Sublime Vanille smells divine - a clean, airy vanilla with a zesty lemon kick. Sadly, it's also the poster child for abysmal luxury performance; don't expect it to last longer than a celebrity marriage. Prepare to reapply endlessly or embrace its fleeting beauty.

Khadlaj's Empire Victor is a fluffy lemon-caramel-vanilla gourmand - think zesty lemon over white sugar and vanilla cake, kept from cloying by a bright citrus lift. It is more cheerful comfort scent than statement piece: sweet, addictive and easy, with the lemon-vanilla duet doing most of the work. Performance is the main catch, sitting fairly close to the skin, but at this price it is hard to argue with.