Oh man, haven't smelled Dzing in ages. That's the one with the "old books" lignin-vanilla vibe right? + some barnyardy leather? I remember it being pretty interesting the first time I had a big fragrance kick (probably 10 years ago now, reinvigorated in the last year after lengthy dormancy).
No one seems to talk about L'Artisan much anymore, they were hot hot hot back in the late aughts early 10s. I guess buyout + reform + price hikes will do that to you. But man, when was the last time you heard someone talking about how great Timbuktu was?
They're generally nice but (hot take) like most modern ultralux niche, basically entirely unnecessary verging on pointless given the wide availability of outstanding low-price options in current production, without even mentioning widely available vintage designer frags that are less expensive than new Creeds.
"Semi-vintage" Azzaro PH today, probably 2005ish so not true OG but still "middle" formulation. Jury still out on whether this was a pointless buy compared to my current-production bottle, my hope was for better longevity as I find the current 'refillable bottle' version pretty short-lived. Only put it on a few hours ago so will find out this evening if it sticks around longer. The current smells at minimum similar enough that it is very obviously Azzaro PH.
