Calvin Klein Man: The Legend Lives On

Today I want to tell you all about Calvin Klein Man. I picked this up for a steal and I'm a huge fan of anything Calvin Klein ever since the Back to the Future references. Of course people of a certain vintage will appreciate Calvin Klein more for bringing the louche relaxed look as a counter culture to the Yuppie power suit. See the likes of American Gigolo as an example: From my late friend's Christopher Laverty's site, Clothes on Film;

Although costumed as a whole by Bernadene C. Mann, American Gigolo is all about Armani. In two hours it parades every single line across the screen: formal, semi-formal, casual, daytime, evening, leisurewear, underwear, accessories. The pretext is how these sartorial choices define Gere’s high class prostitute Julian, though really we are watching how his clothes define the Armani name; literally brand creation on film.

Back to the fragrance. Calvin Klein the brand entered the perfume field in the 1980s with the launch of its first men's fragrance, Calvin. According to Fragrantica;

This woody, spicy fragrance from the house of Calvin Klein was launched in 2007. The name is simple, MAN, and it is advertised as a very masculine and sexy perfume. Lory Singer, the VP of Global Marketing and Coty Prestige, said that “Calvin Klein Man is intended to be iconic”.

The Bottle:

A strong, purposeful block of a bottle. Sectioned in black and transparent thick glass. It's more of a weapon than a bottle. If you had to go to your fragrance shelf in a pinch to bludgeon a would-be house intruder, this is the bottle you'd grab first.

The opening:

A fantastic burst of hot-purples mingled with citrus that the top notes promise. It quickly spirals into something more uplifting; something nascent, yes that's it, the spearmint bubblegum you'd find in the Cabbage Patch Stickers.

The settle down:

An enticing blend of nutmeg and cinnamon. The mint hangs around and pushes through like a school bully in a queue for the canteen.

The Drydown:

I'm in the playground, the mint, the A-team pack lunches. The conkers for footballs on the asphalt. It's winter and there is an ice slide that we use when the teachers aren't looking. Several children have already got injured hurtling down it. There is something about bubblegum mint. It's true Americana, but it has its home in the UK too. We had Trebor spearmints. A far superior mint to the Polo mint which I could never get behind. Although the Fruit Polos were delicious. Discontinued in 2023 I hear, shame.

Those Cabbage Patch Cards were also banned from school after one showed "Bad Bob" putting school textbooks through a meat grinder.

Good times in that playground. I remember falling for a girl called Helen. Of course she danced with James Carter at the school prom and not me. Carter was a better footballer, a better tennis player, and an incredible sports talent. I think more about him than I do Helen.