Reviews of KL Homme (1986)
by Lagerfeld

I cannot overstate how great this is. KL Homme is a beautiful, smouldering, and mysterious oriental fragrance which exudes an amazing sense of warmth that is hard to adequately describe in words. I find a lot of similarities to Habit Rouge in this, but without the bitterness or powderiness of Habit Rouge - this scent is unbelievably smooth. Whereas Habit Rouge is a refined, well-mannered aristocrat, KL Homme is a sly, restrained sexual animal on the prowl. It has a beautiful orange-tinged woody opening and middle accord, which morphs into a spicy vanillic drydown. Although I don't quite consider this a "powerhouse" - it's just too damn smooth and silky to qualify - it has very good longevity and radiance. If I were to describe the overall feel this fragrance transmits, I'd say it's heat. Sexual heat. Unlike many of the masculine scents from the period KL Homme doesn't kill you with harsh spiciness, but rather it slowly entices you and draws you in with its deep, rich, hazy warmth.

Many thanks to AromiErotici for sending me a sample of this beauty.

I find KL Homme & Lagerfeld Classic to have this copperish overtones to it which gives off a very metallic/aldehydic opening accords..theres definitely rose, rosewood, dirtied up leather and hints of vanillic sweetness & cinnamon. These scents smell better when they settle a little (maybe after half hour..? ) and yeh, do not overspray.

Another little gem from the '80s pushed to the side by modern tastes, KL Homme seems to draw some of its inspiration from an even earlier fragrance - Estee Lauder's feminine classic, Youth Dew. The top notes draw on a very similar bergamot meets spiced, floral amber, but toned down in terms of volume and amped up on brightness via a fizzy burst of aldehydes. In the drydown KL Homme changes character, becoming an amber driven by patchouli and opoponax, a slight rosy hint making a showing in the heart before it becomes smoothly animalic in the base. It has a hint of smokiness and soapiness that gives it a slight synthetic vibe, but I find it quite wearable none the less. The longevity and sillage are quite robust, as many of this style and era are.

The first time I wore this fragrance I loved it. Since then I have developed a strong reaction against many leather notes, and KL Homme was the first one whose leather note turned on me and became destructively repugnant. I still remember how rich and vibrant it was when I first tried it. I should have paid more attention to the interference with my breathing that I had experienced - it was sending me a message. (Edit of May 6, 2006 review. Changed from a thumb’s up.)

ORIGINAL REVIEW: An unmitigated rosewood in the top notes accounts for most of the massiveness. It is rather easy to determine the heavier individual notes in this—rosewood, definitely; cedar wood, most assuredly; sandalwood, uh-huh; civet, loeather, oh yes—for sure; rose, probably. All these dense notes are so apparent. As to the lighter notes, there’s probably some citrus in the beginning (rosewood always overpowers citrus to my nose), some aldehydes show up after fifteen minutes or so. And after that a few florals begin to fade in—not to forget some patchouli and musk. This is the heaviest designer fragrance I’ve encountered. The first ten minutes are so oppressive I almost have trouble breathing, and I really love this juice. 06 May 2006

The comparisons of KL homme to Obsession for Men are on the money! If the pyramids from JaimeB and Basenotes are to be believed — and I believe them — these two fragrances share many notes. There are notes not shared, of course, but to the nose, these are twin brothers, born together in 1986, and I'd bet that most people (Basenoters excluded) wouldn't be able to tell them apart in a sniff test.

There are differences, but they owe to personality, not essence. Obsession certainly isn't meek, but it doesn't jump off the skin quite as boldly as KL homme does when both are freshly applied. On the other hand (or arm, in my personal testing) KL homme dries to a smoother middle and finish than its brother. While the spice in Obsession continues to stick up like a sharp tack piercing the other elements during the heart and dry down, the spice in KL homme blends with the surrounding notes to create a velvety, soothing quality.

I disagree with references to KL homme as a powerhouse. It certainly doesn't stomp into a room, demanding attention like Bijan for Men, or even the more composed Grey Flannel. Lumping KL with these, or Polo or Quorum, risks turning people away from a frag they just might like. In fact, KL homme might be a good "transition" frag for those looking to escape the watery depths of the current trends.

Truth is,KL homme and Obsession both odeserve thumbs up and a place in your wardrobe. But if cost is an issue, having just one of them will suffice.

