Boss Elements by Hugo Boss

Boss Elements is perhaps the most forgotten perfume from the brand. It opens with great intensity, featuring lemon and wood notes; it sounds more fougère than spicy to me. It has a youthful vibe; today it could be a captivating men’s cologne that doesn’t beat around the bush. As it dries down, it reminds me a bit of D&G Pour Homme, with that nineties feel. The longevity is moderate, and the trail goes from moderate to light.

This was my perfume from age 16 to 25. It was the one for going out to succeed, the one every girl liked, and the one people associated with me. What a pity I didn’t save a bottle, something I did do with Armani Mania. I’d pay a fortune for it.

My friend Bofifa offered to let me try this Boss Elements. It’s a great perfume, complex and elegant, leaving a pleasant taste in the mouth. For being from almost 25 years ago, it smells tremendously modern and chic, a very balanced mix that gives a sense of relaxation. I like the slightly bitter orange note; the wood adds a deep, pleasant tone, perfect for a man who wants to stand out with a subtle nature. I was pleasantly surprised; if you find it at a good price, go for it like Usain Bolt.

The mark left by Hugo Boss Elements has evaporated until today almost no one remembers it. It is a dark perfume from the nineties that is gradually being reclaimed by some pioneers who refuse to submit to fashion and never enter a chain perfumery. Anyway, Boss Elements is a romantic perfume, very modern in its conception even then: the box design, its brown and earthy colour, didn’t match the typical blues of the era. Neither did the beautiful shape of its bottle. Its scent is another story: it can be considered a fresh book fern, with peculiarities that deserve a memory and a reverence. The opening is citrusy, almost orange, with herbal nuances and an aquatic lavender that plunges it straight into the Cool Water style. Fresh and spicy, it smells modern even today. As it dries down, it takes another step, introducing woody, dry nuances, some sandalwood and a patchouli that explodes like a nuclear detonation. This twist makes Elements a complex perfume, with a multi-layered structure that seems like a feat of engineering. It is the opposite of being boring; it’s impossible not to admire the imaginary landscapes, green and mountainous, that it draws on the skin after waking up with lakes and blue skies. Its projection is moderate, it performs very well, and one could almost speak of aromatherapy since the first to enjoy it is the wearer; others will take away the impression of an expensive, youthful but not young, refined and addictive scent. Although it doesn’t rank as other legends, I think it is a stop along the way that a collector must not miss. One of the best Hugo Boss has ever made.

Boss Elements is currently a slippery and hard-to-find item from the Hugo Boss house… It opens with a very natural green citrus accord, perhaps amplified by the presence of basil-lavender and generally by its vegetable portions, where, by the way, the stairs, as in most cases, let their presence be felt. However, the general ensemble after its intense citrus opening slowly begins to reveal an aldehydic, acidic and earthy image, where a dry, amber leather holds the aromatic ensemble. The scent in full alludes to eternal and terrestrial concepts… undoubtedly the fragrance is a kind of conceptual sketch of the former (the same happens with its younger brother, Elements Aqua, where one observes a fragrance more of conceptual order in its aquatic planning than in the use of traditionally marine notes). Elements moves from a mountain land Eden to 40 minutes after application, where the ochre colour predominates as if it were land that hasn’t received rain for many years and we were to pour a jar of bergamot infusion, wood extracts, musk and amber… The result is a scent loaded with wet earth, distant, solitary and peacefully beautiful landscapes, and aged woods that persist for at least 3 hours before settling down for another 4 hours in a slow sunset impregnated with a cedar-aldehydic note. Undoubtedly this beautiful creation transcends beyond its performance, for its unique scent not only reaffirms the aesthetic philosophies of its time but manages to transcend them and immortalise itself in that landscape which, by the way, in its bottle symbolises in full the spirit of the Elements contained within it. It is lamentable that this type of aesthetic is no longer seen in the current world of aromatic creation… perhaps creators should dream more, try to give shape to concepts and bring them to tangible reality, as Hugo Boss has done very worthily here.

Any lotion with a similar scent?

A very vivid opening with the citrus, basil, lavender, and aldehydes. The fragrance handles a well-balanced influence of green notes with soft hyssop and Mediterranean herbs. After six and a half hours of application, I detect woody notes that slightly mute the florals, but the other top green notes feel excellent. At the twelve-hour mark, it is still perceptible, though close to the skin, with a sensation of leather, musk, oakmoss, and cedar, all soft. This fragrance feels quite classic without seeming old or outdated. Very much in the mid-90s vein, related in my view to Paco Rabanne’s XS, with which it shares notes across all phases of the fragrance. It feels quite elegant and completely timeless, with versatility for both summer (due to its herbal opening) and winter with some of its spices. Formal and suitable for daytime wear. The trail on me was moderate to close to the skin in the final hours, yet still well-appreciated, with longevity exceeding twelve hours. Indeed it is discontinued, but if you can find a bottle somewhere without being asked to pay an arm and a leg, I consider it one of the best fragrances Hugo Boss has created and recommend purchasing it.