Founded in 1978, Diesel is an Italian luxury clothing and fragrance brand that has exploded world-wide. The best Diesel fragrances for men combine incredibly bold scents with a generous splash of male confidence. Their flagship fragrance, Only The Brave, has seen phenomenal success due to its heady cocktail of notes and that jaw-dropping fist-shaped bottle design.
As well as luxury fragrance, Diesel also offers high-quality designer clothing, accessories. Their sunglasses and jeans are particularly in demand and spotted being worn by A-list celebrities such as Brad Pitt and Zac Efron.
With now over 25 exiting Diesel men’s scents released to-date, we review 8 of the best Diesel fragrances that every man should consider. These attention-grabbing male fragrances are not for the faint-hearted, but rather for the modern man who wants to add a touch of daring to his life. Are you Only-The-Brave enough?
8 Best Diesel Fragrances For Men Reviewed
The best Diesel fragrances for men combine zesty fruits with spices and deeper notes of wood, amber and tobacco that are bold and attention-grabbing. We review 8 Diesel scents for your attention.
1. Only The Brave Eau de Toilette
Review
Launched in 2009, Only The Brave Eau de Toilette is a crowd-pleasing oriental woody men’s fragrance that blends citrus with sweet amber and luxurious leather. Olivier Polge, Alienor Massenet and Pierre Wargnye were the noses behind this classy male fragrance.
The opening of Only The Brave is bright, with fresh notes of lemon and orange. These soon bleed into a heart of coriander dusted violet and a hind of woods. The base is where the action happens, with warningly sweet amber and a luxurious leather notes that really shine once this frag fully settles.
As for when to wear, Only The Brave is a versatile fragrance. The fresh citrus notes lean more towards spring/summer, yet the amber/leather combo cover you for autumn/winter. Can be worn day or night to any occasion, casual or formal.
Performance is good, so expect 5+ hours of longevity before it becomes a skin scent. Sillage and projection during this time are moderate/strong.
Overall, Only The Brave Eau de Toilette is a highly underrated men’s fragrance that deserves your attention. Its classy, manly and gets lots of compliments. Initially clean and fresh then dries down into an elegant amber/leather scent.
Top Notes:
Amalfi Lemon, Mandarin Orange
Mid Notes:
Violet, Virginia Cedar, Coriander
Base Notes:
Amber, Leather, Benzoin, Labdanum, Styrax
Price & Reviews
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2. Only The Brave Tattoo Eau de Toilette
Review
Only The Brave Tattoo Eau de Toilette is a sexy combination of fruits, tobacco and spicy/sweet resin that will grab the attention of pretty much everyone. This flanker dries down into a darker and more mysterious version of the original OTB.
Opening with crisp apple and juicy mandarin orange, Only The Brave Tattoo feels like it will be a summer scent. However, after a few minutes, you are greeted with peppery notes and sage that add a welcome layer of spiced herbs.
Upon dry-down, this fragrance pivots to become more or a cool weather scent, with luxury pipe tobacco, resin and woods. There is also a hint of earthy patchouli.
As for when to wear, this is one to wear for the evening. More autumn/winter and creeping into spring, Tattoo smells refined and grown-up. Can be worn as a casual evening scent, or a full-on clubbing fragrance and everything in between.
Performance is surprisingly good for an EDT, you can expect 6+ hours of longevity. Sillage and projection during this time are moderate/strong.
Overall, Only The Brave Tattoo is a sexy masculine evening fragrance that begins fruity with a dusting of pepper, then brings in tobacco and resin as it settles. As good as many high-price designer scents.
Top Notes:
Red Apple, Mandarin Orange
Mid Notes:
Pepper, Sage
Base Notes:
Tobacco, Benzoin, Woody Notes, Patchouli
Price & Reviews
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3. Only The Brave Street Eau de Toilette
Review
Launched in 2018, Only The Brave Street Eau de Toilette is a spicy/fresh masculine scent designed for the urban man. The nose behind this streetwise fragrance is perfumer Nelly Hachem-Ruiz.
The opening is clean and fresh with herb notes of basil and thyme, crisp apple and zesty bergamot. A heart of liquorice is most profound and backed up by spicy cardamom and a hint of sweet jasmine coming from hedione. Upon dry-down, a vanilla base mingles with the liquorice heart. Light woody notes are also present.