As a practical matter, KL homme may have been discontinued years ago, but I recently found NIB, sealed product in a small fragrance store. I was able to test before buying, found it to be fresh, and bought multiple bottles. Apparently some of the good stuff is still going around. Buy it.

It's about time I posted a review on this juice. This 1986 Spicy oriental is straight up good to go and a no nonsense powerhouse fragrance. THIS just flat out rocks and the bottle is all that too.

Citric wood opening that after 5 minutes opens the door to a floral wood accord with a touch of rose. The patchouli isn't prominent in the heart notes and blended splendidly.

Amber,civet,musk and vanilla base holds the bottom of this bomb from lagerfeld. If you're wondering whether to get this or not, stop wondering and just log onto paypal already.

KL Homme is a sophisticated powdery and tangy oriental. It reminds me of Estee Lauder women's fragrances, especially Youth Dew. This fragrance, however, is complex, masculine and long-lasting. The rich bouquet is very prominent, so a few sprays will do, unless you want to announce your presence in a grand manner. It's a pity that this wasn't more popular, it's a classy scent. A discontinued treasure from Lagerfeld.

AN oriental I can deal with. It's powerful. It's lightly powdery. It's got that wormwood/opopanax accord. Dusty. Warm. Strong. I love the bottle, off-set facets of 45-degree planes of glass. This is what they mean by a blast from the past.

Looking at the picture on this page is sufficient to bring back memories of this fragrance. I must admit I didn't go looking for it but when i saw it i knew immediately it was a classic...one of a kind fragrance. Will definitely buy it again if I come across it. I'm not sure but i recently went through a bottle of Gucci Pour Homme,some similarities with KL Homme perhaps???..As i said, am not sure. Anyway, to cap it all, two thumbs way up!!

A beautiful oriental. I saw this ibn a little perfume shop and picked it up right away. It was the last one on the shelf.

The carnation-rose-cinnamon accord is lovely; it is slightly reminiscent (to me) of Caron Bellodgia, but in a more masculine key. This would be very comforting on a gray, rainy day!

Aldehyde, Bergamot oil, Lavender, Lemon, Orange, Rosewood, Carnation, Cedarwood oil, Cinnamon, Fern, Geranium, Jasmin, Patchouli, Rose, Sandal, Amber, Benzoin, Civet, Musk, Oilbanum, Vanilla

"...cruel justice..." indeed 'tvlampboy'. Totally agree with you. Its criminal that they can let gems like this be discontinued in the name of watery, weak, substanceless, prissy crap like Acqua di Gio...It literally disgusts me!

KL was so warm, smooth under-stated. Indeed, some good approximations would be (although none can quite compare to KL) Obsession, Opium for Women, Habit Rouge, Jovan pour Monsieur (if i remember correctly), and, strangely, Canoe, by Dana.

Look, they're all equally fabulous scents. Neither is better than any of the others. This was just an approximation of what sort of notes I got from KL.

Wish they'd bring it back!!!!!!!

I managed to buy a brand new, sealed bottle of this outstanding fragrance online last year. When i heard it had been discontinued i tried to buy more from the same site but they were completely out. Shame really. Total 80's power fragrance. I have to ration it now until i find another supplier.

Luscious Oriental. Pity it's discontinued. Pity, too, that crap like Acqua di Gio (I like to translate that one as "Joe's Old Water" -- LOLOLOL) remains popular while gems such as KL get discontinued. (Ah, the cruel injustice of it all!)

KL Homme is definitely the best men's Lagerfeld, IMHO. A complex oriental bouquet, with some of the powdery components of Lagerfeld classic and the orangey spiciness of women's Opium.
An excellent alternative to Obsession for men.

Can only agree with the previous reviews on this one. An all-time favorite of mine well balanced rich sweetness and complexity - truly, luxurious, a pity that it was discontinued. I have been looking for a substitute fragrance to this one for some time nowÖ..

Very interesting scent! Reminds me somewhat of Habit Rouge, in its complexity, woodiness, and unrelenting aroma and presence! Not to be worn by the meek; this one is for the more mature male hearkening to the days of the wild, unrestrained 80's fragrances. If worn under the shirt, it seems to come across less aggressively. Definitely a love it/hate it scent.