October 2015 Olfactif Men’s Fragrance Subscription Box Review & Coupon

The Olfactif Men’s collection is now officially hitting its stride.  Olfactif  is a monthly unisex fragrance discovery subscription box. You’ll get 3 samples in your box, each containing 15-20 “wears” of an independently designed perfume. With every box, your account will be credited with an $18 voucher to use on fragrances from the store. Olfactif‘s focus is on niche fragrance, so you’ll see different & unique scents, higher quality and hard-to-find ingredients.

This is our second set of selections from the still very new men’s subscription from Olfactif.  It makes the niche fragrance world approachable for more men by anchoring each selection with an unmistakably masculine element.

The regular Olfactif box is unisex meant to be worn by women and men who enjoy niche fragrances.  Because it features fragrances intended to be wearable by both sexes, it only occasionally indulges in the heartier scents typically associated with Men’s fragrance.  The Men’s box is centered around traditionally masculine fragrances, all from the niche world.  You will still see the same creative spirit and defiance of convention, but the focus will be on the yang.

Olfactif Men’s comes in the same cool packaging as their flagship subscription.  It is attractive and the flap retracts within the box when you pull the ribbon.  The information card for the fragrances is tucked inside.

Perhaps no material conveys importance as immediately as leather. In the soft interior of a new car, it tells us we are touching luxury. Wrapped around the pages of a book, it tells us we are touching valued knowledge. Even when weathered on the back of a horse, it tells us we are touching something that was made with care, perhaps generations ago. Leather is built to last.

Is it any wonder that we love its smell? Leather and suede have been markers of elegance for centuries, and so our appreciation of their scent is ingrained in us. Lucky for us, perfumers know all about that.

The fragrance notes give detail on the composition of the fragrances, but the prominence of each element changes as the scent ages on your body.

The October Theme is Leather and Suede

• Leather Man Cologne from Dame Perfumery Scottsdale:  The woody scent of this is magnificent.  The amber and leather really play into the balsam, which is accentuated by sandalwood.  Iris, jasmine, gardenia, and water lily are present, but they serve mostly to support and renew the woody tones by supplying a vibrant freshness rather than an outright floral presence.
• The Cobra & The Canary from Imaginary Authors:  This fragrance really captures the essence of well-worn leather.  The pastoral notes of hay and tobacco flower bring to mind leather gloves put to good use and scented by the objects of their labors.  The lemon notes are very interesting — I don’t perceive them as distinctly citrus — they instead lend a sun-soaked quality to the fragrance.  I recall my pair of sturdy leather gloves.  When left to bake in the sun, they became purged of sweat and filth, becoming dusty and smelling only of warm leather and pleasant organics.
• Interlude Man from Amouage:  Composed of a complex admixture of prized substances, this smoky blend is at once mysterious and very familiar.  Subtly reminiscent of a head shop, where countless fragrances of incense meld into a boundless wall of olfactory sensation.  The overall effect, however, is much more pious, like the inner chamber of a secret society.   The mysterious blend beckons — I am not driven away as I would be from the nose-din of a Yankee Candle, but am instead curious and eager to explore the scent further.  A rich and smoky, mysterious scent.

This sophomore collection from Olfactif Men is not as thematically adventurous as the inaugural box, instead conjuring the distinctly masculine scent of leather to anchor the fragrances.  The certainly have the range and tonality I’ve come to associate with Olfactif, incorporating floral and citrus notes with aplomb, but the core spirit exudes an indisputable masculinity.

Visit Olfactif to subscribe to the Men’s box or find out more. Use the code 4MEN to receive 15% off a 3, 6, or 12 month subscription, or 15% off the first month of a recurring subscription. Works on either box.