Special for Gentlemen

Special for Gentlemen is what a classy man should wear. And a classy woman for that matter. Forget the gentleman, this is a special cologne/fragrance/perfume done in the old fougere style a la Jicky, and therefore reminiscent of Shalimar as well. As much as I love Jicky, and it's bracing lavender/vanilla combo, I'm lucky if I get 30 minutes out of it. So it's my go to instant pick me up before I wear something that I can actually smell when I finish getting dressed. Enter Special for Gentlemen. Unaware of the brand I blindly tested this, hoping to find a fresh fougere. The immediate opening was Jicky on steroids, what I hope mr. Wasser will do with Jicky soon. Lavender and vanilla galore, with a citrus touch to add freshness and sparkle. Creamy, aloof, put together. A perfect dandy scent. A perfect lady coiffed and dressed to the 9s scent! The opening goes for about an hour on my skin, I'm able to indulge in the goodness without feeling like I'm wearing a lavender ice cream. The heart notes are mostly lost on me, a very hazy floral gives of a 50s feeling that goes well with the picture in my mind; black and white movie, set in the Italian Riviera. Or Paris. Or my bedroom! The drydown is where Shalimar enters the picture. Whereas Jicky has a pronounced civet base, here I get the leather and castoreum of Shalimar, draped in oppoponax but very creamy courtesy of vanilla. And it lasts for a good 7 hours, with above moderate sillage, especially if applied freely. Smelling it next to the 2 Guerlain's, it feels of the family. But it also has its own character, only taking the best of the 2 and giving it a unique touch. If you love Jicky and lament it's poor staying power, or love Shalimar, give it a try. And bonus points for being able to smell it at the end of the day. Or at least the creamy leather that clings on skin forever. Excellent introduction to the brand. I hope the rest of the collection is as good!

The name is surely off-putting to anyone born after 1980, and if it wasn't an old and solidly established classic re-invented for the age I would bet a million it wouldn't have passed the first marketing meeting unscathed. The juice itself though is far and away the most exciting and most wearable of the three Le Galion perfumes I sampled recently, the other two being Whip and Aesthete. In a way, it's so much of its kind, such a 'special for gentlemen' that I could forgive guys (especially younger guys) dismissing it as another cologne with a mossy base and filing it under 'boring barbershop - where the flames at?'. But they'd be SO wrong! What truly took me back with this was how incredibly complicated yet subtle and cohesive the fougere composition and its meandering progress was, how the ingredients one expects (the lavender up top, the amber and patchouli at the heart and base) come and go and also dance around with other, less expected notes such as vanilla and labdanum and what seems a surprisingly heavy dose of cistus - it's the sonata form of masculine everyday perfumes, and not only that, it's late Mozart! An extraordinary wolf in ordinary merino wool.

Originally released in 1947, the modern iteration of Special for Gentlemen is a beautiful amber fougere that opens with a dry citron and herbaceous lavender than is reminiscent to that of Jicky, but the core is all opoponax. This resin, with honey- and toffee-like facets, almost salty and savory contrasting with sweet, is best known for its use in Shalimar and Bain de Champagne (Royal Bain de Caron). In fact, there are moments where Special reminds me of the latter, with lavender carrying it through the heart rather than rose and lilac. Warmer, more cinnamic and vanillic further into the dry down, Special for Gentleman feels appetizing and almost indulgent. It's heavenly and light, this is no Le Lion denseness, its buoyancy may appeal to those who may feel stifled by thicker, stickier, labdanum-heavy ambers (I have a soft spot for those two, naturally). Those who tend to scoff at early-to-mid century fragrance will definitely want to steer clear. This is for the fumeheads who crave the oldies but goodies. I am happy to have this along in the collection—it certainly helped that I found it for a great deal, well under retail price.

Round lavender (the star of the show), supported by citron, but doesn't come out as fresh, more fruity. Then it goes towards a nice labdanum note, that is given a smoky/plasticky facet by the cinnamon (it sounds pejorative, but I swear, it's not!). The base is a simple oakmoss note with a vanillic touch. Overall a cousin (but not a brother) of Guerlain Jicky/MdM, giving a more modern take on these, but also in a more simplistic/ less artful manner. It might result a bit more wearable than its cousins (even though I have no problem with the 2 Guerlains), but also a touch less exciting, imho. Like its cousins, it tends to perform modestly, shortly after the opening, but has a better longevity. A very solid choice for fragheads who doesn't already own Jicky or MdM (does it exist?) but its not-so-cheap price point and modest performance doesn't make of this one a safe blind buy, imo. A big like for me. Spring/Fall, 30+, unisex leaning masculine (a bit more than the Guerlains)

This feels like a contemporary version of vintage Jicky parfum (if that makes any sense). While the bergamot at the top is of the modern, attenuated kind, it still feels beautifully aromatic and it harmonizes with lovely lavender and maybe cinnamon and some other spices. I definitely smell the shoe-polish-meets-lacquered-wood aroma of opoponax which here feels smooth rather than just powdery. It's all on a bed of restrained vanilla, amber, and musk. You don't get the big civet punch of Jicky, but there is a slightly smoky castoreum/birch texture. It's not as extreme as the similar leatsher accord in Shalimar, which is why this resembles Jicky more than that one. This is lovely and I'm glad to own it for days when Jicky is a hair too challenging, but in some ways it does feel redundant to own both.