Eau de Paco Rabanne pour Homme (2002)
by Paco Rabanne

This was definitely a (cheap) blind buy mistake for me.

Here in Australia we have a vegetable based yeast product called Vegemite that you spread on sandwiches or toast, usually for breakfast. It's jet black, has the consistency of thick engine grease and (in my opinion) tastes pretty foul (although it's generally regarded by a high number of the population here as a National Treasure!).

For me, Eau de Paco Rabanne pour Homme smells pretty close to a watered down version of Vegemite. It's far from fresh, and just seems too much like a spicy vegetable soup or a garden salad dressing to have any real appeal.

I've worn this once since purchase and will probably never wear it again. It's such a shame as I only bought it based on its relationship to the original Paco Rabanne pour Homme. This fragrance has no relationship to that classic whatsoever.

24th October, 2011.

I've been going back and forth on this one a lot lately. It opens sharp and green, with a very cool, steely ivy note and a trace of sweetness that reminds me of the secretive florals in Acqua di Gio. Like Bowling Green, the greenery is moderately sweet and almost waxy or plasticky, but not in a bad way, and still much less sweet than most of the competition. Previously I remember this seeming too sharp and medicinal, but now that I've sprayed differently (on my arm, over a large area) I'm not getting that as much, or maybe just in a different way. Like the original, it has enough of a soapy vibe to come across as clean, even though the underlying soil-and-ground-cover notes have a dirty edge. My main misgiving is that the base of this reminds me of the very top notes of Caswell-Massey #6 or Murray and Lanman Florida Water, with their fizzy, metallic, 7-Up sharpness that won't shut up. I don't think it would be enough to bother most people, though. I don't know of anything else quite like it.

28th July, 2011.

Even though my favourite type of fragrances are powerhouses, I love this one. It has an unusual accord to it that to me puts it somewhere between old school fragrances like Old Spice and Paul Sebastian and fougeres. It is smooth and crisp yet by no means insipid.

20th June, 2011.

Horrible, this one. Bought it blind and boy did I regret the purchase. Strange herbs and spices collide in this to produce a cacophany of stench. Lavender and leather? I don't think so. Nothing like Paco PH which I enjoy very much. I will say it's certainly different, but its uniqueness is overpowered by its harshness. In a word, disaster.

9th July, 2010.

A delightfully crispy and clean citrusy-green scent that is at once refreshing, very modern, and classily refined but also decisively masculine, surprisingly dirty/musky and complex. This is what I imagine Eau du Tsar could/should have smelt like, although I reckon it's much closer in strength and potency to Tsar itself. I find it to be quite a heavy fragrance posing as a light one as it has excellent longevity (easily 6 or more hours with a few modest sprays), unexpectedly good sillage, and I think it's strong & versatile enough to wear in any season. As others have remarked, I can also vouch it makes a great hot weather fragrance.

Other than the attractive bottle, I don't detect much in common between this and the original PR Pour Homme. The lavender, lemon & basil stand out most for me and this scent could easily make a nice contemporary change for someone who is used to using one of the citrusy/green colognes from old English barber shops (Truefitt, Trumper, etc.).

To me it is perhaps a more distinguished substitute to Aqua di Gio, and a greener-crispier alternative to the ubiquitous (but still good) Cool Water. Eau de PR is a quality scent that is on my preferred list of summer scents.

21st April, 2010. (Last Edited: 12nd February, 2011.)

I'm not sure whether I tested a duff sample, but I didn't get anything apart from a strong, annoying rosemary all the way. Then hints of very faint vinegarVery odd, checking the note list at the page top, I'm a sort of lemon fanatic, but here I get near to nothing. Nor do I get clean vetiver or pepper! Lacoste Elegance and even Challenge are far superior to this.

I'll go round some stores to have a go at this again if I find it just to confirm, but if my sample was genuine, for once I'd have wished it wasn't. Or was, since it potentially saved me the £15 I'd have wasted if I bought this based on the stuff mainly written here

17th April, 2010.