Need help identifying a vintage fragrance for my elderly father

[JArness]

My father only wore 1 cologne his whole life and at some point claims he couldnt find it in stores anymore

He's not sure what it was and hasn't worn it in 20-30 years. he thinks it was grey flannel but he also says it came in a silver or gray bottle

to my knowledge, grey flannel has never been discontinued but I'm not sure if the bottle has changed much

he also said there was a musk version of this cologne and I'm not aware of there being a musk version of grey flannel

I know its really a shot in the dark but does anyone here have any ideas?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, it would mean a lot to him if I could track it down

 

[Eben Stone]

Anything else you can find out to help narrow things down a bit? When did he first start wearing it? What stores did he buy it at? How much did it cost (ballpark)?

 

[hairless wonder]

Has your father taken a look at Fragrantica or Basenotes? That might help him figure out what he used before.

 

[JArness]

Anything else you can find out to help narrow things down a bit? When did he first start wearing it? What stores did he buy it at? How much did it cost (ballpark)?

he doesnt have dementia but he suffers from some mild memory loss, he doesn't remember exactly where he bought it or the price but it was not a drug store cologne and he thinks it was around 40 dollars but isnt certain. he remembers it was not cheap but not extremely expensive.

he thinks he started wearing it in the mid 70s to the early 80's, he remembers he started wearing it when he was a host at a restaraunt before he went into business for himself. he thinks he wasn't able to find it in stores after the early 90s

he just remembers the gray or silver bottle it was in.

he was convinced it was grey flannel until he saw the bottle it comes in

 

[JArness]

Has your father taken a look at Fragrantica or Basenotes? That might help him figure out what he used before.

no but that's a great resource, I will take a look and have him take a look as well. thanks

 

[hairless wonder]

no but that's a great resource, I will take a look and have him take a look as well. thanks

Good luck!

 

[Eben Stone]

Somethings that might help you narrow things down a bit...

If your Dad is not 100% sure about it being discontinued you might want to ignore that for now. It might be more difficult to find if you take that into consideration and he's wrong.

First, search for musk scented men's cologne.

Make a note of those brands.

Then, search through those brands, any scent, and look to see if any of the bottles look familiar.

An example I landed on in less than one minute, by trying the above, is Royal Copenhagen 1775. The bottle is both gray and silver, and they offer a musk scent.

Good luck!

 

[JayFromBrooklyn]

I know its really a shot in the dark but does anyone here have any ideas?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, it would mean a lot to him if I could track it down

There was just a similar thread in the aftershave forum where everyone posted the names of around 20 different vintage gray bottled aftershaves/colognes. Maybe youll find it in there.... 80/90S Aftershave - Help Me Find It - https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/threads/80-90s-aftershave-help-me-find-it.614747/

 

[Tuco66]

Perhaps Chaps or Chaps Musk.

 

[Cedarwood77]

Royal Copenhagen. I bet its Royal Copenhagen. Its been around since the dark ages, was wildly popular and has a musk version. Totally the type of thing for "one cologne in my whole life" type guy with good taste.

British Stirling is another wild shot in the dark going on nothing but age and a silver bottle.

 

[The Knize]

I am confused as to why we would not think this is Grey Flannel.

grey flannel has never been discontinued but I'm not sure if the bottle has changed much

It has not been discontinued and should be easily available at very reasonable price. See frangrancex.com, for example. I do not think the bottle has changed much, if at all.

he also said there was a musk version of this cologne and I'm not aware of there being a musk version of grey flannel

There is also an Eau de Gray Flannel, which to me smells nothing like the original, and comes in a clear bottle, with the liquid inside a pale blue. I noticed that one reference referred to this as a musk, but I do not see anything on the bottle that says musk, and I personally would not think of it as a musk, going by memory. But no telling how it was marketed. This one is also available.

 

[The Knize]

he was convinced it was grey flannel until he saw the bottle it comes in

Sorry. I overlooked this line earlier. BTW the price points were probably right for GF back in the day.

The other ones that occur to me that more or less fit the other criteria, except the Musk version and the discontinuation, are Halston 1-12 and Z-14, especially the latter. Those two scents were out around the time of GF and have come in round bottles that range from dark brown to dark gray. When they first came out, it seems to me, the 1-12 came in a brown bottle and the Z-12 in a dark gray bottle. But over the years that has not held consistent.

 

[maxman]

I'll offer this suggestion. perhaps it's a feature of the bottle like a label or a cap that is standing out in his mind.
perhaps even the box.
So, if that's a possibility, I'll say:
Dior Eau Sauvage (the original formulation)
I think that's worth a shot!

 

[sneefy]

Royal Copenhagen. I bet its Royal Copenhagen. Its been around since the dark ages, was wildly popular and has a musk version. Totally the type of thing for "one cologne in my whole life" type guy with good taste.

My dad has worn Royal Copenhagen forever. It has not been discontinued, nor do I believe it's ever been a $40 dollar cologne. If it were my dad would never have bought it, lol. He's too frugal.

However, there is some silver on the label that may be standing out in the mind of the OP's dad. And you're totally right that it's a 'cologne for life' sort of scent. It certainly has been for my dad.

 

[Sanity Removed Again]

Royal Copenhagen was mid-priced in the 70s and 80s, definitely priced above scents that seem to come and go. It was also sold at upscale department stores and had a wide array of products. My recollections were that it was more expensive then than it is now which also applies to Grey Flannel.

I did think that Grey Flannel would be the one based on description. Ask him if it came in a flannel bag.