Reviews of Old Spice (1937)
by Procter & Gamble (orig. by Shulton)

In my first reviews for Basenotes I have been more concerned with so-called everyday scents. Old Spice IMO is perhaps THE everyday scent for men. It is also IMO much less age specific than most scents and may I say, that while noting from memory differences in the reformulation, these differences do not detract, and as at least one reviewer stated, may for some be preffered. Interestingly I have noted, the use of the new High Endurance deodorant actually brings back more of the deeper spice of the original formula. In fact it was wearing ONLY the deodorant on my way out the house that my wife without prompting or being questioned "responded positively" and why I picked up yet another bottle of the after shave the same night at the local supermarket.

Yes, things that sound "pedestrian." I too have known people with money who wore Old Spice! One was the owner of a number of medical clinics in Asia. And I have also walked down the street and smelled Fahrenheit and Dolce Gabbana on teens and Polo on the unemployed.

If the notion of a worthy scent did not include the proviso "go easy on the application" how many scents would be in the database on this website?

Here you have the intial freshness, before "fresh" was a category, of a citrus/faint soapiness that is very soon a floral, and the spice which I agree is not the "Old" clove depth of memory but enough casual smokiness in the drydown, more in the cologne than the after shave, and remarkably in the High Endurance deodorant. The vanilla does come through (even on a used and closed bottle). I have no major complaints about the new plastic bottle.

Yes, in defiance of the overpriced, hyped and the "trying too hard" that many young men and yes even "less younger" men seem to manifest, especially those of the last two generations, and yes, in defiance of the aquatics, mostly indistingushable and TRULY generic with only 1 or 2 exceptions, and if in search of a mass market scent as different as you are (don't care about the cliche), and I will say this also, if you are looking for a somewhat complex scent that evolves even in the reformulation (could we have at least a one week moratorium on this word!)... I recommend Old Spice in the same way that I would recommend the more recent affordable and yes, worthy vodkas.

You can "age it" or wear it straight from the supermarket, still one of the best places to meet women (for the unmarried).

Come on, you've worn Old Spice at least once in your life. I can't knock it since it is the all time best seller, although in the after shave version. I rated it four stars because it at least smells good. It smells the same on everybody, and it does not matter how little you apply: it makes its presence known. Before I got into the department store fragrances, this was my staple, and it likely still is the most worn fragrance for teenage boys at the prom (until they can afford something better).

I just ordered a bottle of vintage old spice on eBay and am very excited.

Manly Aye! I read that this is the one that made fragrances acceptable to American men in general, by Fulton's Coca-Cola ploy of supplying it to servicemen in WW2. That Is what I think I like most about it (besides just loving the smell) is the historical connection with the Greatest Generation in WW2. I like smelling like 1940's GI.

My first experience with Old Spice was smelling it after my dad shaved. Wow! I got a bottle of the stuff and the nostalgia was amazing!

I purchased two bottles of this a couple of years ago just for the hell of it and never wore it but after reading these reviews decided to finally try it on and I really do like it. Whether the formulae has changed I can't say because my box says Proctor & Gamble and I remember as a kid (I'm 43) a lot of adult men wearing this and the smelling so good so it must have been made by Shulton then, but it still smells good then. Someone mentioned it smells better after it sits in the bottle after a few years and mine did that and I'm enjoying it now. It's definitely not soemthing I'll wear everyday by any means but I will wear it from time to time.

I'm lucky enough to have a couple of bottles of the most excellent Shulton produced Old Spice. It's a excellent timeless composition albeit very pedestrian. I don't wear this in public too often, but its nice to put some on once in a while and take a trip down memory lane.

old spice classic,very soft,great for after shower,shave or just feelig relaxed watching tv.ciao!

[I have only a deodorant stick, not the EdT] I bought this because of so many positive reviews here.. and I was disappointed in the beginning. I can imagine this scent at my father or even my grandfather, but not at me, not for my age. But then, the smell is very interesting, combining fresh and spicy tones, it has its depth. And besides, it gives me a feeling of being reliable and trustworthy, so I use it at my work (together with Yohji Yamamoto cologne). 3 out of 5.

Whatever the dispute is about this classic fragrance... it's still good. Nevermind the endless remarks about it's ancestry... it's esentially the same as it was back in the 30's. This one's good, smells like a man should. Keep those dollars in your jeans, men. Don't buy the "latest", buy the "greatest" instead. Can't go wrong with this one.

Right this minute, infront of me, are sitting two bottles of Old Spice; one purchased this morning, the same bottle I have been purchasing once a month for the last three years, and the other, 22 years old.

three hours, two hours, one hour then half an hour ago, in progression down the inside of my arm, 1.5 cm in between each spot, I dapped a little from each bottle - from the newer on my left arm, the older on my right...

And there is a definite difference between the older and newer......!

