Sensual Instinct by Montale

It’s another cheap and poorly executed version of Baccarat Rouge, with a clear Montale style. It doesn’t disgust me, but I use it very little because it’s strong and tiring. It’s sensual, but not the kind I like to project; sometimes it smells a bit dirty and desperate to attract attention. I definitely wouldn’t buy it again.

Among those that can be recommended for the BR540 DNA, this Sensual Instinct is one of the best. For me, it’s the amber BR base (without the medicinal note) with a pleasant sweetness, mixed with Montale’s Intense Café and a subtler rose. The result is excellent, very well blended, highlighting the praline and coffee, a silky rose, and that elegance and seduction from the name. The balance is perfect, very unisex, although only in cold climates. Ideal for a date, although some may feel they’ve heard it before. Note: 8.5/10 (Discovery Set).

I don’t understand why people compare this to Baccarat Rouge; in my opinion, they are nothing alike. It’s a very original scent. I admit I was wary of rose as it’s not one of my favourites, but here it is beautifully integrated and blends perfectly. The dry-down on my skin is sweet with a liquorish note, simply enchanting. It’s unisex, leaning towards neither gender. I recommend trying it before buying, as it’s intense and may not suit everyone.

I’ll just say that out of the 14 testers I received today, this is the one that has caught my eye the most. It seems to be one of those that clings to the skin and blends with your natural scent, a true wonder. It may be my lack of experience, but I have never heard anything like it in my life. A truly original fragrance.

⚠️Sensual Instinct isn’t for every woman. If you are strong, sensual, sexual, mysterious, and have an old money style, it is perfect for you. It is a bath of macerated roses in a sweet, addictive coffee. The praline lingers for hours combined with a burning scent of woods and moss that dirty the fragrance. This aroma will envelop your entire surroundings; men and women will want to be with you to indulge in this ambitious perfume, full of luxury and power. Sillage: wide and overwhelming. Longevity: over 12 hours, a powerful burst. Scent: Spectacular.

On my skin, Sensual Instinct opens with a roasted coffee note that gradually softens into a brutal praliné of chocolate (nothing cloying like the Good Girl I imagined). Accompanied by moss and honeyed amber, the whole composition becomes more sophisticated than it already is. As the notes blend, a rose emerges more and more decisively, fresh as if freshly cut in a garden. It’s my first unisex and it has caught me out wonderfully. Note: I recommend trying it before buying. Edit 1: After an hour, I love that praliné-drying down with chocolate <3. Edit 2: A day later and I still feel it clinging to my skin and occasionally in the air. What a beast of a longevity. Edit 3: The praliné smells like when you split a bonbon in half and smell it <3

I agree with the reviews, but on my skin it comes across as quite masculine. It has a well-marked liquor note; I don’t know if it’s the praliné, but it smells like exquisite alcohol. The cedar, amber, and oak moss give it that masculine base that, in my opinion, makes it less feminine. As for projection and longevity, I have not a single peep; it lives up to the brand and lasts on my skin easily 8-10 hours

Overall, I’m smitten, although on my skin it doesn’t last more than 5 hours. The opening is very sweet; I don’t detect roasted coffee, it reminds me more of a light coffee with honey that evolves into the sweetness of the praliné. The rose is subtle but it’s there; it’s not the typical bathroom rose, it’s a fresh, freshly-cut garden rose. It projects well within a metre, which I like because it’s not invasive and when people come close you notice the delicious sweetness. In its dry down it becomes discreet, closer to the skin, mossy and ambered. I consider it predominantly feminine due to the sweetness, but usable by a gentleman who enjoys something honeyed in the opening. Rating: 8/10. Sillage: 7/10. Longevity: 5-6 hours

Despite most of the statistics saying it’s more feminine, I find it more undefined. I think it’s because men’s fragrances have become sweeter lately. For a reason, most Montales are unisex and thus reach a wider audience. As for the scent, it has something addictive. It’s sweet (but with an ‘something’ that contrasts it), bright and well-balanced. In my opinion it smells VERY similar to One Million Lucky by Paco Rabanne. It didn’t seem as long-lasting as, for example, Pure Love

DELICIOUS! I really love this fragrance, just as the name SENSUAL INSTINCT says it is sensual, mysterious and sophisticated, I would say it is an inciting perfume, ideal for a first date. The coffee and cedar are prominent here, when it dries down it leaves an exquisite Praline, a sweet woody extract with a touch, but only a touch floral which makes it feminine, I would recommend it for any age and not for daily use, but for those special moments where you want to leave a mark

I had such high expectations… I expected it to be sweet and sensual. But no, IT IS VERY MASculine. In the opening I noticed a smell of an older gentleman’s perfume from 60 years old. When I reached the heart note it seemed a bit more feminine; I perceived the praliné but it doesn’t reach being a feminine and pleasant perfume. It’s more of a restaurant or hotel air freshener smell. It’s another perfume similar to Baccarat Rouge 540 like Instant Crush by Mancera, Burberry Her Intense or Cloud by Ariana Grande. It’s that this type of scent is becoming very common already, both in designer, low cost or niche… Tremendous disappointment. UPDATE: As hours pass it becomes sweeter, but it remains very masculine, definitely for me it’s not unisex, it’s masculine. My boyfriend when he smelled it on my skin said: it smells like a macho and a clothing store. 😂😂