New Romance in my Life (Ralph Lauren Romance for Men Aftershave)

Member Name: Morgenhund

Product:	Ralph Lauren Romance for Men Aftershave
Date:	23/11/01 (887 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: exclusive, long-lasting, complex fragrance

Disadvantages: availability

Whether the purchase of a little four and half inch little black box, with silver writing on it will signal the return of romance to my life can only be answered over the course of time, when of course I will be only too glad to inform you, my readers.

So this little black box, with a delicate lattice work and serif typeface, what does it say? Quite simply "Ralph Lauren" "Romance - Men" and inside there is a 100ml (3.4 fluid ounces) Eau de Toilette spray of the fragrance, with a 50ml spray version also being available. The range also includes a deodorant stick, aftershave, aftershave gel, a moisturising body lotion and a shower gel for those of you who choose / can afford to go the whole hog! And of course for those who like his and hers fragrances (not unisex fragrances! None of the run of the mill CKOne brigade etc.) there is the Ralph Lauren Romance for women, with the black boxes being replaced by pink (a similar shade to a kir royale) and silver box.

The fragrance is certainly one of the more expensive fragrances on the market, currently costing approximately £40 for the 100ml size of EdT spray for men, although fragrancedirect.co.uk currently has a reduction to £27 for the same product, albeit without a lid and as a tester - where you can never be quite sure about the age of the tester. Of course if you rationalise this cost, store it well - mine will be relegating the pesto with sun dried tomatoes or the Harvey Nicholls mayonnaise down a shelf in my fridge door (oh decisions, decisions!), this is really not that expensive, and given the fact that it is really for evening wear, although I tend to wear it for any occasion which befits, a bottle will go a long way.

From the bottle this is also clear, as the spray tube is narrow, and the diffuser very narrow, which therefore means that a single spray won't release that much of the fragrance. In the past Ralph Lauren has gone for a great deal of show in the design
of the bottles, take safari, with the monogram and shield on a sculpted bottle, the sort of thing that looks not out of place on a sherry decanter. Romance, however, has a simple rectangular bottle, with a plain black top and only the band that attaches the diffuser to the bottle bears the name of the fragrance - minimalism adds to the simplicity yet exclusive nature of the design of the bottle, making it look a less showy version of Helmut Lang for men.

So what colour does this perfume have (this was an idea I got from hpoulton - who expressed a colour for a Polo fragrance in an op she wrote)? To me there are two possibilities - black and silver (not for grieving, tombstones, sepulchres etc.) as in evening wear, with an air of sophistication class, with the silver being a pair of fine Simon Carter or Mont Blanc cufflinks perhaps? Or alternatively a very deep and regal purple, again expressing the refined nature of this product. This is probably the sort of thing Burberry were trying to achieve with Weekend and Picnic, but just didn't quite manage to.

So what does this oh-so-sophisticated fragrance contain in it then? Well obviously, not being an olfactory Adonis, I decided to consult a quality website to find out, as most sites are unable to say more than musk, spice and woods, and a touch of citrus - Hmm. Well Macys (www.macys.com) have been good enough to identify the whole lot of notes. Their description (and who I am to disagree/disprove this one!) is as follows "Top notes play with pistachio leaves, iced lavender, Chinese ginger, and mandarin peel. Following up are middle notes of celery greens, wild tiger lily, Indian basil, and Kashmir saffron. The finale comes clean with brisk bristlecone pine, patchouli, and clear musk notes." All in all a complex fragrance.

The scent is not quite as long-lasting as others that I have tended to wear, although given the fact that this is intended for evening wear and not everyday
wear, this is to be expected, although it lasts a good enough evening - I put some on at 6pm last night and went out to see some friends, went out to dinner and got home around midnight and could still faintly smell it, and it is noticeable around the collar of a shirt still the following morning (no, I don't normally sniff clothes!).

Overall this a fragrance that suits a particular need, that of evening wear. I would not advise it really as an everyday fragrance, although it probably is long-lasting enough to make it through the office day, but this fragrance should be enjoyed, kept for special occasions rather than being the postscript to your pre-work three "S" routine? Its price perhaps help it to maintain its exclusive nature, as it not going to be sold in every high street department store. Now all I need it for it to work its magic on a discerning female nose...

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