Every Woman Is A Queen

Bvlgari Aqva Pour Homme Marine (2008)

Aqva Pour Homme Marine contains notes of neroli bigarade, grapefruit, posidonia, sap, rosemary flower, and white cedar wood. A Bvlgari rep’s quote in Cosmetics International regarding Aqva Pour Homme Marine made me frown: It will definitely appeal to younger men and women, especially in Asia” (11/2/07). We all know what young men and women like: “fresh” and “clean” and rather “simple” fragrances (I’m generalizing, of course) and it is constantly mentioned in perfume news that many Asian perfume customers don’t like to smell of “perfume” at all — they appreciate fragrances that are barely noticeable.

Aqva Pour Homme Marine opens with a tangy, slightly “dirty” grapefruit note that, unfortunately, disappears within seconds on my skin. The almost-non-existent citrus opening leads to a mild “marine” (posidonia) accord. The marine accord blends with a sweet, nondescript, slightly “minty” accord that contains a hint of faded cedar. Aqva Pour Homme Marine is a nonentity compared with “original” Aqva Pour Homme. On my skin, the well-blended Aqva Pour Homme Marine smells like a single perfume accord that I’d call FRESH (fill in the blanks): AIR? WATER? LAUNDRY? Even my active imagination could not build a back story for this dull concoction.

Neither of the Aqva Pour Homme fragrances is groundbreaking (or should I say ‘wave-making’), but original Aqva Pour Homme has more character and “spirit” than Aqva Pour Homme Marine. Once more, the flanker is outdone by its antecedent. Marine is VERY watery in one regard: its lasting power on my skin is 15-30 minutes — tops.“For Aqva Pour Homme Marine, I thought of the color and transparency of crystalline water,” said Cavallier. After reading that quote and smelling Aqva Pour Homme Marine, I can honestly say Cavallier produced a scent that matches his, or Bvlgari’s, inspiration.

My 2007 winner for blandest men’s fragrance release went to Kenzo Tokyo; so far in 2008 (the year IS young) Aqva Pour Homme Marine takes that prize.

Bvlgari Aqva Pour Homme and Aqva Pour Homme Marine come in 30, 50 and 100 ml Eau de Toilette sprays. (I hope you’ve all noticed that many new men’s fragrance releases are now available in a 30 ml size; this is great news for perfume “collectors”; now, if only U.S. retailers would stock the 30 ml size like their overseas counterparts do.)