Alt-Innsbruck Eau de Cologne

Opens up a corridor between wherever you are and 19th/early 20th century Austria. Peculiar, given that this was released in 1953. Sweetness is problematic for me in many fragrances, however; here it is charming, with a delicacy that serves as an exquisite foil to the mentholated slap you receive on application - "I demand satisfaction sir!" One can't help imagining the various Doctors of Thomas Mann's Magic Mountain smelling of this. This frame of reference would suggest a positive possibility re. layering with denser tobacco scents that lean less on tobacco flower and more on pipe or cigar notes. So, I tried this recently with Tobacco myth and the result was sublime. There is so much in this simple scent of a world that has been lost; for good or ill. The traditional barber's, the small cake shop, the tobacconist, and the clean, soft-bright warmth and stillness of life that only bourgeois fortune could acquire. An uplifting, calming classic that those who love time travel should try.

Alt Innsbruck was released in 1953 but it might as easily been 1753. The scent pre-dates any modern notion of perfumery. It simply “is.” For me, it is fairly useless to try to describe this one in terms of notes or gender. I’ve walked the streets of Alt (old) Innsbruck in Austria and wow, this fragrance gets the vibe just right: the bridges, the river, the classic stone and colored masonry, the scripted German writing on the buildings, the alpine flowers on green meadows ascending up to snow capped Tirolian Alps. Perhaps my mind wanders too much with this fragrance, but for me it perfectly evokes the feeling one of Europe’s most beautiful cities, imbued with a timeless permanence yet so wonderfully alive. For the modern man who derives pleasure from the aesthetics of centuries past, who must live in the present knowing in his heart he was born a few hundred years too late.

Dear Mature Gentlemen, You have no idea what you are missing. Do you wet shave? I mean, do you shave with anything that requires water, and isn't electric? This is the stuff you splash on after your shave. It's an EDC concentration, so it's stronger than an aftershave. There are only two notes. Tobacco flower (not tobacco) and menthol. It doesn't sound interesting I know. This is in my top 5 of all time. When I first smelled this at a wet shaving show I was blown away. It's better than 90% of all edts, but doesn't last more than a couple of hours. Soothing and fresh like a 1950's alpha-male confident movie star would smell. This will take you back. Warning, 50 years old and over, please. Sincerely, Neil ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Here are my thoughts in video form: youtu.be/C37L9tMi0Mw

I have been using Alt Innsbruck for about 40 years. I discovered it, along with Tabac, whilst living in Germany in the 80's. The scent is very simple: tobacco flower and menthol. After the dry down, the nose will start to pick up the sweetness of the tobacco flower. It's not cloying, but it's my humble opinion that this scent would not appeal to a millennial. The menthol kick is a pleasant surprise. For the wet-shavers out there, this juice pair extremely well with the, sadly discontinued, I Coloniali shave soap. They are a match made in heaven. 100% masculine scent. For the price, this is worth a blind buy. Recommended. Update: I am seeing "Mint" in the description and some reviews. It's MENTHOL, not mint.

I really enjoy this cologne/aftershave which I discovered on a wet shave forum nearly fifteen years ago. I don't possess the trained nose which so many on this site seem to have, but I definitely pick up quite a bit more than the tobacco and mint listed as the fragrance notes up above. Perhaps someone can explain to me how this works? I have noticed a number of Amouage fragrances (especially Reflections!) remind me of Alt-Innsbruck's powdery/mint notes. Over the years I have received SO MANY compliments on this cologne/aftershave. I've run into only one person who really doesn't care for it. Unfortunately for me, that person is my wife. Bummer.

What I would give to have this in EDT concentration. A simple, straightforward but utterly intoxicating and uniquely beautiful masculine floral. It's perfectly suited to springtime, and it's one of those scents I cannot imagine anyone not liking, though I'm to understand such people do exist. To each their own, of course, but for me this is an all-time classic which easily stands the test of time, and will be repurchased when my bottle runs dry.

Alt-Innsbruck is still my #1 cologne/aftershave. Two compliments today in a span of one hour. Feels so refreshing after a great close shave..

NOTHING smells like this 10/10

The notes that are given here for this scent are a little misleading. This does not smell of tobacco, but tobacco flower - if you came to this thinking you were going to get a classic masculine tobacco fragrance, you'd be disappointed. It's not really 'sweet', but it has a floral delicacy that I like very much. It is, in fact, the opposite of scents like Aramis Tobacco Reserve, and Dior Tobacolor. And menthol is a little misleading too, as it doesn't smell of menthol itself (ie, minty). Instead, it has a sort of bracing freshness. Don't go into this thinking you'll get any of the contemporary mint-forward notes of mint that are well known in male perfumes (eg the Le Male Eau Fraiche range, Sedley, You or Someone Like You, etc). Perhaps you could say that it behaves like menthol, without smelling like it. The pared-back notes list here might imply that you'll get a lot of mint - you won't. You'll get extreme clarity, purity, coolness - sensations like that. Does it smell 'like' anything? Well... I think this cashes the cheques that Knize Ten writes. It's clearly related, but far stronger and more 'directional' and determined. This perfume performs really well - better than many eaux de toilette, and better than some eaux de parfum (eg The One). It's very distinctive - it's not truly 'like' anything else (Knize Ten included), and it doesn't smell dated at all. It smells timeless - like a very male equivalent of the little black dress. All the presentations in reviews below of louche chaps in tailored suits, the evocations of duelling, the yearning for a time when Austria was bombed-out cities and barely-reconstructed Nazis, have me reaching for my revolver. It's just a perfume. It's not a 'living history' museum or an escape bunker from modernity. And it's cheap...

