I fell in love with the original (and very discontinued) Armani after getting a free tube of the shower gel when I bought some other vintage gems. Even in its sudsy form, Armani (sometimes known as Armani Black because of the packaging, but not to be confused with Code Black and other older Giorgio Armani perfumes) was very obviously a bitter green chypre. I started showering with it before wearing either Bandit or Niki de Saint Phalle, as both share several prominent notes with it- the oakmoss-glabanum in Bandit and the bitter marigold from NdSP. But I also went on a quest to find and acquire the real thing.
I now own bottles of Armani both in EDP and EDT and I'd be in heaven if I could also find it in parfum and fully indulge in its crisp and somewhat leathery drydown. But I'm very happy with the two concentrations I have- green, grassy and herbal from beginning to end, with a softer floral underbelly that is more evident in the EDP (very similar to the modern re-issue of Piguet's Bandit) and a gloriously mossy base of the kind we haven't seen since IFRA stomped all over our perfumed lives.
The original Armani was labeled a feminine but to me it's an androgynous just like Bandit. After all, Armani's iconic1980s work utilized masculine shapes and fabrics for women and nothing was sexier (well, in 80s terms). It should appeal to hard core chypre lovers and anyone who gets high on galbanum and marigolds and other angular notes that are not traditionally "pretty". Now, if it only was easier to find...
Images:
Giorgio Armani perfume ad- okadi.com
Gia Carangie in Armani ads from Vogue Italia, March 1980- giacarangieditorials.blogspot.com
1982 Armani fashion- fashionmoment.blogspot.com
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