Azzaro Wanted Men’s Fragrance Review

Azzaro Wanted Composition

Azzaro Wanted is a woody spicy fragrance and the batch number of the particular one that I’m reviewing is 7H18120. In the following section, we’ll break down its notes and dry-down process.

Head Notes

• Lemon
• Ginger
• Lavender

Wanted first opens with a brash and crisp opening of lemon and ginger. This experience is softened by a hint of lavender. It’s quite sharp on the nose. This fragrance is often noted for its bubblegum accord. Although it starts to show itself in the head, it isn’t really identifiable.

Currently, we have mostly sharp zestiness with a hint of lavender.

Heart Notes

• Cardamon
• Geranium
• Cade
• Blackcurrant

Once you enter the heart, things change. It becomes spicier overall with a fruity accord. This experience is quite intriguing because it’s often compared to green apple. However, I found the fruitiness was not tart like green apple but perhaps close to red apple given its sweetness.

Nevertheless, I would more readily compare it with forest fruits such as black currant. It’s accorded against cardamon, which is quite spicy. There’s a floral hint, which consists of geranium.

And there’s also cade, which is an oil produced from juniper. This note is reminiscent of tar and smoke, which makes it an interesting addition to the heart indeed.

Overall, you have some fruitiness, you have some spiciness, and then you also have the smokiness as well. There’s a lot going on, but most people would describe it just as overall bubblegum.

Base Notes

• Vetiver
• Tonka Bean
• Ambergris
• Agarwood

As the base reveals itself, the fragrance takes a turn towards a more musky gourmand profile. It’s dominated by tonka bean, which is a very gourmand note. It’s very sweet and potentially a little bit cloying.

There’s still the bubblegum fruitiness in there somewhere but it’s mostly the tonka bean doing all the talking. Similarly, there’s a hint of dry earthy vetiver as well.

The muskiness is the most prevalent note once you get into the skin scent. This musk is described by the brand as amber wood. Amber wood is one of those flash terms because it combines to familiar notes for the consumer.

I would liken it more to ambergris, a dry ambery tobacco note, which is contrasted against agarwood, a resinous and balsamic oud. By combining them together, you experience a woody muskiness, which goes quite nicely with the gourmand tonka bean.

Wanted’s Life-Cycle, Wake & Strength

The lifecycle is actually quite complex, far more than you’d expect. You do have a variety of different characteristics going to each phase of the fragrance. They transition, they re-transition. You have some spiciness, some fruitiness.

If you can look beyond this bubblegum concept it is actually quite intriguing. It has a variety of different bouquets.

In terms of wake and strength, I found the longevity to be a little bit wanting on this. Some people have said that it performs really well, but I didn’t lasted quite as long as it could. You about a half a day here before you need to top up again.

The sillage is quite effective. It leaves a nice sweet trail behind the wearer. Furthermore, the projection provides a nice scent bubble. From a distance, you will probably get the fruitiness, the bubblegum. Once you get closer, you’ll start to experience the ambery and the smoky characteristics.

What People Think Of Azzaro Wanted

As for the third party feedback, Wanted is a somewhat polarising fragrance. A lot of people Compare it to Invictus by Paco Rabanne. Indeed, there are also some elements that are somewhat reminiscent of Ultra Male by Jean Paul Gaultier or even Alien Man by Thierry Mugler.

However, I believe that the latter two were released after this particular fragrance. Nevertheless, there is a question of whether this fragrance has its own true identity or whether it is a product of various different trends.

Some people were put off by this cloying bubblegum smell. They found it a little bit too sweet and syrupy whereas some people really liked it. In fact, it seems that largely younger crowds tend to find it sexy, alluring, and have some affection for this fragrance.

When To Wear Azzaro Wanted

In terms of seasonality, this is quite a versatile fragrance throughout the year. I would refrain from using it during summer as the amber and balsamic characteristics would be a little bit heavy on the skin. Nevertheless, it can be worn during winter.

However, it really shines really during the milder months such as the fall and spring. Indeed, it’s certainly the case when you consider the fruitiness as it coincides with different harvest periods. Similarly, the amber characteristics and smokiness, fare well during the fall.

As for the age range, I think it’s the most appropriately worn by a man in his 20s. However, younger men in the late teens or older ones in their early 30s could likely wear it too. In either case, it’s generally more appropriate and compatible with the lifestyle of a man in his 20s.

Regarding the time of day, you could probably wear this during the daytime, but I think it would be more suitable during the evening and early night. In fact, a flanker came out called Wanted By Night! I presume would be the most appropriate fragrance to wear during those times. But this is still great for evening wear.

Overall, it’s fruitiness denotes a generally casual fragrance. Its low level of formality is emphasised by the bubble accord, too.

Despite having this strong muskiness, despite having some vetiver, some tonka bean, it is quite moderately masculine. Indeed this amber wood note that is used in the base is often seen in a lot of women’s fragrances as well.

Therefore, you could certainly consider this to be less domineering than other masculine fragrances.

Presentation & Value For Money

I would be remiss not to mention the bottle design! Indeed, it is very original. It turns heads and it catches eyes. Personally, I find it to be quite obnoxious. I’m not a fan of the wild-west gunslinging outlaw concept that has been approached so directly.

Indeed, I find this design to be kind of lacking in subtlety and nuance. However, there are those who appreciate it. After all, it’s an original design that’s quite unique and it sets itself apart. Similarly, a lot of effort has clearly been put into it with the brass bullets and silver cylinder with a knurled finish.

As for the atomizer, it works quite well. You have a nice thin mist, which is precise enough to give you a balanced application. You can spray multiple times without overdoing it.

The packaging is very reminiscent of the bottle with gold at the bottom and silver at the top. Honestly, I prefer the packaging to the bottle itself, which is overall subtler.

In terms of the value for money, this fragrance has an RRP of $85 for 100 ml. This is quite pricey and in league with fragrances by Jean Paul Gaultier and the Yes Saint Laurent.

Nevertheless, you can find at a better price through some online retailers. For instance, it’s sold on FragranceX for around $50!

Closing Thoughts

Wanted is often compared with Invictus and for good reason. They both share infamous bubblegum characteristics that are both loved and loathed. Nevertheless, they do distinguish themselves with Wanted offering a more gourmand profile whereas Invictus is somewhat more refreshing.

It is also comparable to other fragrances like Jean Paul Gaultier Ultra Male, and even Dunhill Icon Racing. They all share this kind of sweet, bubblegum characteristic, which is then corded at the base with some muskiness to try and give it some more substance and more masculinity.

If you like sweet men’s fragrances that have a little substance, I suggest that you do sample Azzaro Wanted and give it a try.

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