Synthesis™ - Extrait de Parfum

I love the smell, I wish it was a bit stronger and longer lasting compared to other Xyrena fragrances. Works well with other colognes. Not entirely powerful enough to be a stand alone, but still a worthwhile addition.

This is my 3rd favorite fragrance of all time, and my favorite of the 16 Xyrena fragrances I own at the time of writing this review. It is everything I look for in a fragrance. 1. It’s sweet: cherry-like (“red” smelling), obviously synthetic, somewhat floral-like, somewhat fresh.. I could be wrong but I’m guessing heliotropin and hedione (heliotropin is my favorite perfume ingredient, go figure!). 2. It’s unique: paired with this sweetness is the bold vinyl accord which is exactly as written in the fragrance description. When my girlfriend smelled it in the air she said it smelled like cherry rubber, which is about right. There is no other fragrance out there that smells anything like this, and yes it will turn heads. 3. It’s a beast: one spray will fill a room and stay on clothing for days, I haven’t even felt the need yet to do more sprays than that. Definitely the best performance of all the Xyrenas I own. 4. It’s nostalgic: evocative of childhood toys and great memories, at least for me. For those who don’t have those memories or aren’t into synthetic, rubber-smelling notes, this can be off-putting. It definitely isn’t for everybody but I wouldn’t have it any other way. 5. It’s layer-able! Because it’s so unique it’s a pretty “situational” fragrance on its own, but it’s easy to layer due to being so linear and “simple” in the sense that you mostly only smell two notes from this. Any time you want to add sweet vinyl to another fragrance just spray this (advisably under the other one since it’s so strong) and you’re good to go!

Thank you Xyrena for this happiness in a bottle and I hope for more avant-garde fragrances like this that are sweet (specifically “red” smelling), unique, nostalgic beasts.