Blu Mediterraneo Tuscan Cypress / Cipresso di Toscana (1999)
by Acqua di Parma

A cypress I can deal with. Most of the time cypress just comes off as chemical and airy to me. However, the downside to the fragrance for me is that it's a bit too "perfumey". Perhaps it's the over abundance of herbs and citrus that go crazy here.

Beautiful and invigorating summer cypress fragrance. It's rather shy in it's sillage though and needs plenty of application -- not sure of longevity yet. If it lasts, it's a keeper for sure.

Kaern

Fragrance notes: clary sage, basil, lavender, cypress
I am a huge fan of coniferous scents... I like them all! Bring ‘em on! Yes, Tuscan Cypress is more delicate than Creed’s incredible Cyprès-Musc (a great favorite). But TC is a very worthy bottle in my collection. There is a marvelous green-herbal opening: excellent basil, a hint of dry lavender, and a good dollop of musky clary sage. The cypress note quickly develops and has a lovely piney wood tone. This is a tonic fragrance, it is meant to be straight-forward, clean, bracing, invigorating. It is an excellent day and summer scent. I appreciate the way that the basil persists and settles into the green accord; it interacts very well with the other elements. At first, the basil was so apparent that I wondered if TC was a re-vamped version of the discontinued Fogile di Basilico, also by Blu Mediterraneo. A comparative spritz settled the question. FB is very green with a strong fruity note from bergamot. TC has a much more aromatic quality due to the clary sage and cypress. I like it very much.

More true to the “Mediterraneo” in the name than the “Cipresso,” the top notes are herbal and citrus, but there is a slight coniferous ambiance lurking about among the herbal aromatics and the Hesperidian freshness. This top is light, attractive, and moderately sharp, without being either intriguing or boring. Except for a loss of sharpness and a reduction of aromatics, the middle notes are quite reminiscent of the top notes — it continues herbal, with the addition of lavender, while the pine replaces the citrus: A little too similar to the top, but, like the top, neither too much nor too little, and, overall, quite pleasant. I do feel, however, that the lavender in the middle accord dulls the clarity of the heart notes. The floral component of the middle misses me entirely — perhaps the florals are there in the background, but you can’t prove it by me. This heart is my least favorite part of the fragrance. It is in the base where the true nature of the ‘cipresso’ takes over. The base that boasts the dominant coniferous character is very engaging: Cypress and cedar and oak moss, with the patchouli and vetiver, create a singular and refreshing coniferous accord. Cipresso di Toscana is quite light and very refreshing. Its lightness can be a problem because I’ve found that I need to apply more of this fragrance than I do of most others. Where ordinarily I use one and one-half or two sprays, I need at least double that to achieve the desired results from Cipresso. It lasts about three or four hours. I really like the pleasantness and subtlety of this fragrance so I am voting a thumbs up. I can readily agree with the other reviewers about its linearity and plentiful herbalness, but, even so, I find the fragrance attractive. 315

This might be the most refreshing scent that I have ever tried. The key to truly enjoying this lies in an earlier reviewer's suggestion to double the number of sprays that you would normally use. When applied in this manner, the citrus topnotes never fully dissappear and combine wonderfully with the vetiver, patchouli and woods beneath. I expected something heavier, but was pleasantly surprised... perhaps you will be too! Give this one a shot.

Interesting experimental scent but slightly unilateral. I would have expected a more complex drydown, tough the concept and its potential are good. But probabnly Tusacny's traditional flavours and essences are the perfect scent in itsself, much too complex to be captured in one sigle- even exclusive and daring- scent.