Woods of Windsor for Gentleman (1981)
by Woods of Windsor

Beautifully melancholic and decadent, I find myself using it more and more often…Surely, it would have had its place in the collection of Alexis de Redé.

30th January, 2011.

It has been revived in the EDT. And as with so many others they felt compelled to reformulate with a base given as patchouli and wood moss. The packaging has some manner of new tribal tattoo, or is it a stylised green man under the castle and a price increase. The spray unit with 50 lb trigger pull and bottle remain unscathed. They could have gone really contemporary and placed a bean a la mescal gausino in the bottle in honour of the accountants who took over.

3rd May, 2010. (Last Edited: 13rd October, 2010.)

Woods of Windsor is interesting in that it doesn't open with a sharp citrus blast like so many other fragrances. The citrus instead comes out fairly muted and quickly moves to the middle and base notes which develop into a nice dry woody/leathery scent. Not green, pine or citrusy enough for me, and too close to sandalwood for my wife. I'll pass on this one, but I think it would appeal to a lot of guys.

10th January, 2010.

This is a classic, very old-school, British-styled fragrance, plain and simple. Although leather is not listed as a note, wearing this constantly brings to mind images of leather saddles, the interior of an old Bentley, leather-bound chairs, country clubs, old libraries, etc.. Although it's not as powdery as most scents that are labelled as "dandified", I would have to say that this qualifies as a very formal and dandified fragrance. It is very spicy and woody, though not in a wild, hot-blooded manner (see Yatagan or Mazzolari Lui for that), but rather in a very gentlemanly, formal and a bit stodgy way. It's made of good quality ingredients from what I can tell and is inexpensive so is definitely worth buying if you're looking for a very proper, formal fragrance. Fans of Bois du Portugal would probably like this, though it isn't as complex, warm or rich as it. This is a good scent, but it isn't my style at all.

24th August, 2009. (Last Edited: 26th August, 2009.)

Good solid "gentlemanly" fragrance. Subtle, woody.

10th April, 2009.

Woods of Windsor for Gentlemen is a striking sort of scent. It is distinctive – and I would say commendable – for NOT having any softening or often heavy elements so often found in men’s fragrances. There are no florals, nor is there any vanilla, patchouli or amber. What results is a classy and very dry spicy-wood scent. It is earthy and robust, but it is not sweet or heavy. The initial citrus phase is brief. The next phase is a citrus-spice mélange. The spices are peppery (nutmeg) and sharp (clove) and give a charming, old-school ‘barbershop’ vibe. These aromatics blend well into the third phase, a spicy wood. I can’t identify the particular wood; it fills a supportive rather than starring role. Despite being inexpensive, it has good quality and is thus very good value. And it comes in a variety of related toiletry products. I think it is worth seeking out if you like a dry, spicy wood scent.

15th January, 2008. (Last Edited: 5th April, 2008.)