Zest in Havana by Dua Brands

I was pouring through all of the many fragrance options on the Dua Brands website and found many candidates, that I wanted to try out. One particular mash up fragrance caught my attention, Zest in Havana, which combines Dua’s two scents that were inspired by two popular Mugler colognes: Ultra Zest and Pure Havane. So, I bought it and have been putting the scent through its paces. How does it smell? Does it last long? Is Zest in Havana worth a try?

What does Zest in Havana Smell Like?

Notes include: orange, tobacco, vanilla, tonka bean, mint, ginger, coffee, styrax, honey, cacao, black pepper, labdanum, amber, and more

Click here to try: Zest in Havana by Dua Brands

My Full Review

Before we get into my review, let’s see how Dua describes this scent: Zest in Havana is the brightest day you can imagine in the city of Havana. It is equivalent to smoking a fine cigar poolside in Havana while enjoying a citrus cocktail and a decadent dessert drenched in honey. 

Zest in Havana opens with the citrus notes of tangerine and blood orange out in full effect. Very juicy and indeed bright as they note. Early on, I notice a mixture of notes flanking the citrus, before the main thrust of the fragrance is revealed.

I pick up more of the mint than ginger, as far as the spices go. Also, some touches of black pepper and cinnamon. Really, I get coffee in a surprising amount from the get go. That will for sure tone down, but the initial blast does have a nice coffee flourish.

Early on it feels lighter and fresher than the eventual warmer and thicker body the Zest in Havana will eventually develop. You’re definitely get the Ultra Zest portion early on, very much like the Mugler cologne, but with a bit of its own twist.

As I get further into the wear, the coffee and spices begin to fall away. The next phase is about vanilla, tobacco, and amber. The combination of vanilla and tonka bean give it a fairly creamy tone, but the citrus notes keep it lively and not straying too far into being another cold weather exclusive.

The final phase is mainly tobacco and amber. The vanilla falls back to the number three spot as far as weighting. The fourth is basically a blend of everything that’s left, including: labdanum, tonka bean, coffee, cacao.

The citrus is essentially gone, in any detectable level. There does feel like there may be some leftover fruity sweetness, but it’s not completely apparent.

Sillage, Longevity, and Versatility

Sillage wise, Zest in Havana opens up with a strong punch. That citrus blend really projects itself well early on. Add to that the spicy freshness and it project itself around 8 feet, with a few sprays. Now, it will settle into something on the lower end of what can be considered strong…but it does bring it.

With the longevity, it just keeps going and going. On skin, it has easily lasted 12+ hours on me without issue. I’m not sure just how long it goes, because I will usually shower within that time frame, but this Extrait de Parfum has no problems in the performance department.

Seasonally, this is interesting. The original Mugler colognes that Zest in Havana is based on, are kind of opposites. Pure Havane is an autumn and winter wear. While Ultra Zest, could venture into the summer as a refreshing citrus blend.

For Zest in Havana? I’m not sure it’ll be one to go to in the high heat of summer. Since it is currently winter, I cannot test it out to see if that’s the case. However, I’d say autumn through springtime for sure.

It’s fairly versatile and its mash up aroma is pretty unique versus what you get in other singular fragrances. It’s more of a casual daytime wear, with the ability to go semi-formal on the right occasion.

It is safe for work, at least once it has settled. The vanilla, tobacco, amber, warmer stage is pretty attractive…but you might want to wait for it to dry down after the initial spray.

Overall Impressions of Zest in Havana

Overall, do I like this Dua Brand fragrance? Yes, I like it. However, I didn’t love it, as much as I thought. I probably should have bought their plain Zest bottle instead of this blended combo.

It’s enjoyable in its own right, but I cannot say that I liked it better than either of the Mugler fragrances on their own. The blend works well enough, but it doesn’t strike me as spectacular. It’s worth a try if you like either Pure Havane or Ultra Zest.

I do really dig that opening citrus with the coffee undertones and mint/ginger mix. It’s pretty great. The dry down is a lot of Pure Havane and it’s nice, but I was hoping I’d get a longer lasting bit of Zest.

It’s a nice long-lasting scent, that I will continue to wear over the coming months. I’ll come back and update this page, if it starts to speak to me more. As of now, it’s cool, just not a must wear for me.

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.