Kouros Cologne by YSL

Kouros Cologne is a love-hate fragrance. It’s a ironic combination of the pleasant and the unpleasant. The clean and the filthy. The comely and the repulsive. It’s a paradox of notes put together in one distinct man scent or if you despise it, it would come off as a nondescript fragrance. This cologne is one of the bestsellers in YSL men’s perfume collection and yet people who wear it and those who have discontinued wearing it don’t seem to appreciate it on the same level of likability. It’s virile and provocative but certainly too strong by today’s standards.

Looking at the notes, the top is composed of aldehydes, artemesia, coriander, sage and bergamot; the middle notes are carnation, patchouli, cinnamon, orris root, jasmine, vetiver and geranium; the base notes are honey, leather Tonka bean, amber, musk, civet and vanilla. There’s heady notes of clove and citrus in the opening and musk-woods in the dry down.

What repel many in this scent are the combination musk and civet notes. There’s a distinct and unmistakably urinal note that comes across as borderline delicious and revolting. Sillage is powerful and obviously the ingredients are complex. This isn’t a boys perfume and neither is a unisex fragrance. Kouros is quite simply a manly fragrance.

In addition, Kouros gains more momentum long after you first sprayed it on so a little amount would go a long way. Its intense formula announces itself up to ten feet away. To put it bluntly, it’s a sillage monster. If you pour a generous amount on your skin, people will be on their knees in no time, begging you to leave the room.  

One interesting review on how ironic this perfume can get is shared by a perfume reviewer from fragrantica.com. He said, “Indeed, Kouros is definitely the perfume you love or hate – there’s no middle ground. I love it… It’s risky and utterly unconventional. It’s got some beautiful citrus/floral top and heart notes (reminiscent of Caron’s Troisieme Homme). But then there’s the infamous and reviled base – a raunchy, filthy note that smells like sweat and a toilet full of turds. Yes, it sounds disgusting, but the combination of all the notes together creates a very virile, hot-blooded fragrance that only a man can pull off.”

Kouros is overtly masculine and it’s one of those fragrances that appeals to women. Many a man doesn’t like this scent and some go to the extent of comparing it to utterly disgusting things. While it’s a major turn-off on men, amazingly, this fragrance seems to cast an insane spell on women. It could be the hypnotizing aroma of the notes or maybe, the complexity of the notes reminds them of a man’s pheromones.  Another round of compelling thoughts from a Kouros-loving man, “This should not be interpreted that Kouros smells of men’s sweat, it doesn’t. The thing is: it is not the classic scent men had come to expect out of a fragrance. The masculinity is derived from deep, deep wood and animal scents, strong and overpowering. What remains to be an absolute fact is: it drives women week in the knees, very week in the knees. Very, very!”

This YSL best-seller comes in flankers: different formulations, watered-down, lighter scents. If Kouros cologne doesn’t sit well with your skin, you may find chemistry with the other versions. Explore more of the Kouros fragrances at scentiments.com.