Absolut Emperor

Absolut Emperor opens with a genuinely convincing burst of grapefruit, bergamot and blackcurrant, the same fruity-citrus salvo that opens Creed's Aventus Absolu. The heart brings apple and pineapple over ginger and cinnamon, a warm spiced-fruit stage that tracks the original closely for the first hour or so. Where the dupe shows its budget roots is the base: oakmoss, leather, musk, patchouli and vetiver are all present on paper, but they read flatter and less smoky than the rich, smouldering leather-oakmoss foundation that makes the real Absolu so memorable, and the whole composition loses steam noticeably sooner. It is still a genuinely enjoyable, confident fruity-spicy fragrance in its own right, and at a fraction of the price it is an easy way to sample the Aventus Absolu shape without committing to the original's cost.