Reviews of Emporio Armani Stronger With You by Giorgio Armani
I first smelled this when it came out in 2017, but I never really revisited the line. Now there are about 6–7 flankers, so I figured I’d give it another shot. Varanis was on the fence but still gave it a thumbs up—I’m not quite that generous, especially since some of the flankers improve on this.
There’s definitely ambroxan here, but it’s not as screechy or obnoxious as I expected. It feels like it pulls inspiration from a bunch of different scents. There’s a hint of that “bubblegum” sweetness, but it doesn’t overdo it, and it’s balanced with a slight sourness. There aren’t really any clear citrus notes, yet I still get a subtle citrusy touch that helps tie everything together.
It’s also not as thick or cloying as I expected—there’s a bit of airiness to it. Overall, it’s not a bad scent, but it doesn’t really intrigue me either. Compared to its flankers, it’s not that sweet. Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t pick up much vanilla. What I do get is a light mix of fruity, citrusy, slightly sour and tart elements, with the rest leaning toward a general fougère profile.
If you find the flankers too sweet and want something more inoffensive and basic, this works fine. Performance is moderate, and you could wear it pretty much anywhere, though it leans more casual to me. It’s still a bit pricey even at discounters, so I’d recommend testing it at Sephora if you’re interested.
There’s definitely ambroxan here, but it’s not as screechy or obnoxious as I expected. It feels like it pulls inspiration from a bunch of different scents. There’s a hint of that “bubblegum” sweetness, but it doesn’t overdo it, and it’s balanced with a slight sourness. There aren’t really any clear citrus notes, yet I still get a subtle citrusy touch that helps tie everything together.
It’s also not as thick or cloying as I expected—there’s a bit of airiness to it. Overall, it’s not a bad scent, but it doesn’t really intrigue me either. Compared to its flankers, it’s not that sweet. Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t pick up much vanilla. What I do get is a light mix of fruity, citrusy, slightly sour and tart elements, with the rest leaning toward a general fougère profile.
If you find the flankers too sweet and want something more inoffensive and basic, this works fine. Performance is moderate, and you could wear it pretty much anywhere, though it leans more casual to me. It’s still a bit pricey even at discounters, so I’d recommend testing it at Sephora if you’re interested.
After reading many positive reviews, I purchased a decant. Initially, I thought SWY gave off a vibe similar to something offered by Bvlgari, Encre Noire, or He Wood by Dsquared². However I ended up settling on it being an amped up Paco Rabanne Privé. It's a very warm, spicy fragrance with very good performance at a reasonable price. It's not a full bottle for me just because I already have others in this neighborhood.
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No one mentions the overpowering wood aroma chemical that makes this smell like rubbing alcohol. Underneath that I can smell soft powdery notes; barbershop lavender on the masculine side but paired with fruity florals on the feminine side. It leans more to the feminine side on me, very delicate and soft and faintly pink, but over everything is that blast of sharply woody chemical that kills it all dead. Bleu Turquoise did this on me, too. I adored everything else about it, but this wood aroma chem (Screamwood, in the parlance of my sister and myself) overwhelms all and it lasts for the life of the fragrance. A total waste of time unless you are fond of screamwood/wood alcohol paired with powdery florals.
The extreme sweetness and mint reminds me of Versace Eros. I didn't immediately place it but it hit me later in the drydown. Sampling the opening again, it does smell like Eros but the vanilla is warmer and not quite as strong and airy. It also feels a bit smoother than Eros, making this perhaps the slightly more refined or even "grown-up" version of Eros. Both are heavy, sweet scents that women should enjoy smelling on men and possibly themselves.
It lasts all workday and has good projection on my skin.
It lasts all workday and has good projection on my skin.
I sampled on my skin twice. This is sickly sweet and headache inducing. It smells ok in the surrounding air but for the wearer, this is painful to live with. I'm normally pretty open to generic sweet fragrances but this is next level chemical sweetness. If you want a similar vibe (but MUCH better quality), go with YSL L'Homme Parfum Intense. I can't even tell you the individual notes that I pick up from SWY because it's all just one big mess. With the compared YSL counterpart, I can easily pick out the apple, orange blossom, suede, and ginger notes.
A hard pass and instant scrubber for me.
A hard pass and instant scrubber for me.
