Red

I bought a Red body mist on a whim..... Less than $10. Needless to say -- it's amazing! It's not strong like the perfume which I also have... I will say again, it's truly delightful. Perfume for the fall/winter and the mist for spring/summer. Doesn't last long but another spritz and you're good to go. Happy August everyone!

Spicy candied carnation opening that is eventually coated in warm powdery amber, like if Red Door faded into Obsession. Sexy lady!

When I try a new scent, I hold back from immediately confirming the scent notes. However, sometimes, if it is a blind buy (or a sample), I might read the reviews before committing. I didn't think too hard about this one, as it was cheap and cheerful to purchase online, and the notes, with their many and complex fruit and florals, didn't seem as if the perfume would be too far out of my comfort zone. So I was quite surprised to note that I didn't get ANY of the top notes listed for this. It opens sweet, sparkly, and generically fruity - with an underlying "green" aldehydic scent I can only compare to tomato candy, pepper (capsicum), washed lettuce and freshly cut chamomile lawn. Later, there are woody layers - cedar and myrrh - and later still, oakmoss and sandalwood with a spicy woody smell of olibanum like the inside of a pencil case. And again, it really lasts, it's still quite loud even after a few hours of its first application.

it is my goal to review the (infamous) 1980s perfumes as I was 23 years old when the decade begun, sniffed perfumes from off 1974, so I really lived that decade and later it proved to be my defining decade for what fabulous perfumes could be. when Giorgio Beverly Hills Red came out, I was thus 31 years old, these 'ages' remind me of my doings in the 1980s and may give additional information that these perfumes were sensed, experienced, lived, as they really were back then, because it is already more than fourty years ago. what I remember of Red (shall we from now on call the perfume) is that it was a smashing perfume, not only qua 'perfume' but nearly also physically. THIS perfume raced directly with full force into your nostrils and all the surroundings of your head and in fact, the room where you were at that moment. only later on I learned (in cleopatrasboudoir. blogspot.com) that Red was the appointed heir to Giorgio (1981) and defined the 1980s until the last minutes it was thriving. I learned from Grace Hummel (cleopatrasboudoir) that Red was meant to be the softer sister of Giorgio. it is known how Giorgio at first, but then also immediately Poison, Obsession, Coco, Must de Cartier, Knowing, KL Karl Lagerfeld, Boucheron and the earlier Opium and Estée Lauders Youth Dew (1953) and then still others made not only headlines, but their immense force caused the people to choose: YES or NO and of course it wasn't always 'yes'. in Airplanes, out of CinemaTheaters, Restaurants and other Gatherings Traffic Signs were made with just 'no Poison or Giorgio please'. that pretty much sums it up. now where Grace learned me that Red was intended to be the heir not only, but an aimed softer perfume rendition post Giorgio, that was new to me. I really remember Red coming out and I Immediately bought a (either 3oz or 3.4oz) bottle of [now it is called 'extraordinary eau de toilette' and in a 100mL bottle] but what I seem to remember is that it was, as Giorgio, called 'Extraordinary Cologne'. and that in any way stood equally up to an Eau de parfum as Giorgio had done. Red demanded a whole new space to characterise as perfume. Grace mentioned that for Red a category was chosen of 'Fleuriffe Chypre'. but it now would be exhaustively described as a Floral Oriental. yet they also used a new Technique to use the scent of some flowers in this perfume. 'Living Flowers Technology'. I suppose that is what they now call a 'photorealistic image of Tuberose and Rose.' Red had this specific, vivid, uplifting, radiant start due to (a kg) of Aldehydes with further a myriad of notes, as you also can see above. it was stated that 692 ingredients sat in each bottle (or jar) of Red. the first impression was all. it was an almost scathing, vibrant, sharp, invasive explosion of floral notes. hereby I have the feeling all other mentioned notes serve as second acts to all the flowers. Carnation, Bulgarian Rose, YlangYlang, Jasmine, Gardenia, Iris, Hyacinth, OrangeBlossom, Osmanthus, Lily of the Valley seem all instantly come to the fore. as if they had themselves pressed through a small tube and up on the end, flared out all at once. if Red was meant to be the 'quieter, more demure, softer, subtler' Sister of Giorgio, then that attempt failed brilliantly, flashingly and tremendously. this was also a perfume with Poise, Statement and Glamour. it was as big a commercial success as her older sister with hundreds of millions dollars revenue made in just months. I also found the packaging alluring: the box was red but with a purple swirl over it. (of course it was also glossy.) the flacon was an elongated rectangular form with a shift (I peeked), a Parallellogramme. the edges were indented and this gave the bottle tons of Pizzazz. these secundary factors didn't steal you away from what Red really was. her enduring sophistication and persevering strength was indeed 'extraordinary'. now this perfume came out of the Corporation Giorgio had meanwhile become. it was a multimillion dollar endeavour. Giorgio had been bought by Avon. for the decade thereafter that meant that their successes remained Archival and Futurologic. yet that Red wasn't really so 'soft' and 'secundary' proved the launch of a second Red. in 1996 Red2 was launched with Tatiana Patitz in the Advertisements. this was a softer rendition of Red. that I later learned that Tatiana Patitz had died, made the looking at these advertisements the more aching and seering. in the Advertisements for Red Paulina Porizkova was chosen who for a decade (I assume) was the Face of Estée Lauder. the statement with Red was all-telling: 'Wearing Red, Everything Else Pales'. the truly magic of Red lays in her living, vibrant, tinkling and tickling, almost Champagne like but then with loads of Wodka in it, Opening. her Presentist and Floriental Demand of spaces. it was truly a 1980s perfume and I do so understand that people don't like these hookers. because how magical it is that after the Opulence and Sweltering Regality and Kitchist Over-The-Topness [we got the aqualine azure calone hedione 1990s]. but with Fragrantica we learn everyone has her's or his' tastes. I guess my bottle(s) are from c2012. I feel nothing in the Presentation has really been altered. as I learned from Grace Hummel, any Production Companies now producing 'Red' had to sign an agreement they would stay loyal to the outstanding 'recipy' of the perfume handed over. it still is sheer Sexuality !

