Shattering the myth and preconceived notions of "old man" fragrances.

I have been away from the blog for months due to an impossible personal schedule. Between work and sponsoring/coaching my softball team, I have been forced to put my fragrance hobby on the back-burner. My apologies ( to anyone who actually cares lol) and kudos to Redneck and Galamb for keeping the blog going with very interesting reads and reviews.

While busy with my softball team recently, I found that one of my players in particular is a huge fragrance buff. Keep in mind that he is mid twenties as is the rest of the team. I am 53 and gravitate to the powerhouse classics, but am open minded to sample everything because that's how gems are discovered. During a practice, he asked what I was wearing after telling me I smelled "pimpin good".

Ah yes........pimpin good is something my own peer group could do with more of, but this player is a macho Latino who places emphasis on how he looks and smells. Even the uniforms are borderline gangsta, albeit fitting for this group of competitive African American, Latino, Native American and White young bucks.

Anyway.....back to the fragrances. Within a few days, my player came to the fields with part of his arsenal to see if I liked them. Burberry Touch and YSL L'Homme were his 2 favorites and he was curious to see if an old timer like me could possibly like anything from his generation. I didn't tell him I had sampled them before and shot a sample spray of each scent on opposite hands. I smelled each and gave him my opinion on what I was actually smelling in each. "Both are good" I said and he went on to tell me how many women are attracted to these 2 particular fragrances. He has enough scents in his drobe to be considered a cologne junkie and he is smart enough to "try" something rather than be persuaded by stereotyped opinions.

 I told him I'd let him sample some impossible to find juice at our very next tournament. I went home and perused through my reference atomizers for powerhouse bombdroppers or simply rare juice. I figured he should have the opportunity to like or hate the classics on their own merit and decided to let him sample 8 frags without knowing what they were until after he formed an opinion. Our tournaments take up Saturday and Sunday, so there would be plenty of time and opportunity.

The results were pretty cool. When he smelled Kouros for the first time, he said " Daaammmnnnn this is sweet" and liked the entire, uncomplicated progression of it. Mind you, this is in temps over 60 degrees with his body temp much higher from exertion.

Balenciaga PH amazed him as did Ted Lapidus circa 1978, Ricci Club Haute, Vintage Tsar, Lacoste Original and even vintage Givenchy Gentlemen got the nod of approval. Versailles PH did not pass the test, but that one is truly a polarizing scent to begin with. The sampling was fun to watch because his generation has their own familiar formula for masculines and the samples he smelled were really outside that box. Suffice it to say that he was interested enough in a few of them to inquire if I could get him some.

It was refreshing for me to see someone form an opinion on his own without the help of forums or blogs to taint the entire process. It was especially cool to find a very confident 25 year old LIKING samples of classics and saying he would no doubt wear them...especially at night in cooler temperatures. " The chicks I could pull with these......."

Ah yes.....the chicks he could pull......which reminds me that Mrs. Aromi gave me a honey-do list that needs attention. Until the next review.....Peace....