Fabulous - No.22

Fucking Fabulous is one of Tom Ford's most cult-followed Private Blend releases, a leather fragrance with a slightly gourmand, masculine-leaning edge - fresh and aromatic up top with no sharp citrus, a noticeable leather note arriving early and staying present through a woody-ambery drydown. It performs strongly, with good projection and hours of longevity that keep it a favourite for evening wear. Match Perfumes' No.22 draws on a closely matching note list - raspberry, green notes and rhubarb up top, thyme, chamomile, geranium, heliotrope, jasmine, lavender and neroli at heart, leather, amber, woody, musk, patchouli and sandalwood underneath - and the fresh, aromatic opening followed by an early leather note is a fair echo of the original's structure. Where it falls short is durability: Tom Ford's leather stays noticeable and well-integrated with the ambery woods for most of the wear, while No.22's leather softens and flattens into a simpler musk-amber base considerably sooner, with weaker projection throughout. It is a reasonable everyday leather in its own right, just a shorter-lived and less textured one than the original.