Bois du Portugal (1987)
by Creed

BdP is definitely a man's fragrance. VERY classy and those that describe this one as an "old man's" fragrance are no doubt millenials whose tastes are still in their infancy.I won't bother to list the notes as everyone knows what they are. If you want to smell good at anytime of the year for any occasion, this is for you if you have the spare change. NOT for little girls.

When you break it down, this is a very simple fragrance when it comes to note breakdowns.
A bergamot that is the right balance of biterness and sweetness opens this up and almost works like your first coffee of the day in awakening your senses.
This citrus transitio s and blends perfectly with the always soothing lavender in the heart. What the lavender seems to do is carry the bergamot with it until we get to the sublime drydown of one of Creed's best. Cedar and creamy sandalwood dominate the base, all the while keeping remnants of the opening, and i think the ambergris is the thing binding it all together.
There are other fragrances in this general theme but here the ingredients smell like quality, and it's all blended beautifully while still picking out individual notes.
3 sprays maximum for this because i get 1w hours longevity very easily and it projects a few good feet for a couple of hours at least.
Not the most versatile, but i enjoyed it every single time.

Quite simply put Bois Du Portugal is my favorite fragrance in existence. Spicy, soapy and very manly. Pure class and sophistication in a bottle. Never before have a been blown away at first sniff!!

I wouldn't recommend blind-buying this as I did.

I hated it at first. Was extremely disappointed. Then I spent most of a weekend trying to get to know it. Now I like it, in a limited sense.

Realize that what you are hit with at first is a very bitter citrus, not a sweet one IMO. I usually associate a citrus with some sweetness so this was tough for me to get right away. I just didn't like it. But once I realized what I was smelling, and that it was new to me, my frustration subsided a bit. I began searching out the citrus in this scent, getting used to it. After that I enjoyed it much, much more.

The cedar is strong as well. If you don't like cedar, or bitter bergamot, stay far away from this one.

However, there is a definite smoothness to this scent.

It's a powerful scent with what I imagine very good sillage and projection. The longevity is better than average as well.


It does smell old, like barbers talc in areas. I doubt very many women would be seduced by this. But if you're like me and you wear scents that you like and that challenge you, then I'd recommend Bois du Portugal.

I would be unlikely to wear this in hot weather.


Overall 8-9 out of 10.

Beautifully crafted scent from Creed. Bois du Portugal is a classic vetiver fragrance with a nod given towards the fougere scents of the 1980's.

Bergamot is instantaneous and disappears quite quickly after application. Then, the fragrance stabilizes with a pleasantly sharp "spike" of spice that I enjoy from fougere / vetiver scents...like a classier version of Old Spice, without feeling cheap nor pretentious. Lavender is very evident a note, as is a hint of the lovely sandalwood in the base. The "Creed accord" of amber is what makes this scent distinctive, with its creamy, slightly animalic quality.

You be the judge if you'd be willing to plunk down a lot of money for this Creed scent; there are plenty of other decent fragrances that do the job (first that comes to mind is Carven Homme (original), then Guerlain's Vetiver, maybe Eau de Vetyver by L'Occitane, perhaps even Gucci Nobile's wonderful potion).

I'm glad I bought it, and after so many years Bois du Portugal continues to delight me and never disappoint.