Reviews of Bulgari pour Homme (1995)
by Bulgari

One favorite of mine-classy, subtle but bold, sensuous, and tied together with the citrus, peper, tea, musk harmonies developed by Bulgari. although the opening is bold, the dry-down is far more complex and sumptuous. The scent has longevity, but closer to the skin than any cologne or fragrance I regularly wear. While tea and pepper holds most fragrances from Bulgari, it's base is quite manly versus androgeny. The scent verges on genius. I have garnered as many compliments on this frag as any other. Two hands up. In regular rotation with Dolce Gabanna, Eau Savage, Knize Ten, Bois du Portugal, and Terre de Hermes. A classic.

This is easily one of my favorite colognes to wear in a casual setting. At first, the flower and tea notes are the most prominent. They are each softly blended together and, to my nose, no single note dominates. Eventually it eases its way into a more woodsy scent. I enjoy applying it lightly to the point where others can’t quite tell if I’m wearing cologne of not.

The cologne has two problems that I can tell. First, it is almost too weak. Even though I like it lightly applied, this is really the only good way to apply it, in my opinion. Too many sprays brings out the second problem, which is some sort of chemical-like note (which is what, I believe, other reviewers are referring to when they complain of headaches), not to mention an over-abundance of pepper. The “chemical” note is also present during the dry down even when lightly applied, but is usually inconspicuous. Too many sprays make it simply too powerful to ignore.

On the whole, a fantastic scent, especially if, like me, you choose your colognes in an effort to avoid smelling either too old and too much like a frat boy.

I honestly can barely smell this at all, definitely not worth buying in my eyes

Bvlgari pour Homme is an exceptional fragrance. I get the tea more than the bergamot, in the opening. It evolves in a subtle, close to the skin manner to a clean musky-tea accord. The strength of this fragrance is more about the sum of the parts and less about how many individual accords one detects. It projects so appropriately. An eloquent scent that doesn't need to scream. Exquisite!

Great scent - just a little weak on my skin.

Very intimate tone. Goes on light and does not change much. It doesnt have to. Stays with you a very long time and has a strong but not over powering sillage. Great for romantic dates. Gives of an aire of power. Woodsy and Peppery. Love it.

A great, warm, well-behaved, classic mens scent that I did, and will cherish, for many years.

I think this is a very warm scent for some reason, though it is not heavy at all. Quite fresh in its opening, it has that mysterious chemical Aldehydes note dominating it. Heavily. Also apparent are some citrus accord, nutmeg, lavender and tea as usual. Tea is what holds all Bulgari scents together, and this one is no exception. It is warm and green, but in a very refreshing way. Its base is also quite masculine, including everything from musk, amber, vetiver, cedar, moss and tonka bean. Now that is pretty ordinary, redundant even, but what makes the scent amazing is all the sets of flower combo in the mid-notes which is nothing short of spectacular. Moving on from the fresh opening, the scent combines tea with many flowers including black currant and orange blossoms, cyclamen, iris and carnations, and spicing the mix with pepper and coriander, and rosewood, perhaps to cut the femininity of the flowers.

The result is quite magnetic, and magical. Would work surprisingly well on any whether or climate. The scent is sexy, musky, and dry, but the flowers are all handled so well, that on every skin, they bring out some other rich quality. This is a scent that will remain close to the skin, and will change itself and adapt to your skin chemistry. Though I cannot imagine any type of horrible disaster with anyone skin chemistry since the scent does not include anything offensive.

That's why I think this fragrance is quite well-behaved. Longevity, unfortunately, leaves much to be desired, though the bottle is incredibly elegant. It is such a gentleman-ly scent. I wish it did not require reapplication quite so often.

Too 'corporate' for my taste. Too prim and proper and lacks that hint of edginess that I want in a fragrance. Unfortunately it does'nt do it for me, although I wanted it to.

Bought this one to see for myself if the debate over this and the Extreme version can be put to a stop in my head. I've a using bottle and 2 spares for the extreme. And i loved its darjeeling tea dryness. Its very sweet spciey. Back to the original, i found it to be just a less intense version. Just less spice and less sweetness. the scent is very much alike other then longevity which last longer on the extreme as it was meant to. Maybe why some ppl found extreme to be sour was because of the heavier zest and spice altogether. Both are equally good, coz i certainly like how they created a scent so dry and spicey. This is not Herbal Spicey tho, its spicey sweet like the drying darjeeling tea leaves. been a fan of the extreme and naturally the original doesnt lose out much.

