I have been a big fan of Thierry Mugler fragrances for a number of years now and have pretty much owned and worn all of his male fragrances at one point or another. A*Men is my own personal favourite and is the one that I tend to wear on a regular basis, it's a strong, woody fragrance that always reminds me of a crackling fire and has a deep patchouli base that makes it a long lasting fragrance, for special occasions though or just for a change I'll wear something different and I'm always on the lookout for something new to try. For the past few years Mugler has released a variation of his A*Men scent as an annual limited edition, they carry the 'Pure' name and have had inclusions such as Coffee and Whisky making up their composition and this year for 2012 he released another variation; A*Men Pure Shot.

I had to wait until I had available funds before buying my bottle of Pure Shot, it's not a cheap fragrance with a 100ml bottle costing around £50.00 but having owned the previous limited editions I knew I wanted to buy this one as soon as I could. It comes in a typical Mugler flask as shown in dooyoo's picture, Pure Shot being white in colour as opposed to the black one he uses for his traditional A*Men fragrance and as usual there is a stylised cut out of a star displaying the fragrance inside of the bottle. Mine is the 100ml EDT and has a demister nozzle allowing easy application, the packaging and flask/bottle are of excellent quality with the rubberised flask being quite tactile to handle. The fragrance sprays in a fine mist and settles quickly on the skin and is noticeable as soon as it is sprayed.

Pure Shot starts off with a burst of light, icy fragrance - Mint has obviously gone in to it's mix and is the first note of fragrance you notice. There is an immediate kick as the mint begins to relax and under that initial burst of fragrance there is a slightly deeper almost peppery aroma which adds an extra layer of depth and interest. Anyone familiar with Mugler's past fragrances might recognise "Ice Men" in Pure Shot as their openings are similar but unlike Ice which stays a light, icy fragrance Pure Shot has a deeper base that slowly reveals itself over time. It's rather clichéd to say that Pure Shot is a complex fragrance but I'm struggling to find something better to describe it as it really is a fragrance that does change over the course of the day once it has had time to settle. Whilst it starts off being bright and Icy and provides an initial blast of fragrance it's a scent that has a deep, woody base that ends up being the dominant aroma and it should come as no surprise to fans of Mugler that Patchouli and Sequoia wood are the notes that end up being the most noticeable.

I love Patchouli-based fragrances anyway and these tend to be the ones that I wear most often as I find them to be quite strong and long lasting. I've worn lighter fragrances in the past which all but disappear after a few hours and I like something that's going to last for most of the day without the need of a top-up. Pure Shot is probably best described as a lighter version of A*Men, it's the closest-smelling to the original that Mugler has produced I think as his other 'Pure' fragrances have tended to wander away from the original and from a personal point of view haven't really had that much of a resemblance. Here with Pure Shot there are reminders of A*Men but it is different enough to still be thought of as something new and for me has been the best of the Limited Editions to have come out over the past few years. It's unusual to find a fragrance that suits both the hot and cold weather but with Pure Shot I think it would work all year round, the initial brightness lends itself to being a Summer fragrance as it is cooling and refreshing and would be best sprayed after a morning shower however its deep woody and Patchouli base makes it a warming fragrance that suits the Autumnal and Winter months of the year. I'd definitely wear Pure Shot at any time of the year and do think it's versatile enough to see its wearer through all four seasons and as it's not a fragrance that is too strong or overpowering I do think that it is suitable for both daytime and night-time wear.

I don't have any criticisms at all as far as Pure Shot's fragrance goes, it definitely appeals to me and will be something that I wear throughout the year as a change to the A*Men original. It's perhaps not as long lasting as the deeper A*Men original but I still notice it on my skin on an evening if I've sprayed some on in the morning and although this is a limited edition release for 2012 it is still readily available online. Prices don't tend to alter much with Thierry Mugler fragrances, the 'Pure' fragrances in particular tend to hold their prices so you should expect to pay around £50 where-ever you buy them from, I would say it's worth the money though and this one would definitely make for a nice Christmas treat for a Thierry Mugler fan.

All in all A*Men Pure Shot gets 5 stars from me, thanks for reading my review.