Starting the Sample of the Day thread off with a sample review of Guerlain Vega:
I declined to review this iconic scent immediately after trying it out a couple of times and it was probably a good thing. It took some time for me to eventually appreciate the scent although I can’t say that Vega is for me. I’m no fan of the aldehyde note at all and my past encounters with the note were never positive. The extra time sampling Vega prevented me from jumping to conclusions that the scent was a disappointment and at allowed me to appreciate it for what it is. Applying this to my arm, I was immediately appalled by the intensity of the aldehyde note in the opening. Aside from the dense soapy aldehyde note, the opening was rather bright with a slight floral feel, probably contributed from the additional notes bergamot and orange blossom that were also present. Luckily the aldehyde note that dominated the scent at the opening was short lived and eventually began to tone down. As the aldehyde note weakened, a strong floral presence begins to develop which consists of ylang-ylang, jasmine, rose, carnation, and iris. In time the florals are joined by notes of sandalwood, vanilla, and amber which create a smooth floral slightly sweet oriental dry down. For me the drydown has a little bit of a resemblance to Samsara, some other reviewers have found this similarity as well. Longevity and silage were average with this scent. Depending on how much was applied, longevity ranged between 4-6 hours while silage was decent for the first hour before staying closer to the skin. In terms of occasions of wearing Vega, I think it is versatile enough so that it can be worn in different settings (daytime, nighttime, casual, dressed up) however I don’t see any ideal occasion it would work best in. Likely many of the other classic Guerlain scents, Vega has a very dated feel. Vega is elegant, classy and was constructed really well. Overall Vega is a wonderful scent, unfortunately it didn’t appeal to be me as much as I would’ve liked.
I declined to review this iconic scent immediately after trying it out a couple of times and it was probably a good thing. It took some time for me to eventually appreciate the scent although I can’t say that Vega is for me. I’m no fan of the aldehyde note at all and my past encounters with the note were never positive. The extra time sampling Vega prevented me from jumping to conclusions that the scent was a disappointment and at allowed me to appreciate it for what it is. Applying this to my arm, I was immediately appalled by the intensity of the aldehyde note in the opening. Aside from the dense soapy aldehyde note, the opening was rather bright with a slight floral feel, probably contributed from the additional notes bergamot and orange blossom that were also present. Luckily the aldehyde note that dominated the scent at the opening was short lived and eventually began to tone down. As the aldehyde note weakened, a strong floral presence begins to develop which consists of ylang-ylang, jasmine, rose, carnation, and iris. In time the florals are joined by notes of sandalwood, vanilla, and amber which create a smooth floral slightly sweet oriental dry down. For me the drydown has a little bit of a resemblance to Samsara, some other reviewers have found this similarity as well. Longevity and silage were average with this scent. Depending on how much was applied, longevity ranged between 4-6 hours while silage was decent for the first hour before staying closer to the skin. In terms of occasions of wearing Vega, I think it is versatile enough so that it can be worn in different settings (daytime, nighttime, casual, dressed up) however I don’t see any ideal occasion it would work best in. Likely many of the other classic Guerlain scents, Vega has a very dated feel. Vega is elegant, classy and was constructed really well. Overall Vega is a wonderful scent, unfortunately it didn’t appeal to be me as much as I would’ve liked.
