Racquets

Ding Dong I finally found a citrus perfume I like! Which might also explain why others aren't as much a fan... My nose prefers unisex, woods, leathers, and musks, I am not a fan of sweet or jammy scents and am very particular about citrus. I think a lot of perfume leans towards orange, or orange blossom for its citrus and this being straight up lemon to your eye upon first spray might be too sharp for some. I'm lucky I guess because this is pure lemon zest to me, not cleaning agent, but like the nature of a lot of citrus top notes it doesn't last very long and mellows out into a wonderful wood and leather heaven. The name and affiliated imagery is spot on: tennis outfits so white they're almost glowing bright, shockingly green grass, and a tall glass of the most refreshing lemonade covered in condensation waiting for you just off court. Summery, bright, but I'm sure it will be just as refreshing when I wear it this summer.

Racquets by Penhaligons is simply a phenomenal scent and has become my signature. What makes this truly spectacular is how photorealistic this seems. The wood truly gives the impression of Victorian wood that has been encased in leather and cleaned with lemon, hence the name. The lemon does come through very strong initially but its the dry down you're here for. It is a summer scent at heart, but due to how truly classy this fragrance is, I would recommend for any occasion. The sillage is great and I have recieved many compliments with this fragrance, longevity is around 8-10 hours. Sadly, this fragrance was a limited edition run and is now discontinued, so I would recommend trying to get a bottle sooner rather than later!

I have a sample of this coming fresh from Penhaligon's and I am really looking forward to smelling it... I'll update once I have the opportunity to wear it a few times... ^_^ --- Updated: I've finished off my two samples and I gotta say I really enjoy it for Spring and Summer... So much so that I just ordered a full bottle... Very BRIGHT Lemon note to start you off that then slowly drifts into a leathery woody vibe... Good longevity and does not scream off the skin... My wife also has worn this and it was wonderful on her too... VERY unisex fragrance straight down the line IMO... Looking forward to having this in my collection...

If you like Orto Parisi Bergamask, Hanae Mori HM, or Lemon by Mary Greenwell, then you will enjoy Racquets EDP by Penhaligon's. Starts with a huge blast of citronella, but this warms when a herbaceous note joins the fray. This continues for the first hour and the the lemon takes a backseat to a musk. It is a simple fragrance that has been very well executed. At each stage I can only compare it to Bergamask, as it resembles that fragrances right through the drydown. It isn't as loud as the Orto Parisi, but it certainly stands proud alongside it.

this is the first time i have ever loved a citrus, the opening smells fizzy like lemonade and the leathery dry down gives it a more interesting spin. it really brings to mind playing victorian lawn games in a sunny country house garden

One to wear exclusively in the summer, genuinely smells like tennis whites, leather cricket balls, and a wicker basket. Performance is good too. Quite a sophisticated smell too, wouldn't wear it unless there was an occasion.

Gorgeous scent! So fresh, citrusy and woody. Wood has a hint of smoke and it sounds lovely. 100% unisex! Lemon gives freshness and ambroxan is responsible for lightly warm notes here. Great job, Penhaligon’s!

Women's D&G Light Blue on dry down. Lasts forever.

The lemon note is very clean and chemical at first - like that you'd find in hand soap, or household cleaner. It's very fresh and zingy, with that lovely leather base keeping it mature and sophisticated - and certainly very unisex. It really does remind me of D&G Light Blue on my skin.

Big lemon opening. Huge. As harsh as Versace pour Homme. The dry down is beautiful. Wood and leather. Doesn’t last too long on my skin. About 5-6 hours. For the price, the performance isn’t great. Fantastic frag, but not worth the dollar IMO.

I got this in the recent Penhaligon’s offer in the UK. It’s going to have mixed reviews. A friend at work had his delivery the day before mine and his reviews were mixed, he thought it was ok, his wife hated it thinking it gave off the hint of body odour and his daughter absolutely loved it. The initial hit I got this morning was of a heavy almost chemical lemon smell. I sniffed my arm about 5 minutes later and right at the end I did get that faint hint of body odour my friend’s wife mentioned. It mellowed quickly but there’s no great projection or longevity, I’ve only got the faintest hint of it throughout the day. It’s OK but hard to believe it’s a EDP. £76 for this and the free 75ml of Monsieur Beauregard was acceptable. £76 for 30ml of this alone and I would be seriously disappointed. This is the first full bottle from Penhaligon’s I’ve not loved, and I’ve blind bought quite a few. Part of me does wonder who they sampled this on to think it was up to their usual standard. Not their best and I can’t see it standing the test of time in their range.

