What's the Best Men's Cologne?

What the heck is that you might be asking? Well it's none other than a random wall in my bedroom in my New York apartment. It just happens to contain my colognes. This is in regards to a recent question I received from a fan in the edhale.com Q&A section, where this guy asked me to recommend a good cologne for him and a great perfume for his girl. So for you, whoever you are, you heard right. This is it. A very personal look into my very own boudoir. Now I know what you're thinking. There's no way you can or want to buy all those colognes. Gotcha. A collection like this doesn't happen over night. It's a collection. And like all collections, it takes time to get to a satisfactory quantity and quality of whatever one is collecting to feel that juice, that personal sense of joy and pride that comes from building up a collection of any kind. In this case it just happens to be colognes. But I love collecting in general. I'll freaking collect anything if I dig it. Why not? Life is big. And if we're lucky, it's also LONG.... So why not? They're useful enough things, colognes. I could think of other things less utilitarian to collect...

To avoid you the trouble of having to write in again and ask how many I own, or how many you see here, I can tell you that at present you're looking at around 240 something give or take. That's here in NYC. I've got a few "special ones" in Seattle as well. So that should cover that question. In regards to what I would recommend to you, honestly I dare say that that would be a very hard question to answer definitively for anyone other than one's self. After all, the olfactory senses tend to be pretty subjective. Just as beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so too is scent I believe.

But let's say that you're looking for something a little special, different, unique. After all, if you wouldn't have asked me and instead just relied on the latest issue of any fashion magazine or cologne counter, you're liable to walk away with a pretty standard run of the mill big name brand and end up smelling like every other guy. Suffice it to say that I own all the big name brands and small name brands, because many of them are really great. Especially when mixed. And that's a really good insider tip for you: when possible, always mix and blend. Two or three if possible. Use one on your torso and another complimentary one on your arms and neck. That way, no matter what you're wearing, you'll smell damn good, but you won't smell like anyone else no matter how distinctive that other man happens to be.

Look at this way, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Gucci, D&G, Kenneth Cole, Michael Kors, Boss, Davidoff, Armani, and all the other mainstream brands all make some damn fine colognes. And you can't go wrong with any of them. But your goal isn't to just "not go wrong". Your goal is to stand out among the pack and be the best smelling man in your world hands down. So I'd say stay away from them. The worst thing in the world is to be at a party and have half the place be able to sniff out what you're wearing within your first hour there. Nah. You want to stand apart from the pack and smell like no one else and still be the best smelling man standing. So if I were you, I'd start with the more exclusive brands, the ones that most people shy away from or don't even know exist. Go with Hermes for example. They've got one of the most distinctive and unique collections of scents for men, AND women, out there. The girls love Terre. It's very unique. You just can't sniff through it. It's that good.

The other two I would recommend if you really want something special and not "right off the shelf" would be anything by John Varvatos and any of Tom Ford's. These are very special colognes. Pricier. But totally worth it. Very few men wear these, let alone even know about them. And with them there is no need to blend. They're complex by nature. And just damn fine smelling. The last ones I would mention, because they're both so incredible I would be doing you a disservice if I didn't would be L'Occitane for men and Aveda for men. Harder to find, but worth it. This is way off the beaten path stuff. You don't get them from going to a department store. You have to actually go to the stores themselves respectively. Or you could hunt them down on amazon.com and save a little while you're at it. But those two especially are very unique and complex... still manly, woodsy, yet sophisticated. Trust me, you can't go wrong if you just stick with the four or five I've mentioned here. Each will burn a hole in the heart and memory of any female you happen to encounter throughout your day to day adventures as an international man of Transcendenceness.

In regards to perfumes for your girl... let me think on that. There are MANY. And I honestly think that you need to let your nose be your guide. They all smell good. That's not the point. The real question is what is going to smell good on your girl, AND how do YOU like it? It could be simple and predictable like something from Chanel. Or it could be one of Gucci's newer models. Gucci Gucci for example is amazing. So is Lanvin. It's a classic. But it happens to make my beautiful princess smell downright irresistible to me. And THAT is really all that matters in the end, I'm sure you'll agree. Happy sniffing. Hope this helps. And thanks for lightening up the content within these walls for a change.