FRAGRANCE | Tabarome Millésime by Creed is actually a blue frag in disguise

Any fragrance that says it has tobacco in it excites me, which is why I have always been meaning to try Creed's Tabarome Millésime. But then Creed's prices have always brought out the cheapskate in me, so I never got one until the other day when my tester bottle arrived. After going through blog posts, videos, and photos, not to mention my previous experience with the shop I got it from, I'm convinced that it's authentic. And yeah, this would do.

A strong, spicy ginger opens the show, its sharpness possibly enhanced by a few squeezes of citrus although I can't pick them out individually. While I also get a leafy tobacco and a particular sweetness far in the background, the ginger simply dominates the opening and tramples upon everything else. The ginger's strength surprises me because I was hoping for more tobacco. What I get instead is a spicy freshness that calls to mind the OG Dior Homme Sport, which also has a very prominent ginger.

The sharpness does relax a bit after about half an hour but it never really goes away. It's still there and very domineering. However, it now allows the tobacco to show itself a little more. The sweetness also becomes a tad more noticeable. It's a sort of smoky sweetness, like a sweetened vetiver reminiscent of Bel Ami Vetiver by Hermès, only much, much weaker.

The tobacco is not the usually dry kind featured in most tobacco fragrances. It's leafy and still green, much like in Aramis Havana (not the vintage one), although that note there is way more potent. Tabarome's tobacco is much more subdued—to the point that it's nearly unrecognizable unless you smell it up close and, I daresay, hard. Despite its being green, the overall scent remains dry, making it a veritable year-rounder.

I don't know what the original Tabarome was like but I'm certainly disappointed with the lack of tobacco here. I perfectly understand that not everything has to be like Tom Ford's Tobacco Vanille but Tabarome Millésime is simply not a tobacco fragrance. What it is to me is a "blue" or sporty frag with a little tobacco accent. And once I've come to terms with what it is instead of pining for what it is not, I reckon it isn't bad. I don't think it's an excellent fragrance, though. Its spicy-fresh profile makes it a fairly safe bet in most casual instances, more so when it's warm. It's not loud, with projection ranging from moderate to soft and longevity that clocks a good couple of hours. All in all nice but not great.