The Strongest Colognes for Men

We all want longevity  and we all want something strong to scream who we are and how much we pay to smell appealing,

Cologne, at this point, is not much more than a generic term. While it originally referred to a specific, mostly citrus fragrance made with water from Cologne, Germany, in the 18th century, now it's basically just a category name. So saying that you wear cologne is kind of like cooking a delicious roasted chicken and telling your guests that you'll be serving meat.

What most of us spray on our neck and chest each morning is actually eau de toilette. Besides sounding fancier, the name denotes the percentage of essential oils used to make your scent, which can be anywhere between 5 and 15 percent. (The rest is mostly alcohol and a little water.) The next step up is eau de parfum, at 10 to 20 percent, followed by perfume extract, which can be as high as 40 percent. This is the ideal in terms of what a man should wear: something strong and refined that will last for years. Plus, it's where perfumers consider their fragrances to be ideally showcased. According to Mandy Aftel, author of Essence and Alchemy: A Natural History of Perfume, with less dilution, extracts really highlight the ingredients.

There aren't a ton of options out there — this is a niche market, after all, and an expensive one — but my favorite is Terre d'Hermès pure perfume ($118 for 2.5 oz; usa. hermes.com). Although it's not among the stronger perfume extracts, with only 21 percent concentration, the price is a little more accessible as a result. The Hermès is dominated by citrus, with wood, pepper, and just a bit of spice. It reminds me a little of sambuca that you can (and will want to) wear. Bond No. 9's New York Amber ($260 for 1.7 oz; bondno9.com) is more concentrated at 30 percent, and very smooth. If a scent can smell creamy, this one does, like a pear dipped in honey. At 40 percent, Eccelso's Profumum Roma ($339 for 3.4 oz; osswaldnyc.com) is the most potent option I tried. It's not as earthy and deep as the Amber; the scent is spicy and floral, like you're carrying a fresh bouquet that's been sprinkled with nutmeg. For something even more spicy, try Clive Christian No. 1 for Men ($865 for 1.7 oz; clive.com), which has a potency of 25 percent and smells like an orange dusted in baby powder and the contents of the spice rack at an Indian restaurant. Apparently, what makes it worth three car payments is what Clive Christian describes as a "precious" sandalwood, which, at this price, must have been harvested from the top of a remote mountain by an endangered Amur leopard. With full union benefits.



Read more: Perfume Extract - Strong Colognes for Men - Esquire http://www.esquire.com/blogs/mens-fashion/best-cologne-for-men-0413#ixzz2QGmHuLlo