Dior's Poison Espirit de Parfum

There is no doubt in my mind that Dior's 1985 release of Poison would rival ( or out-muscle) any of the masculine Powerbombs that I own from the big 80's. The bad rap this fragrance has garnered is because it's been criminally over-applied......and I assure you....this is NOT something you want to do with Poison.

I have not sampled the EDT rendition, so my opinion is reserved for the parfum version. This is actually an extraordinary scent when dabbed on in miniscule amounts. The neck, cleavage and wrists with one dab each would produce enough sillage to propel a windmill at 50 paces. Okay, okay.....I'm exaggerating.....but not by much. Two to three dabs of this will produce collateral scent and last for half an epoch.

The opening blast of Poison is all Jasmin with some berry and tuberose blended in the mix. It's synthetic and only unpleasant if over-applied. The masculine doppleganger to this is undoubtedly Iquitos by Alain Delon. It takes my senses about 15 minutes to recognize some additional subtle fruit and low key wood in the accord.

After Poison starts to subside, a gentle spice emerges and this is when the fragrance gets very good. All this is contingent on a few, small dabs since a little really does go a long way. I cannot say I recognize allspice and cinnamon as such, but I do discern a spice element and it enhances the composition by detracting some of the overall sweetness. The floral notes are numerous, but they truly play minor parts to the dominant Jasmin and Tuberose. Going into the drydown phase of Poison, this is still about the Jasmin, Tuberose and Berry trifecta.....at least on my skin, that is.....

The base accord is loaded with 80's style hitters and theoretically should sway toward a Woody-Oriental finish. Sandal and Cedar teamed with amber, vanilla and a dash of musky vetiver. I don't doubt all the listed suspects are there, I just happen to have fatigue by this time and seem to be stuck on the opening accords. Thirty minutes into Poison's transitions and what I have is a pleasant conglomerate of the first 2 accords with a spicy wood set as a backdrop.

Poison has had extreme reactions over the years. I can see why. To apply this fragrance like you would most others results in a room clearing, headache inducing buzzsaw of scent. This is potent and dense and should be worn as such. When worn correctly, Poison is extremely good and retains a rich compositional quality even from a few dabs. I have no choice but to give Poison a thumbs up.....because it deserves it.....and because it needs its owners to use a calculating hand.