Orange Spice (1950)
by Creed

A gentleman in the latter part of his life sits confidently in the lobby of a fine hotel. His suit and tie are elegant and his shirt is crisp. His posture is proud, despite the passing of the years, and his eyes are piercing. The attractive young women who pass by acknowledge his gaze good-naturedly, recognising that this man would have swept them off of their feet in his day. He is waiting for his grandson, who, as ever, is late.

Into the lobby walks a strikingly masculine young man with proud posture and piercing eyes, like the old man.

“Kouros, my boy,” the old man growls, “late again?”

“Sorry Grand Father,” the young man smiles, “I was lost in something captivating.”

“No matter my boy,” the old man chuckles, “there will be plenty of time for that after we catch up.”

The two men embrace, and then walk to the dining room lost in their bond of blood and time.


Creed Orange Spice is the progenitor of YSL’s Kouros. This is not to say that it is an old man’s fragrance, but, rather, that Orange Spice is the past from which Kouros emerged.

Orange Spice is softer and smoother than Kouros, but no less elegant or striking.

The orange, clove, and animalic note are in similar balance to Kouros, but somewhat less intense than Kouros.

If you enjoy Kouros you will enjoy Orange Spice, and if Kouros is a bit too much for you Orange Spice will be perfect.

One of the few Creeds that really stands out, as well as being the blueprint for Kouros...

Although I wouldn't consider it bottle worthy, Orange Spice is a classy, dense and spicy citrus that's great for the warmer months. Its longevity is pretty good and is much better than I originally expected.

[Original submission date: 14 October 2006]

My first thoughts were "Kouros, is that you? Why were you rolling around in an orange field?" But once you spray them on each arm for a careful juxtaposition it's very easy to tell where these scents are different.

Kouros opens dirtier due to the heavier civet and the oakmoss, the clove adds some spice to it.

Orange Spice lacks the harsh opening and has a far more subdued clove note, it can smell a bit like Kouros, but there's a very noticeable mandarin and orange note that stick with you the whole time and compliment the must and civet (?) quite nicely. The orange note is not as raw as say, FM's Bigarrade Concentree, which smells like orange peels, it's almost like that smell of fresh orange juice, it's quite noticable and it flirts with you and adds a nice balance to the scent. Upon the drydown it becomes much warmer and starts to blossom, bringing out the "dirty" notes, but the oranges never leave you.

I don't particuarly like citrus scents, but this is one like none other.....and I love it

The general dynamics of this fragrance have already been reviewed. I will echo that comments that, at least to me, this smells like something they would scent a urinal cake with. That's fine if people you know would be impressed with that line of work, but I for one don't feel confident walking around all day smelling like something people pee on.

Not quite as dirty as Cuir D'Oranger, but getting there. Great longevity and sillage with a lovely musky drydown. Bottle worthy for sure -- don't miss out.

Ugh, brutal. It smells of a really strong toilet mint. It does last forever though, in fact you will probably need Lava soap or kerosine to get it off you.