I procured a sample of Xeryus Rouge as a teenager in the mid-90s. I remember it being magical and I often wore it to bed for comfort while reading on rainy nights. It's certainly capable of eliciting wonderful memories and associations; it's not a scent that you'll easily forget. While I give Xeryus Rouge an unequivocal thumbs up, be aware that you must apply it judiciously and it is definitely NOT a safe blind buy. However - perhaps due to a certain degree of nostalgia - this strong, fruity, flowery, and woody fragrance holds a special place in my collection. At one time, Xeryus seemed to me too powerful, aggressive and too adultto match a young university student (and somewhat “ordinary”). Later, when I began to match its age, the fragrance hadalready beenrejuvenated by changing the bottle design and was moved into the Les Mythiques Givenchy collection (2007). However, I have enough of its peers in my wardrobe –Derby Guerlain, Yatagan Caron, Macassar Rochas, Jules Christian Dior –to be content... If that sounds like something you’re looking for I would consider this, I would advise testing it over blind-buying as it is quite different to most other scents. Although it’s nice and pleasant to smell it’s never been a firm favourite of mine, it’s not something which I’ve fell in love with, but it is nice and not offensive.

It's not for everybody. Xeryus Rouge has one of the sharpest, most pungent openings of any fragrance I've encountered. It's likely to offend those with olfactory sensitivities in way quite similar to Fahrenheit. Cactus and tarragon dominate the top notes. It’s not one of those scents which everyone knows or owns, so if you like this then it’s likely you’ll be the only one wearing it among your friends, giving you an individual edge. The heads are different in detail but broadly similar in outline: piquant orange citrus. From below the top and down to the base the central core of both works is very similar, except that OU has been given some extra padding. Its only in the base that they really diverge. The “candy” of Xeryus Rouge is built from a sweet and spicy red part, a coniferous and dry grass green part, and a white stripe, which is asoapy wood cut. Red blood orange with clove buds and vibrant geranium flowers, green needles and theSarriette base of fragrant herbs, plus a white stripe of floral aquatic, Evernil, musks and cedar.

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So it seems that OU was - shall we say - inspired by XR. One is more powerful, piquant and spare, the other a sweeter, bland and fuller version of the same subgenre, namely Woody Citrus (powdery). Top notes: Lavender, Jasmine, Green notes, Lemon, Violet, Nutmeg flower, Bergamot, Lily-of-the-valley, Rose, Mandarin orange and Ylang-ylang;

OU evolves in the direction of sweetened geranium. This makes for a decent transition which moves the profile through citrus down to the sweet ambery powdery base. The bottle is red taken from the Rouge part of the name, with a small plastic top and metal atomizer. It seems to have very small and subtle hints of almost every different style of fragrances; You can smell hints of citrus with green, woody, warm and aromatic but still fresh and spicy. What shines through is the aromatic and slight spicy notes, making this one for the evenings and nights out, warming up a cold autumn or winter night. Your friends probably haven’t heard of Xeryus Rouge, so if you tell them you’re wearing this, they’ll probably think it’s a brand new range!

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What does this scent most remind me of? You know those ruby ring candies? The red ones? Pretty much that is what is reminds me of. This fragrance projects; it lasts, and smells very, very good. It is unique and its just not all sweetness, but it is very sweet. Again, this is red in a bottle.When you look at red medicine, you know its sweet and will taste, well, like something red. Growing up, One point of criticism; the off note is present in both formulae but in XR its more intrusive, stronger and longer lasting. There's no place for the off note to hide in the compact profile of XR, but the broader and more fluffy body of OU manages to cover it up sooner. And so, to be consistent I've had to mark XR down.