Punjab (1979)
by Roberto Capucci

Capucci have chosen quite an intriguing evolution for Punjab. It begins tightly wound, rich, dense and bittersweet – and it is simply allowed to unfurl itself.

It unwinds into a dry, spare, cedarwood heart, with a distant leather note. It does appear to run out of steam after a couple of hours, and even produces a brief period of dead air - but it is merely a comma in an excellent passage of creativity.The soft and aged leather finish it ushers in is quite lovely, and well worth the wait.

Punjab is a clear case of concept and execution being of the highest order.

29th March, 2011.

Floriental leather. Everything about it, except for the sillage and monster smell, it all middle-ground. Mild spice, mild leather, mild oriental accords. Now, turn them all way up and it's huge. A stinky leather just on the verge of too much "sweaty" notes. Heightened by green, pink and white florals which can smell animalic to some, Punjab is a jab in the nose. An aging fragrance that's hard to find. The appeal is rarity in quantity available, quality of ingredients and style.

For uniqueness I'd give it a thumbs up but I, personally, do not like the scent.

I'll close by remarking, imagine what the world would be like if Abercrombie & Fitch's Fierce was Punjab.

13rd January, 2010.

Capucci’s Punjab starts out on the skin as if it’s going to be a muscular 1980s fougere in the manner of Jules or Lauder for Men, and that’s just what it is…for about ten minutes. Then, quite suddenly, the bergamot and moss that prevailed at Punjab’s opening are overtaken by a cinnamon, carnation, and jasmine accord that reminds me more than a little of the parallel cinnamon, carnation, and rose in the likewise extinct Patou pour Homme. Punjab also shares some of the Patou’s incense and amber, but it distinguishes itself with more obvious moss and leather in its base notes, compositional traits that again align it more closely with the 1980s fougère “power scents.” In fact, the thing that interests me most about Punjab is the balanced tension it maintains between woody oriental and fougère character. While not overwhelming in its projection or sillage, Punjab is no lightweight, and it persists on the skin for hours before its warm ambery, labdanum-infused drydown. An excellent scent and a sad loss.

11th December, 2009. (Last Edited: 29th November, 2010.)

The herbal greens and the wormwood grab the opening of Punjab and almost immediately I get a rich but discreet leather note in the background along with a background resinous note that seems neither herbal nor wormwood… it’s a soft mixture, I believe of amber and myrrh – quite a beautiful and smooth background note. Smoothing out… not really the background, but the platform of the fragrance… is a reticent patchouli / floral / coniferous accord. This is a complex scent: Already ten minutes into the opening I’m getting three different accords – all aromatic… all distinct. Hmmm. I’ve never encountered something like this before. As a unified sillage away from the skin, these distinct accord combinations lose their distinctiveness, and respond to the nose as a complex mass accord giving, I suppose, a strong impression of herbal - leather. It is potent, rich, resinous, masculine, and more linear than its complexity would suggest.

I admire the complexity and the wearability of Punjab. I won’t be looking for a bottle because of my lack of fondness for leather notes; however, I recognize this as an excellent fragrance.

11th December, 2009.

An old guy sits down to watch the evening's game on his favorite leather recliner, and up puffs a cloud of dust from the ragged, wheezing cushions - that is the smell of Punjab. I appreciate older, retro fragrances, but Punjab is unrelentingly musty and flat to my nose, its spiced leather accord devoid of all life and vibrancy. It sweetens and mellows slightly after many hours, but not so much that it's appealing, merely so much that it's no longer unpleasant. All in all, it makes me want to run outside, breathe in the fresh air, and see living things.

Not awful, not nice; original, but not interesting; unwearable, at least for me.

22nd September, 2009.

Capucci Punjab: Punjab is an no holds barred, herbal, amber based scent with a unique touch of florals. i do not get the connection with Leonard Ph but, i can very safely say it has a lot in common with Nina Ricci's Phileas. only slighltly lighter than Phileas though. would be an overkill to have both in the same wardrobe, saying that, if you like these kinda herbal scents, then Phileas is to an extent Punjab extreme in it;s herbal overtone.
Punjab opens with a very warm, powdery smooth, almost chocolate kind note, but very soon the herbal overtones are pretty clear...it stays pretty warm and herbal for an hour or so before moving into second phase where the herbal accord is slightly toned down to make way for exquisite floral accord coupled with cinnamon(the cinnamon init quite clearly reminds me of Creeds seminal release, Baie de Genievere)..the florals and touch of spice gives this scent much more depth and doesnt fall into the trap of being a one dimensional, herbal scent.
What we get towards the basenotes is where scents of this era shines...luxurious accords of amber and incense spilled on used leather kinda feel. im humbled to feel such soft use of incense in the combination, very visible, yet, never taking the centerstage. the herbal feel is quite toned down by now and makes Punjab a scent which is quite versatile. in the sense, it's developments are seamless and enjoyable at every phase. it's pretty obvious that Serge Lutens Ambre Sultan derived it's structure from Punjab..and by saying so, i tip my hat to SL, for releasing a scent which offers it's customers top quality although, Punjab smells much more opplulent in the amber department..evem To mfords Amber absolute kinda pales...which goes on to show the kind of quality went into this scent.
p.s. This is not a pleasant scent, ppl who dont like (vegetal) herbal scents can safely stay away from this release. if you like Nina Ricci's seminal release Phileas, then definitely give this one a shot.

13rd August, 2009. (Last Edited: 18th August, 2009.)