Vetiver

For me, Guerlain Vétiver is still one of the best and most classic vetiver fragrances ever made. I have it in the old “Listerine-style” bottle, and I love that dry, green, slightly earthy vetiver, especially when the tobacco starts to come through and gives it a more refined, elegant feel. There’s also some citrus freshness on top and a clean woody base underneath. It has that old-school gentleman character, but in a good way, the kind of fragrance that feels like it already knows where it’s going, even when you don’t.

It opens with a sharp bitter bergamot, lemon, and neroli with nutmeg and coriander. In the heart comes a grassy and somewhat smoky earthy Haitian vetiver (I don't know the difference in types). The base pushes it beyond a simple grass though with dry tobacco leaves and mossy leather.

8.6/10 Really solid earthy vetiver. Lasts a lot longer than I was expecting, I get like 8 hours on skin. I think the tobacco helps it a lot.

This is a beautiful summer scent. I think I have found my summer signature scent. Female colleagues asking me what I have on and that it smells bright and juicy says everything. To guys saying I smell fresh and clean are part of unsolicited comments when I wear this.

To me, this has a strong tea note. Really not keen on it and surprised it is not more complex.

It's just fine. Doesn't stand out. Pretty bad longevity like most Guerlain. 5/10

Opening isnt for me at all and I can see that putting off a lot of samplers but the dry down is worth the wait. So much more interesting and complex than TF Grey Vetiver.

An entry-level benchmark for vetiver and a solid introduction to green fragrances. It opens with a smoky vetiver that stays throughout, backed by earthy moss and a touch of bergamot. Some may find a herbal antiseptic nuance note in the opening. As it settles, a woody, mossy green accord develops, with vetiver firmly at the center. Overall, it leans into a timeless masculine, clean barbershop profile. Best suited for spring or evenings. I do wear it in summer, but it's not the easiest in heat unless layered with a fresher scent. Performance isn't strong, projects good for about 30-40 minutes with a decent trail, forming a 1.5-2 ft scent bubble. It then sits close to the skin for around 5-6 hours. It grows on you-simple, clean, and masculine. Not a blind buy. If you don't already enjoy vetiver, skip it- especially the Parfum, which is heavier and more polarizing.

This is dry, dusty, earthy Vetiver. The mid is the best part as you get some of the brighter notes of this composition like the citrus, but at dry down this mostly just smells like a pile of twigs with some pizzazz. Not a bad thing, just be aware that it smells somewhat mundane. I’d wear it to church. It’s absolutely perfect for layering, though. Personally, I like adding it under fragrances that could use an oomph of dry woodiness, like LV Imagination or Diptyque Orpheon. 8.2 as a standalone 9.2 as a layering agent

The initial 20 minutes of this fragrance are pretty gross, wet dog/mud grass smell/ the inside of a cigar box. Once settled the dry down is green, grassy not especially spicy vetiver and overpowering cedar. Some of the other notes are faintly detectable. It’s better than some others but not the best vetiver or best Guerlain scent imo , as I find Guerlain edp (the mojito ) to be of a much more refreshing character.

The first spray is shocking... nose tingles. Sharp, tart, green and rooty, dry, foresty, mossy, a little smoky and antiseptic. It's like opening a chest of 50 year old clothes, or a dusty old library. Think Frodo and Gandalf smoking pipe tobacco on the grassy hill in the Shire before the birthday party. The dry down settles milder and more balanced... soapy, cleaner, a faint whisper of smoke, still earthy and green but rounder, more clean barbershop than old books now. It wears a full work day and I don't go nose blind to it. It's like a cold shower... wakes you up in the morning then fades into a clean, professional scent. I respect its history. It's unique, mature, and interesting, and it took some time and a bit of research to fully appreciate. Personal subjective score: 8.5/10

Fine, just forgettable...Boring, pointless, old people's home.

Could someone confirm if the current version is still decent? or should someone hunt down a vintage?

It’s a masterpiece

To my fellow indians this smell like Chandrika soap

I’ve got the Vetiver that’s in the listerine bottle with the green cap and it’s, I’m pleased to say, absolutely fantastic. It’s herbal, refreshing, and, alongside a whole host of other positive descriptors I could use, composed. It legitimately feels as though I’ve found my signature scent! That said, I’ve read that the new square bottle Vetivers can be a different experience. Fingers crossed that isn‘t the case for me, ‘cause, as it stands, this is the perfect fragrance for me. 10/10

Masterpiece. I am a woman wearing it during the summer. This is Mitsouko Vetiver edition in “my labeled wardrobe”.