Alt-Innsbruck is a cologne/aftershave from a time when men really took pride in the way they presented to the world. As an aftershave AI is simply amazing. I'm not a big fan of menthol, but the way it blends with the tobacco flower is stunning. My oily skin is left clean, firm and slightly moisturized. I feel like I'm in a time warp to old times. As it dries down you get a mild sweet tobacco flower with a slight barbershop vibe. The fact that AI is not very complex coupled with quality ingredients is what makes this a joy to use. Please note that this is not a true tobacco cologne. The tobacco flower makes this more elegant, versatile and smoother around the edges when compared to other traditional tobacco colognes. AI leans on the expensive side, but so do most quality products. Buy it! Try it! Enjoy it!

JmThms, thanks for the Phoenix mention, they have the best stuff. I will say, that the menthol note in this dies down fairly quickly, which is the saving grace for Cold Spice also. That homage to original Old Spice is really good, but the menthol pretty much ruins the composition making it my least favourite in the Phoenix line. Alt-Innsbruck is really so nice, classy. I find the performance is rather fair, and like most aftershaves, you will wake it up the next day when you have a shower. Also feels great on skin post shave. Truly wonderful stuff that wet-shaving fans have known about for quite some time. I do not find any similarities to Old Spice with this though?

Nice simple mentholated tobacco leaf. Splash a bunch on since it's only EDC. A bit similar to Phoenix Shaving's Cold Spice, which is a clone of classic Old Spice with a little added mentholation. Except of course the tobacco in Alt-Innsbruck. Im a lover of menthol and mentholated scents so this is up my alley.. I'm going to put Alt-Innsbruck in my "Bathroom Toiletry" collection along with Cold Spice, classic Old Spice, Pinaud Clubman, various Bay Rums, British Sterling Cologne, Demeter Pure Soap, Veron Dandy, and some other ones.

This is a truly classy scent. It’s mature, but not like anything else I have in my rotation. This is well loved in the shaving community for good reason. I can’t see anyone not liking this, or at the very least take offence to it. It’s powdery and has a sweet tobacco leaf aroma. It’s not an overly sweet cigar/pipe tobacco, more inline with Versace The Dreamer, though I find this much more pleasant. The scent is quite linear, but pleasant from start to finish as a result. I highly recommend this if you don’t own it yet.

I cannot really smell mint in this. Maybe there's something wrong with my sample, maybe it just doesn't work on my skin. Anyway, if there's any mint, it's really faint. Several people have suggested using this cologne after shaving (presumably on a freshly shaven face); even saying their skin is left moisturised after application, which implies some moisturising effect of this cologne. I doubt that is really the case, since this cologne – like any other – contains over 80% of alcohol, which dries skin instead of moisturising it. If you have resilient skin, then surely you can put this on after shaving, and your face may feel calm and moisturised, but not due to the cologne. If you have sensitive skin like I do, don't put any product containing alcohol on your face after shaving. Cologne is not an aftershave. Its purpose is to smell nice, not to soothe and moisturise freshly shaven skin. That is not to say I don't enjoy this cologne – I do. And I certainly don't agree with people saying such things as "You can only wear this if you're 80+ and wearing a tuxedo with a top hat" or "This is for real gentlemen only". It is for whomever likes it and pleases to wear it.

Masculine Floral Tobacco scent... Wow. As soon as I had this on my skin I was struck by how impressive it was. A really beautiful floral tobacco scent which really delivers and performs spectacularly on skin. I get a floral, powdery yet masculine vibe which is coupled with tobacco flower and menthol. It's such a great hit on skin and it lasts for ages! I got this as an aftershave/eau de cologne, and it hits the mark for sophistication and class. This reminds me of Tabac aftershave, yet this is more "dandified" than that one. This is very much a historic eau de cologne in it's own right (and older than it's German brother). Try it, you won't be disappointed. Austrian gentlemanly elegance in a bottle!

I've loved this aftershave for quite some time. Very unique smell, so never could layer with anything from my collection so I thought. Especially, tobacco frags. This doesn't smell anything like any tobacco frag's I have. That's because it is from the flower. This is a tobacco flower smell. Well, I finally hit on something it is similar to. It is Iris. You know that Iris smell from Prada L'homme or Dior homme Eau. Yes, it is similar. It's not exact, but there's some similarity between tobacco flower and Iris. I'm glad I stumbled on this, so now I got some good complimentary stuff going on. Maybe you can too.

Smells like a Cuban tobacco field. Floral tobacco. It also holds a slight dose of natural Nicotiana Tabacum - and menthol. A unique Austrian aftershave/cologne and great value for money! It has a barbershop vibe and best suits the cigar and pipe smoker.