Hey guys, Joe A. here with another one for ya’! Here’s a fragrance topic we probably don’t talk about enough, mostly because it feels a little weird, a little morbid and maybe a little too real for a hobby built around smelling good while we’re still above ground. But let’s be honest, some of us have collections that are no longer just “a few bottles on a shelf.” We’ve got full-blown fragrance libraries, emotional time capsules, scent memories, discontinued gems, blind-buy regrets and enough juice to keep a small village (okay, okay a LARGE village...) smelling dangerous for the next decade. So here’s the question: what’s the plan for your fragrance collection after you die? Do your loved ones know what any of it is worth? Would they know the difference between a $25 cheapie and a discontinued unicorn? Are they keeping a few bottles that remind them of you? Selling the valuable ones? Giving them to friends in the hobby? Donating them? Or is Uncle Larry about to inherit your entire Amouage shelf and use Reflection Man as bathroom spray because “it smells clean”? For me, this is one of those topics where the humor helps soften the truth. Our collections are more than bottles. They represent phases of life, memories, moods, trips, milestones, mistakes and moments. Some bottles are just stuff. Others are little glass monuments to who we were, what we loved and how we wanted to be remembered when we walked into a room. What say you, guys? Have you ever thought about what happens to your fragrance collection when you’re gone? Would you want your family to keep certain bottles, sell them, pass them down, or hand them off to someone in the community who would appreciate them? And the anti-question: which bottle in your collection would you absolutely haunt somebody over if they wasted it as room spray?Love to hear from ya’!

I recently gave the men’s style brand Intelligent a go when I picked up their fragrance tester set (OK, I kind of gave into the hype from all of TLTG’s glazing). What I found was a nice little line of relatively good quality inspos. I ended up using the gift certificate that came with the set to buy a bottle of Iron (which to my nose is an inspo of ADG) but they had several others that I think were full bottle worthy at that discounted price. Well today, I noticed that in Intelligent sells on Amazon and they are having a 30% off sale on most of their line. For 50 to 60 bucks, I think a bunch of their frags are worth it. For what it’s worth, here are my raw notes on all of their offerings. I have a nose that’s pretty sensitive to certain notes, and I think a few of their frags have a musk that rubs me the wrong way - so take my notes with a grain of salt. - Intelligent Platinum: nice but not quite fbw for me. Lightly juicy sweet fruits, aromatics. Kind of like Polo 67 / Coach EDP - Intelligent Silver: cusp of fbw. Aromatic woody soapy. Some bite/sourness in the mids that takes away a bit from the experience. - Intelligent Iron: full bottle worthy. Woodsy aromatic earthy green, kind of like a more earthy ADG. - Intelligent Neon: cusp of full bottle worthy. Very bright citrus. But something bitter - the musk choice? Open is a bit harsh otherwise a very hearty citrus - Intelligent Carbon: full bottle worthy? Earthy lightly rich warm leathery, very easy to wear. Reminds me of a Moncler. But super weak performance on my skin. - Intelligent Cobalt: meh but interesting. Zingy musky aquatic aromatic. Loud and kind of grating, possibly the musk choice. - Intelligent H2O: full bottle worthy? Yep it’s a sweet smooth aquatic scent, a higher quality take on Invictus Aqua. Faintly fruity. Easy to wear. - Intelligent Hydrogen: meh but interesting. Aromatic tangy musky. Something offputting and animatic - musk? orconox? - Intelligent Argon: cusp of fbw. Lightly sweet elegant aromatic lavender cinnamon and spice. Like a more elegant and refined Spicebomb EDT, but easier to wear. Also a bit like Rehab

Just saw this - Jomashop has a tester bottle of the Boss Collection Passionate Chypre for $48. I got my nose on this at a duty-free shop last week and it was really good. Basically, it’s a very classically masculine mossy vibe with a deep black cherry note, dark and not sweet or overpowering. I can’t promise it, but when I’ve gotten testers of the Boss Collection from Jomashop before, they came with a cap. I think this is a steal and if I hadn’t gone overboard recently with a bunch of other purchases, I’d probably scoop this up. https://www.jomashop.com/hugo-boss-unisex-the-collection-passionate-chypre-edp-spray-3-4-oz-tester-fragrances-3616304472138.html?srsltid=AfmBOopxGX5M2oD4IA4q4Zptvtk7xq8I6mlmCteEdE-j3aLq1hdOLRVG

This is a citrus aromatic built around a grapefruit opening with ginger and musk in the heart. It dries down to a woody patchouli. Its a fresh, radiant, slightly ambery citrus scent thats clean but has depth. It’s smooth and well blended. It feels luxurious and versatile, good for spring/summer/day use, but could be used all year. Longevity and projection are strong. I get 8+ hours on skin, and longer on clothes. Projects strong for the first 3-4 hours. It performs especially well in heat. The bottle is a nice heavy glass with a tiger’s eye inspired stone in the cap. Excellent if you like fresh grapefruit forward scents with a musky woody backbone. Highly recommended!

I am attending a wedding in 2 weeks. I sometimes have a hard time deciding what to wear for certain occasions. I have narrowed down my choices to the following. I am looking for crowd pleasing and passable through the May heat in the Northeast.