Joy Intense by Dior

Joy Intense is the 2019 follow up the popular, but not super well loved, Joy by Dior. I have never done a review of this one, since I sort of forgot about the series, after the original was pretty much only decent. How does Intense fair? Is it an improved upon formula? Is the performance good? Is Joy Intense worth a try?

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What does Dior Joy Intense Smell Like?

Notes include: neroli, bergamot, Grasse rose, jasmine, vanilla, sandalwood, musk, tonka bean

Click here to try: Dior Joy Intense

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My Full Review

Here’s how Dior describes it: Floral fireworks, concentration of joy. The dazzle of juicy citrus mingles with colorful sparks of Grasse rose and jasmine, heightened by an enveloping, woody echo of sandalwood tinged with vanilla.

The original Joy has a blend of peach and orange up top, that Intense lacks. Sure, you get citrus influence here, but the bergamot doesn’t seems as strong as the other two.

Early on, I get a lot of the jasmine, neroli, and powdery aroma that was in the original. Here, the jasmine shows up earlier. There is still indeed a freshness to this one early on, the bergamot is there, creating a bright and sparkling undertone.

As we get to the next phase, Joy Intense is fully displaying its jasmine and Grasse rose combination. With that is the vanilla and tonka bean notes. Very much a floral-vanilla, at this point.

Has some sweetness and creaminess, but it’s mostly a light powder/musky aroma wrapped around the floral core.

For the rest of the way, it’s kind of like the original. Jasmine really stands out. This time, there is more vanilla, less powder in the dry down than Joy. None of the patchouli. It’s hard to tell, but I feel like less of a sandalwood influence in Intense.

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Sillage, Longevity, and Versatility

This is the stronger of the Joy fragrances, as the name suggests. It’s definitely strong in the opening, but isn’t massive really. You will get a scent trail for a few hours, good projection, but not a super heavy scent.

It’s solidly above average throughout the wear, though.

With the original Joy, it lasted up to about six hours on my skin. Does Intense do a better job of sticking around?

Yes, but, it’s nothing to crazy. Maybe 7.5 hours or so. A definite improvement, but it still doesn’t blow anything out of the water. Though, I am glad that this one is better than the disappointing performance of the original.

Intense covers much of the same ground that the original does. However, I will say that it’s a notch below, as I would skip wearing this in the summer. The rest of the year is fine, but the original (while not being a pure summer wear), holds up better in the heat than this.

Pretty much a daytime sort of wear, that can fit in anywhere without causing any offense.

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Overall Impressions of Joy Intense

Overall, do I like Joy Intense? I do. This version certainly isn’t amazing, but it is better than the first. Both in terms of smell and it’s performance. It’s a lot more balanced across the board.

The jasmine and vanilla dominance, isn’t exactly the most original fragrance out there, but it smells quite nice. The citrus isn’t too powerful of an influence, just a touch to highlight the rest of the composition.

It’s got enough of a difference from the first Joy, to be worth checking out, if you didn’t care too much for that one.

I probably wouldn’t want to pay full price for a bottle. However, if you can find Joy Intense at a discount, it’s a good perfume from Dior that you could get plenty of use out of.