They had it at Macy's tonight, so I swung by to see if I could get a sample. The lady behind the counter has gotten to know me, and I've bought a few things from her over the years, so she takes care of me. They didn't have any samples, but she made me a little decant and let me spray it on pretty heavy to get a sense of how it will wear. I love the EDP, but my biggest complaint is the longevity. The Parfum smells exactly like the EDP, but louder any more heavy on the opening and lighter on the tobacco notes. I've had it on for about 5 hours now, and it's starting to fade to a skin scent, though still fairly present. I'm about to go to bed, so I'll report if it's still there when I get up. EDIT FOLLOWUP: I woke up this morning after about 6 hours of sleep, and it's nowhere to be found. So it did not survive the night on me. So let's call it about 6 to 8 hours of performance in total (5-6 while I was awake, and maybe a few hours while I was asleep). I'm going to wear it again today and see how well it does during the day. My initial impression is that it's redundant. If you have the EDP, then this is extremely similar, but with better performance, though not the beast mode that I think everyone is hoping for. I think the Parfum concentration puts the scent profile into the performance realm that we all wished we got with the EDP, but it doesn't push beyond that. If you don't have either of the previous EDT or EDP versions, then I think the Parfum is the way to go. You'll get decent performance and the same scent profile that everyone loves. But wait for it to go on discounters. Do not be persuaded into buying this for full retail. You will be disappointed when you can get it for 50% off in 3 months time.

Going with Montagne Victory of Baccus on a very nice day in Denver.

I got this one in a sample/discovery set over the holidays, and today is my first time wearing it, indeed - first time wearing anything from Montale. Initially, I really wasn't certain on this at all, came off as somewhat synthetic, almost like a standard room air freshener.....however, things quickly improved. Off the top - I was genuinely struggling to pick up much besides a metallic bergamot, gradually the tonka and amber notes started to assert themselves - which thankfully dissipated the frankly unappealing opening. 10-15 mins in and the profile started to really blend, with the saffron, and in particular a very pleasant rose note rising to prominence. Further into the dry down, that rose note is shining above everything else, but is nicely balanced by the more overtly sweeter notes giving things a little more of a punch. I'm glad I waited for this one to develop, as the dry down scent - in contrast to the opening - is soft, fragrant and inviting. I'm not sure its a scent I'm 100% comfortable with wearing - on me - if that makes sense? Having read up a little on it, I understand this is positioned as a unisex fragrance, and, for me at least, I can see where this could be genuinely alluring on the right woman. Overall, an interesting first experience with this particular house - I'll definitely be looking to sample others in the their range to enhance my knowledge and understanding. I'm sure several of my brothers will have insights on this one and the broader offering from Montale - would be great to hear your thoughts. Happy new year to all!

“You don’t need the biggest collection, just intention behind every choice.”— Joe A., Original Progress isn’t about excess. It’s about knowing why you’re doing what you’re doing. More bottles never fixed bad direction. One day at a time guys, Enjoy the #Journey

Firstly huge shout out to @Jonathan Ventura for rallying the troops to give me the push. Many thanks to @Justin Tillery, @Raymond Reeves, @Jamal Moore, @Steve Louis, @Lon Chaneyfield, @Blake Merl, @Edward Mooney, @Jeffrey Plotka, @Henry Clay, and others I know I’m forgetting, it’s been a long day and we ended the day at a Krewe dinner where the drinks were flowing. I head out for the day/evening and come home to a mad rush to elevate me to Level 9! Y’all know how to make a guy feel like part of something.