Lagerfeld Classic

Lagerfeld Classic is a complex fragrance in many ways. As much as it is considered, especially these days, as dated and the starting point for many releases that came later, its biggest challenge was breaking down gender barriers, something that is already difficult today and was much more in the '70s. Lagerfeld Classic has notes of lemon, orange, bergamot, tarragon, nutmeg, sage, and aldehydes on the top. In the body, dense notes of tobacco, iris root, rose, jasmine, cedar, sandalwood, and patchouli. At the base, notes of amber, musk, oakmoss, vanilla, and tonka beans. It is classified as oriental-woody, but it usually behaves in a very particular way on different skins. For some, it's oriental-spicy; for others, oriental-fougère. On my skin, it usually reveals a more oriental-chypre aspect, with many nuances typical of female chypres from that time. As soon as it is sprayed, Lagerfeld Classic brings a scent of overripe orange, with a peculiar sourness and a very powerful aroma of citrus peels. This output has a direct connection to the masculine colognes that were rich in lemon, bergamot, and petitgrain. The difference is in the aldehydes, which give it a more delicate appearance and an orange color, not green. By itself, it already escaped the standards of virility imposed by the culture and the economy of that time. As if that wasn't enough, the body brings flowers, and they are not shy. Jasmine is very noticeable and forms the link between tobacco and patchouli notes. There is a mixture of the smell of a pipe, whiskey, and chocolate amidst the flowers and the sharp essential oil of the roses. Time passes, the drying progresses and the musk reveals a more animalistic side, as usual in the ’70s. The warmer and more sensual side emerges, the vanilla flirts with oakmoss, but the relationship is passive-aggressive. The tonka beans reinforce the smell of tobacco, but the powdery aspect of the iris decides to appear, by surprise, like that guest who arrives at the end of the party, when everyone is already leaving. In my opinion, Lagerfeld Classic was launched to pair with Chloé Eau de Parfum, launched in 1975, when Karl still dictated the rules there. From the color to the scent of the fragrances, there is a close and very sensitive relationship to my sense of smell. Undoubtedly, a transgressive perfume in the midst of the market standard. I remember the smell of the oldest version I knew (probably at the time of Unilever, in the late '90s), and its much more leathery and powdery smell. This version that I review here lost a lot of that powdery smell and gained more artificial nuances, for obvious reasons, but it's still beautiful and with great performance. Lagerfeld Classic was Karl's answer to those who said men couldn't wear gloves, tortoiseshell glasses, let alone have their hair long, tied in a ponytail. Well, he went there, checked all the boxes, and reinforced his visual image, which ended up becoming his trademark.

I have the Interparfums version, and apparently it is night and day different than the Coty version. What I get from the Interparfums version is a tobacco beast right from the rip. The tobacco accord may be getting help from the tarragon, but it is very nice. There is sage and just a bit of lemon in the opening, but mainly I get a great very dry tobacco, not sweet pipe tobacco. The Patchouli is there as well, and this combo of notes goes on for a long time. The Interparfums version smells nothing like Obsession or Shalimar. There is absolutely no cinnamon, very little vanilla or tonka. It is not powdery at all. This stuff is amazing. It has some amber in the drydown, but this is not the sweet powdery almost gourmondy scent that many of the reviews below describe. I have never smelled the vintage version. I just know that I really like the Interparfums version. Projection and longevity are very good. I highly recommend trying the Interparfums version before you write this fragrance off because of the Coty reformulation. UPDATE: I purchased a shrink-wrapped bottle of the Unilever version. In a side-by-side comparison with the Interparfums version, they are very close. The opening of the Unilever is more powdery and creamy compared to the Interparfums. The Interparfums is sharper and brighter and initially projects more. Neither version even remotely resembles Obsession or Shalimar (this comparison must be coming from the Coty version). In the mid, the Unilever stays powdery, which is probably the oris root hanging around. The tobacco is present, though not as strong as in the Interparfums version. They both have the orange(y) type accord, but it is a bit stronger in Interparfums version. The drydowns are where the 2 versions are the closest, with the only difference being that the Unilever keeps the powderyness. The oakmoss and amber are there in both, but the amber in the Interparfums version may be a bit stronger. Overall, the Interparfums version performed slightly better 5-6 hrs vs 5 hrs. Neither are beast mode. If you like more powdery scents, you will probably like the Unilever more. If not, the Interparfums will probably suit you better. I am searching for a Bethco version in my price range. That may take a while. I will also keep on the lookout for a cheap Coty version to confirm my suspicions. Update 2022-09-26 I finally got my hands on a vintage "Cologne" splash and spray. I'm not gonna say too much more other than there is no need to chase the vintage. There is not enough difference to spend that much $$ on it. They have done a really good job keeping the formulation of the new bottles as close to the vintage as possible. I was expecting a major oakmoss upgrade, but it was not there.

