Fragrance Review: Dolce & Gabbana Pour Homme Review

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The one that started it all for me. The first fragrance I ever sniffed because it was the first time I ever bought cologne. I forget how old I was, but I was definitely in high school. Now this is no scent for a high schooler..hell no. But I bought it for my father because I remember him sniffing it at Lord & Taylor and he loved it. So I got for him for Christmas. Now I remember thinking, damn, this stuff is good. Not great, but good. That was my response to the opening. Then after a while, the mid notes and dry down decided to knock on my door. That's when I was like holy shit. That final sweet tobacco intertwined with sandalwood, tonka, and cedar...to die for. Luxury and class in a bottle.

Oh then came the era of reformulations...and holy fuck what the hell did the d-bags over at D&G do to my precious sticker bottle formulation?!?! Now, this new version of the fragrance is abysmal to say the least. Far less longevity, terrible sillage, and something reminiscent of cat piss in the mid notes. I hate the new stuff. The problem with buying the classic "sticker bottle" formulation...is age...those bottles are probably old as hell and definitely some changes to the juice as age really does do damage on the molecules. So, I definitely do NOT recommend getting the new bottles which look like this:  

If you will buy a bottle.. aim to get, at the least, the original formula..the bottles which have a simple sticker on it that looks like this:

 On to the Review: (This is based on the bottle directly above...not the new cat piss formula..I'm not the only one who agrees with the cat piss...the sales associate at the D&G in Bal Harbour Miami said the same shit).

Opening:  Splendid burst of lemon and bergamot and some leafiness (probably from the tarragon or sage or some shit I forgot). I use tarragon in some of my chicken marinades..adds an amazing touch along with rosemary. I digress..so you have this luxurious citrusy burst initially...behind it all you feel some woods evolve...cedar and sandalwood. This gives a great base for the first notes to play around on...

Mid-Dry Down: Oh sweet tobacco...sweet motherf*ckin tobacco...starts to holds hands with a mellowed out bergamot and they both lay down on a soft bed made of plush sandalwood, creamy tonka, and Cedarwood. The end is a mist of luxury, sexiness, and extreme comfort. If this drydown was sold in a bottle, I would make it my signature scent. No joke. I think that's why I love Sweet Redemption so much...the scent from start to finish has moments that remind of D&G PH's drydown phase.

Versatility: Very versatile. Work or play, this baby gets the job done year round.

Sillage/Longevity/Projection: Excellent. Lasts forever, projects forever, and leaves a scent trail that is just mesmerizing. For a fragrance that came out in 92 I think, this is just beautiful. In it's drydown phase, the sillage it leaves behind is truly breathtaking.

Compliments: As a senior in high schooler (definitely NOT the age range for this cologne) somehow I pulled this shit off..I am not special..I just think it was different from what everyone else was wearing (Curve, Acqua Di Gio, Curve, Magnetism, Curve, Obsession, Fucking Curve again, etc)...girls loved this shit...my friends would ask me what it is, and I'd threaten to kick their asses if they even sampled it at Sephora. I'd tell them to buy this new thing called...Curve. I continued it throughout my sophomore year of college when I realized that D&G PH was a part of most people's family fucking trees. It was played out and I wanted to be unique. Plus, around that time a couple of felines decided to piss in the formulation and D&G decided to release it....perfect time to say "night night" to this classic and reopen the casting call for a new signature scent. But compliments this baby gets, and they are memorable ones. Sigh.

Overall: 8.5/10. A classic..'nuff said. Long live the initial formulation and I hope they find the asshole who decided to put kitty piss in it and call it Pour Homme. More like Pour Whiskers. The new formulation, 4/10. It only gets a 4 because I am in a good mood and it has SOME hints of the elegant drydown, but it's missing that sweet tobacco sensation and the complimenting sweet blend of  cedar/sandal/tonka. That mixture is just NOT present in the new formulation.