Calvin Klein: Man is a fragrance that has been around for a couple of years now and although not terribly original or new it is a very fresh, clean smelling scent and seems to have been fairly popular since it was created. It makes its presence known but this is a little more minimalist than some other smelly stuff you might have lurking in your bathroom next to the scuba diving equipment and has a pleasant and subdued aroma that lasts a long time. The minimalist elements extend to the design which is simple but quite striking, the box it comes in looking like a Spinal Tap cover album that has the group attempting to go back to basics with a lot of black. The main components of Calvin Klein: Man are rosemary, mandarin, bay, nutmeg, incense, spearmint and cypress wood. The fragrance notes beyond these respective wafts are bergamot, violet leaf, guaiac wood, sandalwood, amberwood and musk. The usual suspects really with one or two surprises to pique the interest of us fragrance scholars.

The first thing you pick up from this fragrance is bergamot and a vague rush of mandarin citrus. It feels like many scents you've owned before and much of a muchness but then there are some very pleasant notes of rosemary and spearmint as the fragrance freshens and changes, moving into the mid-section. The mentholated spearmint in the fragrance gives it a no-nonsense chilly, clean and crisp quality which I quite liked. It's like being caught in a light shower of mixed fruit juice and then being gently mugged by a packet of polo mints and having your hair ruffled by tic tacs before it all eventually coalesces in a woody, fresh whole and even reveals a discernible tinge of nutmeg as if the nutmeg had unexpectedly arrived late to a small private function and stuck its head around the door bearing a small gift. The gift is not expensive but it's the thought that counts. When the nutmeg makes his excuses and leaves the fragrance settles down with a finish of sandalwood, amberwood, guaiac wood, their backs watched all the time by our old friend musk.

These last notes also contain a nice hint of roses, doubtless from the guaiac wood. Any guaiac wood buffs out there would back me up on this one. One of the good things about this mint themed perfumery product is that it isn't too sickly sweet and retains an earthy and fresh quality. It is quite potent if applied in haphazard fashion but not unbearably so and once the fragrance settles down it retains a clean and pleasant aura even with a sensibly minimal application. I think this is probably more of an autumn/winter fragrance than a summer one and its minty heart of middle notes gives it a slightly frosted feel of nights drawing in, buttered crumpets and hot chocolate and cold cloudless days with people wearing mittens and scraping ice off their Moped in the morning. This is apparently the top fragrance of choice for most Eskimos and many an igloo is said to have a bottle of this in their bathroom cabinet.

I think one of the strengths of this offering from the Calvster is that although millions of people have probably used this it doesn't have a powerful and overwhelmingly distinctive aura so you won't feel like you smell like everyone else in the world. It has a relatively smooth and minimalist quality/scent, a slightly more neutral air that I preferred slightly to some of the sweeter fragrances available. Whereas some fragrances announce themselves with a megaphone and maintain a high pitch this is more subdued and the initial brashness soon dissipates into polite chatter and the occasional clinking of glasses somewhere in the background as cheese based nibbles await at a nearby table. Calvin Klein: Man morphs into a spice infused woody musky incense aroma in its final stage with that pleasant undercurrent of fresh flowers.

'Calvin Klein: Man epitomizes Calvin Klein's cutting edge minimalism and sexy style,' declares the blurb. 'It captures the essence of the Calvin Klein man in a new, modern classic way. Iconic. Masculine. Sexy. A blend of crisp freshness, sexy spices, and rich woods defines today's modern man.' While most of that is of course meaningless waffle, the fragrance does have a masculine redolence that is more Oscar De La Hoya than Charles Hawtrey. The duration of the bouquet is impressive too without lingering on the clothes in a sweet, cloying way. It retains a relatively sharp, clean scent while you have it on but I think the best thing about Calvin Klein Man is the middle section when the bergamot begins to fade and a minty blast of, er, mintness becomes the dominant component before a welcome cameo by the nutmeg in a scene stealing performance.

This is a pleasant fragrance that is also understated, even slightly tame by some standards. When it comes to fragrances this is smart and sensible rather than bright yellow trousers and a huge cravat. It costs about £20 for 50 ml so this is reasonable value and will last quite a long time, as long as you don't go completely mad with it and end up temporarily smelling like someone who has just been caught in an incense explosion in a rose garden while teaching a woodwork lesson, the force of the blast landing you in the world's largest Kendal Mint Cake before someone grates a tiny bit of nutmeg on your head. There are more expensive and spectacular fragrances available but I prefer Calvin Klein: Man to some of the more potent brews out there and would possibly purchase this again when the weather turns a tad parky and the summer begins to fade into the past leaving us with memories of England's dismal World Cup campaign and Andy Murray losing at Wimbledon. I think you could probably get a good deal on this if you shopped around and there certainly worse fragrances to part with your hard earned money for. Calvin Klein: Man is not bad at all.