With the scents of suede, juniper berry, tobacco leaves, absinthe and coffee, I can’t help but think Calvin Klein’s new scent CK FREE was inspired after a night of drinking then crashing on a buddy’s couch. The cologne is designed to inspire the modern man to live free, casual and relaxed with a brand that says, “Escape from the daily grind!” It’s not so much a “F*ck establishment” kind of escape more than it is a, “I make six figures, own a pair of boat shoes and I can afford to escape the daily grind” kind of escape the daily grind.

When I heard about this new scent designed, ideally, for guys like me, I was pretty excited to try it out. So, yes, I do identify myself as a man attracted that lifestyle. I do like the scents of ‘fresh laundry’ or perhaps a ‘citrus mix’ and I pretty much avoid wearing anything that smells too dark or musky. I am definitely a modern man, a weekend metrosexual with a closeted love for an ol’ fashioned slice of good ol’ American freedom (ooowee).

The cologne comes in a transparent aqua blue bottle, slim with smooth rounded edges, it’s as close to ripped as a cologne bottle can come these days.

…no dudes in mirrored wrap around sunglasses, neoprene holders and muscle shirts making a run to the Dollar store to pick up a bottle of “If you love CK Free you’ll love Without Limits”…

It does give off the impression that it’s an easy going ‘daytime’ scent that can transition to drinks after work. Yeah, I wore CK Free on a few occasions and found that, overall, it smelled nice but nothing really stood out. It’s not unforgettable like the CK scents of the late nineties like One and Be. I really don’t see any knock offs materializing here, no dudes in mirrored wrap around sunglasses, neoprene holders and muscle shirts making a run to the Dollar store to pick up a bottle of “If you love CK Free you’ll love Without Limits” There nothing distinct, as Mings (aka – Karmacake) put it, CK Free “…smells like man”.

The cologne comes out really strong when it first goes on. Karmacake can’t help but drop, “My, that’s a formidable scent!” every time it gets sprayed. Luckily, the smell calms down after a few hours so you don’t end up smoking out the elevator on your way into work. Powerful or not, it’s still not in the same class as Calvin Klein’s former scents; more along the lines of something American Eagle or Hollister spray the store with – it definitely yells ‘young shooter’. It’s an inoffensive men’s fragrance that comes on strong and backs off after some time. Coincidentally, like most young shooters.

Want to find out if you’ll agree with what I had to say? Want to get a bottle of CK Free for yourself?

Luckily for Karmacake readers, Matchstick has provided us with a second bottle of CK Free that we’ll be giving away along with a Calvin Klein slim-line laptop bag. All you have to do is leave a comment below and fill in this survey then we’re choosing one person at random to win!

Anything free is good, especially CK Free!