On the skin, Emblem is pleasant and can walk between appointments, from day to night, with ease. The output is slightly fruity and sweet and the evolution shows an oriental body, which gains woody and creamy facets. But it is not an innovative cologne today, nor when it was released. Its fragrance presents a proposal similar to that of 212 VIP Men (2010) and, if worn side by side, it is possible to notice similarities. The biggest difference is due to the creaminess of Emblem, which results from the sage and fava tonka notes, against the alcoholic and salty aspect of the other, due to the notes of vodka, caviar lime and salty amber.

That said, Emblem reinforces my personal opinion about the fragrances of the brand, which tend to grow in my concept the more I make use of them. Here, there is a little more nobility and maturity, which fit better in my current moment of life. After all, we are talking about almost eight years of difference since the launch of the Carolina Herrera's fragrance, and the market at that time was different. Emblem takes these two most popular categories and merges them into one. This bottle is essentially Legend meets One Million. After the fresh citrusy top, it dries down into a fresher and less obnoxious version of the cinnamon-centric One Million. Simple and fairly linear after the top. The opening sage and grapefruit makes for a very refreshing, fresh-but-on-the-dry-side start (closer to cucumber than fruit) with some moderate projection that lasts for a good 1-2 hours on my skin - the spices start to emerge as the citrus fades, ultimately leading to the considerably sweeter base of tonka and wood notes that radiate a minimal amount for abut another 90 minutes before becoming a skin scent for another few hours. The result is pleasing and the performance is good (average projection, decent longevity). Of course it is generic, and of course it's synthetic - but that does not mean it's a bad scent. In fact, it does well in balancing the two categories. Emblem opens with inviting fresh citrus and maybe a hint of exotic fruit? The heart is another Tonka washout for me though very pleasant but all too familiar and very much the en vogue accord for bland designer fare at the moment. There's a hint of violet and spices, clary sage and cardamom, cinnamon is evident.So why do I dislike it? Well, for me, with my particular skin chemistry, whatever has been used here to create the cardamom note smells synthetic and somewhat unpleasant and, worst of all, clashes with and detracts from the rest of the otherwise ordinary but nice enough notes in the composition. I have, however, smelled this fragrance on other folks, and I have come to the conclusion that this issue is a function of my skin and not the product. Emblem exudes well, but it produces olfactory fatigue very fast for those who wear it. That is, you may think you are no longer exuding, but you are. The durability is very good, exceeding eight hours on my skin. This scent takes you on a far more interesting journey than the moderate price would imply. I know I have an undeniable bias to wood aromatic and/or spicy blends, but I feel like as long as you have a fondness for this family of scents, this would be a very safe blind buy if you know to expect a good woody scent with a fresh dry touch and more sweetness in the drydown than the opening would suggest. Very interesting.

However, I've totally changed my opinion on Individuel for example and I'm not as keen on it as I used to be. Also scents like Exceptionel are frankly suffering from the same issues as Emblem...just too safe and maybe a little boring? The violet is an icy smelling violet that mixes with the cinnamon to create a floral-sweetness. The drydown is the mixture of the vanilla-like tonka, whatever woods there are, and that floral cinnamon vibe remains prominent. The violet really is the star throughout at stays with you. It's not a fragrance that many would dislike, but if you are not a violet fan then I would not recommend it. SIMILAR: Mont Blanc is a house known for producing very poor performing pleasant fragrances. Your best chance is to stay with the three stars of this house. Mont Blanc Legend, Mont Blanc Individuel, or Mont Blanc Explorer. I barely get the clary sage in the opening (maybe it's my skin chemistry or I'm anosmic to it?), but rather a blast of a higher note citrus which I cannot immediately identify as grapefruit, sweetened by the cardamom. Likable, wearable and as many have mentioned the bottle is great and a perfect way to ram home the brands logo.It may not be groundbreaking, but I was looking for a mass appealing designer frag that isn't very well known but still remains unique. This really fit the bill for me. Yesterday, I sniffed the cap of Mont Blanc's emblem and it seemed very disappointing. I left a review here just below this one that I will keep for comparison.