Haitian Vetiver
Ermenegildo Zegna (2012)

Most vetivers are either too dirty, too screechy, too pungent, too soapy or just flat out bad. All of which make vetiver as a standalone note to enjoy. While there have been many attempts at this genre, Zegna excels here, as Haitian Vetiver is everything a vetiver fragrance should be. Its got bit of earthiness, a bit of smoke, a bit soap, and most importantly all the edges are sanded down soooo smoothly that I really can't think of better vetiver fragrance than this. Guerlain and TF are not even on the same level as this one.

A wonderful fresh vetiver start. Sparkling and light and acceptably unisex ie a guy can wear this confident he is not sending mixed signals and the ladies will love it.
However very quickly it fades to no more than a skin scent of gentle floral and vetiver. A pleasant very mild female scent.
The two issues therefore are the appalling longevity of the opening and the floral exceptionally mild drydown.
Very poor value for money.

Ermenegildo Zegna Haitian Vetiver (2012) was part of the initial launch wave for the higher-end Essenze range the brand released when it switched from YSL Beaute/Gucci PPR fragrance stewardship to Estée Lauder in 2011, after having been with YSL/Gucci since it entered fragrance in 2003. The Essenze fragrances exist as limited edition high-quality studies on individual ingredients or accord styles a la vetiver, iris, patchouli, oud, and so forth, but a lot of these early 2012 launch releases dumped right into discounters and sold for $30, becominh a best-kept secret for thrifty treasure hunters in the online fragrance community. Well, that isn't the case anymore for Haitian Vetiver, which was discontinued and skyrocketed to prices higher than Creed sells at retail due to the fanbase it had acquired when it was dirt cheap. Unfortunately, my opinion must reflect that value (or lack thereof) when evaluation the scent here. Marie Salamagne and Harry Freemont double-teamed on this, making a fairly lucid and fresh version of vetiver, with scant real vetiver in the composition, but somehow pulling it off and making it work. Effectively, we have a better Editions de parfums Frédéric Malle Vetiver Extraordinaire (2002), with the fresh citrus punch and grassy intonations filled with neroli and other goodies, but an actual speck of nutty vetiver in there instead of being total artifice like the Malle scent. This was an absolute steal when in discounters, but now seems just about as silly considering what else is available.

For starters, you get a nutty burst of the "Haitian Vetiver" note right out the starting gate, flanked by dry bergamot and neroli. After a few minutes, a carrot seed note enters alongside a very dry tobacco-like tonka and makes me think of a few scents I've smelled in the past, like Guerlain Vetiver (1960) and Parfums D'Orsay Eau Fringante (1969), particularly the latter. The carrot seed treatment also reminds me of Sisley Eau d'Ikar (2011), which could very well be a replacement for this knowing the price disparity, albeit with a mastic twist in the Sisley which changes the focus from vetiver just a touch. I can see how several people consider this a faux vetiver, and like Creed Original Vetiver (2005), the Zegna has very little focus on the vetiver note, choosing instead to dance around it like a point lost in tangential conversation, but this dance is one I like. A bit of powdery iris likely from an ionone enters the heart too, and then Iso E Super "cedar" notes and dry patchouli which remind me of the transparent earthiness in Terre d'Hermès (2006) show up. Terre d'Hermès is also vaguely a vetiver scent depending on how you view it, so it too shares some intertexuality with the Zegna, which sits at a crossroads of all these fragrances I've mentioned. Performance is decent but projection won't win over any volume contests, which is fine by me because a loud vetiver would seem annoying on skin after a number of hours. Speaking of that, wear time clocks in at around eight, so this can hang during a workday.

Zegna Haitian Vetiver was a nice little fresh modern vetiver shindig, although probably a hard sell at its original MSRP, and certainly worthy of riotous mockery at its inflated "unicorn" pricing. I wouldn't pay Creed or Roja Dove their asking prices for their particular vetivers (even though both lovely in their own ways), so why would I buy this thing for $500? I just default to suggesting good old Guerlain Vetiver as the affordable stand-by, with real lasting vetiver vibes if you can handle a bit of smoke. Probably the one thing missing from Haitian Vetiver if I was to nitpick, is the total lack of smokiness in the presentation, as the dry vetivers of this type (unless you're that abominable Malle thing) tend to have some smokiness to adjoin the nuttiness and earthy grassy facets. Vetiver "soliflores" if you will, do tend to run the gamut with everyone from Art of Shaving to Latin market mailorder brands like Jafra having a take on the classic green note, so when you package one in a bottle then include it in an exclusive prestige range, you'd better bring something to the table that justifies the exclusivity. As such a prestige fragrance, Ermenegildo Zegna Haitian Vetiver failed, but found a new purpose as a low-cost but reasonably unique alternative to more basic staple vetivers on the market. It's too bad that when a prestige scent becomes a discounter darling, the writing in on the wall for it becoming a unicorn, since there's no point in making it if you can't get the price you want for it. Thumbs up.

Haitian Vetiver is bright, fresh and uplifting, quite similar to Tom Ford's Grey Vetiver but a bit greener and a tad woodier. The principal accord is the bergamot-neroli-vetiver that lasts a long time before joining a whispering iris. The vetiver note bright, clean, sharp and not at all rooty or earthy. Sillage and duration are around average, though not as good as the Tom Ford; however there is a greater focus on vetiver and it is more refined and elegant.

Overall a nice, fresh, clean vetiver that I cannot get terribly excited about. The dry down is somewhat subdued and a little boring.

3/5

This is a faux vetiver, composed to create a vetiver-like impression, mainly due to the combination of bergamot and neroli. The result is bright, on the light side and uplifting.

After some time a woody component, based on orris, develops and pairs with herbal undercurrents. This seems to mimic the woodsy side of the "vetiver."

I get moderate sillage, good projection and eight hours of longevity on my skin.

In spite of being a touch contrived conceptually and in the name, this summery sent is well executed and blended. A bit monochrome at times, but overall convincing and invigorating. 3.25/5.

Very similar to Guerlain vetiver with a little more carrot with the carrot seeds. The iris gives it a cleaner smell than the Guerlain but it seems as equal in enjoyment.