Perfume Review: Play for her intense by Givenchy

Play For Her Intense by Givenchy was launched in 2010 together with the masculine version (the same marketing strategy was followed for the original Play two years earlier). Both editions have a bottle with a peculiar shape, which reminds of an Mp3 player, although in this case some details were added to make it more feminine. The main notes of the fragrance are: sandalwood, tiare, amyris wood, and pink pepper.

Although quite fresh, in the opening the fragrance is concentrated and intense (this is a quality of all Givenchy fragrances, regardless of their style, like Amarige perfume for example, much more floral and fruitier, but still very dense). There is a distinct note of blackberry, and traces of resin with woods on a secondary level. In the background, a powdery note keeps the fruits under control and prevents them from being too overwhelming. In the middle phase, amyris wood quickly increases intensity, with a mix between cedar, aromatic resins, and incense. After two hours, wood aggregates soft spices which complement with the resin and blackberry. Resins and wood will remain dominant for a couple of more hours, until the base notes, where they lower intensity, leaving room to classic florals like roses and gardenia, but still in line with the dark style of the fragrance (it reminds of a darker version of Nina Ricci L’Air du Temps.

This version takes a group of notes in common with the original Play and makes them more dense and obscure. The result is a fragrance for any time of the year, but with a better propensity for the winter. In the office it will feel semi-informal in the opening, with even a slightly authoritarian attitude. By night Play For Her Intense will feel younger, but still suitable for special occasions, where it is desirable to stand out from the crowd of perfumes.