Cuoium by Orto Parisi

Wow, you guys are so dramatic, haha. After reading so many scary reviews, I was so terrified that even though I’d had it for months, I didn’t dare use it. But last weekend I headed into the snow and thought: if I’m going to smell like a Yeti, what better place than its natural habitat, the Italian Alps? (I know the creature is from the Himalayas, but at -4°C, it doesn’t matter). All the reviews agree on one thing: you have to wear Cuoium outdoors and at night, no negotiation. So, with all my courage, at 9 AM I sprayed it on and a quarter of an hour later I was on a packed, freezing cable car full of people. To my surprise, I didn’t look like a beast, nor did it cause an avalanche or panic. I haven’t used it in the city yet, but given what’s happened, I don’t think they’ll evacuate my neighborhood. If you think I’m exaggerating, read the other reviews; it seems like they’re atomizing enriched uranium. It’s strong, yes, but more delicate than it appears, which makes it wearable. Okay, it’s not for work unless you’re an MMA fighter, and extreme heat probably doesn’t suit it unless you’re on a motorcycle in the desert like Mad Max. Still, it’s an interesting proposal. I find it more versatile than Terroni, which I’m just starting to use and struggle to wear outside of Bonfire Night. The opening is polarizing, but the dry-down is marvelous. I’m calling on you all to try it, even if you have to decant it. Just don’t test it in a sauna. You’ll surely be surprised. It’s so intensely masculine that I wouldn’t be surprised if it smelled good on a woman. Leather is a captivating note, one that is usually paired with roses or red fruits to mask its power. Someone turning the stench of Fez tanneries into a lovely scent is commendable. Gualtieri being Gualtieri.

It opens with a smell like a medical amphitheater—can you detect the plum actinide? It’s intense, not wearable, but not unpleasant. The drydown shifts dramatically: pure leather with heavy ambroxan, feeling hollow. The drydown resembles Le Labo’s Patchouli 24, which feels more challenging and higher quality for leather enthusiasts.

Think of the traditional way of softening leather with manure or urine (note: it’s not unpleasant); I find that reminiscence in the opening. Then it evolves into a smoky, musky base. It’s tough but not daunting, ideal for nights, winter, and character-driven styles. As for longevity and projection, I applied a 0.3 ml decant to my arm, and people noticed it around me immediately.

One of the chord progressions that steal hearts. Orto Parisi’s Cuoium feels like a rough yet sensual perfume, where the accented and somewhat smoky (or incense-like) notes stand out—delicious. It has sweet accents, opening almost like gasoline, which dries down into something elegant and realistic, like aged leather, with plenty of body that marks its territory. I’d say it’s quite bold. It handles animal, accented, and smoky notes, making the blend exquisite—a bombshell 10/10, one of those scents you smell and never forget. If you’re a woman who loves intense and powerful aromas, this could be a good choice (sorry, it’s totally unisex; for people with a lot of character). In my opinion, it’s ideal for layering; I don’t think I’d dare wear it alone, but 100% layered with other perfumes like Chanel’s Coromandel, Dior’s Dioramour, or Gucci Eau de Parfum—the list goes on and on.

Cuoium isn’t a perfume; it’s a manifesto. It doesn’t just smell; it roars. I discovered it like stumbling upon a wild beast in the middle of civilization: dirty, hairy, smelling of leather soaked in sweat, a living stable, skin, dried blood, and history. The first time I smelled it, I thought, ‘half the world will hate this.’ And I was right. But I also thought, ‘this belongs to me.’ And that was even more true. It doesn’t come to please; it comes to impose itself, like a storm dragging memories of ancient stables, sweaty horses, men hardened by sun and silence. There are no concessions here. No pretty flowers, no fake sweetness, no citrus to make life easy. Cuoium charges at you from the very first second with that animal accord, almost tar-coated, as if they captured the soul of an old, tanned, majestic bull and distilled it into a bottle. It reminds me of freshly worked leather, but sweaty, mixed with something wild and sacred. Like a temple built in a corral, with incense, manure, and redemption. Sometimes it smells like living human skin: with imperfections, heat, desire, and decay. It’s like an untamed, sleeping, mythical creature, typical of legends no one believes until they walk past its cave and inhale the magnificent stench of that beast waking up. I wear it when I want the world to know I’m not here to be liked, but to exist with presence. And while many flee (literally) from the aura I leave behind, I love it all the more for that. It found me blindly; it’s my second favorite perfume, but the first one that looks me in the eyes. Scent: 10/10 Longevity: 9.7/10 Sillage: 8.8/10 Versatility: 0.5/10 Compliments: 2.0/10 Originality: 9.5/10 Olfactive Rarity: 9.0/10 Average: 7.07

