Neroli

This is an incredible neroli fragrance. Starts with a blast of bitter Scottish orange marmalade and neroli that settles quickly into a bitter orange and neroli powerhouse with woods slowly rising in the background. I get amber and sandalwood in the base, but the orange and certainly the neroli never entirely disappear. Remarkably natural smelling throughout. 2-3 sprays are plenty, but sometimes at night I'll douse myself in it and drop off to sleep among the oranges and the white flowers. I encountered this in one of the London barbershops last spring where they had a tester. I spent the rest of the afternoon smelling my forearm. I wanted to go back and buy it but I'd already blown the budget to bits around Jermyn St and Mayfair. Castle Forbes is a Scottish concern. I knew them for their shaving creams but hadn't given much thought to their fragrances. They have at least a half dozen men's colognes and EdP's. Apparently the Scots love neroli. The lad behind the counter in Penhaligon's told me that they sell a tremendous amount of Castile in Scotland. The neroli in Castile is much softer and gentler than what we have here. Castle Forbes Special Reserve Neroli is a guy in a kilt tossing a telephone pole. A neroli strong enough to be worn in winter. Anyway, soon after returning to the States Pasteur's Pharmacy in NY had it on sale and I bought two bottles.

With only 500 bottles produced each year, Castle Forbes Special Reserve Neroli is said to use high concentrations of extractions from the Citrus aurantium (bitter orange) tree: the essential oil of the orange itself, petitgrain from the leaves, and neroli from the blossoms. While there surely must be some synths to extend the effect (aurantiol?), it is surely one of the most natural-smelling of neroli fragrances I've experienced. The drier, woodier elements of neroli are supported through a base, seamlessly through a sandalwood amber dry down. It's really become an unlikely reference neroli for me, as Castle Forbes is a bit under the radar and more familiar to the wet shave community. It's a house definitely deserving of a bit more attention.

Stunning perfume with very solid performances despite the natural ingredients. When it comes to neroli based compositions this is second to none. The notes are incomplete and as a matter of fact this is also a woody/musky scent. It will create a beautiful cloud around you, impossible to dislike if you're into orange/vetiver based creations. A perfect fragrance for hot days.

BEAUTIFUL FRAGRANCE. The immediate opening does give me more vintage/old person vibes, but that burns off rather quickly. This is a bitter orange and neroli POWERHOUSE. And that orange do be bitter. High quality fragrance for a rather reasonable price. 10/10 always hittin.

Incredible longevity, powerful projection and it's a citrus! Top of the bunch, art of perfumery at its prime.