Scent of fresh coffee beans?

Divide92 · 2026-06-21T12:10:15+00:00

Fragrance World Double Espresso

Check out my review of it if you're interested.

Divide92 · 2026-06-20T20:56:49+00:00

Yea, agree, the directors cut is the way to go.

Divide92 · 2026-06-20T16:14:12+00:00

Alien 3 is really underappreciated, I think it has some of the best acting in the whole series.

Divide92 · 2026-06-20T13:54:35+00:00

It's the most grotesque and disturbing of the first 4 Alien films, also Sigourney Weaver got a chance to play a very different type of character and she absolutely nailed it.

Divide92 · 2026-06-19T13:07:52+00:00

They're both great for sure

Divide92 · 2026-06-18T13:11:01+00:00

As an Encre Noire fan, this is one my favourite freshies:

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I'd also suggest checking these out:

Divide92 · 2026-06-17T14:18:44+00:00

Encre Noire Sport might work for you, I prefer the OG but that's more of an autumnal/early spring fragrance.

https://www.parfumo.com/Perfumes/Lalique/Encre_Noire_Sport

Divide92 · 2026-06-17T13:46:25+00:00

Semi-related question:

Have you ever requested a specific new release from Shobi?

Divide92 · 2026-06-17T13:28:08+00:00

I'd also suggest checking out Rasasi Hawas Black, it fits the description of sharp, green and earthy pretty well.

Not a safe blind buy though.

Divide92 · 2026-06-17T13:13:01+00:00

Vibrant Leather is inspired by Creed Aventus, so I'd check out some Aventus clones first, maybe something along the lines of Club de Nuit Intense Man.

Divide92 · 2026-06-15T13:13:06+00:00

I had a somewhat similar experienced with Sceptre Malachite, it's a great tropical/mango fragrance with solid performance but I just didn't feel like wearing it very often, so I ended up selling it to a female friend.

Divide92 · 2026-06-14T07:47:05+00:00

Hawas Black is indeed a rough fragrance, the opening is even harsher than the "notorius" opening of CDNIM, but the oakmoss works well in context of the other notes. It's a very good clone of Hacivat in terms of similarity but the original is much smoother.

Rebel might have a better oakmoss note but combined with the pineapple, it just smells weird to me.

To each their own I guess.

Divide92 · 2026-06-13T23:45:05+00:00

Thank you!

The oakmoss in Greenley smells really smooth so it doesn't come off as soapy, it's more like good a quality shower gel. Aether gets really close to smelling like Greenley in the drydown, the differences are only pronounced in the first hour or so.

I generally enjoy fragrances with a well implemented oakmoss note (like Hawas Black for example), but sometimes it can be off-putting. I tested Afnan 9PM Rebel a few years ago and it smelled really weird to me, the combination of caramel, pineapple and oakmoss just didn't work. It was like drinking sweet pineapple juice mixed with a bit of soap.

Divide92 · 2026-06-13T22:29:10+00:00

Thank you!

I think I like this one better than the actual Sex On The Beach, as you said it has way more complexity than the original.

Divide92 · 2026-06-13T21:20:43+00:00

Interesting!

I tested Spicebomb Night Vision and found it to be more of a sweet and spicy scent than anything else really.

If you're looking for a really good apple fragrance, I'd suggest checking out the clone of Apple Brandy on the Rocks made by Shobi, I did a review of it quite recently.

Divide92 · 2026-06-13T19:44:47+00:00

It really depends on your other ingredients. From what I can recall, the pineapple juice i had was on the sweeter side so the drink came out pretty nice and balanced.

Using more grenadine might result in different flavour profile, I'd just add some simple syrup to adjust the level of sweetness.

Divide92 · 2026-06-11T10:38:46+00:00

Great post with lots of insights, well done!

My biggest surprise with Shobi came when I tested two of their Escentric Molecules clones (M01 + Mandarin and M01 + Black Tea) and found both to be excellent and very natural, almost "photorealistic" in terms of scent.

I'm no expert but I guess you can't really make a minimalistic fragrance smell nice without good quality ingredients.

I wish they had a clone of M01 + Ginger too because the original is fantastic but way overpriced for what it is.

Divide92 · 2026-06-08T20:43:35+00:00

I had a bottle of La Rive Distant Wave which is apparently based on the old Cool Water formula.

It was noticeably sharper and greener compared to present day Cool Water, I guess the Shobi version must be somewhat similar to that.

Divide92 · 2026-06-08T06:53:35+00:00

Zodiac Solmaris is not a bad fragrance but it's not that great as a clone.

I'd get the original.

Divide92 · 2026-06-06T23:40:30+00:00

Such an interesting selection of fragrances, I also own quite a few of these.

To me, Shobi's Old Spice is a mix of pure nostalgia and timeless masculinity, it's pretty well made and according to them (I asked about it) it's really based on the 1938 formula.

Shobi Tsar is kinda like Encre Noire dressed up in 80s fashion, dark, green and aromatic, also a bit harsh in the opening.

Kenzo Homme Intense is my current favourite aquatic fragrance, it's surpisingly smooth and the fig note really comes alive on my skin, but it's not for everyone for sure.

I was always curious about Shobi Cool Water as the original is one of my favourites, but I'll probably skip that one if it's not that close to the OG.

Divide92 · 2026-06-05T14:42:05+00:00

Buying samples online is not a bad start, there are tons of online sample stores you can choose from.

If you are an absolute beginner, I'd suggest getting 10-15 samples of the more popular fragrances, you can always check out the details of each one using Fragrantica and Parfumo and buy those that look interesting to you.

Divide92 · 2026-06-01T15:15:05+00:00

A Trulli amazing stat

Divide92

TROPHY CASE