acquired this sample on my saturday trip. and oh my stars am i in love. ive tried a lot of freshies before, i dont think very many come close to this one. definitely up there. opening notes are very bright and sparkly. think minty fresh mojito on a yacht. you get some citrus, mint, black currant, and a nice, soft, spicy edge with coriander. the middle notes are a very dominant, photorealistic and noticeable apricot, complimented by an herbal, floral slice of basil, carrot seed, and rose, before descending into a rich, fruity, musky base of fig and dates. this is ultimate vacation in a bottle. it’s bright, playful, yet mature with a sophisticated edge amongst the sweetness. an absolute compliment beast. i’ve gotten so many compliments from this one today. performance? absolutely amazing for a freshie. i get about 7-8 hours out of this, with fantastic projection, and that’s with just using the sample, although LV sample atomizers are genuinely amazing. only con is the price tag, but honestly after 4 months of careful budgeting, i think i could buy a full sized bottle. i’m at least looking to direct that amount of money for SOMETHING that high end, just not sure yet. but definitely consider this one.

Continuing to discover and test ATH fragrances. The initial opening is a very fruity and sweet with some citrus undertones. At 15 minutes I pick up a more complex fruity sweetness. At 30 minutes the complexity of the fruit scent has settled down, and I am getting a very nice citrus/fruity scent profile. At 60 minutes, on my skin the fragrance is still coming off sweet, but the citrus has definitely dissipated. I am also starting to get some of the Nutmeg. The dry down of this fragrance is a citrus, fruity, and woody (Sandalwood) scent that has some undertones of a creamy Vanilla/Tonka scent. Performance: Off my skin, the projection of this fragrance is great with it creating a scent bubble of about 3 feet for about 2.5 hours. The sillage is also great with a scent trail of 3+ feet for 2+ hours. Longevity on my skin is between 7 to 8 hours with the fragrance becoming a skin scent after about 4 hours. This fragrance is definitely FBW.

Hey guys, Joe A. here with another one for ya'! When I first dipped my toe into this hobby, I thought the deal was simple: buy a bottle, spray the bottle, smell the juice. End of story. Easy enough, right? Well… turns out collecting fragrances has a few side quests nobody tells you about! For starters, shelf space disappears faster than a free decant at a frag meet-up. One bottle becomes five, five becomes twenty, and suddenly you're rearranging furniture like an HGTV host just to give your collection proper real estate. Then come the accessories: tester strips by the hundreds, decant atomizers, label makers, storage trays, display stands, travel sprayers… next thing you know you’re buying organizers for the organizers. I swear half the hobby is logistics!!! And don’t even get me started on the “supporting research materials.” Sample packs, discovery sets, decant racks, fragrance journals, maybe even a dedicated cabinet with lighting so your bottles look like they’re on display at the Louvre. Before long you’re explaining to your spouse why the mailman knows you by name and why small glass vials keep showing up at the house every week. Ha, but here’s the funny thing… those unintended consequences kinda become part of the fun. The hobby grows, your setup evolves, and suddenly you’ve built your own little scent laboratory at home. What say you, guys? What unintended expenses has this hobby snuck into your life? Did you end up buying storage, decant gear, display cabinets, or something completely unexpected? And what’s the one accessory you now consider essential to the hobby? Or is ol' Joe A. a pack rat in need of professional help or intervention? Love to hear from ya’!