I've wanted to write this review for a while now, but what's new to say about such a storied icon? Well, if I could, I'd change my username to GuerlainVetiver (There's a gentleman over on Basenotes named "Paco Rabanne Pour Homme"). The fragrance subreddits have frequent posts asking what would be one's scent for life, and guess what? Guerlain Vetiver always shows up... yes that's partially because I throw it into the hat too. What makes such an anachronistic, deceptively complex fragrance work so well, despite being initally unleashed on the world in the late 1950's? Personally, I find Vetiver to be ridiculously versatile, spanning any season or occasion without seeming out of place. The amazing opening that many liken to a "gulp of cold water" is easily my favorite opening in my collection. Zingy lime and bergamot swirl around the dominant note of dry, grassy vetiver, making for an amazing wake-up call. That opening lasts for a surprising amount of time before settling down into the beautiful combo of prickly, spicy vetiver, sweet bergamot, and slight vanilla laced with cedar. Like a popular alternative, Terre D'Hermes, Vetiver is a chamileon in its profile: Sometimes the overall effect is straight clove, sometimes sweet grass baking in summer, sometimes a minty soap/aftershave. There's so much going on here that everyone I've asked has given a different answer to what this smells like. Some say licorice, some said "minty," others said lavender and citrus. But everyone who tried Vetiver agrees that it smells great, it just takes some a bit longer to come around. Because it really doesn't smell "current," even if people don't know how long this stuff has been around, they know it's a scent hailing from another time. Although I gather that the current square bottles are the most tame when it comes to the traditionally dated notes of tobacco. Or maybe, if it's there I just don't get it. Everything is blended so well that it's hard to sit down and pick out every single note here. Despite the age gap between this and say... YSL Y (ignoring the fact that this has definitely changed from even its 2000 revival), Vetiver still manages to not feel as dated as something like Polo or Lauder for Men. I guess it's like classical architecture, yes it's old, but it's still considered beautiful and eternally relevant. Shoot, Terre D'Hermes is basically the Neoclassical version of Vetiver. Alright, everyone cares about performance, and I consider it too when making a purchase, so here's what I get: Hours. Like a healthy 12 hours of use out of two sprays kind of hours. Summertime? Mmm, refreshing. Winter? Smells amazing under a wool scarf. Anything in between? Just do it. Projection is definitely good for the first hour or two, I've had people notice within this window of time. That opening pierces its way through people's noses better than a Claire's, but sits back down for the rest of the day. Never too much (though you shouldn't overspray this one), 10/10 performance, total goldilocks. Side tangent, I like the idea of Guerlain claiming the square bottles are a callback to the 60's bottles (despite also being retooled L'Homme Ideal bottles), I also wish they'd go back to unique bottles depending on the scent. Not to mention this doesn't come in 50ml anymore (but Habit Rouge does?), making travel awkward with the overbuilt faceted beast of a bottle. Maybe I just really want to see the reissue of the odd columnal bottles from the 70's... I'm also miffed that my bottle has a bum atomiser... so there's that. But at any rate, Guerlain Vetiver is a must have if you appreciate classical perfumery, or are really bored with the perfume counter nowadays. Guerlain's prices have gone up, even discounted, but Vetiver and Habit Rouge make such an excellent duo. I haven't tried the newer parfum yet, partly because it's steep, and mostly because I don't think it'll live up to the EDT. No mention of a citrus opening concerns me also. That's fine because Vetiver is always going to have a place in my collection, eventually I'd like to track down older versions to compare and contrast (and just to hoard more Vetiver...). Wonderful masterpiece from Guerlain that, in my opinion (please be gentle), trumps Habit Rouge as the greatest Guerlain masculine. Anyone can wear this stuff, old, young, male, female, it just works. It's rugged, suave, harsh, comforting, dated, timeless, clean, dirty, cooling and warm all at the same time. Now to try L'Instant de Guerlain Pour Homme to see where it places on the scale of Not-Vetiver to Vetiver.

I associate this with my dad. Smells like when I would wake up early in the morning and smell my dad going to work. LOVE it. Would not buy for myself, but like on an older man this is such a classy fragrance. If a young person wore this i would judge them. You can only wear this if you have old person knowledge, otherwise you look afool. Its masculine to me but like not in the traditional sense, this smells like a man with a unique definition masculinity.

Let me preface this by stating this specific page is for the NEW iteration of the Vetiver EDT that released in 2000. NOT the “vintage edition” on here that came out in 1959- I see reviews on here that are treating it as if it’s the same thing or bashing this version as if it was poorly reformulated when they’re technically two different fragrances. I won’t speak for the vintage version as I’ve never tried it- and don’t intend to if it’s discontinued. Anyways, after wearing the Guerlain Parfum designed by Jelk, I decided to try this one. And ,I’ll be honest- I prefer this one by a milestone. The Parfum is more modern yes, but it’s almost candied licorice with a very well formulated vetiver that it’s almost teetering on cloying to me. I don’t get any real smokiness or dark nuance it’s supposedly conveys but it definitely is a better fragrance for evenings or cooler weather. If you’re a fan of licorice or tend to prefer sweeter fragrances - try the parfum instead. The EDT on the other hand, cuts through the dense rooty aspects of the vetiver with citrus. It’s still a green bubble to me but it’s way more wearable than any other vetivers focused frags I’ve tried. This is by far one of the most approachable vetivers for the general populace in the market I feel. It doesn’t feel like you’ve rolled yourself in dry grass, or you’re wandering around a rain drenched forest - it’s a very elegantly balanced fragrance. Definitely a worthy purchase in my book- I wish I got it sooner before they discontinued the 50ml version. The longevity is relatively decent too. 8+ hours