As for when to wear, for me, Only The Brave Street is an any-season fragrance. It’s fresh enough for spring/summer wear, plus the vanilla and liquorice combo are inviting enough for autumn/winter. I would say this is one to be used as a post-gym fragrance, and discreet office scent or even a chilled bedtime scent due to the last of performance.
Alas, performance is poor, you can only expect 2+ hours of longevity before it fades. Sillage and projection are also modest.
Overall, Only The Brave Street edition is a modern spicy/fresh masculine fragrance with an unusual pairing of liquorice and vanilla. Not very long-lasting would be my only complaint.
Top Notes:
Basil, Apple, Bergamot, Thyme
Mid Notes:
Liquorice, Cardamom, Hedione
Base Notes:
Vanilla, Amberwood, Vetiver, Patchouli, Cedar
Price & Reviews
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4. Spirit Of The Brave Eau de Parfum
Review
Spirit Of The Brave Eau de Parfum is a 2019 launch from the brand that is woody, aromatic and spicy/fresh. This is an exciting deviation from the usual Diesel scents, as does not seem to share the same DNA to the rest of the collection (aside from the Intense version that we review next).
An opening of crisp, zesty bergamot and the bitter-green note of galbanum ensure this fragrance really grabs your attention fro the start. A heart of pine forest scents of fir and slightly smokey cypress give a real outdoors with a nature vibe. Upon dry-down, hints of almond/vanilla come from tonka bean, while labdanum injects a musky sweetness.
As for when to wear, Spirit Of The Brave is better suited for the changing seasons of spring/autumn. Leans slightly more towards daytime wear and would make a perfect office-safe scent that smells manly yet confident and professional.
Performance is average, so expect 4+ hours of longevity before it becomes a skin scent. Sillage and projection during this time are moderate/strong.
Overall, Spirit Of The Brave has a forest-fresh opening with a splash of citrus and dries down to a tonka bean vanilla note. Great if you are looking for a fresh and light spring/autumn scent that is equally suited to casual wear or more formal.
Top Notes:
Bergamot, Galbanum
Mid Notes:
Fir, Cypress
Base Notes:
Tonka Bean, Labdanum
Price & Reviews
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5. Spirit Of The Brave Intense Eau de Parfum
Review
Spirit Of The Brave Intense Eau de Parfum is the 2020 Intense release without the bitter galbanum hit from the original SOT, plus it cranks up the vanilla.
The opening is crisp, with sharp apple and zesty bergamot, but no bitterness. Herb notes of sage combined with slightly smokey cypress give a subtle outdoors vibe. The dry-down is more crowd-pleasing than the non-intense version, it’s more vanilla in its delivery with hints of warm amber and earthy patchouli.
As for when to wear, like the original SOTB, Spirit Of The Brave Intense is suited to spring/autumn. Once this fragrance fully settles, it becomes a day to night fragrance. Equally wearable in the office, dinner dates, or even a bar or club. Not a full-on ‘please-notice-me-everyone’ clubbing fragrance, but more refined and unusual.
Performance is good, you can expect 5-6 hours of longevity before it fades. Sillage and projection are somewhere between moderate and strong.
Overall, Spirit Of The Brave Intense is a longer-lasting version of the non Intense version that reveals a creamier vanilla persona. If you found the original Spirit Of The Brave too close to nature, give this version a try but let it dry down before you decide. I preferred this version over the non-intense.
Top Notes:
Apple, Bergamot
Mid Notes:
Cypress, Sage
Base Notes:
Vanilla, Patchouli, Amber
Price & Reviews
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6. BAD Eau de Toilette
Review
When you invite the likes of Anne Flipo and Carlos Benaim to create a scent, you can expect something special. Bad Eau de Toilette is an aromatic woody fragrance that incorporates an array of delicate notes that simply oozes class.
This scent opens with fragrant lavender drenched in zesty bergamot and dusted with spicy cardamom. A salty heart (presumably from the caviar note) is softened by the deep floral note of orris root. Upon dry-down, a woody base soon presents itself, alongside rich tobacco and hints of vanilla.
As for when to wear, Bad Eau de Toilette screams autumn/winter. For me, it feels more late afternoon and evening wear. Leaning more towards formal than casual, I would (and have) happily wear this out for drinks or dinner.
Performance is reasonably good at 4+ hours of longevity with decent sillage and projection for at least 3 hours. Shame they don’t have an ‘intense’ version… oh they do… and it’s up next!
