Diptyque's Virgilio

Diptyque's Virgilio is a basil dominant scent. Well, at least on me it is and is reminiscent of Revillon's French Line. Virgilio isn't as "bright" as French Line in the opening accord, but they have numerous similarities.

Both share basil and thyme which are the dominant notes, yet they part ways categorically as far as listed notes go. As different as their listed notes are ( other than basil-thyme ), they still find a way to smell remarkably alike through the opening and heart accords. It's an interesting feat, but branch into different directions once the base and drydown transpire.

Virgilio opens with a blast of basil mingled with thyme. This basil-thyme combo leans slightly moist and is a good rendition of these two notes. You must like herbal accords or else this fragrance is likely to disappoint. As for me, I like most herbal fragrances that I've encountered and haven't come across many that are as good as Puig's Sybaris or French Line with it's herbal-leathery twists and turns. Where French Line opts for leather in its base, Virgilio becomes woody. Virgilio also is tuned at a moderate volume after the opening subsides and permits some woody-earthy tones to arrive.

There's cedar and vetiver listed in the base accord, yet they don't materialize as a distinct cedar-vetiver tandem. Even in the extended drydown, I can distinguish woody and slightly earthy. They don't possess the clarity of what's easily recognized as cedar or vetiver. Regardless of the notes being blurred, the accord still smells good and that's all that matters. I can also smell a subtle basil along with the earthy-wood long into the life of the wearings.

Virgilio is a nice, herbal woody that doesn't alienate with volume. It's also fairly linear with moderate projection and sillage. The longevity is about 4 hours on me and I find that reasonable. Even though I don't "love" Virgilio and prefer French Line for my basil fix, it's still a good scent that leans masculine but can be worn by both genders. Thumbs up from Aromi for Diptyque's Virgilio.

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