L'Homme by Yves Saint Laurent (2024)

The fragrance sold in stores now and what I first sprayed on in a local mall in 2006 as an excited kid are completely different. Year by year, notes were removed until we got the current formulation - an abysmal and boring tonka powder fragrance that feels more like a drugstore clone of Givenchy Pi. I even recall spraying this on in college in Sephora and thinking "hmm I remember this having more notes" but it as still like 70% the same. I have so many memories rushing through my head of how beautiful that original scent profile was whenever I see my 2x 200mL bottles in my cabinet I excitedly bought last year on Black Friday from YSL direct when I finally got some spending money to blow on smelly alcohol spray. I need to spray myself like 15 times to even smell it, and then it still doesn't even last 2 hours. I hope a designer house like mont blanc picks up a vintage bottle, does some GC/MS, and rereleases the original L'Homme for $35 for a 100mL bottle.

Do you know when it was first released, people were complaining it was too powerful and made their noses itch and skin red because they were spraying it on the front part of their neck? So, if you know someone who sprays the front of their neck or complains fragrances are too strong, please educate them on how to apply fragrances lest we lose another great formula to consumers being idiots.

“Best clubbing fragrances for men - #1 YSL L’Homme EDT”

- Introverts Monthly, 2006

4/5 stars

The opening is fresh: fresh lemon zest, a fresh ginger burst, and a nice vetiver in the background. a green-herbal background is provided by basil - both the leaves and the blossoms.

The green side is enhanced further by violet leaves, but the overall freshness and bright positivity retains it prominence throughout.

A bi later the mix turns sweeter, owing a vanilla/tonka impression, but this is a fairly discreet sweetness that is neither cloying nor intrusive.

I get moderate sillage, very good projection, and six hours of longevity on my skin.

A somewhat simple scent for cooler summer days, that is crafted quite well and always pleasant, and not without a hint of - attempted at least - originality. A safe office scent, and for those who prefer their fragrance to be unobtrusive. Earth-shatteringly original it is not. 3/5

L'Homme is an early example of what could be called the Sauvage style - aka Spiky Woods, an aggressive concoction of cheap aroma chemicals designed - like a fist to the nose - for maximum impact ... or projection, penetration, invasion of personal space; call it what you will.

L'Homme is one of the better ones, although that's not saying much; but it does show how little the genre has changed in more than a decade - except to get louder.

And if this style is derived from the sublime Cool Water, it could be a case of the Aquatic phenomenon repeating itself; an early masterpiece followed by multiple copies with nothing more to say.
Not that this is a masterpiece.

From Cool Water to l'Homme to Sauvage, I dread to think what will come next.