I have been wearing this scent for a few years and I cant let it go...I love it all the way around.

Some people may find this crazy but to me this cologne smells like a 3SUM...lol....it smells like two colognes and 1 perfume wrapped into 1....Or like Liquor (martinis)..or Licorice. This is a scent I get females and males(yikes) asking me what am i wearing.

Sexy, Spicy, Sweet, Musty, Refined, Elegant.....yea..smells like bedsheets where a 3 beautiful people just had fun in all night.

Top notes: Bergamot, Lavender, Mandarin, Aldehydes
Middle notes: Pepper, Coriander, Geranium, Carnation
Base notes: Cedar, Amber, Tonka, Oakmoss

What we have here is Cavallier trying to do an Ellena under the minimalist guise of Bulgari's scent umbrella. Bulgari pour homme's (BPH) notes pyramid is flattering. BPH comes off as a simple scent; and even if the notes are well blended into a single coherent accord, that accord in BPH isn't very nose pleasing.

The 5 second opening burst of pleasant of uninspired citrus aromas hide a mini-lavender note; this is immediately overtaken by the main accord of pepper....or musky pepper. BPH is all about a very transluscent and quiet musky pepper accord with a bit of tea freshness thrown in just because Bulgari are great tea sluts when it comes to their fragrance line. There's minimal notes movement, and the pepper accord is lent a bit of softness by "in the background" florals and amber notes. And thats about it. Its very Gendarme like in its feel, and its quite apparent that Cavallier wasn't able to generate a transluscent fragrance which incorporated some semblance of notes movement (smell Bulgari au The Verte for comparison).

BPH doesn't excite or interest me much but I can see where it can work. Add 2 to the score below if you are an uptight conservative or an office rat.

Rating: 6.0/10.00

Crisp and classy - one of the best scents for the office or when traveling. Awesome, awesome, awesome. The tea note is fabulously played here.

I make a point to read other reviewer’s comments to see if their words capture my experience. As I was having difficulty describing Bulgari Pour Homme, I was relieved to find one reviewer describe it as having a “musty metallic accord”. I could not have said it any better. I get that for 3+ hours and then the metal fades. Mustiness remains, so I must give it a thumbs down (pun intended).

Again I bought this one due to the reviews here on basenotes and at first spray I thought "oh my god I smell just like my 3rd grade teacher" but then it turned smell very soft and clean very close to a womens perfume. I wore it on a first date and she loooooooved it she kept getting closer and closer just so she could smell me. If your masculine enough to pull this one off I say definitely get it.

Woody. Deep sensuous woody. Cedary, shoe tree woody. Thast's all I get and I love it!

This is a wonderful fragrance that, rare these days, is specifically for a man. That said, it is completely unique, and the color of the fragrance reminds me of the color of the smell... clear, crisp and clean (but not in a citrus/soapy/aquatic way).. Only as a point of reference, I'll say it reminds me of the smell of celery and a gin martini but woods, pointy pepper, and musk mixed in for a suble sweetness that waits for the initial clarity to dry away. It is very weak on my skin. I have to bury my nose to smell a hint of it after 30 minutes let alone an hour, BUT I don't like the extreme version: I find it enhances the sour notes in this too much. I'd rather just reapply.

I love this scent to bits. Not because it's earth-shattering different or bold, but because it makes me feel like I'm worth a million bucks when I'm wearing it.

It's a fresh citrus scent with layers of tea and musk. That's it. Very simple, but very effective and well executed. I agree sillage can be improved, and that didn't happen in the Extrême version that turned sour (grapefruit) on me.

I do however think that this scent is more for work than play.

The most “comme il faut” scent I know. It’s very polite and intellectual, if I may say so.
I see this one as a wonderful musk “framed” with tea notes.
If you have to meet your future father-in-law and you have Bvlgari pour Homme in your collection, there is no need for a long consideration what to wear.

After reading other reviews I'm relieved I'm not the only one who has experienced headaches with this fragrance. After getting over the fact that there's too much pepper, the other notes are really great, it's just doesn't work with me.

I am relatively new to the world of fragrance and after wild, shotgun indulgence early on where I built up a bit of a collection, I have lately come to realize that there aren't all that many scents that i REALLY like and want to wear on a regular basis. BpH, however, is one of the few. I find it hard to dissect an overall impression that I tend to think of as "peppery". I guess I can detect the tea and musk notes that people mention, and admit that it doesn't really smell like pepper, but that is always the first word that comes to mind when I think of this frag.

