OK... the name of this has been something that's been on my mind for a few years, and just to confirm the timeline on this, I looked back in the group's history and found it under eight entries total from two of our brothers - @Devin Christensen and @Jd Hazel convinced me to finally pull the trigger, and I did. Last week my ScentBird order arrived, and besides the sales, specials, and deals offered from the site, I also got my monthly order. While the monthly order arrived yesterday, I picked up two exclusive specials for me. I'll start with a review of this fruity, tea-driven fragrance from Arquiste called Indigo Smoke. While no real formal review has been done on this fragrance, I'm happy to be the first. Created in 2022 by Calice Becker, the French master perfumer and director of the Givaudan Perfumery School. The top notes are tea (Lapsang Souchong) Vetiver, Bergamot, and Mandarin Orange. The heart has fruity, warm notes of Apricot, with Bourbon, Guaiac Wood, and Carrot. The base contains strong notes like Mate, Pine Tar, Cedar Leaves, and Incense. What I'd like to state about this fragrance is the way it made me feel: like a refined elder statesman (I'm 57) who carries wisdom and maturity on their shoulders. Think of the fragrance as a quiet, wise, and reserved entity- a person who doesn't waste energy on anything that isn't beneficial. You know whom I refer to: the favorite uncle you share secrets with, the quiet and assured person in a bar full of rowdy patrons, or, if you smoke cigars, the one who looks as if the lounge was built around them as plumes of smoke surround them. That is the fragrance with the visuals and impressions. From the drydown, there is a sense of wisdom present, with the tea coming through as it emits a smoky, almost lactonic aroma. While reviews on this relate the Apricot fruit, it's not a heavy note, but what it does is cut through the liquor and incense, bringing a full-bodied heft to the mix. Definitely a cigar fragrance; I can also state that it would make a great tag team with someone smoking a pipe, preferably with either Baker Street, English Oriental, or English Tweed. All three with this fragrance cast one hell of an aromatic aura.

Hey guys, Joe A. here with today's Scent of the Day : Erba Gold by Xerjoff - Day 389. Parfumo lists it opening with Amalfi lemon, Brazilian orange, Calabrian bergamot, and ginger, moving through melon, green apple, pear, clove, cardamom, and cinnamon before settling into white musk, amber, Bourbon vanilla, and woods. I get a bright, juicy, polished take on the Erba style, with richer amber and vanilla sweetness than the usual fruit bomb. First Sniff: Like booking a last-minute beach vacation, leaving your phone at home, and remembering what carefree feels like. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/rCoe2lfbY9s

Coach’s 2026 release, Pure Platinum Parfum, opens with aromatic lavender, moves into a warm rum heart and settles into cedarwood. A fresh start with a warmer, woody finish. 💰 Coach Blue is on a great sale at Maxaroma: 48% OFF, now $49 for 100 ml EDT. https://get.aspr.app/SH1mjQ I’d love your feedback on this infographic, gents. Do the notes, intensity ratings and seasons match your experience? Is there anything you’d change?

Finally, I can post this interview. This one is really close and personal to me, as I've thought daily about this young man and his business, wanting nothing but success for him. But also, he created a fragrance that reminded me of my own mother, who's struggling with dementia. When it arrived, I wore it the next day and visited my mother, who really enjoyed what I was wearing. I ended up leaving the bottle with her, and while she stays with my sister, I've been told she reaches for it to wear... all while thinking of her firstborn son, me. As mentioned, here is the Drew Goetz Urbane Aromatics interview. Tony: Hey Drew, thanks for your time! Drew: Of course, appreciate you doing this. Tony: Who is Drew Goetz, and what brought you into the world of fragrance? Drew: I’m a college kid from Rochester, Minnesota. I started the company in my parents’ garage in high school. Some friends and I were throwing around business ideas, and somebody suggested candles. I figured if you’re going to make a good candle, you need a good fragrance first, so I went that route instead. Once I got into it, I never really looked back. Fragrance sticks to people in a way most stuff doesn’t, and that’s what kept pulling me in. Tony: "Urbane" is a very particular word. Why Urbane Aromatics? Drew: I wanted a name that matched who I was making these for. Someone who’s put together, carries themselves well, and isn’t trying too hard. It also just sounded right on a bottle. Tony: What did you feel was missing in fragrance? Drew: Access. A nice bottle runs $150 to $200, and a lot of people buy one and never wear it because it feels too good to use. The cheap stuff doesn’t smell the same. I figured there was a middle spot nobody was really going after, so I went after it. Tony: What's the most rewarding part, and what did nobody warn you about? Drew: The most rewarding part is seeing a stranger wearing something I made. That never gets old. What nobody warned me about is how little of this is actually about fragrance. It’s logistics, packaging, customs, retail. The scent is one piece of a lot of pieces.

Something about a public restroom with Le Labo hand lotion!!