Reviews of Lapidus pour Homme (1987)
by Ted Lapidus

The saying that one should never judge a book by its cover applies equally to fragrances: never judge a perfume by its top notes. I were to judge every scent by its opening accord, I'd be missing out on gems like Lapidus Pour Homme. Many of the other reviewers have said that the pineapple note in LpH is barely noticeable. lost in a cloud of patchouli and leather, To my nose, however, the pineapple is very prominent, if not strident, right out of the atomizer. The only other fragrance I've smelled that uses pineapple as a note is Polo Sport, and it suited that fragrance very well. In LpH however it is irritating and totally out of place, like it's trying so hard to make this dark, dusky fragrance smell like a classic sweet, dandified British scent. Luckily the pineapple fades and disappears within an hour, and that's when the magic begins. Black magic that is. If your experience in the world of fragrance is limited mainly to what has been popular for the past ten or fifteen years, Lapidus Pour Homme is going to smell like it's from another universe. At its heart, LpH is a strange, mysterious, dark and dusky chypre.fragrance. Chypres typically have a mossy, green-smelling base, but LpH is no typical chypre. Sure, it has a green, mossy base, but this base is a cold, dark green moss, with plenty of earthy patchouli and what smells like dark leather to make the whole effect even duskier. The whole feel of this fragrance is stark, brooding and earthy. I found this fragrance absolutely fascinating. I give Lapidus Pour Homme two very enthusiastic thumbs up.

I'm so glad that I finally mustered up the courage to order a sample of this. I am delighted to have sampled it, and I'm planning to get a bottle soon. This fragrance is absolutely enchanting! From my first sniff from the edge of the sample vial lip, I knew I was going to like this fragrance. The pineapple and lemon are immediately recognizable in the opening. If you are not experiencing this, then you're missing a big part of the scent's presentation; I strongly urge you to sniff again! But despite the pineapple and lemon, you can also smell the underlying warmth of flowers with a certain sweetness - the honey! What a beautiful note to add to a fragrance when used judiciously. Its such a familiar and natural way to add sweetness without being synthetic or unimaginative like adding vanilla. Finally, it dries down to a deep, damp, woody base of patchouli and sandalwood. I read that one must love patchouli to enjoy this fragrance. Well, I didn't know that I love patchouli but I guess I do now! This dry-down gives the fragrance an air of sophistication and prestige that relegates it to those instances when you want to walk around like you own the place. This fragrance makes me feel like I'm destined for royalty!!! I love it!

I've tried two Ted Lapidus fragrances, this and "Ted". Ted is still my favorite everyday fragrance. I'm a younger guy and like the lighter sweeter scents more than the typical 80's strong manly ones. Lapidus was a blind purchace, and at first I was pretty dissapointed. I saw the top notes of Lime and Pineapple and was hoping they would be more prevalent. As soon as I sprayed it I thought "I'll never wear this". It smelt too strong and spicy, and I didn't picture anyone else liking it. But I've worn it to work for a week now, and I got a bunch of compliments from some girls and a couple of ladies saying they liked it which was great. since then (a week ago) I started really liking the smell myself, maybe I just got used to it or the strong start, but either way I like it a lot now. It smells great after an hour or so. It has decent lasting power too. This has got me interested in trying out some more "classic" mens 80's frags. I probably won't buy this again, it's nice, but I'd rather try some other fragrances in this style. if I find nothing similar to be better I'd come back to this though

Very big and loud frag with many elements present at the same time. There seems to be more going on in this than is listed in the notes. The overall mix is a different take on men's scents; a strong mix of old-fashioned masculine sandalwood and leather trying to burst out of a very large garden. Prominent notes seem to balance between lemon/pineapple and sandalwood/leather. Difficult scent to pull off; I think the determining factor in whether this scent works for someone lies in how it mixes with one's body chemistry. Received both compliments and wrinkled noses in response to wearing it.

The fruity notes in this are really cloying. It has a loud cheap overbearing presence. It smells like an old lady's fragrance; really musty and stale I really regret this purchase.

I can not believe that pineapple exists in this fragrance- where? First the bottle design looks like something off a Klingon spaceship set. The scent in itself is just as weird it like all those notes are blending together to create some kind of scent I just can't describe - I do think patchouli is in there trying to fight for the foreground..poor pineapple is lost in the vortex.

I can see why that this is the only fragrance know to have come from this pefumer Jacques Konckier obviously he changed his name after this creation or was driven by the country foke with burning torches out the land.

All I can say is please use with caution this is a powerhouse from the 80's and could clear a room with it's sillage!

A powerhouse 80s frag that wows me over. Having read all the reviews, I expected this one to be loud, obnoxious and overbearing. Yes, it's loud especially in the complex opening but it turns out to be an outstanding and timeless scent, and never overbearing like a lots of 80s frags tend to be. This one puts many, many recent men releases into shame.

