1709 Original Eau de Cologne

Bought this at the perfume museum in Cologne, and instantly fell in love with the scent. Its notes aren't that complicated, as stated in their online shop, but I love it! Like others had said, the formula has not changed for over 300 years, and is still managed by the same family. The drawback is that this perfume is an eau de cologne, and will disappear a couple/a few hours after application. You can still smell them on your neck after long hours, but people around you is unlikely to smell anything. They are also quite pricey; their pricing is a lot like high-end brand perfumes (40 euros for 50mL). I, however, believe it is worth the price, not for its scent longevity only, but because of its uniqueness. It has a long history to it, and remains classic throughout the years. Aside from being pricey, they are quite hard to buy physically, since they don't stock it to other countries like its sister EDC (4711) does-- you can only buy them in Cologne, but you can always buy them online as long as you don't mind paying the shipping fees.

Thank you, Fragrantica, for adding this perfume to your database. (my request) It's an honor to be a first one to review this historical and very special perfume. I have always thought that 4711 was the real old original eau de cologne. How wrong i was. Almost 100 years earlier, in 1709, the italian parfumer Farina came to Koln and created there his wonderful perfume, which reminded him of a beautiful Italian fresh morning.. It's excactly how it smells. I've been to the museum/shop of Farina Maison in Koln, Germany. It's the oldest perfume museum in the world!! When you buy a perfume bottle you also get a pretty list of all rich and famous clients of this perfume. Well, 300 years of royal clients.. Napoleon Bonaparte used to pour a bottle a day (!!) over his body, even kept a bottle in his boot!! Amazing!! The formule is still unchanged and kept in secret through more than 300 years!!! I hope they will add my name to that famous list of clients someday haha!!!!

I did wait by the door nearly every day for this to arrive from Cologne and when it arrived it was completely different from my expectations. I'll admit that I was concerned that the daddy EDC was going to smell dated. That maybe a 300+ year old formula wasn't going to suit my 21st century nose. But I was absolutely shocked by how modern and wearable this fragrance is. It has a fantastic ozonic freshness that mingles with fresh lemon, lime, grapefruit, and the delicate perfume of an over ripe etrog - it smells like standing in a citrus orchard in Calabria after a summer storm. It's a sublime masterpiece of perfumery at it's best. To get that ozonic freshness before synthetics or superessences is remarkable. I think it's the delicate interplay between the violet, jasmine, sandlewood and frankinsense that form the underpinning of this fragrance. It's the perfect spray a bit on and repeat throughout the day.

Timeless. The scent is unisex and subtle, which is very comfortable to wear. It reminds me of my European summer trip. It is none of that imposing and overbearingly 'loud' scents you catch from busy streets. Nothing too 'perfumey' like the cosmetics counters of department stores. Only up close will people detect whiffs of it from you, but once they do they instantly compliment the smell. It is definitely a citrus scent, but completely different from those of men's aftershave. This is a very refined, classic fragrance. Picture this as a sunny, breezy afternoon in a botanical garden. You would think, from how classic the scent is, that it will not sit well with younger people. But I would say it complements any age, as it is a well-mannered and composed image it evokes, instead of being limited to representing a certain age group. I wish it were slightly stronger!

This is my favorite scent. It is so clean and citrusy without being a soap smell. It's both unisex and feminine. It's not too tart. I got hooked on this when my friend brought it back from a trip, and I can't find it anywhere without crazy shipping though :( Also, yes, like Kankuro said, no notes of neroli detected for me (I hate neroli btw). To me this just smells like a very un-tart lemon, bergamot, and a juicy greenness. I get none of the other notes. It's a nice fresh perfume that isn't too spicy masculine or white floral feminine. Just clean and citrusy and green and slightly sweet.

The history of citrus colognes is shrouded with mystery a lot of brand claim they were the first to create it which will be always a topic for discussion But if you ask me what is a cologne worthy of the name it’s definitely this one One of the best colognes I’ve ever tried in my lifetime The sole purpose I love this one and can’t seem to accept the rest of them is the nasty white florals they always use To me colognes are all about the citrus and it’s exactly that Performance is ok had to overspray to have more than 5 hours of performance and it worked

Okay, so in short. I really do love this perfume. As many others I purchased it in the fragrance museum in Cologne after the tour (which 10/10 I recommend haha) but I am just SO sad that it lasts so short. The opening is strong and in your face citrus, I really love that, and it softens down into a more floral and clean smell. But it kinda disappears for me after 2 hours of wear. It also stays very close to the skin for me, but alas, guess I'll be spraying it on often (pricewise I do not mind).

Awful out of the bottle. My husband has had the old tester for 2-3 decades and hated it in the bottle. I can't blame him. Just description of it being somewhat green would put me off even testing it, if I'd read the description for Farina 1709 Original EDC first. BUT, we both agree that it develops into a beautiful soft smooth clean soapy scent on me. I won't use it up. I won't go out of my way to buy it, but I'm surprised that it's really really beautiful on me.

Went to Cologne for my 50th birthday with my wife. Did the guided museum tour, obviously bought a bottle and I love it. For an easy decision cologne (sorry, THE Eau de Cologne) this one lasts on me for hours. Sprayed it this morning and I can still smell it under my watch. This is such a beautiful citrus opening that dries to a gorgeous musk. One that I will have to keep in my collection even after the 50ml I bought runs out.

Most people get this perfume from a tour of the Fragrance Museum in Cologne, and I would really recommend the museum and fragrance to anyone. I convinced my family to go for a visit, and they all loved this fragrance. It's fresh, citrusy, unisex, and clean. It doesn't last that long, and it's not a super unique scent, but the museum experience and the tour guide are great. If you're in Cologne, give it a try.

