Heno de Pravia, or Acqua di Parma eat your heart out!

[Kevan]

So I pulled the trigger on a blind buy of Heno de Pravia. I got the soap and the Eau de Cologne, not knowing at all what to expect. All I wanted was a cheap, fresh new scent for summer. And this classic Eau de Cologne from 1905 has enough character to differentiate it from the other classics of that era.

It's a unisex scent that apparently is supposed to capture the aroma of fresh mown hay. I don't know about that but it's certainly old-world freshness in a bottle. In fact, the topnotes are EXACTLY like those of Acqua di Parma Colonia. Like, 99% identical. It evolves differently though, becoming less floral and more "clean/fresh" in the drydown, and whereas AdP lasts about 30 minutes on me, the Heno de Pravia lasts 2-3 hours. And with the 150ml bottle, it's quite a good value for under $13. A larger bottle of the after-shower splash is also available.

Any concerns about it being too much on the feminine side of "unisex" disappear quickly. It's soapy and clean, perfect for summer.

 

[Cuttingboard]

Awesome but the aroma of hay does not appeal to me.

 

[Kevan]

I don't know where they get "hay" all I know is that it's clean, fresh awesomeness.

 

[HoratioCaine]

The time I sniffed it, which was several years ago, Heno de Pravia struck me as being nearly a dead ringer for the scent of Musgo Real shaving cream. (Musgo is supposed to smell like hay flower, rather than hay, if that makes any difference.) I may need to revisit it to see if I still feel the same. Do you note the same similarities?

 

[Kevan]

There's a similarity, yes. The same "grassy" quality. But like I said, sniffing Heno (now known as "Agua de Pravia 1905") and AdP Colonia side by side, the topnotes are identical. That's the similarity that struck me first.