H pour Homme (1977)
by Gemey Paris (orig. by DiParco)

The history on this is complicated. My bottle says “H pour Homme / Fougère Royale” by DiParco. It also has Houbigant printed on the bottle. My research indicates that Houbigant created a subsidiary company called Chéramy in 1924, which reformed under the name Diparco in 1956. In 1959 Houbigant relaunched its famous Fougère Royale, which had been discontinued. Then in 1963 Diparco released its own version of Fougère Royale in an EDC 90 degree concentration. Likely the Diparco version was an attempt to present a less expensive, mass-market version of the more exclusive Houbigant product. In 1977 Gemey amalgamated with Diparco and L’Oreal, and released a version of Fougère Royale in 80 degree concentration. My bottle is Diparco and 90 degree, therefore it is from the 1963-1975 era. I say all of the above to situate this product within its larger framework, and to provide a foundation for analysis.

On its own merits, the Diparco is an excellent scent. Despite being a vintage bottle, the scent is lively and quite enjoyable. It has the classic, old-school fougère scent. It starts with a very perky and fresh lavender note which is dry, aromatic and very well done. The scent opens up beautifully with light florals and moss. It settles into a delightful soapy moss base. Despite its age, it has good longevity. I also have this in aftershave, at 38 degree concentration. Predictably the AS is lighter than the EDC, but it is still very pleasant and in the same camp.

I am fortunate to own a 1960 era Houbigant Fougère Royale, and thus I can comment on the difference between the two versions. The Houbigant version has an incredible depth and a haunting, earthy quality that is not in the Diparco. Clearly there is a qualitative difference between the two scents. But as I said, the Diparco is a charming scent in its own right.