I wore this almost exclusively from around 1990 through 1992. My other preferred fragrance was Beautiful by Estée Lauder, and I was known for both. However, my boyfriend at the time could not get enough of Red specifically and used to keep me in stock. I do not currently own any and haven't tried it in a while, but I remember it as being very soft & powdery, yet also astoundingly potent & sexy. I recall that it was quite different from the purely floral Beautiful, with astounding sillage. I don't think I have smelled anything remotely similar to Red in many years. I'm enjoying reading the other reviews. Such massive nostalgia.

This was my signature from the year it came out until the mid-90s. My bff and I would go to the mall before going out and spray ourselves at the perfume counter. She preferred Chanel No. 5, but Red was for me with it's spicy, sultry, scent that made me feel like a woman. I recently acquired a vintage original bottle and the scent took me all the way back to those parties and clubbing in Contempo Casuals stretch velvet dresses and stilettos. It still smells as wonderful as I remember! Have not tried the new formulation. It's so incredibly potent, I did maybe half a spray split between my wrists and it's been strong all day. Spray lightly and with caution!

Giorgio Red falls somewhere between Elizabeth Arden Red Door and Avon Rare Rubies. Not as voluptuously floral as the former but not quite as mulled-spicy as the latter. As it sits on skin, it reveals an ambery chypre base. A worthy contender for the "Red" hall of fame.

🍒My feelings about the new, Made in Spain version. To me on the opening feels really masculine. It is much better on the dry-down. Becomes warmer, somewhat sweeter and spicy. Reminds me of the way my dad or grandfather smelt on special occasions when I was little and brings up pleasent memories but would not wear it going out. I use it as a comfort scent at home, after bath or when going to bed as it makes me feel safe and cozy, brings back happy childhood memories. PS The dry down after 2 hours reminds me very much of Bal a Versailles by Jean Desprez, a tiny bit less animalic.🐆🐆🐆

It's old skool seggsy 🫴💃

Wow, this is a very budget-friendly version of the OG YSL Opium. Of course there are differences and this one leans more cherry and floral, but if you walked past someone on the street and they got a whiff, I bet they wouldn't know the difference. It's very close in many respects especially when it's sprayed on clothing. I think this is one of those perfumes that when you spray it on your coat at the start of winter, you'll smell it the entire season. It's gorgeous and if I am in the position where I can't afford the OG Opium, this is close enough for me.

Sexy and spicy. Teased hair and speeding down a highway in summer, smoking cigarettes and eating cinnamon candy, wearing freshly applied cherry scented lip gloss and Obsession from last night—and it was a wild night!