2010 saw the christening act for a new faux-ambergris trend in masculine fragrance which began in earnest with Bleu de Chanel (2010). The isolated odorant molecule from ambergris, now replicable in a lab without finding chunks of whale vomit on the beach, has taken several forms including ambroxide, ambroxan, or ambrox super, but all forms are just collectively called "ambroxan" for simplicity by fragrance enthusiasts, whom usually also hate the molecule for its over-use since introduction. Prada Luna Rossa (2012), Paco Rabanne Invictus (2013), Dior Sauvage (2015), and Azzaro Wanted (2016) each spun up the use of ambroxan a little more, with Sauvage in particular being extremely scratchy in its finish thanks to an overdose coupled with norlimbanol (aka: karmawood) in the base. It seems like with Azzaro Wanted, somebody figured out that smoothing the ambrox base note over with oriental tones was a better way to hide the harsher sides of the pure concentrated chemical form of the accord, leading into a semi-oriental phase of the trend that carries on with Emporio Armani Stronger With You (2017). I feel like there is a bit of laziness overall in the construction of this, which carries on into stuff like Obsessed for Men by Calvin Klein (2017) and eau de parfum concentrations of other aforementioned scents of this trope which came after Stronger With You, but it's worth noting that it only really deducts a few points from the overall enjoyment. After all, the argument can be made that perfumers abused Iso E Super in the 2000's, white musk or calone in the 90's, and oakmoss for nearly 30 years before that. What Emporio Armani Stronger With You does offer is a break from the marine/aquatic fascination that otherwise plagues this style, even if several members of this troupe are not explicitly aquatic otherwise (see the Prada or Chanel for examples), and the Armani itself is built out from the ambrox with cardamom and violet instead.
The opening of Stronger With You hits with this aforementioned cardamom, some pink pepper, and a tiny wedge of bergamot to help it carry. Mostly warm spice on a bed of sweetened ambrox is what hits the nose right away. Further development on down the line after initial sprays leads to a violet leaf that slightly recalls Dior Fahrenheit (1988), something which has become more popular to do once again as the note mixes admittedly well with ambergris real or fake. A strong clary sage element helps dry out the mixture just a bit, and it's an ever-faithful note which has been appearing in masculine-marketed fragrances since time immemorial, serving as it usually does here. Beyond that, the base is pretty standard for the latter half of this decade, focusing on ambroxan and norlimbanol "amberwoods" but flanked with vanilla and chestnut absolute to give it that oriental glow perfumer Cecile Matton was after. I give credit for doing something new with this over-used base accord, but also point a bit of blame for causing other designers to react by making EdP variants of their own pillars based on the dry down of this, in one big homogenized game of aromachemical leapfrog (see Azzaro's 2018 Wanted by Night). Despite that dubious distinction, Stronger With You is an effective modern semi-oriental composition that avoids the dustiness or itchy spice some earlier creations ran into, going on smooth, finishing up warm, and staying pleasant albeit safe from start to end. This is one ambrox scent that is no bomb, especially in eau de toilette form, with about 8 hours of moderate sillage max, although overspraying can make the notorious "amberwoods" finish become quite cloying. Stronger With You is better as a romantic affair, but it isn't particularly sensual so you might be able to sneak an office wear or two without question. It's my guess that this is the new scent theme replacing the ill-received Emporio Armani Diamonds for Men (2008) as the new pillar focus for the high-end Armani imprint, which had a series of flankers from the Diamonds line but never really got the love it deserved, even if I find it to actually be superior to this.
Emporio Armani Stronger With You is a competent semi-oriental faux ambergris fragrance that really is not super interesting but likeable enough to just barely stave off a neutral rating, and may in fact grow on me more in time like Chanel Allure Homme (1999) did, producing interesting flankers of its own that could cement the line better in my mind. For now, I have to say Armani really is milking the success of the accord to its utmost potential, as they've reused the primary accord again in Acqua di Giò Absolu (2018), which feels almost like an unofficial flanker to Stronger With You, or just a standard Giorgio Armani iteration of the Emporio Armani scent itself. Either way, it's a bad sign that Armani may be heading down the path of Dolce & Gabbana, milking the name plates of established lines literally to death with flanker after samey flanker of senseless retreads, minor alterations, or clear-cut plagiarism of other houses, which they may already be somewhat guilty of with the Armani Code/Black Code (2004) line of flankers anyway. This is probably the most ambivalent positive review you're likely to see from me, as I enjoy the smell of Stronger With You, but take issue with some of the lazier bits that have unfortunately continued to trend and has furthered a mostly-meh category, with a few glaring positive exceptions, like Y Eau de Parfum (2018). If you walk into this knowing what it's about, and taking the whole genre with a grain of salt, you might actually enjoy it too, but it's another cheeseburger in a landscape of burger joints at the end of the day, so guys wanting something really distinct might be better off seeking vintage or niche-tier fragrances. An above-average effort in a ubiquitous field, Stronger With You is best enjoyed as a contemporary sweet amberwoods fragrance for the guy who is tired of blue juices or clubber's cologne. Much beyond that, and we'll just have to wait and see what Armani has rolled up its sleeves.