Just too powerful on the leather and patchouli for me. Overbearing. Sillage= A lot!
I will be generous and give it a neutral.

Fruity and spicy in the opening. I like this up front. Outstanding complex: the honey and rose heart notes smooths everything down but the other notes just want to come out and play especially the patchouli. I'd wear this during the spring.

LAPIDUS,opening is scarry,but easy to get along with.i get a good 10hrs.i like this one.ciao!

The listed notes don't look at all the same, but I swear this smells very much like MPG's Centaure. Very much. It's like a powdery, fuzzy - and after the drydown - softer version of Centaure. Not as crisp, not as sharp, and the black currant note stands out in Centaure. I feel crazy for typing this but to my nose this is like a fall/winter version of Centaure. The overall effect is surprisingly similar. I'm surprised no one else has mentioned this.

And truthfully, I don't see much similarity to Balenciaga Pour Homme, except maybe a whopping spice note they share for a while. Balenciaga though focuses on the incense and honey, and has an amazing drydown. I just don't get that same focus or wonderful drydown here. On me, this is a bit short-lived and more linear.

Another lovely CLASSIC. Since Balenciaga Pour Homme has been discontinued, this comes in a close second and I wear it quite frequently. Get many compliments. Was at the art museum the other day walking through the exhibits when I smelled this on another man and had to ask what he was wearing. He said Ted Lapidus. I said, I've got that fragrance too. Now I realize how GOOD it smells. Since then, I've gotten numerous compliments whenever I wear it. I only have half of a 1.7-ounce spray bottle of Balenciaga left and a full 1-ounce splash. I will only use that very sparingly and perhaps on occasion to jog my memory of when this exquisite potion was still in production. Lapidus is very similar to Balenciaga and I will wear that instead, even though I think I prefer the Balenciaga just a tad more. I sure wish Balenciaga would bring it back. However, you won't be disappointed with Lapidus if you were a fan of Balenciaga PH.

I'll give this one a "thumbs up", but no thanks to my body chemistry's bizarre interaction with T.L. I love the notes themselves, but WHEW! Talk about a headache in the making for Yours Truly!
(Yes, pronounced migraines usually ensue after I've been spritzed with this heady stuff, first off.)

Also, its sillage carries for MILES. (This isn't a problem for me, but some don't like it in their own fragrances.)

All that said, I always get oodles of positive comments whenever I DO wear T.L. Still, it's just not worth it for me in light of my body chemistry and its natural aversion to the stuff. Like "Versailles" by Jean Desprez, this potion is definitely tailored for someone else, but not me.

.

Whenever I've smelled this scent, on anyone, it has always been overbearing! Just being near someone wearing it leaves me with the smell & taste of this wretched cologne for hours. Hideous!

Lapidus Pour Homme is a strong and lasting fragrance which is remarkably complex. It begins with some unusual citrus / green / pineapple notes backed up by floral and patchouli accords. I find the opening to be rather scary—I have a difficult time grasping its crowded milieu. The patchouli from the opening moves through the middle floral heart notes and continues into the woody, musky, and mossy drydown. This dominant role is taken by patchouli and that creates my problem with this scent: this earthiness is ever-present and just too much a part of each accord and each level of the pyramid. There need to be more high notes to balance the overall duskiness of this composition: Pineapple, which is a rather thin note, just can’t do it alone. Come to think of it, that pineapple note is rather ridiculous sitting all alone in the middle of the dullness. This could be an excellent fragrance for the patchouli lover (it lasts forever), but I much prefer to get my patchouli from the more refined and better balanced Givenchy Gentleman.

Daddy-fragrance... very woody with a flower start. Strong and very long lasting, but it lacks of "happy" or "exotic" notes.

One of my first fragrance-habit purchases due to its cheap price. Wore it occassionally for a month or two, then couldn't stand it any longer. Ended up using the vast majority of the bottle as air freshener, a task to which it is more suited than that of a cologne spray. Avoid.

First time I had it was 10 years ago as a minature. It was a very long lasting fresh smell. I got a 100ml bottle last year, but it didn't wow me as much. There is a sweet note in it which seems a bit out of place, but it is otherwise a very good fragrance.

A stylish and daring Man's smell; delicious, masculine and very potent - sends me spinning when I wear it and I wish that more bolder men's fragrances like this one will come back in vogue on the commercial market again.

Sharp aromatic chypre with notes of spices, leather and patchouli. Reminds of Givenchy Gentleman. Masculine and deep (maybe even heavy) fragrance for colder temps.

I have a sample of it for ages, but never had enough strength to force myself to wear it.