Mark Birley for Men (1996)
by Mark Birley

Reminds me a bit of a weaker version of MPG's Parfum d'Habit. I strongly dislike that scent. This is lightly less harsh with a bit of creaminess in the top notes. But is not anything I'd wish to smell like, though many members appear to enjoy it.

18th October, 2011.

I bought this as my graduation gift, and I waited 2 years to do so. Its a beautiful scent , a very fresh and enigmatic fragrance. Don't listen to the negative reviews, if you love aquatics, this is the king of them!

12nd October, 2011.

If memory serves me rightly and I am not fantasizing, this scent bears the name of a scion of the international jet set, owner of exclusive nightclubs, who numbered among his intimate friends both aristocrats and lions and tigers. Did he, perhaps, even keep a private zoo?
Nothing wrong with Mr. Birley having a scent named after him, except that it is such a truly awful scent. It would not matter so much that it is so relentlessly one-dimensional - which it is - if only that one dimension were more pleasant. But, to my nose, at least, it is decidedly unpleasant, crass, harsh yet cloying, frankly ugly - possessing an oppressive aura that is almost as dire as that of the terrifying Macassar by Rochas. As the excellent Oviatt says in his review (see below), it really does bear some resemblance to the cleaning fluids in a charlady's broom cupboard.
Again, if memory serves me rightly and I am not fantasizing, the Baron de Charlus once told me that when he was a houseguest at the Birley estate, Mr. Birley gave him a bottle of his eponymous perfume. The Baron was so underwhelmed by it that he gave his bottle away to one of Mr. Birley's lions. The poor animal took one sniff and went into terminal decline.
(On reflection, I believe the zoo may have belonged not to Mr. Birley but to his friend and fellow club owner John Aspinall. I wonder if Mr. Aspinall has a scent named after him?)

13rd September, 2011.

Not pleased by the combination of citrus and creaminess. Combined, they both ended up smelling a bit like bodily secretions to me, almost waxy. It may be my skin, but I was not impressed. I wanted the citrus notes to be sharper and more bright, but that is obviously not the intention of this fragrance. I didn't like it.

10th June, 2011.

I think of this one as a highly refined version of Uomo? Moschino (which was introduced two years later, apparently). What's really interesting is how this makes MB wearable for me, whereas U?M was too crude and harsh. Anyway, they both have a lot of notes which seem to be crowding each other out. The theme is a lemon meringue kind of smell. In other words, there is a bit of lemon with a slightly sour quality, and it's also a little creamy. It's a touch woody, and as you might expect, sweet, but definitely not very sweet. After an hour or so the projection/"sillage" drops off significantly, but it seems to be linear otherwise. Longevity seems good if not great. If this is what you seek, I doubt you can get it in a less expensive fragrance, though as I said if you don't mind a crude version of it, you can go for U?M. If I took price into account, I'd give it a neutral, but since I don't I think it deserves a positive, especially considering it's not to my taste at all yet I do like it on some level, and would wear it as a change of pace once every month or two.

12nd May, 2011.

I totally love this one! It's a very classic yet extremely modern scent. I find it to be one of the most refined and complete male scent ever created. Unmistakable, fresh and at the same time deep, very versatile. If worn by a 50 years old gentleman it's very classy, otherwise on a 30 years old turns to be modern, and yes, even unusual! Lasting power it's not among the best but you can bypass this problem by sipmly wearing it on both skin and clothes so that it stays for more than 8 hours.

4th March, 2011. (Last Edited: 8th August, 2011.)