This is a really "fresh-up"-cologne. It has an incridible list of very famous customers as it is the oldest Parfum still available in the world, ranging from french and german kings and queens to princess Diana and president Bill Clinton.I also like it a lot. Is has a very nice fresh fragrance, but as it is a cologne, you really have to splash it on to have some longivity.

This is the original Eau de Cologne. Timeless, grown up, classy, never boring - unless you find soapy citruses too much on th beaten path. On a par with Aqua di Parma and definitely on a completely different planet than the rather vile and screechy 4711 that gives me a migraine.

The first perfume I fell in love with. Bright beautiful citrus with an addicting hint of herbs and florals. I couldn’t get enough. Don’t know what ended up happening to this bottle... someday I’ll find it again...

A really lovely springtime fragrance - the citrus is perfectly balanced with the floral. An added bonus is knowing that one smells like Napoleon, Oscar Wilde and Queen Victoria.

my uncle bought me the mini size of this cologne. Very nice and it makes me feel really comfortable

During the 18th century the perfumer Giovanni Maria Farina (1685-1766) moved to Cologne, starting from Santa Maria Maggiore (Piedmont), to create an inimitable fragrance: the Original Eau de Cologne. The enveloping perfume still today bears the name of the adopted homeland of the Italian nose: Acqua di Colonia. During his journey to the north of the Farina Alps he brought with him the art of destillation by means of pure alcohol extracted from wine. Thanks to these premises Farina had laid the optimal foundations for the production of qualitatively superior scented water. In doing so, Farina deserved the name of "Father of modern perfumery". In a letter to his brother Giovanni Battista, Farina describes his new perfume with the following words: "My scent is like an Italian morning in the spring after the rain: it recalls oranges, lemons, grapefruits, bergamots, cedars, the flowers and aromatic herbs of my land. It refreshes me and stimulates senses and fantasy. » Apart from that it is the first colony invented and distributed on the market. Apart from that it is a perfume with over 300 years of history. Apart from that also Mozart and Napoleon (who used one a day) used this cologne. Apart from all this, it is a sublime, citrus and natural fragrance. A very thick colony that stands out for its true nature. The peculiarity is that this perfume has never ceased to be what it is since its inception and I mean that there are no reformulations or similar things. Do you want to take a dip in the early 18th century? Wear it. In this case I'm angry with Fragrantica: Why do not you say that the creator is GIOVANNI (not johann) Maria Farina? He moved to Germany where he invented this wonderful natural masterpiece but it was and will always be Italian. I am proud to say that the first cologne in the world was invented by an Italian.

This was a souvenir from the Farina Fragrance Museum in Cologne, and as the original eau de cologne, it is a lovely piece of fragrance history. It is also a pleasant, elegant and well-crafted scent. Simple, beautifully balanced and surprisingly modern, this cologne has a rich history but is still relevant and wearable today. The opening is citrus-heavy, fresh and ozonic, as well as being slightly herbal. Grapefruit and bergamot notes are most evident on initial spray, with hints of lemon and lime. Petrichor comes to mind as the grassy herbal notes come to the fore - this scent is reminiscent of the Mediterranean countryside after a summer rain shower. It is quite sharp and tangy as well as being aromatic, making for a compelling scent. The green citrus accord gives way to floral notes as it dries down - soft jasmine and the merest hint of violet. It is grounded by a woody base with a hint of balsamic, spicy frankincense. It becomes a spicy/woody skin scent after about two hours, but given that this is a cologne, limited longevity and performance is to be expected. Refreshing and subtle, this is a winner, and one of the better colognes I have tried. Perfectly unisex too. Decent cologne, best worn during summer days. 3/5.

I was raised on TV broadcasts of Our Gang short comedies from the 1930s, so when I encounter the name "Farina," the last thing I think of is an eau de cologne. But here we are. We bought a little bottle of this stuff in a store in Cologne, Germany. Kind of had to, actually, given the historicity of the stuff. It comes with an interesting sheet describing all the distinguished wearers. All of Europe wears it - why should you not? And it's okay! Just fine! Springy, citrusy, light in the manner of other colognes. It is very citrus upon application and, yes, dries down somewhat soapy. But it's a nice soap. It doesn't last but who really expected it to? Just put on some more in the grand old 4711 fashion. I'll wear this in the warmer months - but I suspect my wife will be the primary wearer.

For a simple cologne this is made really well. The citrus really lasts a long time which isn't something you see all that often. The scent is very strong in citron to me. It gives the scent an almost unnatural smell a tad bit like cleaner, but it doesn't cross over too heavily to cause me to dislike it. I like the addition of green notes, I think I would have preferred them to a be a bit sharper or more prominent. I'm not sure what the floral notes are in here, they are hard to pick out. As someone else said this is a nice, refreshing, citrus floral. I am impressed the scent has stuck around 300 years, but for me it doesn't wow. It "okays" in a quiet corner on my shelf.

This is my very first review on Fragantica. I'm not as well versed as most of you on here...but here goes. I bought this because I have sort of become a fragrance nerd, thanks to you guys. The oldest fragrance still available...this is beyond fruity. I thought I wouldn't like it at first whiff. Almost thought twice of spraying again. Then...I smelled it on my skin....how clean! Reminds me of a pleasant lemon verbena along with other citrus fruits. I'm a fan of sweeter smells...but I don't necessarily hate it. on my skin..it's beautiful.