It appears that Zara has just slammed “winter” and “summer “respectively on the front of the original bottles and then put them in red boxes instead of white ones, but although Red Temptation Winter and Red Temptation Summer are related to their cousin Red Temptation, to me, these are far enough away from the originally DNA for me to consider them distant cousins.
Zara’s original Red Temptation is a dupe for Kaison Francis Kurkdjian’s incredible top-rated fragrance Baccarat Rouge 540. Red Temptation Winter by Zara was launched in 2022. However, it did not get to my Zara store in Japan until just last year, unless I’ve missed something.
Red Temptation Winter
Red Temptation Winter is an EDP with “sweet notes” which translates to me as thin, powered latex rubber gloves filled with sticky marshmallow goo. There are woody cedar and patchouli tones in the background and a warm fruity and slightly metallic almond paste feel acting as props. It does bear semblance to Red Temptation in the air, but on skin, I don’t care for the gooey sweet notes.
- saffron, sweet notes,
- jasmine, fruits,
- cedar, patchouli
There is indeed the burning sugar vibe associated with Red T and of course, the fragrances then spawned all of the craziness – BR540 and 540 Extrait. Some people have likened this to BR540 Extrait but I’m sorry, the burning sugar, saffron cotton candy thing is all that is in common, if that. Red Temptation Elixer is more like BR540 Extrait, in my opinion. This Winter flanker is… something else entirely. There is a party for the plastics in here, and I don’t mean the “Mean Girls” variety, I mean the literal plastics: latex, shower curtains, cling wrap, ziplock bags, water bottles, and Tupperware containers all warmed up enough to get them sweating out their plastic-y aromas and at the same time toasting up the cookies, candy, and other sugary delights they are housing. The smell is very synthetic and sweet, and I’m sure that many fans are like flies to the flame with this fragrance. It’s interesting, but not as good as the original or the Elixer in my opinion.
And I have said this before – I am not a fan of marshmallow in fragrance. Now, there is supposedly no marshmallow in here and I admit I am not picking up any today, but I swear, it was there the last two times I tried it! There is some citrus in here but it’s neither sharp nor fresh, more of the orange variety, I guess – Baked oranges with plastic sprinkles. Now later into the fragrance, you get sugar-coated, toasted almonds blended up into a creamy paste along with some Cedarwood chip, and gobs full of Ambrox or something similar to keep it light and airy despite the patchouli at the base. I guess it’s not bad, but too much plastic. I’m going to say pass on this one.
Red Temptation Summer
Red Temptation Summer, launched in 2023, is completely different, and thankfully, much better.
- lychee, raspberry,
- rose petals, peony,
- amber, praline, musk
This one is very peony-dominant and long-lasting, with tarty-fruity yumminess on a niche level. Think Armani Pivoine Suzhou which has a lot of the same notes, or how about Dior Holy Peony, which I have here in mini format. Nah, maybe not – this is greener without all the sugar the Zara frag has. Sadly, I think the Zara outperforms the Dior, though, and that is saying something. A lot of these beautiful Maison Dior fragrances are so not worth the money when judged solely on performance standards. Some people have likened this one to Bond No.9’s Greenwich Village, but I cannot confirm. Anyway, I don’t think this fragrance is on the same quality level as some fancier brands, but the smell does at least try to take me there.
This is an ambery floral blend. I do tend to favor fragrances that are amber-dominant, especially when you add praline to the mix. It’s a little addictive and the texture with that musk and again Ambrox or something like it at the base is enticing. It’s a little girly, though, which in my case limits its use because I ain’t no spring chicken – I have to be in the mood for chocolate raspberries. It’s someone’s everyday scent for sure, but not mine. More of a Saturday afternoon at a baseball game. But I don’t enjoy watching baseball. Zara describes this one as sensual. No. The lychee (lee mandarin lie Cantonese) makes it too sweet. A flirtatious, high-calorie wink, sure, but there is no silk, feathers, tenderness, licking, or inappropriate-but-welcome touching with this fragrance. It’s PG13.
Both these fragrances are different enough from the original Red Temptation to not be considered flankers. Honestly, I don’t get enough of the Red Temptation DNA in either of these fragrances for it to be obvious. This means that Zara was probably simply spinning off the success of Red Temptation in its marketing. Not deplorable, but not respectable either. I don’t get heavy BR540 vibes in these either. Just a little, perhaps. Now that I think about it, the summer flanker reminds me a little of Burberry Her, which is a fruity version of BR540 created by the same perfumer Do these flankers suck, then? Well, no, but I wouldn’t recommend either of these, even if, unlike me, you like plastic-y marshmallow smells. Both of these flankers have typical Zara performance, meaning crapola. And neither of these is as good as the original Red Temptation and the Elixer.
I thought it would be interesting if I shared the note profiles of the four Red Temptation fragrances I have reviewed on this channel so you can see the difference, not that will help you smell or imagine the smell, necessarily, but I think it’s interesting. Here you go:
- Red Temptation: saffron, bitter orange, coriander, praline, jasmine, amber, moss, musk
- Red Temptation Elixir: saffron, bitter orange, coriander, praline, jasmine, woody notes, amber, musk
- Red Temptation Winter: saffron, sweet notes, jasmine, fruits, cedar, patchouli
- Red Temptation Summer: lychee, raspberry, rose petals, peony, amber, praline, musk
Believe it or not, there is another Red Temptation flanker coming out. Well, technically not a flanker; it’s the love child or a Frankenstein blend, depending on your view, of the two best fragrances Zara has made, in my opinion, which are Rose Gourmand and yes, Red Temptation. I prefer the Elixir now that I think about it, but anyway. I guess I might have to buy this one now. it’s called Love Explosion, and it probably will have just been released by the time this video is out. As I speak it is not yet available. And you know, if it’s just a straight combo, who’s to say there is anything wrong with simply layering the two?