Racquets has been paired up with the passion in a tennis race, so I imagined it'd be a kind of sporty and refreshing perfume. The opening note of lemon is actually a bit too screechy to me. It's so sharp that it almost smells like some sort of detergent. I had a high hope for it, but it's a bit disappointing in terms of the sharpness, complexity and projection. Not more than half an hour the lemon note goes subtle and the leathery note dominates. It's a kind of neutral leathery note that is not infused with any incense note, which makes it smell young and clean. I somehow detect also some peppery note that makes the middle note more lively. The base note is mainly ambroxan to me, which smells very much a mild mix notes of ocean and wood on my skin. The perfume smells beyond unisex, actually pretty masculine on me. I do use men's perfumes, but I don't think this'd be one that I'm interested to use (again).

This is Penhaligon's take on Mancera Cedrat Boisee and, to a lesser extent, Creed Aventus. I have all three on me now and the similarities are striking, particularly in the dry down. In the opening, Racquets differentiates itself with a very punchy lemon note and is more citrusy than Cedrat Boisee. Aventus' Smokey Pineapple is more appealing than both the other two but the vibe is the same. In the dry down Cedrat and Racquets are near enough identical for me, with a slightly leathery, transparent woody feel and a touch of the citrus still detectable. Performance on both is also very similar, that is to say OK (3-4 hours). For me, although I do enjoy Racquets the early impressions are a little disappointing. I like it but it's not a standout fragrance that I will really crave I don't think. I do tend to warm to fragrances over time so I may update this in a few weeks.

Not bad, not great either. Probably one of the few of Penhaligon’s that I’m not really keen on. The initial spray starts off smelling like McDonald’s hand soap in the 90s and early 2000s. The initial spray is very zesty and fresh that smells like cheap hand wash from McDonald’s when I was a youngster from what I can remember. The dry down is okay, fairly woody but also very synthetic. Longevity and sillage is satisfactory. This smells very much Hermes Citron Noir which I own. Only the latter being much more woody. Not for me. 4/10

On first sniff, this smelled like tea or medicine― I realized it reminded me of hot lemon honey water my mom used to make for me when I had a sore throat. Then it evolves into smelling like a cleaning product. Somehow, it has this utilitarian feel― like it's meant to serve a purpose (calming a sore throat, cleaning a kitchen counter), but I prefer fragrances that feel pretty for the sake of being pretty (call me a hedonist) rather than attempting to smell like something that serves a purpose or function.

I got a sample of this. It's a strong leather which isn't a note I'm overly familiar with. At first, there is a balance of lemon and leather but after an hour the lemon fades and the leather remains. It lasts forever even after I had a shower about 9 hours after I applied it I could smell it slightly. Not unpleasant but I'm not a big fan of the leather so I wouldn't buy it.

It has a uniqueness to it, but sadly in a very ugly way. It's one of those wear it for yourself kind of perfumes. You won't be getting very many compliments, you've been warned lol.

Iconic Chypre Citrus✨️ Very unisex with the nice leatherwood undertones. However I do feel it does have age, and I'd make it a bit less powdery. It does feel like old money, just wish it wasn't an emphasis on the old😬 Definitely better than Chanel No.5, and not a cloying projection👌 Feels like a perfume to do fancy sports in like equestrian or croquet🏇Not my favorite from the Penhaligon's collection, but feels like a worthy mention due to the history of this fragrance, or should I say reviving the past🕑 Zodiac Trio ⬆️Gemini☀️Aries🌜Leo

Hmmm weird one. Very citrusey and lemony as a top note which I didn't mind then it nicely fades away becoming cooler and refreshing. However, on my skin, it turns into a "sheep" smell that's the only thing that comes to my mind (nose rather ha!) .. I'm not sure if the leather is to blame (actually, I am sure it is because within that sheep smell I can smell cow leather) so as you may have guessed not for me. Might smell different on someone else... shame as if it wasn't for that, I liked it

The sharp lemon scent makes my teeth get sensitive