Originally after getting into this hobby I had narrowed down 4 designers or niche perfumes I wanted to get a decant of and Mancera CBI was one of them as I had heard a lot of good reviews and how it is a beast mode all year round versatile perfume.
Bottle design :
I have a decant so dont know how the bottle actually looks like apart from lovely pictures taken by members of this sub but I will say this it gives the minimal bottle design of niche perfumes where the performance speaks louder instead of bottle design.
Fragrance : When I ordered this I was new to this hobby and this sub had me convinced to get a decant of this so you will get a fresh POV on niche perfumes from someone like me.
Coming to the fragrance part from the first spray it caught me off guard, what I mean is my nose was not trained for the nuclear citrus and spices bomb of a opening it has, I was genuinely confused at this point if I had made a mistake by reading all of those reviews praising it so I waited and waited another 20 minutes or so the citrus mellows down and you start getting these very lovely floral and fruity whiffs
After the initial 20 minutes I dont know how to describe this but it was such a subtle fruity, floral aroma and yet very manly at the same time. The leather note along with patchouli and jasmine just stands out and can be defined as pure classy. I did not find the oud note to be that noticeable here.
The dry down is lovely combination of vanilla complimenting with a very relaxing oak moss and white musk.Personally for me from opening to dry down its a wild ride because it will surprise you so much
Performance:
As I said the opening is nuclear you will be the one when you enter a room, it’s noticeable and people will know you are not wearing something generic. The inital projection is easily 2-3 hours depending on your environment and then it slowly dissolves but the strong whiffs are always there when you move. It stays on clothes forever for eg. I had worn it to a party where I got some curious questions and compliments for it, put my shirt in laundry pick it up again next week I am still getting very faint whiffs of it.
It’s a beast when it comes to longevity, I would say easily 7-8 hours on clothes.
Conclusions :
This one is elegant, classy and for sure will invoke curiosity on anyone who smells it as it has that unique factor. Personally I use it only for special occasions and will probably get a bottle in future if I get a good deal
Overall ratings : 9.5/10