Actually, Bulgari pour Homme is, along with Creed Original Vetiver, my main day-to-day office scent, and I wear them together. I work in a large company that produces videogames and so the demographic is 95% male. Dress is casual and average age is 25~35. Normal rules regarding fragrance do not apply, but I have had success with this combo; BpH on the body, OV on the arms. It makes for a clean and zesty scent that works for me.

We have a fairly complex list of ingredients here, and my overall impression is that they are carefully fused together into a relatively seamless presentation. Here are my impressions as the scent unfolds. A slightly sweet, light green opening. It is very pleasant and fresh... a natural sort of ‘fresh’, not the synthetic type so common these days. The florals are tightly melded together. The tea note is distinctive. Spices (cardamom, pepper) give some interest and ‘bite’. Light amber and musk reach upward and enrich all the phases. This is very pleasant and enjoyable, good for office/day wear. It is light, refreshing and interesting. It has a good woody dry-down. The tea note grows more sweet as it combines with the musk. As is often the case with some scents, I prefer the dry opening to the richer and sweeter conclusion. But this one is pretty good, and the tea note does give it a distinctive aspect.

This starts out promising - fresh and smooth.

But soon enough, it melts down into something very generic and headache inducing.

All I can say is, I don't see many of the mid notes displayed here on basenotes comming through with any sort of clarity - all it does after ten minutes is give me a headache!

I love this fragrance. I typically go more for the subtle frags as opposed to ones that announce their presence loudly. This one is a very clean musk and tea fragrance with woods adding a nice touch near the end. I'll always have this one around.

I liked the top notes but after they wore off in the first 5 minutes I was left with the distinct smell of black licorice and nothing else.

used to my favorite 10 years ago.
still i like it. very clean with sophisticated way. fresh and musky its a reall classic

The Bulgari PH is clean, ethereal and very contemporary in its composition and personality. It creates an upfligting, natural zen-like effect on the wearer. A calm in the midst of the storm kind of feel. This was my daily fragrance for several years and it never gets old or uninspiring.
The opening is a light floral that is expanded and lifted by a dry pepper opening of the beautiful green tea note which stays as the centerpiece in this fragrance throughout. The tea has a transcendent vibe from the uplifting of the strong but almost clear iris note that follows. The tea/iris middle notes are held up by a soft dry amber and wood finish. Bulgari is all about the dry uplifting green tea mixed with light floral and woods all lifted on the wings of the iris and pepper. It's a very unique mix that is subtle, but strong willed. I've not seen a similar scent anywhere else.
Other reviewers have pointed out that Bulgari can not compare to the greats from Caron, Balenciaga, Creed and Patou; BUT that is the point! Bulgari PH provides a gentle and perfect path away from those macho power play scents from the 80's. No piny lodges, horses or trumpets here! Bulgari has borrowed a secret from the great ones by utilizing pepper to open the nose for the primary note (tea) and then lifting the mix with iris for an ethereal middle. Patou Pour Homme uses this same pepper (even stronger) opening and then follows with cedar to lift its primary notes for a similar ethereal effect but with different surrounding notes. I am surprised more perfumers do not employ this open and lift quality of pepper + iris (or orris or cedar). Many that are considered masterpieces employ this harmonic twist.
Bulgari is a hidden tea ceremony set inside a magical wood. Unique. . . a classic of this century, in my opinion.

A mid-level manager waiting for his plane in an airport; this is Bulgari pour homme. As Fresh, lasting and smart as conventional, boring and monotone. If that's your idea of perfume, supermarkets are full of deodorants; better waste that money on those.

I like it, but do not find it strong at all. Maybe the stuff I bought on eBay was watered down. Anyhow it's very light, pleasant and slightly elusive. Elegant without being stuffy. I'm impressed.

Fresh, cool, sharply citrus (in a good way) with a musky drydown that gently evokes the opening. Never cloying, doesn't annoy, better-than-average sillage and projection. It's one of my favorites.

Fresh, clean and no caffeine. A rather subtle, unimposing, muted version of teas bags brought to scent. Not for the bold or loud but for the classy and low-key. I like it but not that much and the longevity sucks - it's gone in few hours. OK but not my bag of tea. Might have worked for the Boston Tea Party. Tea for two, you be the judge

having a view at all the scents launched in the last years i must say that bulgari for men is one of the best but it is absolutely not comparable with the great perfumes of patou, balenciaga, piguet and caron!It is ok-and concerning the positive aspects-they all have been mentionned here: clean, freh, nice etc. buti miss this touch of being something very special and unique-it is ok and nice but it does not stand out.There are perfumes-when you smell them you automatically turn your head around...and wow...so bulgari for men is not such a scent!But compared to all the other stuff....In my opinion Bulgari should stay producing jewels and not perfumes-for century they áre into jewellery and suddenly-oh, let us make evn more money-and hurry up-let´s launch perfumes -no ladies and gentlemen...leave the perfume making to coty, caron,chanel, balenciaga,patou, creed etc. and make nice jewels.....

