Reviews of Mark Birley for Men (1996)
by Mark Birley

It smells nice enough in a sort of generic way, it just doesn't last long enough. There is not a lot of structure to this one, I guess you could say it is diffuse in its structure [is this what some others refer to as ozone?]. If you spray it on too heavily, the initial impact [30 minutes or so] will be too much; apply it too lightly and it is gone by the time you leave the house in the morning. Why can't we have both subtle AND longer-lasting fragrances for men? Am I asking too much? There are so few, and this is not one of them.

Clean and fresh, subtly woody and nutty and a bit rubbery with a hint of tartness, and the fresh summer linen quality others mention, this would be something I'd wear in warm weather if it had a bit more sillage (really, I haven't found many other perfumes that stay this close to the skin) and much better longevity. A great effort by the perfumers, but I expect more for the price.

This is one of the very few fragrances that both my brother and I like (we have radically different tastes, I should point out). Most of the comments made here are entirely accurate: yes, it is not long-lasting and yes it is very citrusy. And yet, for all its shortcomings, Mark Birley is somewhat of an achievement. Understated, sophisticated and distinct, its qualities can be appreciated by men from different backgrounds and used to more or less conventional fragrances. Mark Birley just does the job, and for that it gets my thumbs up.

My wife loves this edt on me and I also have to say that I got a lot of compliments on it.
I personally think that Mark Birley is a good edt but after a while it just got boring. It is not good enough to be on my top list. As other reviewers already mentioned- it is not long lasting, when you spray to much it gets annoying and smells primitive, if you use a little then it just fades away after an hour. The after shave also doesn´t tingle on the skin, which is for me as a lover of classic after shave lotions absolutely essential- I also don´t like mild pepperoni.
The good thing about Mark Birley is that it is hard to get and just not a lot of people wear it. It is a noble, nice all around year scent(especially good for day time), no doubt but it can`t compete with Eau Savage or the classic Armani edt.

Nice but in the long run trips and falls on its face. Sadly, it bruises and can't get back up. You want to cheer for the guy but he's just too weak to keep going.

A very well blended mixture of patchouli, woods and some herbs. Elegant and sophistication only can go so far with a thin visage. The citrus top notes mask the underlying notes that really should be the forte of the fragrance. Good but not awesome. A huge thumbs up if it lasted longer for me.

As many have noted, Mark Birley is a lovely, delicate scent, as light as a feather. On me, it had a dominant orange note. I thought it might be like Hermes’ Eau d’Orange Verte – nope! EOV is positively bold in comparison, and of course is much greener and zippier. MS is a citrus and light musk scent. It is fresh and perky, and stays very close to the skin. One has to get quite close to appreciate its subdued beauty. This scent would be best in intimate encounters. It is of the “one’s own skin, but better” variety... and thus advantageous for such episodes. I’d say it is OK but not a wowser.

Most clean smelling scents suffer from either feeling cheap or synthetic. Mark Birley is neither. It feels very classy, very clean and very natural on my skin. Dignified (like Penhaligon’s Blenheim Bouquet), but with a measure of warmth not found in Blenheim. The notes, per Luckyscent, are: sandalwood, cedar, patchouli, musk, vetiver, carrot seeds, leather, lemon, bergamot, mandarin, violet, incense. It has an airy quality and I think carrot seeds are likely to be a help here. Not especially long-lived, but quite pleasant.

Different, so clena and fresh with attitude.
Nothing around like it!
What a fab composition:
Bergamot, madnarine, hisbiscus flower.
patchouli, musk, cedar, gauiac wood.

It's fresh yet deep, with the hibiscus flower althrough with a gorgeous base of guaciac wood.. and something fresh in the backgrouns, like fresh clothes drying in the sun
So gorgeous, so sexy!!

Fresh yet sophisticated, not like some of the "pop song" varieties out there that some users wear for a while then move on. I can wear it to work and feel confident that I am annoying no one with a heady, musky, cloud following me around. And, I don’t smell like everyone else who have jumped on a new fragrance and blast into the masses with it. This is important to me because I want a cologne to provide a subtle change in the environment around me. So subtle that people can like it but not quite identify it. If it is so easily “read” on me…I drop it.

I have to thank Aedes for bringing this scent to my attention. I was so surprised to see it has been out for 10+ years! I also find that reassuring…it has become a classic that I think I can count on for years…I hope.

