Truth for Men by Calvin Klein (2002)

by: Dr. Marlen Elliot Harrison

This is another in a series of bargain fragrance reviews, scents that may be found online or at discount stores for US $25 or less. Leave a comment below for your chance to receive a sample, shipped anywhere in the world, free!

Summary: Calvin Klein’s sixth men’s fragrance was a surprising blend of patchouli,
basil, cedar and “canopy greens” that smells more like wet, freshly sliced plums than the spicy woods that the notes might suggest. Completely unisex, versatile and now sadly discontinued.

Perfumer: Michel Almairac

Try this if you like: Fruity, sweet aromas like plum; green, leafy scents like bamboo or cut grass; cool, wet, metallic aromas.

Pros & Cons: Don’t let all that mention of woods and patchouli fool you! This is one of the least woody, earthy or spicy fragrances I’ve ever tried. Seems to be widely available online at greatly discounted prices; based on fragrance discussion boards and websites seems to be easy to love; offers a fresh, clean, just-out-of-the-shower kind of feeling without resorting to smelling like an Axe body spray. One of CK’s least successful men’s releases—as such that should pique your curiosity.

Calvin Klein Truth for Men Notes: “Aromatic, Sensual and Woody notes, Canopy Greens accord, Sunstruck Resin, Basil, Cardamom, White Patchouli, Red Cedar and Wacapou wood.”—Basenotes

Reminds me of: Weil Bambou, Monsieur 2 de Givenchy (aka Greenergy); L’Artisan Fleur de Liane, Hermès Un Jardin Apres la Mousson, Creed Acqua Fiorentina, Geir by Geir Ness.

Designer’s Description: “Powerful. Masculine. Sexy. Truth Calvin Klein embodies the masculine sexiness reflected by nature and the warmth of the skin. The signature structure of the scent is a core of watery greens accented by aromatic basil and fresh caradamom to create a strong seductive woodiness. A canopy of green accord radiates natural freshness through the fragrance. sunstruck notes glow throughout to recreate nature’s touch. White patchouli, red cedar and wacapou enhance the masculine woods to emulate a raw sensuality.”—CalvinKlein.com

Number of times tested: 100+ times over the last 10 years.

Number of sprays applied for this review: Two sprays to the back of my hand from a bottle I purchased in 2004.

Fragrance strength: Eau de Toilette

Development: (Linear / Average / Complex) By turns sweet, fresh, airy and green,Truth for Men offers the wearer no real surprises as it develops. However, various aspects of the fragrance such as the green leafy basil do have their moments in the spotlight.  

Longevity: (Short / Average / Long-lasting) Always impressive; I get around 8-10 hours from only two sprays.

Sillage: (A Little / Average / A Lot) Not quite as big as other Calvin Klein scents, but still packs a decent punch. Should work well in both warm and cool weather and likely office-safe.

Note about the packaging: A tilted, clear rectangular glass bottle with silver metal sprayer housed in a simple silver, paper box.

Where can I buy it? 100 ml EDP spray testers are as low as $25 USD on Ebay.

The Bottom Line: Happy 13th anniversary my fine, comforting friend! I’ve worn Truthsince its launch in 2002 and haven’t been without a bottle since. One of my ands-down, all-time favorite scents, I’ve wrestled with the women’s version throughout the years: I finally decided I disliked the original but loved both Truth Lush and Truth Sensual Bedtime fragrances. Recently, I realized that my deep attr action to bothL’Artisan Fleur de Liane and Hermès’ ill-fated Un Jardin Aapres la Mousson is due to the similarities they share with Truth for Men.

So, what does it actually smell like? Just look at those advertising images for Truth! They pretty much say it all. Give the male model a plum and place him in a forest and the image is perfectly completed. LOL. What is it with me and plums? Maybe it’s the “canopy greens” accord that reminds me of biting into a juicy, tart greengage plum (hence my reference to Creed’s beautiful Acqua Fiorentina). As for the other notes in the pyramid, I just don’t get them. And this is the most interesting part of Truth for Men.

I do love patchouli and constantly search for the often bitter, earthy notes in Truth for Men but to no avail. Basil? Not in the sense of cooking spices but maybe it adds to the green freshness. Cardamom? No lemony seeds that I can detect, although perhaps this helps with the fragrance’s brightness. Cedar? I don’t detect it and in no way view Truth as a woody fragrance. Wacapou wood? I don’t even know what that is, but Ingeborg Waldinger writes in her article, “The Scent of Wood and its Effects“:

Take, for example, the highly complex “Swiss Mountain Forest” essence. “This is a reconstitution of the environmental fragrance that one finds in a mountain forest made up of larch and stone pine trees, such as in Switzerland’s Engadine Valley, on a sunny October afternoon,” explains Kaiser. In nature, the scent is produced when the sun warms the tree resin and the latter releases musky aromas. “Swiss Mountain Forest” lends an ideal warm aroma to men’s fragrances. A similar result has been achieved with Givaudan’s synthetic base fragrance “Georgywood”: Thanks to this scent, Kaiser was able to replicate the odor of tropical wacapou wood from French Guiana.
 

What does this all add up to? Well, the scent is not foody, woody, citrusy, fruity, spicy, leathery, smoky or floral. “Wet green” is the best way to describe it. Those in love with fragrances like Balmain’s Vent Vert or even Chanel N^o. 19 EDT would do well to give Truth for Men a try. It’s an unlikely comparison to such illustrious reations, I know, but truthfully, this is easily a unisex aroma, highly affordable and very easy to wear.