Sì Intense

Ice cube shaped bottle with weird black thumb cap, and some dark pink rose petals.

A headier, smoother version of the original . The vanilla has been culled and the alcoholic woods replaced with benzoin, making the rose and currant syrupy and delicious–almost chocolaty–with a resinous base.

If the first version is meant to be worn on rosebud and champagne day dates, Intense is meant for falling petals and cream sherry evenings at home.

Lasts all night long, and forever on silk scarves.

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A sultry silk scarf song.

siI got this at Åhlens in Stockholm, a blind buy based on the (unusually talkative for a Swede) saleswoman’s advice–and I love this stuff.

It’s like VS Strawberries & Champagne finally old enough to drink, Chevaux d’Or without the gold plating, or Sadanne after moving to Milan.

Black currant wine cork pop at the beginning, then jammy roses that bloom on the clothes for hours. Woody vanilla, with enough patchouli to give it a smirk, stays close to the skin all day.

Fruity sweet, a little powdery, but with a bite and effortlessly stylish.
Chatty Swedish sales lady nailed it.


This hit came out of Italy in 2013 as well, also stylish and interesting.

Armani Code

armani code edgy
Ad peelie with Deadpool Ryan Reynolds in a bow-tie either putting on or taking off a jacket.

Polished leather and bergamot tea and suave manners at the start, sweet woods and spice and innuendo at the finish.

For the guy who is aggressively smart, rather than physically dominating.

(But why on earth does Blake Lively’s husband’s ARMANI shirt fit him so badly in the advert?!)


I love the Deadpool movies–this is a great cover of Wade’s favorite song.

Acqua di Gio

acqua di gio edgyRather nice.
Wet cantaloupe, with a spritz of lemon and a dash of salt to cut the sweetness.
This guy has Soundgarden on most of his playlists, drinks good tequila and likes standup comedy. He’s fun to hang around with.

This song is not aquatic at all, but is my favorite off of Down on the Upside, which also came out in 1996.