Whoa! I remember smelling this back in the day and back then I liked it more than the original! Back then, I was more into deeper sexy fragrances, and not “girly” scents. All these years later, I think this may be a bit too much for me. I feel like if I wore this back then, I’d still have an appreciation for it, much like I do for the scents I wore in that era. It’s not a bad fragrance, however I can clearly detect the oak moss and to me, it makes it feel a bit dated for modern preferences. Today, I like the original Giorgio better and find it more wearable today! I do have a limited edition Giorgio pink which I think is a better scent for today’s trends. This is a classic for sure however I don’t think it’s my current style.

I just got it yesterday and I am sure it is a reformulation. But 24 hours later, it's still there and nobody got hurt in the process :D Not bad for a reformulation. To me, it is very similar to Ciara, bold, old fashioned but hours later, it gets a bit sweeter than Ciara, which is fine with me. An elegant fragrance, suitable for women over 40 IMHO.

Another Christmas is upon us. Merry Christmas to all who read reviews on Fragrantica. This is my go to perfume for Christmas Eve parties; along with Elizabeth Taylor Diamonds and Rubies. This is a spicy 'red' floral scent that evokes bouquets of red roses and wreaths of poinsettia. It's Christmas in a bottle. This gives off birth of Christ night vibes. The 3 wise men bearing gifts of gold frankincense and myrrh. The star and the baby in the manger with Joseph and Mary. As it begins, the scent has a soft aldehyde opening. Then we smell a mix of cherry and currant. Sweet, a touch tart. Then the florals make their way in. It's hyacinth, roses, carnations, jasmine, tuberose. Major florals but the reformulation has subdued the power bomb it probably once was. This is after all from the same brand that gave us Giorgio Beverly Hills. By the time the cherry-curant-florals fade out, the dry down reaches into the base notes. I smell spices, myrrh, incense. I smell woodsy notes, primarily sandalwood. There's also amber. At this point, it starts to go from West to East or Near East smelling more like an Arab perfume or Middle Eastern perfume. It's warm, and comforting, and clearly suited to fall and cold winters. This perfume is exotic, rich, complex, wintery, mystical, sweet and spicy. What's not to love? This is a work of art in a fragrance. And yet so easily worn if you have experience with vintages. Writing this review at the Christmas Eve party. Merry Christmas.

I absolutely love the "extrodinary cologne" version which is the original from the 80s/90s. The aldehydes reign supreme in this formulation, there is almost this freshness to the beginning because of the aldyhydes. And that carnation really HITS in a SPICY way! Oh and that cherry note is just to die for!!! I've tried ONE of the reformulations and the aldehydes were toned WAY down and the oakmoss turned WAY up! It smelled like a muggy rotting cherry in a swamp!! Im assuming that reformulated bottle I had was before the oakmoss ban. I have no idea what 2025 Red smells like.

What a bummer! 2025 is a,shadow of it's old glorious self. In fact, I'm not sure I'd recognize it as Red now. It's scratchy and cheap. There's nothing about the old beautiful perfume left. It's so sad!

Giorgio Red came out of Beverly Hills at the end of the hypertrophically indulgent 1980s. The overly endowed, redheaded floriental flanker of that notoriously excessive white floral platinum blonde. Some say she is more gentle and restrained than her sister, ..but I find her to be worse, much worse. To start off, Giorgio Red is actually painful. Burning spicy-hot painful. Inexplicably, there are no spicy notes to be found on the note pyramid. I would guess cinnamon and pepper, maybe even ginger and chiles, but none are listed. Perhaps that constructed carnation accord leans heavily into the clove oil. Alternative hypothesis: I'm allergic to something that leaves my nose stinging. Edit: I seem to jest, but seriously, this vintage bottle is surviving evidence on why they lowered the allowable level for eugenol concentration in perfumery. Besides the spices, I certainly do get that strong, syrupy cherry note and an abundance of florals. None are particularly distinct, but certainly a sultry tuberose is among that number. A warm, woody base of amber, resins, and oakmoss also seems like an accurate description. This overrought and roughly blended Dynasty catfight could be campy fun, ...but alas, I'm seriously not enjoying this. Giorgio Red verges on chemical warfare. Perhaps after the original Giorgio, and all that Opium, Poison, and Passion, ...Giorgio Red was the scent that heralded the final close of the 1980s. The 90s were on the way and popular perfumery would soon become very different.

