FRAGRANCE | Florabotanica EDP by Balenciaga: An easy to like green floral

halfwhiteboy - Florabotanica EDP by Balenciaga 01

Taking my cue from its name, Balanciaga's Florabotanica is a green floral fragrance. Just as suggestive is the colorful artwork on the box. As for the bottle, I love the quirkiness the cap lends to the presentation. The black and white stripes extend to the cylinder inside the bottle that partially covers the stem of the atomizer, a style reminiscent of Dior Homme and its many flankers. 

The frag opens with a sweet and minty rose. It's a vividly fresh rose, not a deep red if I were to picture it. It's more akin to Perles de Lalique (but much sweeter) rather than something as rich as, say, Amouage Lyric Woman. The sweetness is candy-like while the mint gives the scent a wonderful cooling sensation. Before long, a bitter green accord slowly emerges. You can literally taste it as it passes through your nostrils and ends at the back of your throat.

halfwhiteboy - Florabotanica EDP by Balenciaga 02

There's a certain earthiness, which, together with the green undertone, temper the rose so it appears a little more unisex. As the scent develops further, all these elements melt together, their respective characteristics smoothened out so they play more as a team than individual competitors. Eventually, the bitterness relaxes and the scent transforms into a sweet, green rose with a mild salty accent (almost like sweat) similar to what I get in Cabotine de Grès. 

For me, Florabotanica is pretty good. It's not your run-of-the-mill designer offering, imbued with just the right amount of personality to differentiate itself from other floral releases. It leans a little feminine but not so much, so the right guy can pull this off without any hitch. It's warm weather-friendly and projects moderately for the first 2 or 3 hours before starting to wane. However, you can still catch random whiffs of it even after several hours. All in all, lovely!

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