One of the finest Vetiver fragrances ever created. Its current iteration, however, is a pale, watery shadow of its former self / (selves). My early noughties bottle (half full / half empty?) is a thing of beauty. Bright as a button; the magic main note enhanced by subtle citrus accents and wonderfully old-fashioned glimpses of carnation and oakmoss. It deserves a medal for unbridled elegance. There isn’t a time of day or season which could not be enhanced by this masterful invention. I love it. 🐺

It does remind me of Grey Vetiver, but I feel this one is a bit more complex. 10/10. I’ve tried several vetiver perfumes, but this is my favourite.

Even with all the different versions Guerlain has put out for Vetiver, the EDT is still my absolute favorite 🫰 It’s just this super smooth, lush green scent on my skin perfect for those scorching hot days when you just want an easy, everyday reach without overthinking it. It doesn’t really evolve much throughout the wear, but honestly, I’m totally fine with that.

Def for the older mature demographic, do not blind buy!

Tall bottle w/ green cap is the best formulation of the EDT over the years. The rich citrus opening to the grassy vetiver & tobacco tonka dry down is Devine. I recently purchased an even older batch (edt but different bottle) the scent isn’t comparable.. watered down not as rich & enticing as the 2000’s tall bottle, no transition & actually smells like an old man. The opening (I shit you not) smelled like warm piss in the morning. Choose carefully which bottle design you choose!

smells like aftershave. Would expect the bathroom to smell like this after my grandpa takes a shower.

This is the fragrance that has made me realize that I am NOT a vetiver person. I know some people love it. But to me, the only thing I can smell in this cologne is wet hay. That's it. Nothing else at all. And that's bad. This is not a knock on this fragrance, per se. Me and vetiver just have a biological disagreement that we are not going to get over. Pure vetiver will just never smell good to me. It's crazy, because I LOVE Creed's Wild Vetiver - but that one obviously has a lot of other notes at play.

After 40 years as my signature fragrance I get a skin rash from it after about 8 - 9 hours wearing it. I'm so pissed. It's almost like I lost a part of me. I still love it more than anything else but I can't wear it anymore. I'm just posting this here to see if this has happened to anyone else? After doing research on the Internet it's not uncommon to develop a skin rash to fragrances after a lifetime of use especially natural oak moss. It's so strange. I don't have any other allergies.

The opening is extremely green, sour, and citrusy, like a photorealistic lemon lying in wet grass on a hot day. The lemon here is dense, balmy, and invigorating. I can taste the bitterness at the back of my throat with each whiff. Then come the earthy, rooty nuances of vetiver that I enjoy, though they never come to the forefront. The dense and aromatic green facet stays through most of its life and dominates the composition for me, while the spices, woods, and florals remain in the background, rounding it out. There is a solar, sun-warmed quality to this composition, which blends really well with the spicy and aromatic notes, cementing this as a yellow-green scent in my mind. Picture this A picturesque countryside known for its bright, green and sunny brand of nature. It’s late afternoon. A tourist dressed in a crisp linen shirt paired with relaxed denims cycles back to his stay after exploring the local market. Down he goes through charming curved roads, weaving through tobacco fields lined with lemon trees and wildflower-speckled shrubs. The yellow-green aroma blends into a fresh, warm, and spicy mélange that soothes and invigorates all at once, while the shade of the trees invite him to relax and catch his breath. He spots the perfect place to rest and soak it all in - a soft sprawl of hay and damp grass under a lemon tree. Just as he parks his bike and lies down, the sweet-spicy aroma of wildflowers and tobacco greets his nostrils, and the warm, rooty wafts of wet earth fill his lungs. He can’t help but smile. Life is good.

This is nice. A vetiver standard apparently, similar to others but only superficially, this one is rather dry, woody, and scratchy. Early in the wear it’s got intense camphorous, resin, pine sappy, almost mentholated quality. There’s also a cool, crisp sort of mineral quality to it, herbaceousness that turns to cools spices like fennel maybe, sage, but all with that dry grassiness and deep fruity bottom end. Picks up a strong granny vibe into the down. I don’t think it smells dated but the orris leans this one a tad feminine for me despite my loving the opening.