Old school, new pleasures Congratulations to the Karl Lagerfeld brand, for the inspiration to create this fragrance and to maintain it on the market since 1978. I bought my current Lagerfeld Classic quite recently - about six years ago - so I'll just have the current formulation in my mind. - It opens with aldehydes and a strong unusual orange note (Citrus + Tarragon = Orange?), Well, it smells like a pleasant strong zesty sweet boozy Orange. - Then you notice three musketeers in action, Tonka + Vanilla + Amber duelling with Tobacco. What a divine scent. It's very lively in the beginning and slowly it calms down as time goes by... and it lasts and lasts and lasts... Eight hours went by and I still have a faint projection in the back of my hand (just 1 spray) and a marvellous skin scent. Comments: Due to its well-tamed sweetness, I imagine that this fragrance may as well be considered unisex, I can picture this magnificent powdery sweet Vanilla-Amber-Sweet Tobacco drying down on a woman's skin, My rates for Karl Lagerfeld for men: ____________________ - Scent opening: 8.0 (unusual but pleasant) - Scent dry down: 8.5 (very pleasant) - Longevity: 9.0 (above average for the existing notes and close to beasty performance with 3 sprays) - Sillage: 8.0 (6 feet at its peak with 3 sprays) - Uniqueness: 9.0 (quite a unique blending, considering the existing fragrances that I am aware of; Nobody was able - or cared to - copy it in the past 40 years) - Wearability: 9.0 (close to 4 seasons, day or night with the exception of extreme cold or heat) - Versatility: 9.0 (yes to clubbing, socializing, events, restaurants... and yes to dates, romancing, sex, office, picnics, weddings, movies, a birthday gift to your father-in-law... no to workout and beach!) - Compliments: 8.0 (not bad for an old school; younger people will say is outdated; older people will love it; everybody loves the zesty opening) - Quality: 8.0 (my judgement) - Presentation: 8.0 (simple but effective; very good sprayer) - Price: 9.0 (100 ml tester for 18 Euros + VAT + shipping) _____________________ Overall rating: 8.50/10.00 - between 7 and 8 =above average; - between 8 and 9 = recommended; - bigger than 9 = don't miss it; My opinion: Yes, it's a super old-school fragrance but it's also super pleasant. Not advisable if you are committed only to fresh, sweet. modern "blue" scents. Otherwise, it's a must! Music: Phil Collins - "In The Air Tonight"

My dream scent in the 80s and 90s. Magic, the best thing I had ever smelled, evoked some wild, genetic, infatuation memory I had never experienced. And that's quite a feat. Alas, none of my men really wore it, as it was popular with the gay crowd (how I found it), and only for the really confident straight man. It was expensive then, and the one time I took a chance and gifted it, he stuck to the gross Obsession daily, saving the KL for special occasions, and we soon broke up (probably over the Obsession lol). There was nothing sexier than going in for a hello neck kiss at the end of the day and whiffing the intoxicating, unique sensuality of KL, by then a skin scent, but nice when fresh, too, just not for overdoing. I always wanted to wear it myself, and did sneak some. Now I would wear it, er, the original, no problem, or mix it. It must have been reformulated for anyone to say it smells like the over the top, gross, sudsy, sneezy Obsession. KL wasn't for that, "Hi, I smell like everyone and you can smell me a mile away." fad projection. KL was utterly unique, nothing like it, and very ahead of its time. I would classify it with Cartier Must, which I used to wear as a signature then (more feminine EDT on top of the heavy, more masculine parfum) and talk about your reformulation sins, plus no more parfum now. And also in the same category as my next signature, Aqua di Parma Blue Mediterraneo Mandorlo di Sicilia, which I still wear, as I still have half of a last large bottle of the lovely but sadly discontinued parfum oil. (the EDT is wearable, but nothing like this oil, for us subtle ladies). I might try a bottle of modern KL, as it's so cheap and might be great with the Aqua di Parma. But the original was nothing like the negative descriptions here (Old Spice?? NO! They did say they never smelled OS, obviously!, plus that was aftershave, and OS one of the first male scents, and as cheap drugstore as you can imagine. Yes, cologne later, but same.). KL was a rich, classy gourmandish scent, to me, in a world of none. I suspected that KL was reformulated by the 90s, as there was a more detergent top note, so I let my dream fragrance go. At any rate, it's a lovely, complex memory of sexy witchcraft. Warlockcraft? Unicraft! And it doesn't remind me of any time, man or affair, just the memories that a really great scent evokes. It was true art.

My father's signature cologne, wore it every morning since inception, to the point that it melded with his bodyodar and the combination WAS my father's DNA scent. He passed away 3 years ago, now that im back into the frag game being away from it for 20 years, i just picked up a bottle, to sniff every once in a while, so i can remember & not forget what my papabear smelt like for those reminiscent days... :( For 1978, this dna in the industry is A MASTERPIECE!! Probably a victim of multiple reformulations today. It's a boozy/spicy/soapy combo frag, and in 2020 im actually still in love with this scent even without the nostalgia taking into consideration. Im trying to be honestly critical by giving a critical opinion without the nostalgia of smelling this on my dad every day of his life. At the end of the day, I just love how they made a soapy scent pair with a boozy scent! I really love the soapy note in this!! <3 You would think soap and booze is an ignorant combination, but it works! Just like chicken & waffles with maple syrup, ignorant combo, but it works for reasons. Jesus...best $20 bucks ive spent in a long time! 100% worth for a collection!! It smells fantastic quality for a cheap designer!! I even think that it's so old that it can become trendy again. I bought this to remind me of my father's scent so i don't forget it, now im keeping the bottle to actually wear myself, smells fantastic! Classic! Anyone can wear this, but it melds really good for anyone with dark features and oily olive skin for some reason. IMHO since NOBODY talks about this frag today makes it slept-on! FYI this is a 2019 'Interparfum' Co. bottle. This gets stereotyped for being a late evening smoking jacket frag. No! This frag is even better when wearing it first thing in morning, on cool crisp air days because of that fabulous soapy note!! Now i want to find other modern frags with that soapy note in it! Instead, think leaving a luxurious hotel first thing in the morning and going for a run outside. A luxury version of this without the amazing soap note is MFK's Grand Soir. I would give my right kidney for an original batch of this MASTERPIECE!! To that, RIP to Lagerfeld, the original formulation, and my father... 5/5 Woofs!