Keith Urban, judging from photos anyway, seems an unpretentious, casual-comfortable type of person. I don’t know much about contemporary country music or Urban but after smelling Phoenix I feel we have at least one thing in common — a love of desserts. If Urban had input in Phoenix’s development, and didn’t just slap his name onto a “made-by-committee” fragrance, the man has a major sweet tooth.
Phoenix was developed by perfumer Loc Dong and features notes of blackberries, cognac, plum, suede accord, dates, dark chocolate, fir balsam, musk, cashmere woods, tonka bean and “amber gourmand.”
Phoenix starts with boozy aldehydes, leather and cocoa (smelling quite a bit like the Thierry Mugler A*Men “Pure” fragrances), and segues into a sheer suede-plus- “blackberries macerating in sugar” note. The berry note is fresh and “realistic” and is quickly joined by ‘vanilla ice cream’ (this initial vanilla note is sweet, but “cool.”) Then Phoenix goes to the stove to make vanilla custard (warm, creamy and dense). Leather is discernible but stays in the background after the opening notes, and as the sweets are “consumed” a slightly powdery tonka bean-patchouli-musk accord (a tad ‘nutty’) appears.
Phoenix is better formulated (and smells like its ingredients are of higher quality) than many of the designer-department store scents I’ve sampled recently (I’m looking at YOU, Yves Saint Laurent and Jean-Paul Gaultier). I was not expecting such an “edible” perfume under the Keith Urban brand, so Phoenix is an unexpected (and pleasant) surprise. Phoenix can certainly be ‘served’ to men and women alike…as long as they enjoy their leather fragrances infused with some sucrose.
Keith Urban Phoenix is available in mass market stores in 30, 50 and 100 ml cologne spray ($24-48).
55 Comments
Read more about commenting at Now Smell This.
This is my latest guilty pleasure, thanks for reinforcing my affection for it! I always love your reviews!
Datura: thanks!
Oh, excellent!! I’ve been wracking my brains for something for my 11-yo son to try wearing, given that he seems to like sweet-but-not-too-sweet scents. Guess I’ll drag him into Walgreen’s sometime – they usually have testers out.
(Stuff that Taz has smelled, and rejected, this past week: Azzaro pour Homme, Midnight in Paris, AdP Profumo, and CdG 2 Man. Oh, and Blue Sugar he said was “icky.” What he likes? Shalimar Light & vtg Emeraude. But those, he says, are “too girly.” I’m at a loss.)
How about something from B&BW or L’Occitane? Or a classic cologne like 4711, which also has the benefit of being dirt cheap! Thierry Mugler Cologne is also nice, and I know people are always recommending Eau Sauvage for guys and girls. (I can send you some 4711 and TM Cologne with the SL’s if you’re interested!)
No, no colognes. Neither one of my boys likes citrus. Have already tried them on 4711 and Eau Sauvage, and the NOs blew my hair back. But thanks so much for the offer, J!
They seem to like light orientals, spices and woods.
If you can track it down, YSL’s Opium pour Homme is a lovely woody vanilla with spices and some aromatics, and a nice leathery drydown. Might be a little “mature” for an 11-year-old, but you never know.
For a more youthful woody vanilla, I rather enjoy Givenchy’s Play Intense. Nutty and sweet, but not diabetic, and with a lovely woody/musky drydown that wouldn’t smell at all out of place on a preteen. Bonus: “cool” factor due to the Justin Timberlake marketing campaign. I would never have smelled it had I not received a free sample with another purchase, since the original Play (and most of the recent Givenchys) did nothing for me, but I was rather shocked and impressed with the Intense.
Thanks for the recs!
Gaze (the 13 yo) gave me thumbs up on Midnight in Paris. 2 hours on skin now, and he still likes it. (Bonus: his older sister told him he was not allowed to wear cologne, because that would make him smell “dateable,” and she thinks he’s too young. Of course he’s gonna go for it now.)
No citrus or colognes? They certainly are your children ; )
Maybe this Phoenix will be the one – I like a good gourmand, so I’ll be sniffing it too!
Has he tried Bois d’Argent or Infusion d’Homme?
Not yet. But he’s 11, and his brother is 13, and I’ll be darned if I buy them anything costing more than $30… I wash their clothes. I know what they’re like.
My husband wears YSL Opium pour Homme for me because I love it. Givenchy Pi is another sweet one but they are both over $30!
Same here one of my sons birthday is today and I’m doing the same wracking my brains, so happy to see this review, he already loves and wears Thierry Mugler A* Men, with this discription I think dad will also love it, and sounds like something I would wear….will go and check it out after work.
mals: maybe Phoenix will work for him….
Mals – wow – interesting taste! Where’s classic English Leather when you need it? Maybe you’ll come across a trove of vintage in an old country store or yard sale.
Have you tried Old Spice and Stetson already?
I’ll have to try this whenever I’m next around a mall (who knows when that will be…). Sounds pretty delicious, and yeah, surprisingly scewed towards “feminine” for what you would think the target market is.
…skewed…
Meg: no need for a fancy mall..Rite-Aid, Walgreens, CSV will do. HA!
Interesting! Might have to get this for myself. And it’s so cheap (uh, I mean affordable)!
Karin; yes, AFFORDABLE.
Keith Urban *does* seem to be unpretentious & casual. He’s talented too. And hot. Kevin, since you don’t know much about him, here’s a tidbit – he’s married to Nicole Kidman. This fragrance certainly sounds like it’s worth a sniff.