Immediately noted, was the fact that the older version, which has kept remarkably well, is richer, warmer, smoother, creamier and deeper than the newer. Secondly noted, was the fact that on my left arm, the new version on the 3 hour patch had all but disappeared; much the same was the case with the 2 hour patch...It could still be detected on the 1 hour, bearly, and the 1/2 hour patches...

The older version, deeper and more complex, lasted and lasted on my skin, all throughout, and maintained its depth and character right through the drydown! Even in the bottle, the older version smells far more luxurious than the newer.

Yet, despite the deplorable change exacted by Procter and Gamble upon this timeless classic, the warmth, comfort and smoothness, though not as good as it once was, exuded by the readily available newer version still draws me in - its what I use to splash around after a shower at night, and leaves me feeling warm and clean.

It would be criminal to decline reviewing OLD OLD SPICE, this was my FIRST cologne, the first one I dabbed anyway, from Dad's bathroom cabinet of COURSE and dad wouldn't suspect anything cos the bottle's not transparent ( that's problably why they made it so... who Knows)Now its My turn to put OLD OLD SPICE in my bathroom cabinet and prepare for the juvenile assault....Sorry.. the review: I honestly think the composition is unique, timeless and very manly, read somewhere that it was originally marketed as a ladies frag..sniff...mmmm... nothing feminine here!!! Funny, for a mass market product its mighty difficult to come across here. Finally i think OLD SPICE works best as a template on the olfactories, a kind of matrix on which the appreciation of numerous fragrances (including old spice itself) is later developed. In plain English, guys, You have to use old spice first Period!!!

My Dad always wore this, and I guess thats why I always have a bottle in my collection. I think it smells wonderful. I didnt realize they had changed the formula.....but I do agree...if you use the same product for years, you get tired of it and some days you cant even smell it anymore. I have had that happen. So, I guess its good to switch for awhile so you can get the smell back. But anyway, I like Old Spice.

I haven't smelled this cologne that my father sometimes used for many many years. Oddly enough, just thinking about the fragrance, my mouth is starting to water! I would never use it, but I'd like to smell it to be reminded of the past. It's not sold at any of the fragrance counters where I shop since it's considered so old and out of it!

A CLASSIC!!! I think it's the only scent mentioned in a rock song---"Keeping the Faith" by Billy Joel. I saw a photo of Paul McCartney splashing it on in his hotel room in the early 60s while the Fab Four were invading the U.S. My dad wore it and so did his entire circle of friends. My uncle(who is a Catholic priest , by the way) wore it when I was growing up and, at the time, I could never understand why the ladies would bring him food to the parish and literally and spiritually want to jump his bones. Now it ALL makes sense.

A much-maligned but classic cologne. Bright, powdery, heavy with talc, but utterly masculine and enchanting.

I know that Old Spice is a bit of a joke to some people, but it has a fantastic scent and reminds me of my days as a submariner in the US Navy (yes, I was 18 and lathering myself in this stuff).

It's very fresh, the ladies love it, and it never gets cloying. Be a man and splash on some Spice.

An addictive scent that is warm, rich and comforting. I've tried tons of the niche scents, most of which are about as masculine as a pink handbag. None can match the quality and complexity of Old Spice.

More intense testing and assesing this scent made me add a few other thoughts. Maybe i'm biased because I analyze the effect strictly on my very own skin, but it struck me that on me Old Spice is one of the most complex scents ever. It's one of the few, if not the only one... Oriental-aquatic.I know it sounds strange but this unlikely combination, being mostly either/or( even commercials on Basenotes rate Oriental or tobacco-smelling, spicy or leathery creations as an alternative to ozonic-watery, without even assuming that a scent might have both). Inspite of the clean-cut, puristic, no-nonsense ingredients, the scent is way ahead of its time, daring an achievement hard to match even today. After a first spicy note, like the name eloquently says, the finnish is, oddly, first Oriental, but with an even more persistent cool, almost neutral, fresh note. Even if the Oriental notes are supposed to last longer, the lighter ones are getting more powerfull, tough the Oriental ones don't dissapear, just discreetly fade into the background. However, the aquatic notes are not just simple watered-down shower gel or roomfreshener antiseptic and pleasant, but unilateral and barely asting. They evlove into a camphrous, slightly leathery, woody, slightly cedar-smelling marine scent, being much more than ozonic-watery, smelling also of moist sand, salty breeze, resins,seaweed and even moss growing in humid environement. A unique and multiayered classic.

Got this as a gift. It may not be my #1 choice, but I'd like to use it from time to time especially during cold days.

The best mass-market cologne around, this still smells great after all these years. I may not wear it nowadays (mainly because my fragrance collection has grown bigger and more varied) but I can appreciate the contribution that this classic has made to the fragrance one. I do use it in the form of a deodorant stick - Old Spice High Endurance 'Original' deodorant stick is the best around !

