Varanis Ridari's Review of Epic Man by Amouage

When Amouage decides to name a fragrance "Epic Man", they ain't messin' around McGhee. Amouage Epic Man (2009) is indeed an epic piece of masculine perfume art, the likes of which haven't been seen in the mainstream since the massive powerhouses of the early 1980's with all their animalics, resinous base notes, and "leap out at 'cha" tops. Seemingly in the tradition of Bogart One Man Show (1980), Yves Saint Laurent Kouros (1981), Chanel Antaeus (1981) or Quorum by Antonio Puig (1982), perfumer Randa Hammami has channelled an unsafe number of masculine notes on top a bed of weapons-grade woody/musky base notes to make sure projection is across the street, sillage is forever, and that everyone knows's you're "the cologne guy". This stuff is Glorio in excelsis deodorant, beauty in gratuity, but an absolute nightmare for anyone into the clean citrus ambroxan stuff modern "FragBros" carpet bomb elevators or subway cars with on the daily. Naturally, there are bits and bobs of oriental touches throughout because this is an Amouage perfume, so expect some oud, frankincense, cypriol, and other notes favored in the Middle East. Amouage is still very much niche and very much expensive because of it, but for anyone of an old-school persuasion wishing they still "made 'em like they used to", this is the one you want. Also, I should mention it's nigh impossible to take something this overblown very serious, but I'm hoping that was the point behind its creation, because I love perfume brands with a sense of humor since it's the antithesis to pretension.

The opening of Amouage Epic Man is a huge cypriol and bergamot blast, filled with saffron, cumin, mace, and a noticeable pink peppercorn melange to give that sour start a lot of mulling and rounding.The mace in particular leaps out in ways similar to Moschino pour Homme (1990), and likewise Epic Man also has a leather note to make it feel like a "Moschino+" kind of dealie. The heart of the scent has a bit of sweetness from dark blackcurrant, flanked by geranium and nutmeg, offering a green counterpoint to the very bright fiery top that matches the color of the bottle. The base is where all the good stuff lives however, with isobutylquinoline leather, castoreum, olibanum, sandalwood, and a light dollop of barnyard oud that gets cozy with the catoreum by way of a patchouli pillow for snuggling together. Green, spicy, citric, resinous, animalic, and very, very loud, the full bombast of Epic Man offers 24+ hours of wear time and stratospheric projection. Seriously, this is the strongest masculine I have witnessed since the original Joop! Homme by Parfums Joop! (1989) originally knocked me back. Where or when you should wear this is up to you because everyone is going to know you're coming and you'll either part a crowd like Moses parted the red sea, or get chased by pitchforks and torches back into Frankenstein's castle.

Amouage as a house is often cited as being a brand for "flexing" because the perfumes are expensive, in very opulant packaging, and often extremely extroverted in style. If this is truly the case, Epic Man is the Amouage to end all Amouages in that regard, because it gives deep vintage Kouros and Antaeus a run for their money in the "holy moley" department. I think these kinds of things are a blast to wear, so I'm totally on board with Epic Man and suggest it to anyone looking for a modern alternative to an 80's monster masculine, even if the price is no better than a deep vintage example because of the brand being in that luxury segment. Sometimes deals do pop up, placing this more in the Tom Ford signature range price-wise, so you can always hold out for that time, but if you're looking for loud, low-slung, and packing heat, this is one the best. Personally, the composition is a bit "kitchen sink" (but so are many classic Guerlains), but if we're going to nitpick this at all besides the outrageous style, that would be one point of contention I could find. Get your hands on a sample and look out below! Thumbs up.

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