with this particular formula. There is also an element of charred wood and, strangely enough, a damp, earthen smell and, perhaps, lime rind.

The associations with conventional men's fragrance is apparent, however the effect is likely lent by the combination of Ambergris and Neroli.

On the drydown, this softened and rounded somewhat; lightening up into a, "just after the rain" freshness, revealing more of the jasmine note and developing what strangley smells like a Muscat Grape.

This scent is villainously dark green, almost black. It is vainglorious, elegant and sinister. This is the scent of both a scoundrel and a seducer.

It also implies immodest power. The attourney that anybody would love to have on their side would wear this fragrance with relish. A great introduction to BPAL for a male.

Edited January 21, 2010 by impolight

[hmelt004]

A very complex cologne, seamlessly blended and timeless. It's very difficult for me to pick individual notes out of this one.

[Saya]

Starts off way too masculine and then fades after about an hour. I'm not a fan of masculine scents on myself so I'll pass on this one.