To clarify, it’s not the perfume they paint it to be, smelling like hell, burnt stones, or burnt leather; those comments come from cheap TikTokers who just want views and hype where it doesn’t belong. Cuoium isn’t entirely complicated or ugly; I’d say it’s relatively easy, and people like it. It’s animalic, tarred, sweet, leathery, and salty. Its opening is sweet, tarred, dusty, animalic, but not an intense animal; you can smell it’s animalic, but that combination with the sweetness makes it very addictive, even intoxicating. In the dry-down, it still smells sweet, but the sweetness fades; the animalic note persists, and the dusty violet note comes out. The tarred aspect lingers, revealing a leather that smells somewhat cold; I wouldn’t say it’s raw or burnt leather, it’s a supremely delicious and addictive leather. In the dry-down, the leather scent persists, but something new emerges—a salty leather. I’m sure Cuoium has ambergris; what I notice most in the final stage is that the animalic note, the tar, and that salty leather persist. It seems like a supremely delicious perfume. Don’t listen to those comments saying it’s horrible because it isn’t. It’s very similar to Nudiflorum, but honestly, in my opinion, Nudiflorum is more complicated. Setting that aside, Cuoium isn’t the perfume people talk about on social media; it’s multifaceted. In my opinion, it has super strong projection, to the point of being a megamare, but with Cuoium, you need to be careful with sprays; 2-3 are more than enough. I sprayed about 10 times to go to a club and became uncomfortable for people around me. I got good compliments, mostly from the girls, and if they asked what perfume it was, a lady told me it was a perfume she’d never heard of and seemed very masculine; she loved it. I’ve also worn it to university, and it’s very well-received; professors asked what perfume I was wearing when they passed by, and the girls asked too. I was surprised how well it works with women; I thought it would probably be unpleasant, but nothing like that. Nothing more to say: an excellent perfume with 24-hour longevity in my case, projecting for about 8 hours. It’s unrealistic, but that’s how it is for me; every skin is a different world, and perfumes won’t perform the same for everyone, just like with olfactory fatigue. PROJECTION: 100/10 LONGEVITY: 100/10 SILLAGE: 10/10

Smells like the worst possible thing, as if you fell asleep in a kennel soaked in petroleum. If this is intentional fragrance, I’m going back to designer brands. 😂😂😂 Way too strong for my untrained nose. I had to shower twice to get rid of that nauseating smell, and there’s still a hint of burning rubber left.

I love this scent. The opening smells like a leather fair, and the dry-down is like burnt rubber, but it doesn’t smell bad—just weird. It’s very peculiar and exclusive. If you wear it, you look like a wealthy gentleman with serious money. Personally, I’m obsessed.

Either my nose is broken or I’ve just encountered the best leather perfume ever created. At first, I’m reminded of a cow giving birth in stifling heat, causing my old leather jacket to release a scent that, combined with animal notes, is what I perceive initially. Sounds gross, right? But it drives me crazy and is totally wearable. Alessandro made a risky bet that paid off: a fragrance that reflects the story behind it, the bottle leather is magnificent, and the marketing is on par with Nasomatto. No need to discuss performance for OP, but it lasted 14 hours on skin perceptibly, with very noticeable projection, especially in the wind. It’s an experience worth trying. I understand those who wouldn’t wear it even if gifted, but I believe it’s the best leather base I’ve ever smelled.

Not for me. Maybe I’m just a newbie, but I’m definitely ruling this out completely. I wouldn’t wear this fragrance even by accident.

Gualtieri remains my favorite perfumer. Brutal potency, epic longevity, and it projects for meters. For me, one of the best scents on the market. It’s a powerful, realistic leather with an animal touch and a hint of florals, but what really hooks you is that wet earth note—a ‘dirty’ earth that, as a whole, is incredibly pleasant. Like all his work, it doesn’t smell clean; it smells powerful and intriguing. Everyone will ask what you smell like, and your answer will be ‘like a boss’. Take advantage while it’s still available… because it’s out of stock for long periods. If you’re going to an executive meeting and want to be remembered, wear Cuoium; you’ll definitely succeed!

It reminded me a bit of the leather in Gucci Guilty Absolute, which is a fragrance I love; I understand they aren’t scents for everyone. My novice nose only perceives somewhat dirty, animalic leather combined with a smoky wood scent. It could also remind you of an ashtray full of extinguished cigarettes or, why not, petroleum. I’ll leave this review open and share more in a few months when I have it more broken down or at least try it in real life. Relevant note: a single spray on my wrist filled the entire apartment with Cuoium.

Undoubtedly one of the worst perfumes I’ve ever smelled. I genuinely feel it’s impossible for anyone to want to spend so much money on this fragrance.

An alpha male fragrance, for those 30 and up. I barely notice the incense. The animalic part disappears in 3 or 4 hours at most, and what remains is exactly the same base as Terroni/Black Afgano (honestly, I dislike that two perfumes from the same collection have so much in common), which is also noticeable from the start. On my skin, it lasts less than Terroni, so I don’t recommend it if you already own Terroni, which is my case.

I understand the hate this perfume has generated: yes, it has a little bit of Terroni (which in turn has a bit of Black Afgano), yes, it has a bit of Nudiflorum, and yes, it has a confusing opening. To talk about this wonderful perfume, to my nose at least, I have to go back a few months when I first encountered it. As I mentioned, the opening is strange if you aren’t used to the leather note in its aspect as a cleaning product. This caused immediate disapproval in me, but as I’ve learned on this journey, the blotter should be saved to return to the scent hours later. When I smelled it again a few hours later, I realized its resemblance to Terroni and I was disappointed. Another Afghan flanker, I thought. Months later, life put me in front of a bottle again, and this time everything changed; the love was immediate, and I realized my nose was better understanding the notes. What happened in between? I smelled and used any quantity of perfumes with Oud: The Night (FM), Ceylon (Xerjoff), King Masarat (Xerjoff), Noctambule (Givenchy), Carbon Sapphire (BdV). Does this perfume have Oud? Of course not! But oud, like mathematics, gives abstraction and develops a muscle. My sense of smell had changed, and then I understood that harsh, almost alcoholic opening: it was the leather. I understood the middle phase (after 15 minutes): it was a Terroni with elegant leather. Finally, to my surprise, I understood the last phase of the perfume (after 4 hours): Ambergris mixed with amber and suede. It’s a very original combination of salty and warm. Wow! What a great perfume! Looking at written and video reviews, I noticed there was controversy about its performance. On my skin, Cuoium is much more than Terroni, almost on par with Black Afgano; maybe it doesn’t travel as much in projection, but it is noticeable. The trail you leave is wonderful. I recommend trying it if you’re interested in this house; it seems much more purposeful than the best-seller Megamare. Grazie Gualtieri!