It does smell old. But it's nice. Reminds me of family members who lived in the 80s and were all at a Christmas party. And a little also like big red gum lol it is good though.

(This review is for the vintage Giorgio Red extraordinary spray cologne). This is my '80s soap opera anti-hero fragrance. It's for those days when I wear red sequined dresses, recline on the chaise lounge, and then pick up the rotary phone and dial a number with my long, red nails to make a call. I speak to "Tootsie the Vindicator", the leader of my pack of Pomeranian minions. Then the fluffy Pomeranians in diamond chokers go out and punish evil-doers. I can see them chewing up forged documents, and peeing into the swimming pool of a ruthless oil tycoon as we speak. Giorgio Red is what I wear when I have had enough of other people's drama and disrespect, and I need to be reminded of the type of woman I am, or can be. She is SPICY but not loud about it, and she is what she is, no apologies. Even though this is a "character" perfume that brings out a certain part of my personality, I could wear it every day. When I wear it, then look in the mirror, the scent and reflection I see matches...whereas with some perfumes I put it on, and then I look in the mirror like: "nice perfume but it doesn't match me." I do not find this to be a brash or heavy fragrance in the vintage cologne formulation--it's nose-to-arm sillage after an hour. On my skin, Giorgio Red is cinnamon aldehydes, velvety-soft cosmetic powder, and myrrh, with an ashy moss undercurrent. It's really difficult to describe, because it's so well-blended, and nothing else smells like it. It isn't overpowering on me at all. In the dry down it does get animalic and fur-like, but just a wee growl. I am curious to try the recent version to see how it has changed. Giorgio Red, vintage-formulation, cologne for women is a staple for me.

Another vintage perfume given to me by my grandma. She had it in the 80’s and it was her signature scent until they changed the formula in the modern version. It’s one of those smells you don’t spray on too heavy or else you’ll feel repulsed by the smell. It’s very strong and lasts extremely long. It seems to never go away. I heavily dislike this scent. I dropped a bit onto my wrist and I washed my arm immediately after realizing I did not like it. The alcohol scent is super strong with this one.

It's red alright. I have a vintage parfum, and it's somewhat of a cross between Opium and Cinnabar. If you want to smell like a hot cinnamon stick, I can think of no better fragrance than this one. Perfect for the month of February. More appropriate as an evening scent due to the strong sillage.

it's spicy, it's woody, it's got some cherry and some amber, and it's verrrry strong. it almost tickles the back of my throat with how dominant it smells. it's a very nostalgic 90s scent (which is weird to say considering i was born in the early 2000s). if the original giorgio was used for high school prom nights, then giorgio red was used for late night dinners out with your high school boyfriend. it's cheap and cheerful, but my mother still reaches for this sometimes over her expensive luxury fragrances!

i can't remember if i smelled this back in the day or not. it opens with vetiver, carnation, oakmoss and olibanum, along with a lot of aldehydes. it's woody, earthy, resiny, aldehydic and slightly spicy. i find it kind of fascinating-it smells of its time but also very different. i only get the cherry after about 5-10 minutes which adds a bit of sweetness. the aldehydes are VERY strong on me and honestly i wish they were softer. this one is kind of odd...cherry, oakmoss, aldehydes, carnation. i have mixed feelings on this one...i find it kind of elegant and intriguing but am not sure if it's for me. i will have to do a full on wear to see.

This reminds me of alot of Youth-Dew and the coca-cola vibe that it has, this is like a cherry cola version of Youth-Dew. Spicy, smokey and sweet. Lightly floral and quite a strong cherry note. Honestly surprised at how much I love this, I was scared the cherry note would be a nasty synthetic sweetness but its heavenly.

Red was clearly intended to be an affordable Coco dupe, but it's not very well constructed. For one, the aldehydes are cheap smelling. Not at all like Youth Dew, which smells like straight up luxurious bubble-bath when you first spray it. There are also two conflicting fruity accords: a liquid cherry/bubblegum antibiotic note, and a bitter, tart, pulpy orangey note. When you combine these two accords with the other thousand notes listed, the result is the olfactory equivalent of washing down dark chocolate with an orange juice chaser immediately after brushing your teeth with minty toothpaste. Not great. Also, the vegetal florals (hyacinth and carnation) combine with the big heaping of Charlie-esque oakmoss and other spicy and resinous notes to create what smells like a red/green bell pepper accord in the dry down. Yikes! No wonder they don't even bother to lock this away behind the glass case at Marshall's.

