Radiant Bergamot
Ferrari (2016)

I generally dislike the phrase 'that's my jam' which is used to denote a favorite song and also to express a personal like for something. Well, in this case I will throw that phrase out for Radiant Bergamot. What a dry, clean, smooth, fresh, beauty of a fragrance. This is my 'spring/summer jam'. Yes the easy cop out is to point out the color of this jus as the explanation for what it smells like. The opening is not bright and citric, it's more minty green, smooth, and without sweetness. Super fresh and pleasant, and very linear with outstanding performance. For such a warmer season fragrance this lasts a full workday and would make a great office staple for any age. It has a classy formal quality that allows it to be 'dressy' while it's great as a casual scent as well, making it ideal for the workplace or out-and about in warmer temperatures.

If you are like me and don't prefer a summer wardrobe of 'blue' fragrances and want something non-aquatic, green, and unique this is a great option. I think I purchased a full bottle under $40 and closer to $30 which makes this a steal and a no-brainer. I would go so far as to put this in 'blind-buy' category if it sounds interesting by description which is how I decided to order this blindly. Radiant Bergamot is one of the best and most pleasant surprises in my entire collection and one I want to wear often. Thumbs up!

I like this. In fact I prefer it over Ferrari's more heralded, Bright Neroli (which is also a good one). Radiant Bergamot isn't incredibly complex but it smells really nice. It's a bit of a refreshing, cooling fragrance as it features a green, grassy minty quality that balances the sharper citrus/bergamot aspect. It's not a bitter scent, despite the cooling geranium, as you could probably describe it as a "sweet" green smell; sweet in an herbal, aromatic way, brought on by a gentle nutmeg note (there's no sweetness in the way of vanilla or tonka or anything like that). Radiant Bergamot is an example of when the juice's color (a lush, vibrant mint-green) matches its smell. For the first half hour the green, minty quality is most apparent and then the bergamot starts to stand out more and become more dominant as the scent develops. Overall, it's not too complicated and mostly linear. Radiant Bergamto gradually fades away, not going through any particular transition or change in the base. Performance is about average. To really get this one to shine I need about 6 to 8 solid sprays, and then I get good projection and about 6 hours of longevity. In conclusion, this is a good low-cost summer option for someone looking for something fresh and pleasant that also smells quite a bit different than what's currently on the mainstream market. It has a casual, relaxed appeal. I give it a thumbs up and a final rating of 8 out of 10.

Side note: I actually enjoy this a lot more than other more expensive and well-known bergamot scents such as Le Labo's Bergamot 22 and Atelier Bergamot Soleil. The reason why is that these scents have a sort of bitter, sour edge that doesn't really smell that nice to me. I don't find them refreshing or cooling, or even particularly cheerful, which is what I'm looking for in a summer citrus. Here, it's treated differently, more aromatically sweet and supported by mint, which makes it feel both cooler and happier.

A well-hyped offering with high expectations, Ferrari Radiant Bergamot is primarily a bright burst of bergamot and lemon with some herbal, spicy undertones--namely, rosemary and ginger--as well as hints of sweetness from nutmeg and labdanum.

The composition feels bold while being refreshing and agreeable all the same. Its density isn't lacking for a warm weather daytime wear, and it fittingly projects for a couple of hours before becoming more of a skin scent.

The elephant in the room is the pricing, which is, obscenely, only $25 for the standard 100ml bottle size on FragranceX, a steal by most measures.

Radiant Bergamot's quality and price render it an elite cheapie, certainly worthy of owning for casual, warm-weather, daytime wearing. Very impressive.

8 out of 10

Starts amazingly refreshing with a nice combination of an icy-lemony note with a slightly sweet orangey-bergamot smell. At that moment, similar to Mugler cologne, just fresher. After 5 minutes or so, its sweetness is amplified and mixed with a clean powdery note. The result: a sweet green smell, surrounded by a slightly talcum note. A bit over the top for me. And seems more feminine than masculine.

Starts with sparkling Lemonheads candies. Reminds me of 4711 and Mugler Cologne with its sharp, clean green notes. Lots of green lemons. Later the drydown is a spicy musk very much like a traditional men's aftershave.

The projection is below average but the aftershave drydown lasts all workday.

This doesn't smell like Mugler Cologne and I can't recall what Bergamot 22 smelled like. Opening blast of lime cocktail is great. Turns a bit powdery after that, which is a total bummer as I am not a fan of powder. Nice summer scent for lowball prices. Again, another one that is absolutely not not not worth a high dollar markup from Youtube hype.

This starts off with a very vibrant and sparkling, slightly effervescent green bergamot accord - not unlike the one in Mugler Cologne. I'm a huge fan of the opening as bergamot when done accurately in perfumery smells like a very unique citrus fruit - between lime and citron (which itself smells sort of like a bitter lemon), leaning on the green side of things. On drydown it mellows out a bit, and there is a bit of sweetness from some nutmeg, but the bergamot is still dominant. After about two hours, it also kind of smells like fresh laundry (if you used bergamot-scented laundry detergent) and becomes warmer and sweeter in character due to the nutmeg. Sillage is moderate but on the weaker side of things while longevity is moderate at about 5 hours. The bergamot note in this as well as the 'green laundry' type scent both remind me a lot of Mugler Cologne (which is one of my favourite fragrances). Overall, this is a really amazing bergamot-dominant cologne and is a good competitor to Le Labo's Bergamotte 22, Ghallager Fragrances Bergamust, and Commodity's Bergamot - however those ones are far more expensive (and also superior) niche fragrances, while this is supposedly an inexpensive fragrance but also hard to find at the same time.

4/5