He & Ellen DeGeneres did a funny Phoenix commercial spoof:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E0HD2RFDfY
R.D. the most I knew about him was his KidmanConnection…he’s been on her arm at a zillion events.
I’m not a country music fan but I like his stuff…well and his music too.
lol
RD, thanks so much for that hilarious ad. With different lighting and camera work, I would have thought it could have passed for a typical sleazy perfume ad, LOL!
Sounds worth checking out. Seems great for fall…maybe my SO will actually like it and we could wear it together! A sweet leather for less than $30 yay! Thanks for reviewing a cheap thrill.
YellowLantern: a good cheap thrill is always nice
he’s the one married to Nicole Kidman, right? Gorgeous as she is, they seems oddly unsuited – whenever I see photos of them together she always looks like his mother rather than his wife.
Which brings me to odd pairings….if he really did have a hand in this (and I seriously doubt that) it seems an odd choice for one married to such a one as Ms Kidman, whom I suspect hasn’t worn a ‘sweet’ fragrance since the 4th grade (I’m just making this up, not knowing either of them but it seems as likely as anything else – I see her in vintage No 5)
xo
Musette: according to WIki they are the same age…but Kidman sometimes seems to be thinking a motherly “tsk, tsk” doesn’t she?
I think it’s the not so subtle plastic surgery/botox she’s put her face through. She is a lovely woman but she did herself no favors messing with what Mama Nature gave her. And honestly if I’d been married to Tom Cruise for 10 years and then gone through that divorce I’d have a perma-sour expression on my face too.
I’m going to have to see if my teenage son will try this cologne. Still trying to get him away from the Playboy line of scents. So tacky.
Moon: haha! Just tell him Playboy is “middle-aged” and he may flee…or just show him a picture of Hef (MUCH worse for wear than Nicole)
LOL – given how much wear Hef has had, he looks GREAT!
….married to Tom Cruise… AND discovered that Urban had been cheating on her for many months during their courtship and early marriage. I agree she is lovely and very talented (she took a lot of risks in the 90s and early 2000s when she didn’t have to), and it’s a shame she kind of froze herself. I don’t blame her though – she’s been exposed a lot.
I also read somewhere that when she was the spokesperson for No 5 she got in trouble b/c she wore some rose scented fragrnace (Tea Rose?) to an opening. Someone asked her what she was wearing. Apparently she should have said No 5, but said something else. Good for her.
Kidman -was- the Chanel No.5 girl for a while, wasn’t she? It would have been ’round about the time Moulin Rouge was in theaters, if I’m remembering correctly.
I remember reading about six or so years ago that the popsinger Robbie Williams was smitten with her perfume – she told him that it was her own blend of vanilla and musk oils. I am assuming that it might have been sweet(!), but have no idea whose oils she used. One would like to think that she wears Chanel No 5, since she made those hugely expensive tv adverts for it a few years ago, but then I guess I am forever hopeful.
Ok, you made this sound quite delicious. I’m going to have to see if hubby likes it.
Ooops, at first I read your comment as: ‘gong to have to see if I have a hubby who likes it.’
Need more coffee.
Lol. No, no! I only have one hubby and sometimes it’s one too many.
“One too many”!
Poodle: what the hey…wear it yourself!
I probably will.
oh this sounds amazing. too bad it won’t be available in Europe.
Actually, Keith Urban DID have input into his cologne. He was involved in the development from start to finish. There is also a women’s perfume in the works. My husband has been wearing “Phoenix” since it’s release. It’s yummy!
Are the dates noticeable and distinct? Because I cannot resist a scent with a date note: CdG Sticky Cake, Demeter Sticky Toffee Pudding, and Ormonde Jayne Ta’if just make me disproportionately happy.
R: I THOUGHT I got a hint of ‘date’ in the vanilla milkshake phase…but I may have been projecting….
Thinking you detect a note because you’re told it should be there? We’ve all done that!
I’m sort of disappointed but I will still be trying this, because you’ve made it sound like my kind of thing and it’s ridiculously inexpensive.
Kevin, I really enjoy your writing style. Great review. Particularly liked this: “Then Phoenix goes to the stove to make vanilla custard (warm, creamy and dense).” Way to personify the notes!
BluePineGrove: that’s…that’s as sweet as Phoenix!
This sounds fantastic. I would have likely skipped right over it were it not for your review, Kevin. Thanks and looking forward to trying this. Yum.
AbScent: we must thank Robin for having this sent to me…I would have done the same as you.
Interesting – I would NEVER have looked at his picture and thought “blackberries macerating in sugar followed up with custard and tonka.” I guess the patch and leather are a good fit, though. Not a combo I would have thought of – now I’m now very curious to try it!
Noz: I guess a photo of Urban eating a cupcake with icing on his nose couldn’t make it past the PR folks!
“notes of blackberries, cognac, plum, suede accord”
But it sounds so delicious ..
Angelica: and shockingly it smells like the ingredients list….
Totally didn’t expect this kind of gourmand fragrance from someone like Keith Urban either. I see him more along the lines of the old Ralph Lauren colognes – green and very mentholated.
This sounds very interesting to me and I don’t normally care for sweet. It reads to me like something Kenzo would do. It does seem an unusual choice for “country”, but the guy does spend a lot of time on his hair. They probably marketed it as something the girls would like, a la the “bacon” fragrance that we all know would do very well attracting men at bars.
I found the 100ml at Ross today for 18 bucks! Not bad right? It’s massive but I’ll use it for the holidays. A very nice surprise in my book too. : )