So disappointed! I remember being 15 years old, walking around a mall with friends and I somehow ended up with a sample vial of Giorgio Red and for years I told people it was my favorite perfume. I think I was hoping someone would gift it to me, but the wires got crossed and I got Red Door instead. While I also kind of liked Red Door and still do, I waited decades before seeking out Giorgio Red. And...yeah, it's bad. I don't know if it's reformulation, or what, but this smells nothing like what I had in my head. There was a sweetness to the spice, and it literally made you think of a hot red color like a chili pepper. This thing that I bought smells more like a Charlie that I would have smelled in a CVS back then. I get this jumbled melange of flowers and spices, with a lot of alcohol. The one clear note I can detect is pencil shavings and almost a moldiness. Oh, well. So much for recapturing youth through scent! :-) EDIT: I am now in possession of a 90 ml bottle marked "Original" and this is very different from the mini bottle I tested before! No way to know whether the difference is due to age/oxidation, or different formulations. But the original is still out there, and it is what I remember: full bodied, spicy, sexy, very grown up! I'm revising my rating.

Wow, classic 80's/90's profile with a million notes. I used to wear this but couldn't remember what it smelled like so sprayed the current formulation on. Less is more with this one. I've oversprayed this one and definitely didn't need to. The initial blast was a big NO, but as it's drying down it's becoming more pleasant. I cannot really pick out any specific notes - maybe a heavy floral and amber...slight sour cherry (but DON'T buy this for the cherry note, you really can't pick it out too much). If you are curious about the perfumes from that time period, buy a sample or small bottle to satisfy your curiosity, but this is so far from the scent profile that is popular right now, there are very few who would actually enjoy this one now. This is something that has no sweetness despite some fruit notes and vanilla. I'll pull this out once a year and spray it just to remember times from the past.

Ooo I notice the cinnamon and carnation here. A nice warm smooth spice. Sadly, my vintage bottle also has the portapotty scent of aged civet. I can only imagine the beauty she must have been back in the day. 💋

Very 80s soap smell. Strong. I just bought a 30ml, thank God.

Ahhhh the smell of my early 20's. I wore this all the time in the 90's l loved it, l haven't had a bottle since then. Since l recently fell back in love with Giorgio Beverly Hills the original yellow floral liquid after a 30 year gap l thought I'd try my other old favourite. I was a mere girl when l first started wearing this around 17, or 18, it was gorgeous. I saw a bottle on ebay for a pitiful £13 for 90mls it almost hurts my feelings when these top class scents go for so cheap, they deserve better. So l sprayed it on and boom💥 there I am back in my younger days getting ready to go clubbing with my girls up in my room music blaring, mum screaming up the stairs that she cant hear the F****** tv, were drinking wine and laughing, sharing makeup and hair products a thick mist of georgio red in the air, looking all good, everyone's got their Gossard Wonderbra's on and our breasts are practically bouncing off our chins, and the bra is sooo bloody uncomfortable but we thought we looked so good. We had grown up being told by our mums that you have to suffer for beauty so we wore the torture bra that felt like we were being sliced like a piece of ham on that sliding meat cutting blade machine behind a delicatessen counter, our dresses were short our heels were high, we had our hair blow dried and sprayed within an inch of its life, and we're feeling like it's going to be a good night, painful feet blisters and all, we had three things on our minds drink, dancing, and meeting hot guys. That gorgeous spicy currenty talcum powder floral mix in this perfume is everything. I'm smelling Cinnabar and youth dew in this, very woody smells, with a bit of fruity tootie to stop it being too harsh and scratchy, it's a spice bomb, l haven't yet identified the creamy vanilla element but l know its on its way. I love this. I'm so happy to have it in my collection again. I'm on a bringing back the old siren perfumes vibe right now, the best from my past I'm enjoying the memory journey they take me on, and truth be told I'm a bit bored with perfumes of this time at the moment, none satisfy my needs they all seem to be fruity, patchoulli, sugary syrup sweet blah..l love this. I give it a 9/10. I've never tried Giorgio Blue but l might try that too, see if it's my vibe l love the yellow and the red, it's also going for less than a packet of cigarettes it's so cheap. It's rude not to. Love this.