I'm a woman, and I love Old Spice. Sure, I love it on you men, but I'm talking about how it smells ON ME! The only reason more women don't keep a bottle of this fabulous jus in their wardrobe is simply because it's always marketed for men. But if you're an oriental-spicy loving woman, and, especially if you're a woman who loves, say, the old Caron urn fragrances, you will love to wear Old Spice. Within ten minutes of application, Old Spice smells like the drydown of something between Ernest Daltroff's (Caron) En Avion and his French Cancan. I'm perfectly serious. The florals appear after a while, and the woodsy backdrop is a perfect balance to the delicate spices. It's sheer sophistication. And for the price. . .well, you'll smell like a million bucks, only you'll have spent about seven. You'll think you just exited one of those famously chic Parisian perfume boutiques. No kidding.

Not my favourit as it is not very imaginative, but not as dated and awful as some people might think. Not to strong and not to week. If you dont wear to much it is quite elegant.
benb

True, it's not as dazzlingly original or complex as much of what's around. Yes, it may be a bit too common for a signature scent (at least among those who would go to somewhat ridiculous lengths to find the perfect one...like most of us here at Basenotes, and I'm no exception).

But as far as fragrances go, this one has indeed gone far - hell, it's gone the distance and then some. I may not wear it all the time, but in an odd way it's comforting to know this one's still reveling in its old-school, offhanded, virile charm without ever becoming a parody of itself.

There's something to be said for leaving a good thing to just do its thing.

Old Spice is user friendly. I find it's a blend that can be enjoyed by many, especially young men first venturing into the world of fragrance. For me, it will always be the scent of my grandpa - as he never wore any other.

I once had the priviledge of meeting a billionaire, a modest man, quiet and soft spoken. He wore Old Spice, and this impressed me. It also made me happy because this is the cologne my dad wore on rare occasions; and the first scent I ever had on my face at the age of 8. It got me started. It's an old friend, this Old Spice.

I'll addmit I was one of the guys who grew up in the 90's and cut his fragrance teeth on stuff like Polo and anything made by Calvin Klien so I allways made fun of Old Spice, but i recently bought a bottle of it and was pleasently surprised by it. It seems to have changed from the stuff I ust to smell on my grandpa and is a lot more fruity and I can really smell the Vanilla in it. It's a lot better then I remember so give it a try Spice haters it's only like $10 what ya got to loose?

Ever since I can remember—the late 40’s—Old Spice was on the bathroom shelf. This is the aftershave I slapped on the first time I shaved. And I used it for years. I specifically remember it as being spicy and full bodied—bracing, I think one might call it. It must have been good because I never got tired of it nor found it cloying. I’m going to have to revisit this.

I have discovered why Old Spice sometimes smells totally different from one bottle to another. The stuff actually smells fantastic if you let it age in the bottle before you wear it! I have worn Old Spice cologne for years and have always loved it but sometimes I get a bottle of it that does not smell like the scent that I love so much. I bought one of these odd-smelling bottles of Old Spice a few years ago and set it aside...it actually wound up on a shelf in my garage and set there for several years. On a recent move to a new house, I opened the bottle and took a whif and it smelled pretty good so I put some on and it smelled great, just like the Old Spice I love. So now when I buy Old Spice, if it smells a bit weak or too musky, I put it in my SUV and let it age before I wear it. Try this; it's amazing and you will smell the way you remember the stuff Dad wore. I now keep two or three bottles of Old Spice cologne so I will always have the aged product to wear at all times. It does not go stale, it gets better with age up to 5 to 7 years or so. I'm glad I discovered this because I had been previously disappointed in finding the inconsistency in the way it smelled from one bottle to another. Hooray, I have my Old Spice once again.

Old Spice is a classic that transcends time or trends. It reminds me of my grandfather and exhibits qualities such as simplicity, strength and honesty. It has a warmth and comfort factor too, like an old leather coat that wears well year after year. Designer fragrances come and go but women still find Old Spice attractive and comfortable on a man and it has staying power that lasts most of the day. I just wish P & G would release their new body washes, deodorants and body sprays in Original scent but they seem bent on overshadowing the original with new scents that most people won't remember the name of by the end of the day. The Old Spice ship (in one form or another) keeps on sailing 68 years after it was introduced.

It is from the days men called their perfumes shave lotion. The GI brought it to Germany and together with Wrighleys it has become synonimous for US - smell!
Much stronger stuff than the common German colognes in those days. Speick and M+W Tabac may have been considered counterparts - camouflaged as skin antiseptics!

For generations (now) this scent has wooed ladies, expressed comfort, and complimented the male of the species. So may it be forever.

It's been around for 67 years and is still going strong - we should all be so fortunate! I'll likely always have at least one Old Spice product in my fragrance/personal grooming collections.

I still use it and love it. :)