Trussardi Inside for Men by Trussardi (2006)

Nose: Nathalie Lorson

Inside Man is a keeper, and a sleeper too. I had to wear this quite a few times to “understand it”. I mean: it smells great, and you get that instantly. It’s classy, warm, discreet, really sophisticated, but there’s something else which makes you coming back again and again to your wrist to wonder what you’re smelling. My experience was like: I get it smells great, I just don’t get what this smells of. “Nondescript”, shortly, in a totally positive way. Inside Man is stoutly, sharply “woody” at first, and I mean *really* woody, in quite an uncommon and un-natural way; more like a piece of luxury polished furniture. It’s the smell of mahogany, which is really dry, dark, exotic and mysterious. On top of that, a fantastic note of coffee – dark, roasted coffee beans; nothing gourmand for sure – and smoky tobacco: not an actuall smell of smoke, not the usual sweetish artificial tobacco note, and not bare Iso E Super like in many recent “smoke” scents, but rather an unperceivable, thin, perfectly crafted feel of someone smoking near you, like a really subtle whiff of nicotine. What I meant by “nondescript” is that all these notes are really tightly connected and so well blended together in a thin texture, it’s quite hard to understand what’s behind this great piece of “mainstream” refinement. You just get this irresistible, distinctive whiff of warm, dark good taste accompanying you like a perfectly-cut suit. Slightly “generic”, but just the right amount – I don’t mind that. It just “fits” perfectly. Sillage is discreet, but long lasting. Remarkable!

7,5-8/10