FRAGRANCE | Silver Mountain Water EDP by Creed is as refreshing as it looks

I got this by chance: an older batch, 120ml bottle of Silver Mountain Water. I'm not as enamored with Creed fragrances, so this was a rather passive buy. Nonetheless, I'm happy with the few Creeds I own, so why not, I thought.

I love the all-white bottle, which, together with the silver cap and lettering, do justice to what they're trying to sell. Right upon first spray, I already liked the scent. The opening of crisp, bright citruses followed immediately by tea is nothing short of refreshing. It's not a highly original combination but for some reason, I was sold on it. There's just something about the execution that appealed to my olfactory senses, bolstered perhaps by the uncomfortably hot summer we're currently experiencing.

There's a mild bitterness from the tea, which provides the composition an added bite and keeps the scent grounded. Any sweetness is practically absent, a direction I most certainly welcome. After several minutes, the black currant casts a tart fruitiness then segues to a cold, inky accord. It's far from the strength of a similar component in Stephane Humber Lucas's 2022 Generation Homme but the controlled intensity suits Silver Mountain Water's style perfectly. It's a white bottle, after all, so the ink is employed for its cold factor rather than its dark character.

I also get some saltiness weaving around but it does so without upsetting the order of things. It reminds me of the salty muskiness in YSL's Kouros, only more discreet and without any overarching powdery fluff. Several more minutes and the ink starts to soften, the scent still fresh and green with a bitter undercurrent. There's a hazy muskiness and woodiness later in the game but the scent's core character remains the same. Projection is about average and is reduced considerably after the third or fourth hour. Although in a weakened state, the scent stretches for a couple more hours and a little body heat can help push it to huff and puff a bit more.

Creed's Silver Mountain Water isn't an overly complex creation but it's not one dimensional either. It's just as layered as Royal Mayfair (another Creed that I love, by the way) but instead of spotlighting each note as it comes along, it chooses to work them into a cohesive blend. The result is pleasantly refreshing as its name suggests. Needless to say, it works best in the summer. It has a bit of a masculine slant but nothing too brute that a woman can't handle. Overall, it's well worth a try.