Going with Réserve Privée today. Powdery iris meets smooth whiskey and chestnut. Elegant, calm, and grown. Not loud, not flashy, just confident and refined. Perfect cold-weather gentleman energy. Longevity on me is solid, around 7 hours with noticeable but controlled projection. Definitely more “intimate luxury” than club scent. Do you see Réserve Privée as more of a night scent or a smart daytime winter wear?

Hosting an open house today, so I wanted something clean and approachable. Went with Gin & Tonic and it’s been a great choice so far. First spray was around 11:30 a.m. It’s 12:31 p.m. now and I’m still very much in the opening, which I really like. The sparkle has softened a bit. It’s less fizzy than the first 15–20 minutes, but it feels more grounded now. The ginger doesn’t have that sharp pop anymore, but the lime is still clearly present and keeping everything bright. What I’m getting at this stage feels like the freshness settling rather than disappearing. The profile still feels clean and airy, but with a little more structure underneath. That makes me think the lily of the valley and cedar are starting to support the top without changing the character. It still smells fresh and uplifting, just a bit more anchored. This doesn’t come across as a typical blue fragrance at all. It feels like a refined, niche fresh scent that works really well in a professional setting. Clean, easy to wear, and very pleasant in the air. Update: It’s about 1:32 p.m. now and this has clearly moved into the drydown. The freshness is still there, but it’s more grounded. I’m getting a light green touch that feels like oakmoss, along with dry woodiness coming through from vetiver and cedar. There’s also a noticeable skin-like musk now, which makes it feel very natural and easy to wear. It actually gives me a faint Aventus-type vibe in structure, but the DNA is completely different. This stays cleaner, lighter, and more aromatic. The drydown is really nice. Clean, slightly green, softly woody, and very approachable. This feels like the kind of scent that just works around people without trying too hard.