Overall, for mass-appeal that keeps the notes relatively safe, BAD Eau de Parfum certainly delivers. It’s not ground-breaking but unquestionably manly, classy and well-rounded.
It seems that several youtube influencers have all jumped on the ‘its called BAD, so we will say it’s terrible to get more views’ bandwagon. I personally disagree and feel BAD Eau de Parfum well worth checking out.
Top Notes:
Lavender, Bergamot, Cardamom, Violet Leaf
Mid Notes:
Caviar, Orris Root, Sage
Base Notes:
Woody Notes, Tobacco, Tonka Bean, Ambroxan, Patchouli
Price & Reviews
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7. BAD Intense Eau de Parfum
Review
BAD Intense Eau de Parfum is the darker and moodier older brother of the original BAD fragrance. With deep woods, spices, and lush tobacco topped, this fragrance gets compliments galore.
The opening is a spicy/sweet combination of nutmeg and cinnamon with a citrus splash of bergamot. A salty heart adds an almost marine vibe that mingles with saffron and black pepper, especially the cinnamon. Upon dry-down, moody notes of rich tobacco and deep woody notes bring luxurious glamour. There are hints of tonka/vanilla to my nose.
As for when to wear, Bad Intense Eau de Parfum is one to bring out in the cooler autumn and winter months. Those deep notes of tobacco and woods fused with spices and salty notes make for an extravagant evening fragrance. It feels quite formal.
Performance is good, and you can expect 6+ hours of performance with decent sillage and projection. You can even squeeze more of out this fragrance of you spray clothing.
Overall, if you are searching for a sophisticated evening fragrance that receives compliments, then look no further. BAD Intense Eau de Parfum is a crowd-pleasing moody combination of wood, tobacco and spices that smells luxurious.
Top Notes:
Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Bergamot
Mid Notes:
Caviar, Saffron, Black pepper
Base Notes:
White tobacco, Woody notes, Vanilla
Price & Reviews
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8. Fuel For Life Man Eau de Toilette
Review
Fuel For Life Man Eau de Toilette is a young and vibrant masculine fragrance that pairs anise, raspberry and a splash of citrus to stunning effect. Perfumers Annick Menardo and Jacques Cavallier have produced a thoroughly unique fragrance.
The opening is quite abrupt, with the liquorice note of anise is drenched in zesty grapefruit that cuts like a knife. A heart of fragrant lavender and sweet raspberry soon soften the edges of the initial open. Upon dry-down, woody notes mixed with the light cherry-vanilla scent of heliotrope certainly get attention.
As for when to wear, Fuel For Life Man is a casual daytime scent that leans towards the temperate seasons of spring and autumn. Anise, raspberry and lavender are the perfect combination for chilly spring days, plus the woody notes add warmth for autumn.
The longevity of this scent is excellent, 5+ hours is no problem with decent sillage and projection. The raspberry and anise combo lasted longer than I expected. Be careful as this is a beat fragrance for the first hour.
Overall, Fuel For Life Man is a unique smelling everyday masculine fragrance. It starts off ultra-fresh, then settles into a light woody frag with sweet raspberry and an anise kick. Excellent.
Top Notes:
Anise, Grapefruit
Mid Notes:
Raspberry, Lavender
Base Notes:
Woody Notes, Heliotrope
Price & Reviews
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So, What Diesel Cologne Smells The Best?
We found that the best smelling Diesel fragrance for men is Only The Brave Tattoo Eau de Toilette. The fresh and crisp fruity opening is balanced by a heart of pepper and sage. It dries down to rich notes of amber, tobacco and resin notes feel elegant and refined. Longevity is 6+ hours, so this fragrance lasts really well.
Official Diesel Fragrance Promo
Conclusion
Diesel has composed a contemporary collection of men’s fragrances that are all incredibly wearable. The best Diesel fragrances for men combine an array of bold and attention-grabbing notes that are contained in strikingly styled bottles.
Only The Brave tend to have a zesty opening that dries down into a moody cloud of herbs, spices, woods and amber. Spirit Of The Brave introduces crisp apple, fresh cypress and vanilla smelling tonka bean for a more daring cocktail of notes. The BAD collection is more formal and elegant, while Fuel For Life Man stands out there on its own as a bit of a trailblazer. Also consider attention-grabbing men’s fragrances from Versace that we have reviewed recently.
Further Reading
Below are some additional articles from Viora London’s blog. We write articles on a number of interesting lifestyle topics such as fragrance, beauty, luxury accessories and more.
