Essential
Lacoste (2005)

On opening I get tomato leaf and initially a non-descript citrus that quickly reveals to be orange. A moderately sweet and soft orange fused with mild amounts of rose and sandalwood. The tomato leaf note is pleasant as it merges with the black pepper in delivering bitterness. Soapy? very light in my opinion and smells more like a body wash gel.

I'm going to give Essential by Lacoste a thumbs up. It's long lasting but expect subtle projection like any sport fragrance. This one doesn't smell like it was developed in year 2005 but rather more influenced with how sport fragrances in the 1980's were designed.

The ratings here are interesting. Quite a few, and basically split between yes, no, maybe. The scent is a bit of a contradiction, in that it doesn’t really smell like anything else and yet you could say there are better choices for what this does. Ok.

I’m gonna say yes here. It’s original (odd green freshie, with tomato leaf and a creamy sweetness) and pleasant. Especially now, in this overly blue, bumble gummy ambroxan bomb era.

Sophisticated fragheads and big time collectors are gonna pass on this and that’s fine. For enthusiasts, this is a safe blind buy - its cheap! - but if you have a large collection, this could get lost in it, and you may prefer to spend your money elsewhere.

But for an easy reach, spring and summer refresher or unique gym scent - especially for a younger man or teenager - this will serve well.

Best in short bursts (as longevity is lacking) and when you don’t want to sledgehammer anybody with your scent (light sillage and projection). Safe for gym, school, work, the pool, tennis, walks in the park, first dates, etc. it’s versatile and inoffensive.

Recommended, albeit with caveats and restraint.

I sometimes get rude service when I wear this perfume.

Lasts around 3 to 4 hours.

A few females are attracted. Very few so this is not worth the asking price even if I didn't get bad service.

Essential - Lacoste
Not essential in any kind of way.

Starts off with a pleasant mix of bergamot, cassia leaf (which smells very green), tangerine, and tomato leaf. It's a quite pleasant opening but oddly reminds me a lot of some sort of bath body wash or soap I've used in the past. The tomato leaf makes it unique-smelling in the world of fresh fragrances, and it has a sweet undertone to it all rather than sharp citrus as is usual for fresh fragrances. I think a lot of people would enjoy the sweetness, but personally I am not a huge fan. It's a unisex fragrance in my opinion due to the sweetness: women can easily wear this. On drydown I get a lot of rose scent mixing with the tomato leaf, and it becomes even sweeter. The rose is very prominent. Basenotes are much the same but with cedarwood. Sillage is weak-to-moderate and longevity is strong but as a skin scent. Overall it's an ok fragrance but is too feminine due to the sweetness and far too casual for my liking.

Green and soapy clean but it's the kind of scent that you can find in many mass-market soaps or detergents. The drydown is bland and synthetic.

Probably best for summer/daytime/casual.