Fragrance comparison

#362 Vanille difficile vs Essencial Elixir

Notes, accords, longevity, sillage, seasons and community ratings, side by side.

Updated 19 Oct 2026 786 ratings analysed

#362 Vanille difficile

Le Ré Noir

4.176 votes

Rank #56,491 Warm SpicyMusky

Full profile Similar & dupes

43%scent match

Some overlap

3 wins

Essencial Elixir

Natura · 2017

4.17780 votes

Rank #23,111 PowderyCitrus

Full profile Similar & dupes

Quick verdict

Which one should you pick?

Essencial Elixir takes 3 of 4 categories.

#362 Vanille difficile
Choose it for a warm spicy and musky character. Wins on sillage & projection. Best in fall, evening wear.
Essencial Elixir
Choose it for a powdery and citrus character. Wins on longevity, value for money and fragranxe ranking. Best in winter.

#362 Vanille difficile1/4

Essencial Elixir3/4

Ratings & consensus: Not scored
Community sentiment: Not scored
Longevity: Essencial Elixir
Sillage & projection: #362 Vanille difficile
Value for money: Essencial Elixir
Versatility: Not scored
Note pyramid (duration): Not scored
Fragranxe ranking: Essencial Elixir

Head-to-head breakdown

Every category side by side, with the winner called out.

Fragrance

#362 Vanille difficileLe Ré Noir

Essencial ElixirNatura

Winner

Ratings & consensus

Average rating and ownership split

4.17/ 5 · 6 votes

Have 28%Had 8%Want 64%

4.17/ 5 · 780 votes

Have 82%Had 18%Want 0%

Category winnerNot enough dataRating weighted by vote count

Community sentiment

How voters split from love to hate

33%Love

50%Like

17%Ok

0%Dislike

0%Hate

6 votes · too few to score

60%Love

28%Like

7%Ok

4%Dislike

1%Hate

774 votes

Category winnerNot enough dataMost positive mix (25+ votes)

Longevity & sillage

0–100 community performance scores

⏱ Longevity70

〰 Sillage75

♥ Love / hate79

⏱ Longevity73

〰 Sillage62

♥ Love / hate86

Category winners

LongevityEssencial Elixir

Sillage#362 Vanille difficile

Value for money

How fairly priced voters find it

¤ Price value45

¤ Price value70

Category winnerEssencial ElixirBest value score

Main accords

Strength of each scent family · outlined = shared by both

warm spicy100%

musky92%

vanilla84%

woody77%

powdery69%

leather61%

powdery69%

citrus61%

woody53%

warm spicy30%

Scent match43%Some overlap · both powdery, warm spicy and woody

Note pyramid (duration)

Top, heart and base, with how long each lasts when known · gold = shared

Notes

VanillaCardamomCastoreumCognacMuskBenzoinCivetVetiver

No top / heart / base split published

Top

CardamomBlack PepperPink PepperMandarin OrangeGrapefruitLemonCassisSage

Heart

LeatherLavenderVioletGeranium

Base

CognacVanillaBenzoinSandalwoodCedarMuskVetiverPatchouli

InformationalShared notesVanilla, Cardamom, Cognac and Musk. Durations are only published for #362 Vanille difficile, so this is not scored.

Seasons & time of day

Relative to each fragrance's best season

Spring0

Summer0

Fall100

Winter100

Day35

Night100

Spring37

Summer0

Fall0

Winter100

Day–

Night–

Category winnerNot enough dataMost year-round

Who wears it

Gender appeal votes

Men25

Unisex75

Women0

Date 44%Party 29%Casual 17%Work 10%

Men95

Unisex3

Women1

InformationalProfile onlyAudience is not scored

Ranking & credits

Fragranxe overall rank, nose and launch

Overall rank#56,491

PerfumerValery Sokolov

Launched—

Reviews0

Overall rank#23,111

PerfumerVerônica Kato

Launched2017

Reviews2

Category winnerEssencial ElixirHigher overall rank

In a nutshell

Description & review snapshot

#362 Vanille difficile by Le Ré Noir is not your typical sugary bakery scent. It bites back. The juice hits skin with an immediate splash of boozy cognac and sharp green cardamom before turning dark, leathery, and deeply animalic. Perfumer Valery Sokolov skips the juvenile frosting entirely. Instead, you get raw bourb…

Reviews →

Natura Essencial Elixir is a woody masculine fragrance defined by a complex fusion of cognac, leather, and aromatic spices. Launched in 2017, this scent relies on a robust foundation of patchouli and cedar to deliver a grounded, sophisticated profile. It thrives in autumn and winter, serving as a reliable companion fo…

Reviews →

InformationalRead bothTaste is personal

How we score: ratings blend public fragrance ratings with Fragranxe member votes; longevity, sillage, value and sentiment are community vote scores, and season bars are relative to each fragrance's strongest season. Categories with too little data are shown but not scored. The scent match weighs accord overlap (60%) and shared notes (40%). More in the FAQ.

Common questions

Straight answers from the data above.

Which is better, #362 Vanille difficile or Essencial Elixir?

Essencial Elixir takes 3 of 4 categories. #362 Vanille difficile is rated 4.17/5 from 6 votes; Essencial Elixir is rated 4.17/5 from 780 votes. Choose #362 Vanille difficile for a warm spicy and musky character. Wins on sillage & projection. Best in fall, evening wear. Choose Essencial Elixir for a powdery and citrus character. Wins on longevity, value for money and fragranxe ranking. Best in winter.

Which lasts longer, #362 Vanille difficile or Essencial Elixir?

Essencial Elixir lasts longest (Essencial Elixir 73/100, #362 Vanille difficile 70/100), based on community performance votes.

Which projects more, #362 Vanille difficile or Essencial Elixir?

#362 Vanille difficile projects furthest (#362 Vanille difficile 75/100, Essencial Elixir 62/100), based on community performance votes.

Do #362 Vanille difficile and Essencial Elixir smell similar?

Some overlap: a 43% scent match on Fragranxe. Both share powdery, warm spicy and woody accords. Common notes include Vanilla, Cardamom, Cognac and Musk.

Is #362 Vanille difficile or Essencial Elixir better for summer or winter?

#362 Vanille difficile suits evening wear. Based on community season votes.

What are the notes in #362 Vanille difficile and Essencial Elixir?

#362 Vanille difficile features Vanilla, Cardamom, Castoreum, Cognac and Musk. Essencial Elixir has top notes of Cardamom, Black Pepper, Pink Pepper and Mandarin Orange, heart notes of Leather, Lavender, Violet and Geranium, a base of Cognac, Vanilla, Benzoin and Sandalwood.