Post: #1

I got a bottle of the Bois du Portugal oil type in the last sale The Fragrance Shop had. From what I can tell from my brief wearing so far, the TFS reproduction is pretty damn close to the original. I don't have the original scent at the moment but I have owned and used a 50 ml bottle of the original in the past. It might not have the incredible depth of the original but it is very close to my nose.

My bride thought it smelled nice but, "Like an expensive barber shop scent." The girl working the register at Walgreens however, practically tried crawling over the register to get a closer sniff. African American, early 20's, fun and sassy personality. She was actually disappointed when I told her the scent was not one she'd find for sale at her store.

I think I'm going to continue to wear this because I really like it, but also because it really does smell close to the original for me. Good stuff.

Post: #2

Hey Snoops,

I haven't been on here much. But I know we both really enjoy Bois du Portugal. I still haven't tried TFS's rendition, but I just sprayed on something that smells remarkably like BdP!

I bought some sampler packs of Alexandria Fragrances. They are up front about the fact they do "Inspired" fragrances. Basically clones. So I went after it and ordered 3 sample packs of 7 different fragrances each.

One that I just sprayed is called Cypress Spring. What I don't understand is that it is supposed to be similar or "Inspired" by Bracken Man from Amouage. I have never smelled Bracken Man, but I've also never seen Bracken compared to BdP. But id this smells like Bracken, then Bracken smells like BdP. Because I am actually a little stunned at how close this is to BdP. It is slightly different, but man! Maybe I smell a tad of cinnamon in Cypress Spring.

This stuff sells for $60 for 60ml. The good thing is I've tried a little more than 1/2 of what I bought and most are really good except for maybe 2 or 3 of them that I just didn't like. I also included 4 that they did themselves (originals) and so far 2 out of 3 are winners for me.

I haven't waited for the dry down or to see how long it lasts (I guess that's called performance), but I can say with confidence that I think you'll find this real similar to BdP.

Cheers!

Post: #3

Thanks! I have to check that out!!

Post: #4

Just checking in to see how the Alexandria Fragrances are holding up for you. I was thinking about getting a sample pack myself.

Post: #5

I am very comfortable with the sample purchases. As with all, some fit and some don't for me. Some have long lasting power and some don't. I noticed that several seem to have the same scent in the very late dry down. same late skin scent if you will. It's a pleasant sweet skin scent.

I know you know this - sometimes it takes more than once to know if you like a fragrance. I also read on forum that someone mentioned that these are better after 2-3 weeks of sitting after you get them.

I bought three sample packs and he threw in a couple extras for me to sample as well. Here's the haul:

Forbidden Plum - think I'll like it. Reminded me of TF Tobacco Oud which I have a decant of. May take a couple wears.
The God Father - I liked the scent. It didn't last long. Maybe it'll get better longevity from sitting?
Cypress Spring - Very similar to BdP like I mentioned.
Black Tie Affair - Smells real good.
Hawaii Intense (free sample) - VIW clone. Smells good, but the first time didn't last long.
Monaliza - I really liked this one. It turns to rose after a bit, so you'll have to like roses. Comfortable.
007 - Supposed to be clone of Intoxicated by By Kilian. Smelled just like Mugler's A*Men. Others have reviewed the same thing I found.
Chocolate Dreams - Wearing right now for the first time and I really like this.
Sunday Morning - I like this, could be considered feminine, but I liked it.
1981 X - I liked the smell. I think it didn't last long though. Has that similar sweet dry down, which does smell good.
Karnak Temple - I really liked this one. I had to ask what this is supposed to be and he responded "More Than Words" Xerjoff.
Alexandria Signature - Original from Alex. Got real good reviews so I tried it. I'm glad because this is very nice.
Rome - Very leathery. Similar to Carve On which I also got. Strong leather scent. probably could layer this too.
Egyptian Seduction - Alexandria original. I wasn't crazy about the first wear. Reminded me of Kouros. Jury out.
Dark Knight - Liked this! I don't think it lasted long. Probably at least ten wears left so we'll see in the future. Smells great though.
FUntastic - Smelled good. I don't feel it was a standout. Had that leather note in it.
King Tut - This went to a skin scent fast on my first wear. The skin scent dry down definitely smells like Enigma. Will check future performance.
Vitamin C - Alexandria original that I randomly picked. I like this. Greens and citrus. Probably because most of the others I bought were sweet, this contrast smelled good to me. Glad I tried it.
New Year's Eve - Alexandria original. Eh, jury's out but leaning toward not for me. Short lasting and felt too feminine for me. Would smell good on someone I'm making out with.
Rose Noir - This was a no for me. Too feminine. Doesn't smell bad. Just not on me thanks.
Carve On - Very leathery like Rome. Leathery. But I like the smell of leather so there's that. I could have done with one of these, and I liked the Rome better. But that's just one wear.
Moonlight In Paris - Would smell good on a woman. Not for me. Too feminine.
Splendid Vanille - I thought this smelled great but you must like vanilla.

For the most part pretty good performance. Could have been some olfactory fatigued with a few of these. I'm pretty sure I'll be getting more sample packs at some point. Looking at that ak4d4 fella's thread got me into trying many new fragrances. Mostly I now buy either small decants or samples because I like a variety. I'm not sure how long 5mls usually lasts you, but these will probably give me 10-15 wears each. Many you don't need too many sprays.

Safe purchase I think. And there's a LOT of them to choose from. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the similarity of Cypress Spring to my beloved BdP.

Peace

Post: #6

Wow, thanks for the very in-depth review of the various scents you've tried! Repped! I'm going to have to try a sample pack (or three) and see what I think.

Post: #7

Quick follow up on the one called Egyptian Seduction.

Damn! This is reeling me in. It smells so much more comfortable than that first time I tried it. I am wearing it this morning and there's this warm blanket of delicious smell that surrounds me.

I had to come back and look what I said about it before. Some reviewers said that there is a period of a couple weeks that helps the scent develop. I'm not sure why that would be, but I remember LPMP forums would say the same thing.

This is really fantastic to me. I'm wearing it working from home, but I'm going to have to wear this in public soon. I imagine this will get compliments. This is high on my list of getting at least a 30ml bottle. Now I'm going to have to revisit the rest of this collection.

Amazing how different this smells to me.

Side note: I can see lightly spraying the sheets or top of the bed with this not long before an encounter with a woman.

Post: #8

*note to self*

Check out Egyptian Seduction.

Post: #9

My intuition is telling me that I might just like this one, since the reviewer said that it resembles YSL Kouros....I can't get enough of Kouros vintage...such a complex, ever changing frag!

Post: #10

It smelled more like Kouros when I used it the first time. It's the skank note in Kouros that I was talking about.

So it's 1:00 and I put this on at 10am. It's still going strong. I personally love the cloud. When I sniff close to the app points (inside crooks of my elbows) that's where I still smell that Kouros skank note. I personally like the smell about a foot away best.

It's a good idea to sample first. Like I said, this smell sso much different to me (better) than the first time I tried it 6 weeks ago.