The opening of Stronger With You hits with this aforementioned cardamom, some pink pepper, and a tiny wedge of bergamot to help it carry. Mostly warm spice on a bed of sweetened ambrox is what hits the nose right away. Further development on down the line after initial sprays leads to a violet leaf that slightly recalls Dior Fahrenheit (1988), something which has become more popular to do once again as the note mixes admittedly well with ambergris real or fake. A strong clary sage element helps dry out the mixture just a bit, and it's an ever-faithful note which has been appearing in masculine-marketed fragrances since time immemorial, serving as it usually does here. Beyond that, the base is pretty standard for the latter half of this decade, focusing on ambroxan and norlimbanol "amberwoods" but flanked with vanilla and chestnut absolute to give it that oriental glow perfumer Cecile Matton was after. I give credit for doing something new with this over-used base accord, but also point a bit of blame for causing other designers to react by making EdP variants of their own pillars based on the dry down of this, in one big homogenized game of aromachemical leapfrog (see Azzaro's 2018 Wanted by Night). Despite that dubious distinction, Stronger With You is an effective modern semi-oriental composition that avoids the dustiness or itchy spice some earlier creations ran into, going on smooth, finishing up warm, and staying pleasant albeit safe from start to end. This is one ambrox scent that is no bomb, especially in eau de toilette form, with about 8 hours of moderate sillage max, although overspraying can make the notorious "amberwoods" finish become quite cloying. Stronger With You is better as a romantic affair, but it isn't particularly sensual so you might be able to sneak an office wear or two without question. It's my guess that this is the new scent theme replacing the ill-received Emporio Armani Diamonds for Men (2008) as the new pillar focus for the high-end Armani imprint, which had a series of flankers from the Diamonds line but never really got the love it deserved, even if I find it to actually be superior to this.
Emporio Armani Stronger With You is a competent semi-oriental faux ambergris fragrance that really is not super interesting but likeable enough to just barely stave off a neutral rating, and may in fact grow on me more in time like Chanel Allure Homme (1999) did, producing interesting flankers of its own that could cement the line better in my mind. For now, I have to say Armani really is milking the success of the accord to its utmost potential, as they've reused the primary accord again in Acqua di Giò Absolu (2018), which feels almost like an unofficial flanker to Stronger With You, or just a standard Giorgio Armani iteration of the Emporio Armani scent itself. Either way, it's a bad sign that Armani may be heading down the path of Dolce & Gabbana, milking the name plates of established lines literally to death with flanker after samey flanker of senseless retreads, minor alterations, or clear-cut plagiarism of other houses, which they may already be somewhat guilty of with the Armani Code/Black Code (2004) line of flankers anyway. This is probably the most ambivalent positive review you're likely to see from me, as I enjoy the smell of Stronger With You, but take issue with some of the lazier bits that have unfortunately continued to trend and has furthered a mostly-meh category, with a few glaring positive exceptions, like Y Eau de Parfum (2018). If you walk into this knowing what it's about, and taking the whole genre with a grain of salt, you might actually enjoy it too, but it's another cheeseburger in a landscape of burger joints at the end of the day, so guys wanting something really distinct might be better off seeking vintage or niche-tier fragrances. An above-average effort in a ubiquitous field, Stronger With You is best enjoyed as a contemporary sweet amberwoods fragrance for the guy who is tired of blue juices or clubber's cologne. Much beyond that, and we'll just have to wait and see what Armani has rolled up its sleeves.
Another rip off. Yeah you sniffed it somewhere already. YSL L'Homme Parfum Intense and a very cheap but very good rip off from Zara Night Pour Homme III.
Conclusion: nihil nuovo sub sole, however not tragically bad. Far from a "must have" and even farther from thinking about it after the initial try. Sample is more than enough for me. Oh it's a good scent alright, but sadly a rip off.
