I have used TBOS Eaton College because it is a citrus scent and I like that family of scents. This particular one is a little too sweet for me though. Does anyone know of a great citrus type scent that is a little more brisk and tart . . . . less cloyingly sweet? Thanks.
Citrus scent recommendation
- Thread starter umgowa997
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I like Penhaligon's Douro, but would have to re-visit it to make any comments on "brisk & tart...".
Basenotes reviews
Basenotes reviews
Try a lime scent. Old Spice Lime is available from online vendors. Not expensive, but shipping takes a while from offshore vendors.
Monsieur Balmain. Mostly a combination of lemon/lime and sandalwood, this one starts out with a citrus blast but then settles into something much mellower, and not sweet at all. Really a nice, underrated scent, and the price is right, too.
Another idea would be GFT.
Chanel Pour Monsieur is good, but I understand the concentrated version may have too much vanilla. Neiman's carries it. Try for the original non-sweet version. It opens with citrus, but has a sharpness underneath that keeps it from being cloying.
The greatest citrus of all time was Lanvin for Men (1979) which I wore when I was in college. It dried down to the same sharpness, but with more umph and sillage. If you are listening Lanvin, please bring it back (without tampering with it). We really need frags like this today, and this frag could never be accused of being a "dated" powerhouse.
The greatest citrus of all time was Lanvin for Men (1979) which I wore when I was in college. It dried down to the same sharpness, but with more umph and sillage. If you are listening Lanvin, please bring it back (without tampering with it). We really need frags like this today, and this frag could never be accused of being a "dated" powerhouse.
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Someone who knows TOBS Eton better than I do can probably be of more help that I can!
Are you looking for lemon, lime, orange, or even grapefruit, or some mix or not quite discernable specifc note, but still citrus? Sounds like you want sharp not soft. Fresh not "dusty." Pure citrus, or is some floral okay? Clean or dirty? "Dirty" meaning animalic to me. "Dusty" meaning subdued and aged smelling. Musty might be a better word. I am guessing it is this British musty/dustiness you are not liking so much. You may want to steer toward the Italian scents and away from the Brits, to get fresher citrus notes, which is contrary to what I am going to say below. Acqua de Parma, Santa Maria Novella maybe.
Pen's BB is lemon and not sweet. Not sure it is "brisk." Also piney, peppery, and a little dirty. You might search for lemon on this forum and see what we have come up with before. Bowling Green has some lemon and is brisk, but will also be more piney. Cefrio by Floris might actually be more what you are looking for, although it starts fresher than it ends up. Issey is an amazing lemon. Incredible tenacity and true funk. Brght and brisk do not come to mind, but it is not dusty either! Eau de Saivage is very classic lemon that as I recall is rather fresh.
Someone who is into lime more than I am can probably make a call on limes better than I can. C&S Cuba has lime, but along with lots of other stuff, and is fairly contoversial. Old Spice Lime as someone said, if very nice.
Orange? Anything that says Portugal on it probably. Trumpers Portugal is pretty fresh, but it is very orange. Nerolis are flowery orange. I like C&S myself. Fairly "bright" and more than a bit dirty. Pinaud Eau de Portugal is a fairly dry orange/neroli with some dirt.
Grapefruit? C&S Citrus Paradisi is very bright and very dirty. Chaumet is lighter and bright and clean, if you can find it.
Bond No. 9 LIttle Italy is an incredible take on mixed citrus to me. Very clean and very bright. i would say brisk. I am told Creed Citrus Bigarrade is similar in concept, have not tried it though.
I truely love Pen's Douro but I am not sure I would classify it is citrus or not. Complex. Near unique to me. Pen's calls it an eau de Portugal, I think, but it is unlike any other EdP I have ever sniffed, to me, anyway.
Are you looking for lemon, lime, orange, or even grapefruit, or some mix or not quite discernable specifc note, but still citrus? Sounds like you want sharp not soft. Fresh not "dusty." Pure citrus, or is some floral okay? Clean or dirty? "Dirty" meaning animalic to me. "Dusty" meaning subdued and aged smelling. Musty might be a better word. I am guessing it is this British musty/dustiness you are not liking so much. You may want to steer toward the Italian scents and away from the Brits, to get fresher citrus notes, which is contrary to what I am going to say below. Acqua de Parma, Santa Maria Novella maybe.
Pen's BB is lemon and not sweet. Not sure it is "brisk." Also piney, peppery, and a little dirty. You might search for lemon on this forum and see what we have come up with before. Bowling Green has some lemon and is brisk, but will also be more piney. Cefrio by Floris might actually be more what you are looking for, although it starts fresher than it ends up. Issey is an amazing lemon. Incredible tenacity and true funk. Brght and brisk do not come to mind, but it is not dusty either! Eau de Saivage is very classic lemon that as I recall is rather fresh.
Someone who is into lime more than I am can probably make a call on limes better than I can. C&S Cuba has lime, but along with lots of other stuff, and is fairly contoversial. Old Spice Lime as someone said, if very nice.
Orange? Anything that says Portugal on it probably. Trumpers Portugal is pretty fresh, but it is very orange. Nerolis are flowery orange. I like C&S myself. Fairly "bright" and more than a bit dirty. Pinaud Eau de Portugal is a fairly dry orange/neroli with some dirt.
Grapefruit? C&S Citrus Paradisi is very bright and very dirty. Chaumet is lighter and bright and clean, if you can find it.
Bond No. 9 LIttle Italy is an incredible take on mixed citrus to me. Very clean and very bright. i would say brisk. I am told Creed Citrus Bigarrade is similar in concept, have not tried it though.
