Gentlemen, a few weeks ago Penhaligon's had a really good sale on some of their products. One was the Bayolea pomade. As is usual with that house, the packaging and overall vibe is a very retro classic, upscale male toiletry that makes you feel just a but superior whilst opening the package.
I really like the heavy glass jar it comes in. It has a heavy metal lid and the heft and feel of it screams quality The label and artwork for this new fragrance line is very classy as well. I am honestly not sure what its style would be called but it looks rather nouveau to me.
Upon opening the beautiful jar I quickly realised this is solid brilliantine rather than what one would typically think of as a pomade. There is not a trace of wax in it that I could see and the first ingredient is petrolatum followed by a lot of fragrance notes. This particular style of hair dressing is not really a good choice for me. My fine blonde-ish hair does not react well to it. I typically need a good wax base to keep it from going limp and stringy. If I were going to use this product on fine hair for say, a night out on the town or when you are feeling like dressing a little retro 20s/30s then by all means go full finger dose and slick it back or over to the side. It reminds me of Linetti's solid but mayhaps a bit thicker. I use it like a light grooming agent and use about a pea sized amount on my hair just to get some sheen to it most times.
Fragrance. Unlike many of the newer or 're-imagined' fragrances Penhaligon's has come out with this last decade, Bayolea is very nice. Masucline without being in your face as so many hair dressings are wont to do. Bayolea was originally a William Penhaligon's scent that was sold into the 1980s as...hair dressing. Having never sniffed it I cannot speak to its differences to this one but I would guess it is significant. This is modern but in a good way. And anyone who has read my drivel on this over the last decade here at B&B knows that sort of positive remark about modern fragrances is almost never spoken by me. This is a nice turnaround from the typical ocean water/shampoo/sugar stuff that assails me every time I stupidly start sniffing stuff at the scent counters.
The lemon notes are nice and forward but not in your face like a sharper Eau de Toilette such as AdP. It lists lemon grass, tangerine, and mandarin as top notes and my unsophisticated nose says 'yes' to that. And of course with sandalwood, cedarwood, and moss in the base you notice it straight away as well. But both are softened by the mid notes and I think in a certain way, this sort of makes the scent. It lists them as neroli, black pepper, cardamom, and lavender but I could not have told you what they were if I had not read it. I am not that good of a nose. I am one of those who likes it not after sniffing. I do not try to dissect the notes too much. My sense of this scent is that it is a very good, masculine effort. Yet in a way, this pomade is light enough in fragrance that a lady could use it without too much fuss. I have not smelled the EdC version of this so cannot compare the two but if typical uses hold true, the pomade would be lighter than the cologne. I like it.
Hold? Texture? Slickness? Don't ask me too much about it. I cannot use the product like many would. I need to use a tiny amount for a grooming aid or go full on for a slicked down look. Nothing in between. And forget this one in hot weather on fine hair. I waited specifically til the weather cooled WAY down and the air dried up before even attempting to use it.
I can say this. While the texture is not ideal for me, if Penhaligon's would bring this out in Hammam Bouguet scent I would buy a jar before the ink was dry on the advertisement. It has such a yesteryear vibe to it even though Bayolea is aimed at the 'modern gent' according to company comments on the scent. I would actually consider a bottle of aftershave in this fragrance. I am not sure if it warrants a $46 price point but at 20 odd dollars it was a fine bargain. The packaging alone makes it worth it to me.
I really like the heavy glass jar it comes in. It has a heavy metal lid and the heft and feel of it screams quality The label and artwork for this new fragrance line is very classy as well. I am honestly not sure what its style would be called but it looks rather nouveau to me.
Upon opening the beautiful jar I quickly realised this is solid brilliantine rather than what one would typically think of as a pomade. There is not a trace of wax in it that I could see and the first ingredient is petrolatum followed by a lot of fragrance notes. This particular style of hair dressing is not really a good choice for me. My fine blonde-ish hair does not react well to it. I typically need a good wax base to keep it from going limp and stringy. If I were going to use this product on fine hair for say, a night out on the town or when you are feeling like dressing a little retro 20s/30s then by all means go full finger dose and slick it back or over to the side. It reminds me of Linetti's solid but mayhaps a bit thicker. I use it like a light grooming agent and use about a pea sized amount on my hair just to get some sheen to it most times.
Fragrance. Unlike many of the newer or 're-imagined' fragrances Penhaligon's has come out with this last decade, Bayolea is very nice. Masucline without being in your face as so many hair dressings are wont to do. Bayolea was originally a William Penhaligon's scent that was sold into the 1980s as...hair dressing. Having never sniffed it I cannot speak to its differences to this one but I would guess it is significant. This is modern but in a good way. And anyone who has read my drivel on this over the last decade here at B&B knows that sort of positive remark about modern fragrances is almost never spoken by me. This is a nice turnaround from the typical ocean water/shampoo/sugar stuff that assails me every time I stupidly start sniffing stuff at the scent counters.
The lemon notes are nice and forward but not in your face like a sharper Eau de Toilette such as AdP. It lists lemon grass, tangerine, and mandarin as top notes and my unsophisticated nose says 'yes' to that. And of course with sandalwood, cedarwood, and moss in the base you notice it straight away as well. But both are softened by the mid notes and I think in a certain way, this sort of makes the scent. It lists them as neroli, black pepper, cardamom, and lavender but I could not have told you what they were if I had not read it. I am not that good of a nose. I am one of those who likes it not after sniffing. I do not try to dissect the notes too much. My sense of this scent is that it is a very good, masculine effort. Yet in a way, this pomade is light enough in fragrance that a lady could use it without too much fuss. I have not smelled the EdC version of this so cannot compare the two but if typical uses hold true, the pomade would be lighter than the cologne. I like it.
Hold? Texture? Slickness? Don't ask me too much about it. I cannot use the product like many would. I need to use a tiny amount for a grooming aid or go full on for a slicked down look. Nothing in between. And forget this one in hot weather on fine hair. I waited specifically til the weather cooled WAY down and the air dried up before even attempting to use it.
I can say this. While the texture is not ideal for me, if Penhaligon's would bring this out in Hammam Bouguet scent I would buy a jar before the ink was dry on the advertisement. It has such a yesteryear vibe to it even though Bayolea is aimed at the 'modern gent' according to company comments on the scent. I would actually consider a bottle of aftershave in this fragrance. I am not sure if it warrants a $46 price point but at 20 odd dollars it was a fine bargain. The packaging alone makes it worth it to me.
