Hemingway on Penhaligans

[Btlzu2]

Penhaligon's is MY ALL TIME FAVORITE. The best smelling scent, the best ASB, the total package. I love it.

Too bad you didn't.

 

[Mick]

Ouch! The spell check hurts! I know it was a rant. I just spent a lot of money and the scent lasts about 30 minutes. With my body chem! As in your face as my thread was I deserve some backlash. Just really disappointed!

I take it you bought Blenheim Bouquet?

Nice scent but not long lasting at all.

 

[crfcom]

When I think of Penhaligon's, I also think of Creed. For myself, there is only one offering from each of these two houses that interests me, but those two are both classic scents IMO. Sartorial and Bois Du Portugal are two of the finest frags I've ever tried, and other than those two, nothing else from either house works for me. When you think of it, though, a lot of people would also say the same thing about Montales (one of my favorite houses). What's "good" and what's "bad" is all just subjective and personal, so the best advice anyone can offer or receive, when it comes to fragrance selection, is buy samples. Lots of them. Don't be afraid to buy some of them over and over.Don't invest in a bottle until you know you want it, especially with the niche houses. These people are artists in what they do, and are only true to an ideal in their own heart, not necessarily yours. You may, or may not, agree with their ideals, and with niche houses and their scents, unlike designer houses, when you don't agree with their ideals, you REALLY won't agree, because they don't play safe. On the other hand, when you find a niche fragrance you like, you'll REALLY like it. If you enjoy fine frags, its worth the effort. I don't know if you call Penhaligon's or Creed niche anymore, but it sounds like you may enjoy exploring, via samples, some of the inch houses that are known for the strength and longevity of their scents, such as Mazzalori, Montales, Le Labo, etc. Just a thought.

 

[mdevine]

With Penhaligon, as with just about any house that has multiple offerings, you're likely to have some you like, and some you don't. Some seem to have a "house note" that give many of their scents a similarity during the dry down; examples include Creed's ambergris and sandalwood, and Amouage's frankincense. I don't have a lot of Penhaligon's in my collection, but I am a big fan of Sartorial.

Mike

 

[bodistaffa]

Wow some zing full answers. I really appreciate the angle most had when answering this thread. Discovering B&B has made me realize that I enjoy the scent aspect of all what's involved in this thing we call wet shaving! When it comes to most aspects here on the site, the knowledge, education and the mere brilliance of the members have truly amazed me. The problem I have in the Fragrance section is the companies at the top of the market appear to be praying on YMMV concept. The staying power should be the staying power. Some of the fragrances have the longevity of a $9 bottle of bay rum!

 

[Craig_From_Cincy]

Opinions are like (you know what), everybody has one.

Blenheim Bouquet and English Fern, to me, are true classics and last hours on my skin. They are scents from a different age, the Edwardian era to be precise. To the noses of those reared on modern department store scents many of Penhaligon's colognes will no doubt smell unfamiliar, odd even. To my nose, and those of many others, these scents are both classy and classic. You are free to like them or not-it's a free country and Vive La Différence. Whether you like Penhaligon's colognes and aftershaves or not, they are not of poor quality and there's no need to bash them just because they aren't to your particular taste.

The staying power should be the staying power. Some of the fragrances have the longevity of a $9 bottle of bay rum!

Any particular scent will last for varying lengths on any two different individuals. BB and EF last hours on me. YMMV.

 

[Oscroft]

To the noses of those reared on modern department store scents many of Penhaligon's colognes will no doubt smell unfamiliar, odd even. To my nose, and those of many others, these scents are both classy and classic.

Yep, I agree - there really is a difference in the style of fragrance between Penhaligon's and modern fragrance-department scents (I have plenty of the latter and like them a lot, but there's that something...). I just wish I could get that few hours from EF.

 

[The Nid Hog]

There's a famous Zen koan that goes, "If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him." You could read this a lot of different ways, but I take it to mean that you shouldn't accept any authority without questioning it. If you find some good reviews of something, make sure you compare it to bad reviews. Try things at different times in different seasons. Above all, get samples before you buy a whole bottle. There is certainly a lot of love for Pens at B&B, but it's far from unanimous. Listen to the advice that other people give you (including this) but make your own informed decisions in the end. That way, there won't be any recriminations about how you got led down the primrose path.

 

[Cuttingboard]

Its Penhaligon's and I don't understand why you're comparing yourself to Hemingway. Anyway...buy a sample scent library next time.

 

[babydials]

I really like their English Fern (as in I own a bottle). Sartorial started out ok, but went pretty badly on me, glad I did not blind buy this one.