Description
Escentric 03 opens with refreshing notes of ginger root, green peppercorn and Mexican lime. A heart is centered around orris surrounded by Egyptian jasmine and soft tea notes. A base is composed of vetiver as key ingredient, sandalwood, cedar, leather and musk.
The fragrance was created by perfumer Geza Schoen as a chypre. It is said to be spicy but fresh with warm balsamic undertones, and sensuous without sweetness.
MeCompany was in charge of packaging, which accompanies the whole story about these mysterious fragrances. The flacons of both editions are simple and made of glass and their outer cartons are coloured in deep, dark green and blue shade. It suggests something dark moving just below the surface of things, something you can’t quite put your finger on. Escentric Molecules Molecule 03 and Escentric 03 are available as 100 ml Eau de Toilette. Escentric 03 was launched in 2010.
ordedrawl – :
Escentric 03 was launched in 2010, along with its pair (and theme fragrance) Molecule 03. Again, the fragrances were worked on a particular synthetic molecule already used in perfumery. This time, Vetiveryl Acetate was used, which gives the smell of vetiver.
In the review I wrote for Molecule 03, I tackled the ingredient a bit more. In this analysis, I will keep the focus on the fragrance, which was built to pay homage to the three roots most used in commercial perfumery: vetiver, ginger, and iris (orris root).
Escentric 03 has notes of ginger, green pepper and Mexican lemon peel on top. Then, the heart reveals notes of Egyptian jasmine, iris and tea, which rest on a denser and woody base made of vetiver (depicted through the theme molecule), sandalwood, cedar, musk and balsams.
On the skin, Escentric 03 does not disappoint! It is classified as a chypre, because of its fresh and warm contrasts. It manages to combine a classic side of older colognes with the freshness of floral fragrances from the last years. The output is vibrant and pleases fans of citrus scents. The body appears more neutral or better, unisex, and brings a green jasmine, with the light and soothing touch of tea. It is in this moment of evolution that the fragrance shows its most relaxing style. Finally, the base brings a rustic and slightly leathery side.
Escentric 03 looks like a tea made with lemon peels and some ginger slices boiled in the water and left infused with leather chips and powdered woods. I may be mistaken, but the one responsible for that leather smell seems to me to be the Tolu Balsam.
Is it an innovative fragrance? No. Is it complete in all respects? No.
Particularly, I miss the vetiver molecule more present and this sensation forces me to make use of a layering process with the fragrance of Molecule 03, every time I want to have that effect in a more lasting way. Still, Escentric 03 left me with a satisfying and full of contradiction sensation, by bringing a synthetic perfume, in theory, but capable of imparting quite natural nuances, in practice.
To finish, I repeat what I said in previous reviews: if you do not know the fragrances of the brand and have curiosity, I suggest to always start with the ones named Escentric.
denni526 – :
OK. I don’t like it. No much how I WANT to like it and love the concept I got this blind, somewhat by accident, not having tested it before. I tested, a couple of times. Its not for me. Its simply too masculine. I have a body chemistry that tends to work very well with heavy, sweet scents that kind of mellow out on me to something lovely and warm. This is too sharp, too crisp. And yes I DO like citrusy and green scents, too, just not this one. Too much men’s cologne on me. Anybody want to trade an almost full 100ml bottle?
SvetlanSfhjy – :
I like it a lot!Wear it in any ocassion,it’s light,fresh,summer scent…I like the opening,the drydown…longevity and projection are great on my skin,i can smell it very long time…yes,it is kind of artificial,but so what?Love the way it smells,and it is one of my most used scents in rotation…No disonant tones,pretty safe that lots of people will like it…
moisha – :
Love the packaging. The sweet spice and old funk, not so much.
Rap4ina22 – :
I like this. It reminds me of curry. Lime, ginger, vetiver, pepper. Light.
Epifan – :
This is like lemon cut in half and left on a hot weather dry and out of life the scent is synthetic weak and after 30 minutes becomes pure iso e weak bad and synthetic…….sorry.
StasH – :
To me this smells like green parfume that gone bad. Lots of plastic and rubber with green notes and tea. Something very synthetic and industrial, like some kind of packaging. It’s more scent for a new tv from a box.
cox897Unlogrere – :
First spray, hated it but gave it time to settle, nice skin scent drydown but not enough of a hit to project from my arm so sprayed a second blast and it has grown on me. I detect a likeness to Paul Emilien ” Pure Addiction” which is a stronger version of this. I will consider a bottle indeed.
rrs486speagoessenda – :
it took me a while to get my hands on this one , but so glad i waited i love it perfect unisex perfume .
i love it and honestly the bottle is huge , so perfect.
olaf2003 – :
leather lime and ginger vetiver.