The pedigree, the prestige... this should be a great fragance, but on me it opens with lemon Ajax and never drifts from that single note. Instead of summoning up images of posh nightclubs in Berkeley Square, it brings to mind a broom cupboard where the charlady keeps her cleaning supplies. I have to ask myself, do I want to smell like cleaning supplies? (The answer is no)

A classic fragrance with a nice balance of citrus, wood, patchouli and subtle ethereal complication thrown into the mix to avoid a simple definition. Smells like old money, crisp linen and polished silver - a genetlemen's fragrance. Similar to Erolfa from Creed, while not having the marine quality or ambergris ending of Erolfa. A great fragrance.

very disappointing and average-nothing special! This is not like A-men of Mugler, JHL of Estee Lauder,Bandit of RobertPiguet,etc.-no, it is boaring and uninteresting.Instead of wasting lots of dollars for this EdT you may go to the next drugstore and buy a well priced soap that will definitely make you happier!If you like this kind of cologne then please try Eau sauvage of Christian Dior or the Yves Saint Laurent por homme-this is class , good taste and a better choice!

Delicate and transparent yet masculine. Yes, it is an UN-fragrance, and it does a beautiful job of being that. My first fragrance with a carrot seed note. Airy, gossamer, subtle, lightly sweet, soft: citrus, carrot, violet, musk and cedar—constructed in such a way as to quietly give voice to the exquisiteness and poignancy of a great work of art… err …albeit, a fragile and ephemeral great work of art. For the person who prefers subtlety, Mark Birley may just be THE dream fragrance. I love the powerful classic masculine fragrances, and yet I have to say that, as the antithesis of the power classic, Mark Birley presents me with something I find intriguing. It is one of the most beautiful fragrances I’ve experienced. I am going to be paying very close attention to it as I continue to use up my decant. As light and ephemeral as it is, I think I may be won over by it.

I heart mark birley. Yes, friends, spray on a lot of it, you need to or it will fade.

But be careful and order long before you run out cause it's often not available. I get it online from one of a couple of places you can find without much difficulty.

I never found a cologne I was really into wearing at all until I smelled this on someone and asked and received.

And those who say this is one of a thousand similar scents, I'd more specific info.

I picked up a sample of this from Luckyscent given the reviews there. In the bottle, it had an interesting, fresh and sophisticated smell. When I put it on, it turned into lemon pledge and faded within an hour. I'm certain it's an issue with my body chemistry, but I had no luck at all with this scent.

AWESOME. My favorite right now. It does stay on my skin through-out the whole day, so I guess it depends on skin type. You have to try it.

My favorite fragance,if i need try a fragance is this. MMMMMMMMMMMMM THE BEST

Ozoney and fresh but nothing terribly unique. Not very long lasting either. I like the initial smell but it loses my attention shortly thereafter.

Clear case of Emperor's new cologne. Short lived generic citrus+ozone that's been done a million times, except now there is a 100+ price tag attached to it.

I found Mark Birley to be incredibly boring and mainstream, for what it is. I think Mark Birley is very cologne like. There aren’t any notes that stand out, nor does the composition seem, in any way, remarkable. Not worth the money.

"Hmm? Marinus oceanicus meets citrusy woods, eh, Doctor?" Unknowingly, I've come to realize that I've cultivated a pretty decent nose in my valet, only to have this value-added character work against me on those evenings when I try to work clandestinely without my valet's knowledge. But in this case, yet again, he was close to the mark. I couldn't fault him for not knowing the name of the scent I was wearing, for I was trying it for the first time myself. However, I've tried on several occasions now, and developed a pretty solid impression of it.

The word "classic" has been used to describe this fragrance since its release in 1996. I do not quite see this, however. This scent opens with an odd, airy, ozone-like lead, through which citrus eventually emerges. I'm coming to see that many of the scents that I perceive as having an ozone-like character (which I do not particularly care for) have some measure of carrots in the. Anyway, this scent stays very light and close to the skin; perhaps I should use more than 6 sprays? Through the lemony topnote a complicated set of smells emerges, which are hard to identify individually, though vetiver is somewhat apparent. Luckyscent.com describes the composition as thus: Sandalwood, cedar, patchouli, musk, vetiver, carrot seeds, leather, lemon, bergamot, mandarin, violet, incense. Unfortunately, it does not last long enough for me to appreciate the sandalwood, patchouli, incense, and musk basenotes - it only lasts about 3 hours on me. Definitely worth a try, and perhaps it projects and lasts much better on others' skin.

Wicozani

Very intersting. UN cologne like. Has a sharp edge to it that I like.Also has a floral quality yet still remains masculine. The closest one I could compare it to would be Angel Schlesser which also has a sharp edge I find.