Cologne Indélébile
Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle (2015)

(Newer formulation, c. 2023)
A shell of what it once was. Thanks, Lauder. This used to be a pretty incredible orange blossom cologne. It made me think I was sitting in a large Roman bath, the hot water infusing with the oils of orange blossom and neroli, the strong whiff of juicy lemon coming up to my nose while I take a drink of cold infused-water out of a chalice, the sweet-sweaty smell of wet skin (musk). Calming, beautiful, and uniquely pleasant while also being a bit naughty. Not this formulation. It barely lasts at all, and the lemon, orange blossom, and neroli have had their voices dialed back to whispers. Very unfortunate, but also a sign of the direction many in the Malle line are going. If you have vintage versions of Indelebile (and some others for that matter), cherish them.

Really pretty orange blossom spring scent. Candyish backing, very sheer and light. I like this, but it sure doesn’t last at all. From a bitter petigrain/bergamot onset to nothing at all takes maybe 40 minutes. Amazingly doesn’t last at all. But it’s nice before it vanishes.

Prominent bubblegum smell. Moderately sweet. Moderately salty. Slightly peppery (blackpepper and chili pepper).
Base is mellow, top is interesting, but overall quite linear. Yes, citrus notes, too.

The sweet, salty, peppery and floral combination is fun, especially in the opening ~2 hours. I really like the top notes. Decent to good longevity, at least 6 hours where I notice it having sprayed mostly on my neck. Projects alright.

Mild thumbs up. I got a bit bored wearing it even every week from my sample (worn it maybe 7 times), but more importantly I'm slightly allergic to a few of the ingredients.

There has been recent fashion for cologne style scents with EDP style performance - I guess facilitated by the development of and acceptance of aroma-chemicals that would not previously be added to contaminate such 'natural' colognes.

As others state, the formula here is tried and tested. I get a lemon (verbena) top and of course the neroli / orange blossom heart down into floral laundry clean musk. Within the formula resides a bitter, chalky slightly powdery dry green leafy smell. This could be the listed narcissus note.

In sports, beyond a certain level it is all about "marginal gains" this is the same in fragrance form. The basic formula and notes can be done so easily and after a certain point more and more money and effort only see minimal but possibly critical returns that can make the difference between journey-man and greatness.

I must say this smells objectively great. Relaxed, summery, resort feel. It my be an inconvenient truth that 4711 etc exist, not original but quite possibly best in class.
Performance sets it apart
82/100

Run-of-the mill old fashioned cologne with dominant neroli. Connotations of cheap hairsprays etc as noted by maillard below. Infinitely missable.

So, this is basically a standard eau de cologne recipe - citrus and lavender on top with orange blossom and petitgrain to extend the smell. In its quest for improved longevity, it's also got some mandarin aldehydes in there, with their cheap plasticky artificial orange smell. And that's about it.

I've said in multiple reviews that it's almost impossible to screw up orange blossom, because it's just such a beautiful smell. But yeah, lesson learned: don't add cheap plasticky mandarin aldehydes. All in all, with so many great eaus and orange blossom perfumes out there, I wouldn't bother with Cologne Indélébile.