Leather sweet lime, ginger, sandalwood, and vetiver. it has musk and huge doses of tea. Iris, cedar, & black pepper are there as well.
Not a WOW creation after all but it’s acceptable.
Mabelod – :
I don’t get the hype for this line at all. While most scents go sugary-sweet on me, Escentric 03 smells like tires with a hint of kaffir lime leaf and celery seed.
smotritel – :
This one reminded me a lot of Molecule 01, but more sharp and grapefruit intensive. A beautiful, bitter citrus scent.
MymnPentAneve – :
The opening of Escentric 03 is such an invigorating delight, bursting fizzy, spicy ginger and tart, aromatic lime at the outset. Sadly, from 1 hour onwards, this energising opening phase shrinks into an abstract, gently sweet musky woody scent. There’s vaguely something aseptic and some smoky notes hidden in the background, which may come from Iso E Super and the leather-tea accord respectively.
The dry down is essentially a virile, musky, velvety cedar-sandalwood woody dry down, and I hardly pick out any earthy vetiver throughout its development. The sillage is soft, and the longevity might reach 11 hours.
I very much enjoyed the uplifting, tasty citrus ginger candy opening phase of Escentric 03, but the bland dry down left me utterly cold. Moreover, I didn’t manage to perceive any form of the grassy, earthy, woody vetiver in it, which is not very encouraging as well. Escentric 03 may work very well as an abstract, fresh citrus woody fragrance, it just happens not to be my cup of tea.
wgx533elipseskism – :
@spacecreature – I personally dont think it smells anything like coca cola. On me it is a cloying sticky WD-40 type of smell..so there, try before you buy.
Also, how are you expected to buy a perfume without knowing how it smells?..shady..You should probably ask the place that sells it to at least give you a sample.
nev01 – :
Does this really remind you in any way of coca cola or was heybritney confused when she wrote that? The place that sells it where I live doesn’t have a tester for it, and I have always wanted a coca cola -like smell so was just curious if others had a similar experience with this:)
Shker – :
from the three escentric molecules this is my favorite and i wish i had bought this one instead of escentric 01.
is fresh and sharp like a male cologne at the very begining it reminds me of jo malone black vetyver but a bit more fresh in the sense that i smell the earthiness of the vetyver but still there is something fresh on top of it , not citric but fresh, no ozonic either , just nice
then after some minutes i smell smokiness clean smoke expensive smoke ,lovely , omg this is good.
and then just a lovely skin scent , this is what i thought escentric 01 would be but no , well next time i will buy this one .
Dr.Haus – :
Ok, I’m just going to say it: this scent reminds me of Coca Cola made with real sugar (not HFCS) with a touch of lime. And it’s the best.
Meyirimkhan – :
EDIT: *sigh* now I love this – it’s just so complicated and has a lovely, soft dry-down. I still get a lot of zest at first, but it does go away – better just keep it far away from my nose for the first few minutes (right after spraying, this is quite intense. Some people say this is excellent for males, but I definitely don’t feel male wearing this, and this dries down feminine on me
END OF UPDATE
At first I don’t smell lime, actually, but lemon tree leaves. It’s a bitter, lemony smell. This is only a top note though, and, unfortunately, becomes weak quite fast, but definitely does not disapper
From the first moment I also smell the vetiver (woodsy, earthy, smoky), which lingers all the way through the wear-time of this. The sandal wood and pine might be mixed into this vetiver-smell, as I can’t really smell them apart in the mix. It’s this middle phase I find the most beautiful! There’s also something milky – I think it’s the iris and pepper beginning to get through
When this fully settles, it begins to smell a bit like Chance eau Tendre by Chanel, to me. It’s a powdery, iris-y, slightly sweet smell, but quite much more complex
Luckily, I don’t smell any cellery in this, which I definitely get a lot of in Escentric 01 – if you dislike cellery, that one is not your friend.
