Select Night

How it Smells

Select Night attempts to replicate Noir Extreme's luxurious spice-meets-dessert profile. The opening cardamom is a shout, not a whisper, quickly overtaken by a somewhat medicinal saffron note. This phase leans into cherry cough syrup territory, a sharp contrast to Noir Extreme's smoother, more rounded spices. The "Kulfi" accord, the supposed heart of this fragrance, translates more as a generic creamy sweetness rather than the specific pistachio-cardamom delight it should be. There's a faint rose presence, buried under the weight of the synthetic vanilla and amber. The drydown becomes a homogenous woody sweetness with a noticeable plasticky edge. It lacks the depth and nuanced chocolate gourmand facets that define the original.

Projection Power

I achieved around 5 hours of wear before it faded to a skin scent. Projection is initially strong, extending a good arm's length for the first hour, then quickly retracting. I wore this during an evening out to dinner. It was detectable within my immediate personal space but didn't project into the room.

Bottom Line

Wearing Select Night is like admiring a photograph of a masterpiece instead of standing before the real thing. You get the general idea, the broad strokes of the concept. However, the details, the texture, and the overall artistry are undeniably missing. It provides a surface-level impression, adequate for someone unfamiliar with the original, but it lacks the richness and sophistication that defines Noir Extreme.