Eau de Quinine (1898)
by Geo F Trumper

This opens with a light fresh powdery almost floral rosemary accord. It also reminds me of smelling hand cream. Its pleasant but it does not standout to my nose as something I would desire.

15th January, 2012.

An odd duck, and a bit weak...I recommend approaching it like an eau de cologne. It starts out like a rather soapy EdC, or maybe an EdC with a dash of "barbershop" powder and spice added. Soon the medicinal quinine appears, and I recognize it because it reminds me of the juniper herbalness of Bombay Sapphire Infusion, the infamous gin-based scent. Both of these share a grassy dryness, but the EdQ adds a trace of sweet, greenish rose. It gradually gets soapier and sweeter, losing the herbal elements but never going too far. The base leaves more of the underlying powderiness exposed, but again it's too restrained to bother me, and this final transparent base lasts quite a while like the base of their EdC. It's a little more feminine by comparison, but not at all out of place for a man. I would easily wear this, but I'd probably have to inundate myself to discover more hidden aspects of the scent.

11th April, 2011.

Powdery floral citrus opening blast that is somewhat strong but dissipates quickly. Dries down to faint powdery notes that are somewhat difficult to pick anything out and really weak. After an hour it is difficult for me to detect much of anything. Decent opening to this one that I neither love nor hate, but not enough there afterwards to really say much of. As with many of Trumpers offerings, longevity seems to be an issue. Can't really say that I can pick out any quinine in this either.

31st March, 2011.

A wonderful combination of quinine essence, bitter herbs and citrus, with a contrasting powdery drydown. Penhaligon’s Quercus is similar, but Eau de Quinine is superior in every regard.

EdQ deserves far more attention than it gets!

19th December, 2010.

An unusual frag which on me goes on a bit of a rollercoaster journey - the opening notes are sweet and powdery with a strong quinine base. These notes last for about half an hour before it settles down into a powdery aromatic which lasts an hour or so. And then...then it kind of...disappears for a while. It leaves a subtle essence of something almost undetectable but definitely there, before re-introducing itself again another hour or so later with the opening notes. It then stays like this for a couple of hours before bowing out completely. I've never known another fragrance to disappear and come back as this one does. A very weird and unpredictable number which I find difficult to find the right occasion for.

7th January, 2010.

I enjoyed this, without being blown away. The top and middle notes remind me strongly of Guerlain's Habit Rouge but this similarity diverges in the drydown, A bit old fashioned and fusty, but cetainly worth trying out. Is there a note of quinine in this? I honesty couldn't say. I've drunk various drinks which are meant to have quinine in, such as bitters and indian tonic water, but I must say I don't get that association here.

21st June, 2009.