Try the Extreme version -- it lasts longer and has more spiciness. That said, this is one of my personal favorites in the spice category -- it's right up there with Paul Sebastian for Men (a cheap but perennial favorite as spicy goes).

Love it!! very strong and has a cirtrusy feel to it, it lasts and is very loud which i love, an all day cologne that i can smell and get compliments on!!

As a woman I enjoy wearing this myself. It could almost be unisex. However, I am not a fan of most women's perfumes they are all too sweet or too flowery. This one is just right for me, a hint of floral with a clean woody drydown. It also seems to last a long time on me as well and I live in a very dry climate.

Very fresh and clean. Maybe slightly to clean at the start. Best if you wait for the lovely, amazing muskdrydown. The Extreme version is the one to go for.
benb

Fresh, clean, warm fragrance with a note of tea, stays close to skin and unfortunately doesn’t last long.

I love this scent. Quality, classy, fresh and just great to wear. But, doesn't last at all...or if it's there, I can't smell it enough to enjoy it. Though I can pick up occasional mild hints of it now and then, I wish it was more present throughout the day. Reapplying doesn't help. The Extreme version is like a cheap knock off, not at all the same stuff to me.

If I had to pick one word to describe this stuff it would be "appropriate". It's never really out of place, and it will NEVER get on anyone's nerves. But you won't attract any attention either. It's REALLY dry and light. The tea and black pepper dominate for about 2 hours, then its a lot of light musk and just a bit of tea. Not bad. Very elegant actually. Just quite unexciting.

This is a "Copy and Paste" of a review from a member (Foetidus) that I think it's right on it. Seldom reviews are so well written with such a well defined thought process:
"I have discovered its cryptic qualities. Initially hard for me to believe, Bulgari Pour Homme does have a definite presence as well as good longevity. It stays very close to the skin so its notes are not being broadcast, but what notes! Warmth, subtly, and elegance: Bvlgari’s signature tea note dominates the opening in concert with citruses, blackcurrent, and florals in a smooth, delicate but masculine blend. The mid notes waft in with spices, more florals, and woods. The movement is completed with an excellent, subtle base of musk, tonka and wood. How beautiful this one is—restrained, elegant, smooth. Bvlgari Pour Homme is a modern kind of scent that will quite soon be the very definition of 'classic.'"
Foetidus, thank you! Nothing else can be said, man~! Two thumbs up to Bvlgari PH and to the reviewer.

vaguely sweetish and floral - polite, discreet, and ultimately deadly dull. if you want a cologne with a distinctive personality then this is not for you.

This fragrance doesn't really encite positive or negative passion in me.. I guess.. I'm indifferent. I enjoy this scent on my father, as it suits his character.. the pepper, the tea.. the smokey dry feel is certainly nice on the nose, but I can't ever see myself getting excited about wearing it. As previously mentioned, this scent wears very close to the skin.. so for people looking to leave a euphoric vapor trail.. look elsewhere!

This one fooled me. I thought it was oh so weak and short lived, but after wearing it in regular rotation for several months, I have discovered its cryptic qualities. Initially hard for me to believe, Bulgari Pour Homme does have a definite presence as well as good longevity. It stays very close to the skin so its notes are not being broadcast, but what notes! Warmth, subtly, and elegance: Bvlgari’s signature tea note dominates the opening in concert with citruses, blackcurrent, and florals in a smooth, delicate but masculine blend. The mid notes waft in with spices, more florals, and woods. The movement is completed with an excellent, subtle base of musk, tonka and wood. How beautiful this one is—restrained, elegant, smooth. Bvlgari Pour Homme is a modern kind of scent that will quite soon be the very definition of 'classic.'

On My skin, it has a nice longevity ( about 6 hours) and it has a very good silage - easily noted by others around me after 4 hours. a good musculine light scent.

This fragrance is definitely a classic. It is not suitable for young consumers, because of its refined quality which can only be understood with time.