I truely love Pen's Douro but I am not sure I would classify it is citrus or not. Complex. Near unique to me. Pen's calls it an eau de Portugal, I think, but it is unlike any other EdP I have ever sniffed, to me, anyway.
Chanel Pour Monsieur Concentre is the commonly available version these days through many US retail outlets. It is a nice scent, the vanilla is a bit pronounced. It's a good, elegant wetshaver scent for sure.
The original Chanel Pour Monsieur is MUCH tougher to find and is considered by many to be one of the gold standard scents. Much more citrus dominant.
But, and for me it's a big "but," it is reportedly a very, very fleeting scent. Longevity is often reported to be extremely short.
It is not sold at the retail level in US. It is still availabe in Europe. Once in awhile, it can be found at odd independent perfume stores in US. One near me carries it. It can be found online, but you have to be extremely exacting. There is a tendency for retailers online and in store to consider the "concentre" version one and the same as the non concentre version.
Sorry to go on and on, but this is one I ran down awhile back. The Concentre version comes in a tall rectangular bottle and is yellowish. The non-concentre version is in a tall square bottle and is greenish.
The plethora of 'it smells great but doesn't last" coments spooked me from ever purchasing the original version. The concentre version a bit short on legs for my taste too.
I'm not a big fan of citrus scents. Part of the reason is that most I know of are pretty short lived. It may not be an issue for you and others here may suggest some that are pretty long lasting.
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Couple of suggestions ...
- Penhaligon's Extract of Limes
- Creed Bois de Cedrat
- C&S Neroli
The Neroli in particular might fit the OP's request. It's not sweet at all, and the neroli overtones lend it an intriguing, "dirty" edge.
While they smell great going on, both Creed's & Pen's frags are gone all too fast. I suppose you could bring a little atomizer to refresh either of them during the day if you wanted to. I wouldn't be inclined to do that, but it's a thought. Again though, both of them smell great. BdC in particular, with its opening blast of lemons & mandarin, is really nice.
Good stuff!
- Penhaligon's Extract of Limes
- Creed Bois de Cedrat
- C&S Neroli
The Neroli in particular might fit the OP's request. It's not sweet at all, and the neroli overtones lend it an intriguing, "dirty" edge.
While they smell great going on, both Creed's & Pen's frags are gone all too fast. I suppose you could bring a little atomizer to refresh either of them during the day if you wanted to. I wouldn't be inclined to do that, but it's a thought. Again though, both of them smell great. BdC in particular, with its opening blast of lemons & mandarin, is really nice.
Good stuff!
I like Douro, and I would classify it as citrus, but I don't think it's "brisk and tart."
Pen's Extract of Limes is nice based on one sample I had. (I once got scolded for calling it "nice" on here by someone who really likes it.
)Thanks Stylin LA, I wondered if you could find the "original" version in the US. I wore both the Chanel and the Lanvin in the early 1980's. Frankly, I don't remember the Chanel saying "Chanel Monsieur" then, but rather Chanel for Men. However, the mind does play tricks. At least at that time, the Chanel had a citrus that would hold on a while, or at least better than citrus usually does.
The Lanvin was the Chanel Monsieur done right (or even better lets say). What I would give for a bottle of that now.
The Lanvin was the Chanel Monsieur done right (or even better lets say). What I would give for a bottle of that now.
This seems to be the original I reference. But as a nervous nelly with this scent's history, I would pin down any online retailer I bought from. They don't get the difference between the two often.
http://www.amazon.com/Chanel-Monsieur-Toilette-Fragrance-Luxurious/dp/B0032DRIHA
I don't think of it as predominantly citrus fragrance, but there many fume heads who think TIFFANY FOR MEN is a better execution of the original Chanel Pour Monsieur. It was developed by the same perfumer that did CPM.
It's very reasonable and OP may want to sample it.
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For a readily available citrus fragrance, what about Armani Eau Pour Homme? It strikes me as fairly long lasting.
Another option would be 4711's Portugal EdP. There is also an aftershave and an EdC, but the EdP is the strongest of the three.
Another option would be 4711's Portugal EdP. There is also an aftershave and an EdC, but the EdP is the strongest of the three.
T&H 1805 has bergamot and mandarin top notes. I like it, but it borderlines on sweet. The middle and base notes are pronounced enough that it's like you only get 'waves' of citrus if that makes any scent.
They also make West Indian Limes. Definitely citrus, not really sweet at all. Wasn't my thing, but it was a high quality scent and gets good reviews around here.
They also make West Indian Limes. Definitely citrus, not really sweet at all. Wasn't my thing, but it was a high quality scent and gets good reviews around here.
Yves Saint Laurent - Pour Homme
good lemon.
good lemon.
S
Sam
Acqua di Parma Colonia or Colonia Assoluta
One citrus scent I really enjoy is Caswell-Massey No. 6. It has a touch of sweetness, but it's a real classic.
Here's another. Orangey, but also citrusy across the board, if recall--that is citrusy besides orange as well as orange: Hermes--Eau d'Orange Verte.
A few more options are:
Eau de Guerlain
Eau Sauvage- Dior
Monsieur Givenchy
Eau de Guerlain
Eau Sauvage- Dior
Monsieur Givenchy
+1 for Eau Sauvage and Eau d'Orange Verte.
Check out Terre d'Hermes which is outstanding. I don't know if it is what You are looking for.
Check out Terre d'Hermes which is outstanding. I don't know if it is what You are looking for.
