L’Homme Idéal Cologne by Guerlain

A beautiful discontinued fragrance reminiscent of the famous LV Imagination, but with more prominent orange and neroli notes from Guerlain (more isn’t always better). Clean and fresh aroma with moderate longevity. If you find it at a good price, don’t hesitate to buy it.

Creamy, beautiful citrus fragrance, but with nothing special in terms of performance, typical of summer colognes. Longevity is average with low projection and sillage. Ideal for daytime or evening, with casual or formal work attire. It would be a gem if it lasted longer and projected better.

L’homme ideal Cologne (2015) is the first flanker in the line (2014): fresher and citrusy but warm, not icy. Notes of grapefruit, almond (the star), orange, bergamot, and vetiver. It’s a lovely fragrance, well-balanced, powdery, and sweet, making wearing it a pleasure. Pity it’s discontinued like so many other great perfumes.

Reading reviews is fine, but here I bit the bait. I had already smelled perfumes from the line and found them mature and incense-heavy, nothing for me. They say it’s similar to Allure Edition Blanche, but not even close (at least in older batches). The opening is very powdery and smells like an older person, not an adult. The drydown is indeed a creamy lemon with the almond nuances of the line. If you like modern fragrances, get a decant first.

It’s a ‘weird’ perfume: it smelled different in the sprayer than when applied. It evolves a lot over time. I didn’t like the opening much (couldn’t detect the citrus well), then it transformed into something slightly powdery and fresh. Good longevity but scarce projection. It has no resemblance to Allure Edition Blanche. It’s a good perfume for semi-formal or superior occasions.

A delight! The grapefruit note reminds me of Tygar by Bvlgari, which is another gem. The downside is that it’s hard to find in Mexico and the price is through the roof, but if you can get your hands on it, buy it without hesitation.

I picked this up for 70 euros, and honestly, it was worth every penny. It’s an absolute treasure, incredibly rich. How can they stop making something like this? The notes that stand out most are the almond and bergamot, and it feels very creamy. I wasn’t expecting great performance, but it surprised me; it holds up just as well as the original EDT. I made it to the office, and my coworker looked at me in awe, saying it was the best scent she’d smelled yet: exquisite.

Guerlain stands for mastery and good taste. When Jean Paul left in 2010 and they chose Thierry Wasser, the bar was set incredibly high. In 2014, L’Homme Ideal was born: a masculine gourmand that was well-received for conjuring an almond accord with intense freshness. A year later came the flanker ‘Cologne,’ a perfect marvel for summer and most of the year, keeping that almond seal loaded with citrus (grapefruit, bergamot, orange) that creates a beautiful accord. To my nose, it smells like pure creamy lemon. The amazing thing is that the citrus feels present throughout the entire fragrance, which is rare since they’re usually volatile; they’re never sharp, blending harmoniously with the almond and lasting until the dry down with musk and non-earthy vetiver. In a market full of blues and ambroxan, Wasser nailed this discontinued scent. Although it’s not sparkly, it fulfills its refreshing role in the heat. Longevity is good, projection is moderate to low, but it gives off bursts and creates a personal bubble.

What an amazing perfume!

Clean and rich scent, creamy. The opening is a bit spicy, although anise isn’t listed in the notes, my nose picked up something of that note alongside the listed almonds, creating a rich fusion as it dries. It brings me memories of Allure Homme from ’99. As it dries, it’s a scent you really enjoy. I recommend it. It’s important to emphasize that it’s not a sharp citrus; it’s discreet and creamy, with a personal aura and projection, totally elegant. It feels a bit mature, suitable for 30+ due to its classic side. Recommend testing it before blind buying; it’s a great perfume, too bad it’s discontinued.

Delicious aroma. The opening reminds me a lot of Dior Homme Cologne: a sharp but very natural citrus. As it dries down, it becomes creamier, like Paz et Humor or Allure Blanche (without losing that typical acidity). In short, a delightful olfactory journey. Although for the Ideal line, I don’t detect any almond note other than that creamy sensation (and I can’t isolate it no matter how hard I sniff). In performance, it lives up to its name: it behaves like a cologne. It doesn’t last a breath: 2 hours on skin, fading by the second hour. On clothes, 4 hours with no sillage. If you overapply, you get maybe 3 hours, nothing more. Terrible performance. But given how cheap it is (since it’s discontinued and now I understand why), the price-to-performance ratio doesn’t seem bad. I paid $20 for a 100ml bottle. A steal. Do I like it? Yes. What do I use it for? Personal enjoyment at home on hot days, because nobody is going to smell this even at 30 centimeters. Repeat, performance at the level of cheap department store perfumes, but with an aroma above the designer line. In short, very Guerlain: superlative but ephemeral. CORRECTION: Using it on hotter days (30 degrees) I got much better longevity: 5 hours with moderate projection and sillage for the first 3 hours. Yes, applying 7 or 8 sprays.

The almond-tonka accord of the original is still here and very pleasant combined with the citrus. But as it dries down, a murky musk rises that slightly ruins the result. So it’s not bad, but I don’t think it’s any wonder. Medium performance.

I bought it blindly because of the hype and ended up gifting it a few days later. The truth is I don’t understand how it’s so overrated. At first, it feels like a sharp citrus similar to L’Eau d’Issey that descends over the minutes and settles into a creamy, old-talc, lemony scent. It ends up giving me disgust, which hadn’t happened with any fragrance before. P/S: I love the L’homme Ideal EDT and can assure you they are absolutely nothing alike.

I don’t understand how there are people who don’t like this perfume, it’s truly a beauty.