Defender Second

A budget interpretation of Xerjoff's cult Alexandria II, Defender Second opens just as its inspiration does: clean soapy lavender, a crisp juicy apple and a dusting of cinnamon, with palisander rosewood adding a refined woody lift. The heart brings a soft rose, cedar and a touch of lily of the valley before the base settles into the signature oud-amber-sandalwood warmth, sweetened with vanilla and rounded by musk. Set against the real Alexandria II it reads more two-dimensional - the oud is tamer and the woods thinner, so it loses the plush, almost three-day-lasting richness the original is famous for. Projection is moderate and turns skin-close after the first couple of hours, with respectable but not remarkable longevity. Still, for the money it captures that elegant, polished oud-woody signature convincingly - a sophisticated, faintly soapy warmth that suits cooler-weather evenings, formal occasions, dates and even refined office wear, reading as grown-up and quietly confident.