Bowling Green

This is my signature scent (along with Mugler Cologne) and out of my entire collection, I've only gotten backup bottles for this as well as Mugler Cologne - two fragrances I would rate as my absolute favourite fragrances. This is possibly the greatest mens' lemon verbana fragrance out there. Lemon verbana is a plant that is unrelated to the lemon tree yet has leaves that smell somewhat like lemon, but with a very green plant-like character to the scent. This fragrance starts off with a very realistic and strong lemon verbana; the lemon verbana is vibrant, green, and refreshing in this fragrance and lasts for about 2 hours. On drydown after 2 hours I smell lots of beautiful masculine greenery with leaves and moss while the lemon verbana disappears - hence the name "Bowling Green". It smells sort of like smelling a lemon verbana bush, carrying some leaves of the plant with you, and then walking in a cool forest in the middle of spring. I believe this is a masterpiece and combines the notes I love in fragrance (namely citrus and fresh green notes). In my opinion this is Geoffrey Beene's greatest creation, and far superior to the putrid (to my nose) Grey Flanel. Sillage is moderate but leaning strong (especially in spring or summer weather) while longevity is very strong at 10 hours. The fragrance also leans very masculine and has an old-world type of feel to it (in fact I bought a bottle of this for my grandpa as well). The juice colour - greenish yellow - is very indicative of the scent inside, one of green citrus, and the bottle (and even box it comes in) are actually quite beautiful with an antiquated vibe to them. The sprayer is also one of the best out of all my fragrances and lets out a lot with each spritz. And the low price on this is also unbelievable (less than $20 for a 120 ml bottle on online discounters). Geoffrey Beene should continue producing this forever. 5/5

First of all, AMAZING VALUE FOR PRICE - that if you are into such old school gems. To me it opens straight up like lemongrass, very "citral" (the sherbet-like scent of lemon, ripped from the citric parts) and of course geranium together with verbena kicking in with its fair dose of eugenol (main constituent of cloves) and lavender. What makes Bowling Green different is the cinnamon-spicy-woody accord and I'd say from mid till dry down this fragrance moves away from that so-called "outdated" profile and becomes timeless since thanks to the amber accord that is still raving hard in all territories be it cheapies, celebrity/car manufacturer, designer, prestige, niche...The amber accord smells like a vanilla-labdanum-nutmeg-patchouli type mostly famous from the oriental fougeres like CK Obsession, YsL Opium etc. With that said lavender-oakmoss combo shines alongside. Nothing is sticking out as sharp or out of place, I really can't praise this scent enough. Nothing bad to say about performance either. Bowling Green easily beats most of the designers in the same genre that are sold by big brands today. 11 euros for 120ml is just a steal. I don't find huge similarities with Drakkar Noir to be honest, if Drakkar Noir had an intense/winter version, perhaps Bowling Green would be a good fit as a flanker? Or if Drakkar Noir was mixed into Chanel Pour Monsieur and CK Obsession.

This is the second Geoffrey Beene fragrance I have: my first being Grey Flannel. Since it is not available in my country I bought it blind on the strength of the quality of Grey Flannel and the reviews here at Fragrantica. I am glad I did. Bowling Green is a masterful piece of perfumery. For me it is the definitively green fragrance. The spices, lemon, woody notes and artemisia are most predominant to me. Even though it starts off sharp, it has a rich fruitiness, which is more than just lemon: it has a real depth. As it develops on the skin and the fruitiness ebbs away the spices and woody notes predominate. What is fantastic about this fragrance is that the woodiness is not two dimensional. Its not just pine and as such is a much more sophisticated scent that something like Pino Silvestre. The use of lemon verbena means that the lemony notes continue much longer than with fragrances using just lemon itself. The vast array of notes make its transition smooth from the rich fruity start to the rich woody/spicy heart. Artemisia and oakmoss underpin this transition and almost work like a scaffolding on which the other notes are supported. It lasts for a long time and has a very robust sillage. Towards the end it still has a lot of character, and while it is more subtle than earlier in its life, it is still woody, with diverse notes. It is a pity this is discontinued.

One of my favorites. At different points during the wear and with different aspects, youre reminded of the best parts of some of the best fragrances. It has a touch of modern freshness like drakkar noir, the lemon verbena along with the overall fresh bright nature of this will remind you of green irish tweed. Yet somehow, while being pretty obviously fresh, you can pick out the treemoss and oakmoss...and theyre fairly heavy at least in my perception. And compared to drakkar noir, while these both have lavender, something in bowling green makes it come off more natural. Or to use a word i learned from a great youtuber, theres an "agrestic" touch to bowling green. You can basically wear this literally any time even though its a mostly-classic fougere. I have to get more of this, im running low lol. This is also based on the vintage version...but i dont know that ive heard alot of people complain about the new one, and last i saw that one was even going up in price. Literally anybody who loves drakkar noir would love this, and i think its even fresh enough that a young guy could wear it if they want to dabble in old school stuff.

The best green fragrance ever created followed by GIT and Green Valley. This is a true "Spring in a Bottle" masterpiece and unique from anything else on the market. I like to wear it on the first warm day like today (over 70F) in March/April after a long New England winter. It never fails to put me in the most happy mood for the longing of Spring. Although introduced in 1986, it's just as relevant today as it was back then. It was my very first fragrance back in high school so maybe that's why I love it so much. A few years ago I picked up a vintage bottle after not smelling it for over 30 years and it instantly catapulted me back to my high school days when I would wear this after baseball practice and a shower. I love it so much. To me, there's no better green scent on the market at any price. And at about $15 for a 4oz bottle it's the bargain of a lifetime. NOTE: Newer bottles have good performance but vintage lasts all day and smells more natural. But the latest release is perfectly suitable if you can't get vintage. In my top 4 of all time!