All-in-all, this is an interesting perfume because it has so many layers, and the smell is unusual, fresh, woodsy, smoky (like burning wood), pencil-sharpnings-y, slightly flowery, and definitely a perfume everyone will be able to smell, unlike Molecule 01 and 02. If you have tried Molecule 03, this is quite like that one, but a bit fancier and more complex. If Molecule 03 is a guy living in a tent out in the woods (mind you, Molecule 03 is no stinky, dirty loner), this is the same guy after showering, putting on some perfume, shaving… but putting some of his forest-smelling clothes back on again.
I like this, but I don’t love it. I definitely DO see why many love it though – it’s complex, original, well made. I don’t think I will purchase this because of one thing: it smells a little sharp-zesty on me (I’m a girl, and it feels like the zest sticks to the inside on my nose and burns a little). Molecule 03 doesn’t have this zesty quality – it’s just a simple smoky forest.
sjc770speagoessenda – :
Yes , lime and CELERY!! I’ll give it a full wearing tomorrow and report back but that is pretty much what I get.
gipqus – :
Middle notes smell like celery!
79522705979 – :
Unsure about this one. The first few moments are astringent. The jury is still out….
Рыжий73 – :
Excellent fragrance for male! Light citrusy, vetyvery, woody and really refined, very well balanced. Remind me little bit Chanel Allure edition blanche and Cologne Noire by Van Cleef&Arpels
a-nik75 – :
Light and refreshing that in a small way reminds me of the cedar boxes I used to buy at Colonial Williamsburg when I was young. I loved their woody freshness. This fragrance echos their smell and adds its’ own exotic swirls of scent that make it really wonderful!
dutti – :
I now own all of the Escentric Molecules fragrances (except Kinksi). Out of all of entire set, I HIGHLY recommend Molecule 01, 02, and this fragrance Escentric 03. It is bursting with zesty lime, ginger, woods, and earthy vetiver….what a lovely alluring combination. The notes are all apparent to my nose. This is a very clean spring/summer scent and as far as I have experienced, all three of the Escentrics and all three of the Molecules are in their own class of niche perfumery. They are a one of a kind and extremely unique. Do NOT be shy with the trigger on these fragrances as you can spray 8-10 sprays if you’d like and you won’t offend anyone. You really can’t overspray these fragrances but they are not weak, if that makes sense. These fragrances last on your skin and clothing for hours and hours only if you aren’t shy with the nozzle. Today, I blended Molecule 01 (on my clothing), Molecule 02 on my arms and wrists, and Escentric 03 on my chest and neck….and I’ve received three compliments within 2.5 hours at work. How many fragrances (even within the same House) can you blend 3 different scents and still smell very attractive? The answer is very few-if any. In reality, all of the Molecule and Escentric fragrances can be worn in conjunction with one another….they are versatile and easily layered..but Escentric 01, 02, and 03 and Molecule 03 work very well in the warmer climate. I rave over them obviously…and they will always be a part of my collection.
renger – :
Originally looking to try Molecule 01, I ended up spraying this on my arm as the description of the notes appealed to what I was in the mood for. It starts off quite zesty-sour on my skin and after some minutes begins to turn into a softer version of the great Guerlain Mitsouko. This made me want to snap up the bottle then and there as Mitsouko itself, although I love it, is too concentrated for me to wear. But the sales lady told me to wait at least a few hours for it to develop. I’m glad she did because it turned far more spicy in the end. Still nice and unusual smelling, but not enough for me to pay the price. Definitely try all of the EM scents on your skin for an entire day.
Dmitriy_ua – :
Honestly, i have never a scent like this before. I must say worth buying for something came from afar. It’s pure, legendary scent and chic magnet…definetely! I have crazy collection more than 70 bottles but this one makes a complete collection.
isa280bedyWelty – :
It’s just WOW!! I’m in love with this scent of lime vetiver and something like a molecule of happiness. These magic molecules can change your life for the better. I have a proof……………….
You can try to mix Escentric scents with your favorite cologne for new feelings
EspinozaHal – :
This is an interesting one. It smells VERY GOOD on paper with cool wood and tea. However, it smells sour, at first, on my skin, and it becomes very gingery lime/lemon; enough to make me say “this smells sour; almost like Pledge” The sourness stays on my skin for an hour or so. It’s enough for me to question myself if it’s worth getting a bottle. Anyway, I need to try it again.
FYI, my friend said it smelled like jasmine tea, and my other friend said it smelled like weed. I am amazed how it dramatically smells different from person to person.
rasputeen – :
Sweet wood notes with a hint of spice, this is my favourite from the Molecule range. Well worth trying.