Eau d'Hadrien (1981)
by Annick Goutal

Pleasant opening with lemon-grapefruit vibes is pleasant, but more on the elegantly restrained side. The aldehydes are not unpleasant, especially later in the drydown when a woody note is added that later las ylang-ylang added in the base. A pleasant lemon summer scent, maybe a bit too tame; there are more straightforward or refreshing lemon scents in the fragrance universe. Nonetheless, a good elegant citrus for the office.

25 January, 2014

My review is based on my experience from my 100ml EdT of Eau d' Hadrien in the bottle that is supposedly for men, the one in the golden box. I purchased this blindly at Winners Toronto for 80CAD two days ago. My suggestion: if you love citrus notes don't buy this, and in any way don’t blind-buy. Although I like the effervescence of citrus notes I am not fond of overly fresh, light or sallow compositions. Eau d' Hadrien is a total disappointment on many levels. It starts with a citrus blast. In half an hour I can detect tarty bergamot. From then on Eau d'Hadrien becomes a lightly sour and linear bergamot. Cypress is barely traced on my skin. Finally a light accord of bergamot and neroli, stays close to my skin 5 hours after application. Eau d'Hadrien is a very average composition. Even if the longevity of Eau d' Hadrien is good (its silage is not) I am not interested because what follows the first 5-10 minutes is really not appealing and especially the dry down is a great bore.

27 April, 2013

Right from the start, a very appealing and realistic lemon scent. Sweet, but not saccharine or candied. Sour but not unreasonably so, and without the use of bitter herbs. And just floral enough for you to be aware of it in the background. It stays relatively pure in the way that many of the English barbershop lime scents do, so I was worried at first that that it would peter out quickly and into utter nothingness. After a few more minutes, I can tell that it's dropping off a bit less steeply than I thought it would. I'm not really sure how much of the trace woody base comes from other things they've added and how much is from the vague natural base of the lemon itself, but I definitely notice that the lemoniness has lasted far longer than I expected it to, much like the (relatively) long-lasting limeyness of Truefitt's surprisingly good lime scent. I don't like lemon as much as lime or grapefruit, but this is quite plainly the benchmark for lemon, and I don't recall any others I've tried beating it on longevity, initial strength, or the naturalness of the scent. Well done!

23 October, 2012

I feel like a million bucks when I wear this! Love the high citrusy notes mixed with the cypress and woody notes. The only downside is that the scent doesn't last on my skin. I note with interest that some reviewers have the same experience, whereas others experience the opposite. It works well with my skin in warm weather, and it was the only fragrance I brought with me on a trip to Italy in May.

This is my "power" fragrance for important days at work, and yes, I would wear [a drop of] it to a job interview. I would not, however, wear it on a date - it's for business, shopping, or sightseeing to me!

09 September, 2012

A lovely lemon fragrance!! This is by far the best lemon fragrance I have ever came across. So fresh, so pure. This particular fragrance shines by it's simplicity. A lemon peel note that goes through the whole life of this fragrance giving us a invigorating sensation. Perfect for summer days.

12 April, 2012

Perhaps I love this fragrance because I started wearing it when I was engaged in equestrian athletic activity and it seemed to blend with my own perspiration to create a musky but very light citrus fragrance on me.

I love the beginning lemony top note and the lighter, touch of grapefruit in the middle as the leather essence begins to mingle with it. The deep bottom note is the only place where I find a lacking and then only if I am wearing it while sedentary! Add a little exercise and human scent and it settles into a graceful, compliment.

The drydown is spicy and leaves a nice patchouli, cypress fragrance for hours on me. Men and women have complimented me when I wear it.

I think if you are an active person who like the smell of saddles and horses, you will like this.

Best regards,
Katherine d'Armagh

12 February, 2012