Original Santal by Creed

Creed is a world renown luxury fragrance brand which has served the royalty and other assorted elites of the world for hundreds of years now. It is a design house known for it use of quality ingredients and rich and fragrant scents for both men and women which have stood the test of time.

While we have already taken a look at the top Creed fragrances and reviewed such popular scents as Aventus and Millesime Imperial, we are going to take a look at a lesser known commodity in this post, Original Santal. Santal is one that flies under the radar, but is it because it hasn’t been hyped up, or is it simply not that good?

What does Original Santal Smell Like?

Notes include: sandalwood, juniper berry, cinnamon, vanilla, coriander, rosemary, lavender, tonka bean 

Click here to try: Original Santal by Creed

My Review of Original Santal

Here’s how Creed describes it: Looking to Asia for inspiration, Olivier and Erwin combine Mysore sandalwood, fiery cinnamon, warm vanilla and tonka bean. A robust scent fit for both formal and casual occasions, Original Santal is destined to captivate a room. Prepare for compliments

Santal seems to be formulated as sort of a unisex perfume (I’m not sure if this is actually the case or not but I have seen it for sale as unisex). That being said, don’t expect something that is overly masculine, because that’s not what you’ll get.

What you will find is warmth, smoothness, with a spicy kick. The most noticeable notes for me are the sandalwood and the cinnamon, though, I also get a vanilla note that seems to balance out the composition.

Immediately, I was struck by how much this reminded me of Joop!, though, perhaps it is much more ‘natural’ and less synthetic than Joop in it’s smell. Also, Joop! is much heavier, less clean, and geared toward men and wouldn’t be presented as a unisex scent.

Since I am sort a fan of Joop!, as an inexpensive option for guys, I liked Santal right off the bat. The dry down doesn’t give off the same powdery feel that Joop! does but I feel that Santal is a  smoother fragrance as well.

It opens up with the cinnamon spice and the creamy smooth sandalwood note. It is fresh, while being warm, and there is a slight fruit aroma provided by the juniper berry.

Original Santal also has a resemblance to Mont Blanc Individuel, but this one is much better, and feels more substantial. Santal has a spicier profile at the opening with the cinnamon, but also the coriander note, which gives it a more dynamic warmth.

Santal starts off projecting rather well off of my skin and after 20-30 minutes the vanilla note seems to start kicking in more. There then comes a third wave of notes which I can distinctly detect the tonka bean and lavender, which presents a warmer and woodsy sensation to this cologne.

I have to say, Santal is very pleasant to wear.

Sillage, Longevity, and Versatility

However, for me, Santal’s projection is bordering on average. The sillage falls in the lighter moderate part of the spectrum. It’s not going to really ever overwhelm, which I wouldn’t want it to, but some kind of power would be nice.

I don’t seem to get much longevity from it…maybe 4-5 hours. Perhaps, it will have better longevity on other guys’ skin but it really doesn’t last that long on mine. That is a disappointment because this is a nice scent.

It is a safe and versatile fragrance. It is more limited in terms of climate, as it’s at its best in the cooler weather. However, as far as on what occasion it can be worn, it is the type of cologne that can fit in almost anywhere.

Again, it’s not a sillage beast, so Santal isn’t going to go hard in a night club environment. Original Santal is an attractive scent and I have gotten complements from women, while wearing it. Is it super sexy? Not really, but it is one that draws people closer.

Also, on the negative side, it’s not a particularly unique or special fragrance either. Is a cleaner and probably better option than Joop? I’d say so but would I pay for a full bottle of Santal, at Creed prices versus Joop? I wouldn’t.

Not that I really want either, all that bad. Mont Blanc Individuel can also be had for a lot cheaper, if you want something quite similar.

I’d personally take the Joop! and buy another bottle of Guerlain and probably something else as well. I do like Santal a lot, just not at that pricing point and versus my many other options.

Overall Impressions of Original Santal

Is Santal worth a buy? On smell alone? I’d say, yes. At this price? Probably not, unless you don’t particularly mind the cost. It is a very nice fragrance, that really grew on me, the more I wore it.

I love a good cinnamon note and the early stages of Original Santal has it in spades. Obviously, the main attraction is the sandalwood note, which is lovely. But, I especially love the notes that are used in support of it.

Update: Coming back to this one, a few years later, I totally dig the way this one smells on me. It’s got such a smooth vibe. Still no luck, in the performance department. That 4-5 hour limit is really holding Santal back from being an absolute must from the Creed collection.

I really wish that it had better performance, because that would push into the definitely buy category. The sandalwood, cinnamon, vanilla, and tonka bean together are great.

Best Men's Colognes

Best Men’s Colognes started back in 2013, as a way to share my learning experiences with different fragrances, as I dove head first into the hobby. Since then, I have written hundreds of reviews and other pages about perfumes and colognes.