Extract of Limes (1963)
by Penhaligon's

This has quite possibly the best opening of any lime fragrance I’ve encountered. I think it tops GFT’s Lime in that department. Really like sticking your head in a bowl of freshly cut limes. However, like GFT, the longevity is very poor and after 30 minutes there really isn’t anything left. If this were an aftershave and about 1/3 the cost it would be fantastic, but as a cologne at the given price I just can’t give it a thumbs up.

9th February, 2012.

Starts off with a very fresh lime note. E.g. Freshly cut limes, with the juice dripping out. Though as it fades, it becomes more and more synthetic smelling. It manages to maintain it's "lime flavor" until the end though as it mixes well with a noticeable neroli note. I am not a huge neroli fan, usually because the note comes off too powdery a lot of the time; but not in this case. I pretty much just get lime and neroli here.. and uhm.. a little leather? Maybe it's just me though.

Overall: Pretty good, if ya like lime. Starts off as a zesty, fresh lime, fades into a candy-like lime backed by neroli. Simple, easy, inoffensive. But, is it worth the price? Not to me. I'll take Gap: The Natural, for 8 bucks over this, if lime is what I crave.

27th September, 2011.

This is the only Penhaligon's scent thus far to get a negative review from me. I agree completely with the reviewers that find this to be a cheat. The opening "lime" burst is exactly that of a restroom disinfectant - cheap and slimy. No fear - it's gone in ten minutes, leaving a warm woody petigrain - and that's it. It should be named Extract of Petitgrain. This is an outright failure in my opinion and ought to be discontinued again- why ever was it brought back?

Stick to the best lime available - Trumper's Extract of West Indian Limes. Caswell Massey's Lime, though a bit sweet and candyish, is acceptable as well.

20th June, 2011. (Last Edited: 13rd July, 2011.)

My experience with Extract of Limes is pretty much like that of most of the reviewers. The opening is a clear and beautiful lime / lemon accord… crystalline in its directness and simplicity. It doesn’t take long for the petit grain to kick in with a granular / citrus-seedy addition to the lime note, removing the opening’s clarity and replacing it with a sort-of citrus accord that is considerably less fulfilling than the opening. That’s about all the life and movement that I can find in this fragrance… I don’t get a drydown, unless that slight remnant of sortof citrus is a drydown. I think EoL’s longevity is longer than that of a traditional splash cologne, but the quickly deteriorating lime note makes the longevity of Extract of Limes not worth the effort. This one’s not for me: I intend to continue my happy faithfulness to the rapidly disappearing Royall’s Lyme…

4th March, 2011.

I agree with saxifrage, except that for me the janitorial transformation was much faster. I loved the scent in the shop, and for perhaps an hour after application, then realised that it had mysteriously started to smell of a well-known brand of citrus lavatory cleaner. I was extremely disappointed as I adore the bitterer citrus derivatives, especially neroli. I gave the bottle to a friend (with explanation!) and she finds it short-lived but otherwise loves it.

4th October, 2010.

I agree with Caltha. At first spray, this stuff is marvelous. You can really detect the juiciness of the lime, mixed with the bitterness of the peel. Very refreshing on a hot, humid summer morning.

After about 15 minutes or so, a minty/camphorous note emerges that very quickly takes precedence over the lime. It melds with it to create a very synthetic aroma.

The longevity is very poor, so the only way you can get a decent amount of staying power is to really marinate in this stuff. Make sure you get some on your shirt. Spray on your chest.

Unfortunately, at the end of the day as I was walking out of my office to go home, I walked past one of the carts that my building's janitor uses to clean the floors with. He had his mop bucket out filled with water and the mopping solution. It smelled just like my shirt. I finally realized that by the end of the day, I smelled like a urinal cake, airport restroom, and/or janitorial cleaning solution.

A pity, it really does start off beautifully.

4th December, 2009.