Polo Double Black by Ralph Lauren is a Woody Spicy fragrance for men launched in 2006 as an Eau de Toilette. The nose behind this fragrance is Ellen Molner.
Polo Double Black was launched in 2006, about a year after the original Polo Black. The flanker of Polo Black proved to be less popular than the original, and it has since been discontinued.
The keynotes of this Woody Spicy scent are pepper, roasted coffee beans, mango, and nutmeg.
| Perfume Name | Polo Double Black |
| Brand | Ralph Lauren |
| Year Released | 2006 |
| Concentration | Eau de Toilette |
| Scent Family | Woody Spicy |
| Gender | men |
A good friend recently gave me a small decant of this scent as they know I love to review fragrances. As this scent has been discontinued, I was pleased to still have a shot and experiment with it.
What does Polo Double Black by Ralph Lauren smell like?
Polo Double Black smells dark and masculine. It has a rich and gourmand-ish aroma with coffee, mango, pepper, and nutmeg mixed together.
It reminds me of bitter-sweet coffee. It’s warm, soft, and sweet while being just spicy enough to keep things interesting. To me, this scent is young and energetic while being sexy but with a dark side that not everyone gets to see.
Some other scents that Polo Double Black reminds me of include Black Opium by YSL, Armani Code EDT, and Aromatic Black by Clinique.
| Top Notes | Mango and Pepper |
| Middle Notes | Roasted Coffee Beans and Indonesian Nutmeg |
| Base Notes | Woodsy Notes, Cardamom and Juniper Berries |
My Experience
The opening of this scent has an interesting spicy note thanks to the pepper. The opening is beautifully warm thanks to the woodsy notes, the coffee, and the Indonesian nutmeg that complements the pepper.
I can also detect the mango in the opening and, later on, the juniper berries, but I feel it’s not so prominent and the warmer notes, like the nutmeg, overshadows the fruitier notes. This is by no means a fruity scent despite the addition of tropical fruit like mango.
At some point, I pick up a hint of something sweet, almost a little bit chocolatey, but not as sweet as milk chocolate. It’s more like a mocha cacao. I suspect it’s the mango and the roasted coffee beans note that produce this aroma.
Overall this is a lovely and unique scent, and I enjoy it while it last. Unfortunately, it doesn’t last long on my skin, and the performant is abysmal.
Sillage & Projection
The projection of the fragrance is on the weaker side, and the sillage isn’t great either. Based on these factors, I have to rate the scent as being quite disappointing.
Longevity & Versatility
Like the sillage and projection also the longevity isn’t great either. I get around 4 hours of wear on my skin, and maybe thereafter, I can still faintly detect it for about an hour.
In terms of versatility Polo Double Black fares a lot better. It’s the type of scent that can take you from the office to a night out. Unfortunately, with such poor performance, the versatility of a fragrance doesn’t really matter all too much. In terms of a season, I’d say it’s perfect for fall and winter. It’s simply not a scent for the warmer months.
Closing thoughts
Polo Double Black is definitely a unique smell, and if someone can pick it up despite its weak performance, I’m sure people would be showering you with compliments. However, with so many amazing fragrances on the market and not enough time to wear them all, I’ll have to say Polo Double Black is a pass for me.
This is a wonderfully timeless scent that still manages to be refreshingly modern at the same time. If the performance on my skin had been different, I’d at least have tried to procure a small bottle for my collection. If someone gets better performance, this scent would be a great candidate to be someone’s signature scent as it’s so versatile, unique, and overall very pleasing.
This is not a safe blind buy, as you’ll want to see how it performs first. That being said, given that it’s been discontinued, it’s probably going to be quite expensive to get your hands on. So unless you’ve tried it before and you are a die-hard fan, I’d recommend you find an alternative scent to invest in.