This is not, to me, the most beautiful smelling fragrance, yet it is perfect, and surpasses all others. Why? Because it's my favourite to wear. While others may smell appealing (take Joop! PH for example, THE love-hate fragrance of all time) it's just not human to smell like that. After 5 minutes it's like a stain on the skin. But Bvlgari PH never feels anything but just right.

Green, a bit floral, but very distinctive and fresh. A better lasting power would be desired (so much soft after 2 hours).

nice scent. much more recommended than 212 for men. longevity was the problem on my skin

I really this one but theirs something about it that puts me off wearing it, maybe someone I knew long ago wore it or the smell it self is very common.

Pepper and tea bags: that's all I smell. Usually, I like pepper scents... but only if they're well-blended with other scents. This one's very dry and boring.

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. It's true, what's often reported, that it has a little trouble with its staying power. Oh well, then--I guess that's just one of its characteristics, something to keep in mind. Oddly enough, the scent of Bulgari pour Homme reminds me a little of the taste vodka.

This is one of the lightest and shortest lived fragrances I have ever come across. It’s got a nice green tea kind of note, but for some odd reason, this fragrance reminds me of the way door handles smell. I know that probably doesn’t make sense, but it has this musty metallic accord that smells like used metal. Very odd fragrance.

A dry woody scent that wears very close to the skin. The woody smell quickly gives me a headache, I am sorry to say. Smells very rich and refined otherwise.

This has to be one of the premier mens scents. I have never smelled anything quite so fragile and ethereal and yet sublimely masculine. Each note makes a solo appearance over time, but the dance of this fragrance is greater than any solo note. It swirls and settles then swirls again. It moves from warm to warmer but always clean never cloying. I find that I have to refresh after four hours, but what a joy to start over again. A classic, I pray it never goes out of production.

Total rubbish! lasts about 5 seconds then vanishes without a trace, don't waste your money on this.

I was surprised by this scent, but, then again, I'm a big fan of the designs of this Italian jeweler. (Cadillac Escalade and XLR gauges, anyone?) To my nose, it's a very clean, understated, and subtle scent. Lasts quite a while on me, too.

This is perhaps one of the best light scents on the market. Sparkling blend of beatiful transparent musks and slightly spiced tea. A must in every mans fragrance warddrobe. I believe that Bulgari has generated more positive comments from people I know than all of my others combined, and I have over 40... Mattias/Sweden

I'm not an admirer of sweet fragrances but this one is a soft sweet scent that I appreciate. Good for wearing in the office and in sunny days although I think It´s too subtle to be worn in the evening. I really like the musk note: It warms the scent!

I'm a woman but I find this a great scent to wear in the summer, daytime.
I used to live in a town where the bike track went through a grove of some sort of pine trees, and the lovely smell that emanated from these trees on a warm day is exactly what Bulgari Homme smells like to me.
I tend to really drench myself in it, but there are plenty of times when I have heard people around me say "mmmm what's that lovely smell?"

My husband got this as a sample, and I loved it! They have an aftershave smoother that he really appreciates. I can always smell the pepper in it, and it makes him smell even better as the other notes fade. Very sexy.

I used to wear it like mad about 6-7 years ago and so did my girlfriend at the time...It is a unique dry scent and at the same time has a synthetical-medicinal quality about it...But the drydown is quite watery fading into some type of light musk woody accord...Fetishy...

Great fragrance, very fresh with hints of floral and spice. Classy looking bottle with the trademark slanted sides and flat cap. They haven't made a bad scent yet either.

I LOVE THIS SCENT! If you want classy and subtle. It remains very close to the skin throughout and dries down very powdery with the woods and the musk subtly emerging in the drydown. The tea rings throughout and the Blackcurrant is prominent, too. The staying power, when used with the shower gel, is good. This is the scent I wear whenever I need to be at my most confident.

I can't believe I never smelled this before. I smell SOOO good! I feel like I have been searching for this fragrance all my life and now I've found it. I understand from others that it doesn't last long enough so I have ordered the Extreme and am curious if this will last longer. Bulgari for Men rocks.

Bulgari Homme is perfect for office wear as it is a great scent and above all not overpowering.It is discreet yet present.I love the Darjeeling tea notes and its musky drydown.I can also see it as a romantic fragrance.

Bvgari Homme is superb. A lot of guys on the forum have said that it has no strength and lasting ability, but I haven't found this to be the case. It does not shout, however and remains close to the skin. But I can still detect the smell the next morning when I apply it at night. The musk notes really cling - at least to me. I think it is better - more subtle - than the Extreme version.