Gaïac
Micallef (2005)

Staggeringly good masculine subtle woody fragrance.
It is exactly what it says. Gaiac wood gentle clean but with some depth (as opposed to the Tom Ford version) of vetiver and a hint of vanilla and cloves. Linear and lasts.
Signature and FBW.

Fragrance: 8.5/10
Projection: 7/10
Longevity: 7.75/10

I'm on the fence on this one...have a nice sample...tried it twice and was pretty sure that I didn't care for it and was ready to put the sample in my give a way box...now I just tried it a third time and suddenly - whoa !!!!! this smells pretty damn good...smooth plank of wood with a wet coat of vanilla flavored honey varnish and a dusting of cloves...not overly sweet...just the right touch that avoids going over the border into gourmand land...has a touch of class...nice winter scent for relaxing by the fireplace....got a feeling that after another sampling or two I might have to edit my rating from a neutral to a thumbs up...

Simply too thick and sweet and sticky for me. I have tried Gaiac several times now, thinking that perhaps THIS time I would enjoy wearing it, but no such luck. If only this scent were layered with bergamot or neroli or some lighter, fresher woody notes to leaven its monotonous wall of sweetness. It feels as if there is no air here, no breathing room, and no movement between notes. Those people who are attracted to honey-like woods will probably find something to love here, but Gaiac's linearity and slab of cloved gooeyness is just too cloying for me to enjoy.

Beautiful Guaiac wood and cloves. Gaiac is very nicely blended, it is warm and subtle. It is a sweet clove mixed with vanilla and amber, very comforting. It is very masculine. The bottle is beautiful.

This is such a gorgeous scent. Smokey vetiver, gaiac, and clove, with a vanillic blast at the beginning that thankfully dries out-- but the notes don't really capture what's so special about this. It is rich and warm, resinous but luminous-- like hazy-warm-beeswaxy-gold. There's something both comforting and haunting that keeps you coming back to smell it.

Vanilla and - pushed into the background a bit - the gaïac wood it takes its name are what hits my nose in the gentle opening blast. And this dyad resists throughout the whole time of this scent's development. The gaïac impression hits the mark quite well with the bitterness and moderated smokiness.

The constancy of the core notes does not mean that there is nothing else happening here: hints of a mild clove as well as occasional rays of freshness are notable, the latter derived a type of vetiver that I find quite unexciting.

Now to the performance: the sillage is quite soft but the projection is all right, but the really good thing is the excellent longevity of nine hours on my skin.

Overall this is pleasant and, whilst not an exciting composition, it hits the gaïac wood note quite well, and this is a feat not often found in a scent. Additionally, it is very well blended. All this and the very good longevity make me push it across the line to a positive score. 3/5