Xeryus Rouge by Givenchy

Givenchy's Xeryus Rouge is a borderline synthetic scent that does project a somewhat red aura, albeit it's a passive redness.

Rouge's accords are slightly unconventional to me, but different isn't always a bad thing. This is a woody whose overall distinction is clean with unknown entities.

There is Kumquat and cactus that are the unknowns I refer to. I don't pretend to have olfactory experience with these two notes, but if what I am smelling layered over a light cedar is this, then it's a pleasant concoction. The red pepper is far too subdued and the same goes for the tarragon. Ever so slowly, an accord of sandal, cedar and ambergris merge into the opening accord. I only get 2 transitions in this fragrance.....and they are blended in such a way as to make it difficult to tell when one accord passes off to the other. If I wasn't sample-reviewing this, I would have missed it completely.

I wore and reviewed Xeryus Rouge well over a year ago and find it superior this time around. It's always nice to come back to something after a lapse and smell it with no expectations. All in all, Rouge is a very pleasant masculine with moderate sillage and longevity.

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