Originality 2/10
Scent 7/10
Longevity 8/10
Projection 7/10
Conclusion: nihil nuovo sub sole, however not tragically bad. Far from a "must have" and even farther from thinking about it after the initial try. Sample is more than enough for me. Oh it's a good scent alright, but sadly a rip off.
Originality 2/10
Scent 7/10
Longevity 8/10
Projection 7/10
Nothing much wrong with this. OK, it will be bought by Gen-Y-ers who don't realise that Armani is a bit lairy as a brand these days. But as/for a nightclub accessory, it's not bad at all, and the faux-caringness of the name will appeal to some. It's a heavy, semi-gourmand from the outset, but it smells fine if extremely unchallenging.
Covid-era retest: bringing down to a neutral. Not awful by any means, but a little embarrassing when testing on skin "at my age". This is a young man's game.
Covid-era retest: bringing down to a neutral. Not awful by any means, but a little embarrassing when testing on skin "at my age". This is a young man's game.
Bubble gum usual ..nutty twist ..weird that armani have the decent code profumo, but release this ..anyway , nice but is it needed.
THIS is the fragrance that is emblematic of where many men's scents are today. Emporio Armani Stronger With You is a curious turn for Armani, yet it typifies the direction that recent colognes - like Paco Rabanne's Invictus, Salvatore Ferragamo's Uomo, Yves St-Laurent's Y, et. al. - seem to want to take. (And even Armani's own Acqua di Gio Absolu is a shocking echo of Stronger With You, IMO!)
Spicy, floral, somewhat fruity (though no fruit notes are listed in the pyramid), and simply resolute, although not unique: Stronger With You is a legitimate outing in Armani's line, a daring flanker in the Emporio line (after all, focus seems to have heavily been on Acqua di Gio and Armani Code reformulations for a while now!).
Spicy, floral, somewhat fruity (though no fruit notes are listed in the pyramid), and simply resolute, although not unique: Stronger With You is a legitimate outing in Armani's line, a daring flanker in the Emporio line (after all, focus seems to have heavily been on Acqua di Gio and Armani Code reformulations for a while now!).
This seems like an excellent alternative for someone who finds scents like Invictus, Eros, or Azzaro Wanted enjoyable in some respects, but in the end, just too crass and juvenile to wear consistently. In other words, Stronger With You is a sweet, somewhat synthetic modern men's fragrance with a nice, toned-down elegance which separates it from scents like those described above. The main notes to my nose are pink pepper, cardamom, and vanilla, so it comes across in the style of a sweet, semi-spicy oriental. There's some freshness present as well, which keeps the sweetness from becoming too heavy or cloying, and helps give it some buoyancy. In my opinion, this is a great "date night" scent--alluring, affable, upbeat, and nice and cozy up close. But it's also easy to wear in other situations due to the freshness it brings along. At fist, Stronger With You may strike you as sort of generic (been there, done that), but wear it for a day and you'll realize that its quality sets it apart from the rest. It's really a very good fragrance. From its structure and ingredients down to its performance and longevity, everything's in place where it should be, and Stronger seems like the kind of scent which will gradually grow in popularity over time. 8/10. Thumbs up.
Love this.
The pink pepper, violet leaf and cardamom plus sage is lovely.
Sweet, very. Woody as well. Could easily be a flanker to the Gentlemen Only series from Givenchy.
Can be cloying though so go easy on the trigger.
The pink pepper, violet leaf and cardamom plus sage is lovely.
Sweet, very. Woody as well. Could easily be a flanker to the Gentlemen Only series from Givenchy.
Can be cloying though so go easy on the trigger.
Typical over priced product IMO. For a EDT this is STRONG which lends to my dislike of this juice. I don't mind strong scents but it was too much. Too sweet and too cheap smelling. Overall avoid
Conjures me a lot (at least conceptually) scents as Azzaro Pour Homme Intense (new) and Boss The Scent Intense (woods, spices, tonka bean, fruity notes, hints of leather and vanilla). Valentino Uomo (less woody but more "chocolatey") is not so distant. A cedary kind of woody (pencil shavings) undertone is unfortunately the silent star. Nutty, woody, sweet, vaguely liquorous/caramellous and strong. Dry down is highly peppery on my skin. Not properly my cup of tea.
For what it is, I like it. A modern gourmand, clearly inspired by Invictus by Paco Rabanne. Sweet, youthful, uncomplicated and safe. Many will buy it.
I had tried the scent and I could not believe it is Armani. It smells like the cheap hairspray from the 80s.
I wonder if it is L'Oréal influence.
I wonder if it is L'Oréal influence.