Bvlgari Man In Black Parfum by Bvlgari

Smells great, but the performance is a disaster. It doesn’t even last as long as the Nenuco I used to put on my baby. At this price point, I can’t recommend it.

If I had to define Bvlgari Man In Black with one word, it would be character. From the very first moment, you feel its strength: the rum and spices give a warm and powerful opening, followed by refined leather that adds elegance and depth. As time passes, the perfume becomes more serene, revealing its amber base with sweet notes of tonka and benzoin. It has an enveloping, masculine, and mature presence, perfect for cold nights or moments where you want to leave a mark. Longevity is excellent, easily over 8 hours, with a balanced projection that isn’t invasive. It’s a perfume that combines fire and calm, strength and wisdom. It’s one of those that you don’t just smell, you feel. I recommend it for confident men, with a calm spirit but an intense soul. A must-have in any autumn or winter collection.

It’s delicious; it’s one of those aromas that grabs that unisex vanilla I’m usually not drawn to and transforms it into a true masculine scent. Briefly, it’s the same Man In Black with no differences. What I noticed is that in the dry down, there’s something new, perhaps some incense or leather accord that fits right in with today’s trends. However, knowing they redesigned the bottle and relaunched the line by calling the classic MIB the MIB EDP, it seems that formula change—which over the years slowly turned the living legend into a less deep scent—forced the brand to release a more intense version to revive this great fragrance.

Bvlgari Man in Black Parfum is a spicy, woody, and amber fragrance. It has a very spicy opening where you can sense the DNA of Man In Black, but this version is more intense in spices, possibly some pepper and cardamomo, plus an amber note that gives it a dark, bitter chocolate feel. A bit later, floral notes emerge to balance the spices, slightly reducing their intensity until settling into a very pleasant and sensual woody base. Like the original Man In Black, this is a fragrance geared toward fresh or cold seasons, like autumn and winter. It’s suitable for daytime use on cold days, but mainly for nighttime in formal or informal settings, parties, weddings, graduations, concerts, or dates. The projection promises great sensations for the first hour, but then it drops abruptly to skin-level, though its longevity isn’t bad; with me, it lasted between 9 to 10 hours. That said, the cost is very high (the reality is that perfumery prices have skyrocketed). Here in Mexico, the 100 ml bottle costs 3,720 pesos, which is equivalent to over $200 USD at a department store. For its scent, it’s worth it; it’s one of my favorite 2024 launches, especially for those who already know the original Man In Black. However, given the price, unless you can find it cheaper, it’s something to think twice about.

A fairly spicy and warm opening that gives way to what I perceive (at least on my nose) as a dark leather note paired with iris. The iris stands out the most, lingering from start to finish. As it dries down, it becomes an amber/woody/spicy scent that reminded me a lot of the classic Spicebomb by V&R. Definitely a fragrance for cooler temperatures given its warmth, and I’d say its trail leans intimate. It’s a sweet scent that invites closeness… simply put: for seduction. As for performance, I’ve seen tons of reviews and 90% of them are negative. While I admit the trail isn’t amazing (which makes sense given the focus I find), I must say that in my case, the longevity is another story. On skin, it lasts 6 to 8 hours, while on clothes it can stay for over 12. I’ll be the exception. If so, I feel lucky, as the scent is very rich.

It follows the same original path as the original BMIB but diverges in the dry-down, arriving at a new destination that is much spicier and darker, with a marked iris similar to Dior perfumes and elemi accords, disappearing the tobacco, rum, and leather notes. Being more impetuous, it’s less versatile than the BMIB EDP and isn’t for daily use, but for special occasions like events and gatherings where you need to make a statement and show presence. Suitable for temperate and winter climates. It lasts around 8 hours, but the last 2 are skin-close; it has an astringent projection for nearly 2 hours with a moderate trail. This fragrance, being so impactful, behaves more like a flanker of the BMIB EDP than having a different percentage of essential oil concentration. If you’re looking for the smell of the original 2014 Bvlgari Man In Black, I recommend BAVARIA Man Intense by Fragrance World, a 95% dupe of the original, improving longevity by far (+8 hours) and projection (+3 hours with a moderate trail) without losing quality and at an affordable price.

I was surprised. Honestly, I feel it lacks the essence of the original Man In Black, a perfume I’m not a huge fan of and wouldn’t wear, though I do like it. It’s a simplified, more intense, and sweeter version. I don’t believe scents have an age range, but if you want to believe that, this is a younger version. Another thing that surprised me was the longevity; being a Parfum, I normally expect it to last and project more, but no, it feels like it lasts the same as the original, losing intensity after a few hours and fading away around 8, with projection in the same category as the original, maybe slightly less. Anyway, it’s a delicious scent; I just feel it was oversimplified and sweetened too much. One could say it’s the Paco Rabanne-ized version of the EDP.

Performance is very low, both on clothes and skin, and even after testing it over several days, by the end of the day there’s only a faint, barely-there trace on the skin. The scent is very similar but lacks the initial liquor explosion of the EDP and has no vanillic dry-down. I’m sticking with the EDP, even though it doesn’t last as promised. Update: I’ve been wearing it again for a week, temperatures have risen significantly (+23°C), and it projects more with acceptable longevity. It gets the job done perfectly for a workday, releasing bursts of scent. It lasts much longer on clothes and still lingers slightly the next day, though perfectly distinguishable. It’s just my opinion; it depends on the environment, humidity, who knows. I like it more and more each time.

It’s been on the market for a while; it was strange not to see it on websites (now it’s available) in major stores, but if you went to Primor, you could find it there. Exquisite scent, quite similar to the previous EDP version, but terrible performance. As soon as I applied it to my wrist, it was skin-close and felt very faint.

Call me crazy, but it smells exactly like the old Spicebomb EDT before they changed the formula. The scent is identical. As for performance, I haven’t tested it much, but it doesn’t seem to last or project well. What a shame because the fragrance is top-tier.

Performance is very low on both clothes and skin, even after testing it over several days; by the end of the day, only a faint, barely-there trace remains on the skin. The scent is very similar but lacks the initial liquor explosion of the EDP and has no vanillic dry-down. I’m sticking with the EDP, even though it doesn’t last as promised. Update: I’ve been wearing it again for a week, temperatures have risen significantly (+23°C), and it projects more with acceptable longevity. It gets the job done perfectly for a workday, releasing bursts of scent. It lasts much longer on clothes and still lingers slightly the next day, though perfectly distinguishable. It’s just my opinion; it depends on the environment, humidity, who knows. I like it more and more each time.