The Dandy

Ooh la la! The Dandy! What a bobby dazzler of a scent! I normally HATE woody perfumes, but this is so cleverly done, that I hardly notice the wood notes at all. I find extreme wood notes to be headache-inducing after a while, so to know that wood is in this perfume, without really being able to detect it, makes me very happy indeed. It is used here as a way to hold down the more flighty tones of raspberry and citrus, that shine brightly on the top. It smells like the olfactory equivalent of a trumpet blast, in a speakeasy that is teeming with illegal whiskey, cigar smoke, colorful characters, and a massive dose of razzamatazz, jazz hands, and well-worn trilby hats. It really wets my winkie and paints an excellent picture in my brain box. Now, the sillage is a bit more personal than I would expect for a Penhaligons scent, but the longevity doesn't disappoint. It really goes the distance, but it is definitely more of a scent to wear when you only want to please yourself, rather than the world you insert yourself into. My main issue with this perfume is the price. It is quite expensive for a scent that doesn't scream the house down. But, that sort of adds to it's attractiveness, as it is not very accessible to the dullard masses. I must say that the bottle is also beautiful. The art-deco graphics really sell the story, and the tell-tale Penhaligons bow tie has never been more appropriate. Raspberry is used so well in this scent profile; it's bold inclusion gives a fizzy, metallic-esque edge to the top notes, especially when it combines with the subtle citrus tones. The raspberry adds a big dollop of fun into the proceedings, but it doesn't outstay it's welcome; settling down well for the base and heart notes to rev up to 5th gear. I love this perfume for days when I want to smell good without anyone else knowing I do. It is a naughty party in a bottle. 8/10. The sillage could be a bit better, and the price a bit fairer, but other than that it is perfect. EDIT (12/03/25) Oh fuck off Penhaligons! What the fuck have you done to this thing of beauty?! You have changed it's name to "The London Dandy" and given it a boring as fuck, posh, racist-countryside-bastard green tweed suit color scheme. Shame on you! It's previous art deco style was absolutely fannytastic, and totally painted a picture in my brain box when I smelt the scent and looked at the bottle. But, in a probable attempt to get more fucking numpties buying it, you've dumbed it down into a design that the dullard masses can understand better. What the fuck does this scent have to do with London?! What the fuck does it have to do with green tweed suits?! NOTHING - that's what! Don't fix what isn't broken! When I saw this abomination in the Penhaligons shop, I was so angry that I nearly did a swear in public. It's score has hereby been reduced to 6/10. The pure excellence of the scent, which is unchanged, saves it from going to 5. Thankfully, I have a bottle of the original design.

This is a nice scent profile, with better performance than many people give it credit for. It opens with the soft woods and whiskey, sweetened by the citrus and raspberry. But the patchouli is quite prominent. When I first sprayed it on test blotter, the patchouli was so strong I thought it might rival my Houbigant Patchouli Sauvage, which is patchouli on steroids. But on skin, The Dandy's patchouli was tamed, though still prominent. The prominent woodiness is soft, almost like sandalwood. To honor its name, I might have favored reducing the patchouli a tad, and maybe adding a bit of iris or heliotrope powderiness to augment a somewhat nice sawdust-y woody facet already there. I read that Oscar Wilde was fond of heliotrope, so there's a dandy model right there. So the added powderiness might impart a more dandy vibe. But it's all quite well balanced, rather soft, and pleasant. Although fairly close to the skin, I am getting occasional natural soft wafts of scent to my nose. And that's satisfactory performance in my book. I have another fragrance called Le Dandy Pour Homme by D'Orsey, released in 1999. It also has a whiskey note, along with rum, pineapple, and plum. More gourmand-y in profile, but I think the two Dandy's might layer very well. UPDATE 1: I tried the combo wear with Le Dandy by D'Orsey, and it worked well. Just hold back on the sprays of the D'Orsey. UPDATE 2: I tried another combo wear for The Dandy with Penhaligon's Much Ado About the Duke, and it was great! The two scent profiles combine beautifully and naturally in the air. Perfect boozy, powdery woods combo. I'll call this my Penhaligon's "Dandy Duke" combo.

Penhaligon's is one of the oldest perfume houses in the world, serving the British aristocracy. I am honored to own The Dandy as my first perfume. For me, the scent of this perfume is 8/10, outstanding enough and has something very unique, expressing the true spirit of Penhaligon's. The first time I tried it, the oak smell was so prominent that I couldn't detect the other ingredients and honestly, I didn't see the uniqueness of it. Come back the next day and try it right before my nose gets distracted by other scents, I can already feel the difference. Oak is still the focus of the opening, but this is not a raw wood smell but the smell of oak barrels that are aging aromatic whiskeys. Another prominent ingredient that I missed the other day is raspberry. The raspberry in The Dandy is skillfully combined to make the scent more unique and "juicy".Combined with other ingredients and in secret proportions, it creates a harmonious whole. Besides, there is one thing that convinced me to choose this perfume, which is the "aristocratic feeling" that I think always appears in every Penhaligon's perfume. This is a very good perfume, suitable for parties where you want to be a unique color. Let's try!

I don't get the negativity with this at all. This should be over a 4.00 rating on here, I know 3.82 (at time of writing) isn't exactly low, but this stuff is great considering the price per ml compared to other Penhaligon's fragrances. Opens very boozy, woody and a little earthy. Dries down with the same nuances but the woody earthiness takes the foreground with the booziness poking its head through, but you can definitely still pick it up easily. It's classy and masculine, the name is very fitting! On me, the projection and longevity are moderate. By that, I mean it lasts well enough and projects well enough, it's not an in your face fragrance by any means, but it is certain not poor in either of those two fields. It's well put together, very nice quality, and worth picking up for sure. If you do get it, I cross my fingers for you that you don't have the poor longevity and sillage that some people apparently get, if you believe those reviews. The comparisons with Straight To Heaven are justified, by the way.

A distinction needs to be made between A. smelling of a high class gentleman entering a classy bar for drinks, and B. smelling like the actual bar; polished wood furniture, clinking drinks, barrels and all. I believe The Dandy veers off to the latter. The bergamot (or Citron?) adds a nice "twist" to this composition by boosting that effervescing sparkle many oak-dominant fragrances lack. Not too tart, but enough to lift the slightly moldy woodiness of the barrel-aged-whiskey that is supported with the equally oldly (but quite clean) patchouli. It's nothing to right home about, but nicely done. An easy grab for those wanting to venture into the world of boozy, liquor inspired perfumes. Doesn't project heaps, but lasts a good 6 hours on skin and fabric. An easy over-spray inducer for the autumn and a good formal occasion piece to add to my Penhaligon's collection.