Discover Ralph Lauren Polo Red Eau de Parfum, where seduction meets sophistication. This fragrance brings a new level of luxury to the Polo Red collection that leaves a lasting impression of warm sensuality. This instant attraction is a modern mix of rich, natural woods, ginger and aromatic sage.
Details
Features
This men's cologne is an instant attraction with a modern mix of rich, natural woods, ginger and aromatic sage.
Polo Red Parfum is a new iteration of the family of fragrances Ralph Lauren offers. Adding an aromatic and citrusy take to the Polo Red Line, known for having one of the best fragrances from Ralph Lauren, Polo Red Extreme. While this new release does not offer something similar to the fragrance I ha...d just mentioned, it does bring a new twist to the line. For starters, the opening to this fragrance left me scratching my head. Not in a horrible way, but more because I was trying to piece the puzzle together. This fragrance opens up bright, with a citric smell from the bergamot and sweetness from the blood orange, sprinkled with a hint of pink pepper, adding a spicy aroma to the already citrusy sweet opening. As the fragrance evolves, notes of Orris, Absinthe, and Lavender come to fruition and take this fragrance down a different path. Orris adds a powdery and earthy take, while lavender adds a clean, aromatic touch to the scent. As for absinthe, this note contributed to the fragrance with a sharp opening which threw me off. Absinthe in Polo Red Parfum reminded me of nutmeg with a sweet, semi-pungent undertone. Polo Red Parfum's base notes include; musk, opoponax, and cedar. While I don't get much of the cedar and musk, I can sense that the opoponax adds warmth and sweetness to the composition. Overall this fragrance opens up rough around the edges, but as it dries down, it becomes sophisticated and clean with an edge of sweetness. All the notes blend to offer a citrus, aromatic, and powdery experience. A clean and classy scent!
As a fragrance collector, who is just starting, I wanted to take some time to test out this new release. I believe in always trying out fragrances before purchasing a bottle, so you can see if it is right for you and meets your criteria. Throughout the weeks, I enjoyed this fragrance and what it offered. While yes, it is nothing new, sometimes you have to appreciate the changes a brand makes. Ralph Lauren, to me, always made fragrances that never moved me or piqued my interest. The only exception is Polo Red Extreme. Polo Red Parfum does leave a lot to desire. Performance in this fragrance is one of its weak points, at least for me. The price you are paying for designer fragrances should also reflect their quality. I know it's not a niche scent or that performance is an absolute turn-off. But knowing there are fragrances with a similar profile and better performance, I prefer to keep exploring. That said, I did get around 6-7 hours of longevity with about 2 hours of projection. Again, not horrible, but for a Parfum, I expected prolonged longevity.
To answer the golden question. "Do I recommend it?" "Is it worth it?" To me, it is not worth it. But I recommend it! This fragrance, juxtaposition to the rest of the Polo Red Line, is a new direction that Ralph Lauren wants to take. The Red Line consisted of heavy, warm, and sweet profile fragrances with hints of citrus. That was all stripped away with this release and made more mass appealing, which is what brands are doing now. If you want to smell unique, this won't be it. Now, if you want a clean, aromatic, and semi-sweet fragrance that will garner compliments, this will be the one. In conclusion, this is a solid mass appealing release worth trying. Remember to be patient, never pay retail prices and wait for fragrances to be on discounter.
Thank you, Ralph Lauren and Influester, for sending me this fragrance to test. Remember that this is just my opinion and that what I like you might not like and vice versa.
VersusVS
Most Helpful Critical Review
3
Close, but no cigar
* I received this free sample from Polo and Influenster in exchange for my honest review*
Ralph Lauren has done something quite different with this release. The defining note in this fragrance is the absinthe. After the initial opening, absinthe influences nearly all stages of this profile.
The ...opening is a familiar burst of citrus and sweetness with a peppery texture that is common to the Red line. After the opening, Red Parfum settles into a very absinthe-forward profile that can be challenging. The mid is a bit green like fennel, coming from the absinthe, and a bit musky. The freshness of the opening withdraws completely and you're left with a kind of fougère profile as the lavender and orris mixes in to create a slightly soapy, slightly green accord that I'd hesitate to call fresh. Overall this scent plays out quite dynamically, it is sometimes bitter like a tonic water accord, and then sometimes sweet but green, as woods, opoponax, and musk come forward.
In the very late stages of drydown, this fragrance becomes a very smooth, almost creamy wood scent. This is actually my favourite part of the scent's performance, but it takes a good 4-6 hours to get there.
Performance is typical of a parfum. It projects 1-2 meters for about an hour or two, and then draws back to an intimate bubble for 10+ hours. That musky-wood mixed with sweet opoponax set of base notes lasts hours and hours as a skin scent that is quite pleasant.
Red Parfum is best suited as a quirky pick for someone who wants to intrigue, but not necessarily advertise. The notes here are unusual for such a well-known designer, and I would not say Red Parfum is a crowd pleaser. I found the absinthe-infused middle act to be challenging and wavering in its appeal. I think Ralph Lauren should have gone with an anise or "black licorice" note in place of absinthe to keep the profile more consistently sweet or woody, instead of the slightly bitter fennel/reedy accord that absinthe produces. In a word, the middle act of Red Parfum is "inconsistent." The late-stage drydown corrects the wobbly track, and it becomes a pleasant and appealing skin scent. The question becomes whether waiting 4-6 hours to get the best part of the fragrance to appear is worth it.
I do not think Red Parfum will be a hit. This is both a good, and bad thing. It's good for people who like this profile, and want that quirkiness to stay off the beaten path. It's bad because I expect Red Parfum will not be widely available for very long, and Ralph Lauren will not see these kinds of slightly experimental accords as worthy investments
2556 results
5
Will buy it again
Submitted 5 months ago
By Nora
From Dallas
Masculine but light enough that a female can wear it
Fragrance Type
Floral, Woody/Earthy
3
Safe blind buy for the smell but not for the longevity
Submitted 6 months ago
By Miguel
From Washington
Very good scent just doesn't last a long time. Max about 3-4 hours on clothes and skin about the same.
Fragrance Type
Oriental/Spicy, Woody/Earthy
5
Sexy
Submitted 6 months ago
By JJ
From Minnesota
I bought this for my bf and let me tell you, he smells so sexy! It's not overbearing but just enough. We both love it and I would recommend this to all the ladies who prefer their man to smell yummy!
Fragrance Type
Woody/Earthy
5
Expensive but worth it!!
Submitted 9 months ago
By Bev
From Bristol, VA.
A sexy, woodsy masculine fragrance that stays for a very long time with just a small amount of application
My husband is very pleased with this purchase as I am, too!
Fragrance Type
Woody/Earthy
5
Red parfum
Submitted 1 year ago
By Kyke manges
From Maryland
Verified Reviewer
Reviewed at
Great manly scent long lasting worth the buy smell fresh and manly ready for the moment
